Content Analysis of Master Theses and Dissertations Based on Action Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durak, Gürhan; Yünkül, Eyup; Cankaya, Serkan; Akpinar, Sükran; Erten, Emine; Inam, Nazmiye; Taylan, Ufuk; Tastekin, Eray

2016-01-01

Action Research (AR) is becoming popular in the field of education, and according to literature, it could be stated that AR studies have positive influence on practice in education. The present study aims at conducting content analysis of action research (AR) master theses and doctoral dissertations submitted at the level of Turkish higher…

The Atmospheric River Observatory: an example of a meteorological application of real-time GNSS data.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gutman, S. I.

2011-12-01

Atmospheric Rivers (AR's) are long narrow bands of moisture that transport energy in the form of latent heat poleward from the Equatorial Warm Pool. AR's are usually confined to the warm sector of extratropical cyclones which form along the leading edge of cold fronts, and are sometimes referred to as the "Warm Conveyor Belt," a term coined by Browning (1990) and Carlson (1991). A well-known example of a strong AR event that occasionally hits the west coast of the U.S. is the "Pineapple Express." These storms are so-named because of their apparent origin in the tropics near Hawaii. Observational studies of atmospheric rivers prior to landfall made using in situ aircraft and remote sensing satellite observations indicate that AR's are usually characterized by warm air temperatures, large water vapor content, and strong winds at low altitudes (Ralph et al., 2004, 2005). The importance of AR's and AR-like features is underscored by the fact that they are responsible for about 90% of the total meridional water vapor transport at mid latitudes on the planet. The impact of AR's are felt on landfall. Not all ARs cause damage - most are weak, and simply provide beneficial rain or snow that is crucial to local and regional water supplies. Those that contain the largest amounts of water vapor, the strongest winds, and stall over watersheds vulnerable to flooding can create extreme rainfall and floods. These events commonly disrupt travel, induce mud slides, and cause catastrophic damage to life and property. The challenges to operational meteorologists are to accurately identify those events that are most likely to cause catastrophic damage with as much lead-time as possible, and provide decision makers and the public with accurate and timely information as these storms evolve. There are several aspects to this, including observations, data assimilation, analysis, prediction and verification. GNSS observations provide critical and heretofore unavailable information about the moisture content of atmospheric rivers at all stages of their evolution. GNSS observations offshore are used to calibrate satellite sensors and validate data products. Onshore, GNSS observations provide continuous monitoring of the upslope component of the moisture flux that is highly correlated with heavy precipitation. Assimilated into numerical weather prediction models in conjunction with Doppler radar wind profiler data, GNSS observations are responsible for significant improvements in objective short-term relative humidity and heavy precipitation forecasts (Neiman et al. 2009). Nonetheless, the greatest remaining challenge is to predicting rainfall totals in these events as models struggle with the details of the location, duration and timing of AR's as they make landfall.

Dynamics of polyhydroxyalkanoate accumulation in aerobic granules during the growth-disintegration cycle.

PubMed

Gobi, K; Vadivelu, V M

2015-11-01

The polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) accumulation dynamics in aerobic granules that undergo the growth-disintegration cycle were investigated. Four sequencing batch reactors (SBR) were inoculated with aerobic granules at different stages of development (different sizes). Different sizes of aerobic granules showed varying PHA contents. Thus, further study was conducted to investigate the diffusion of substrate and oxygen on PHA accumulation using various organic loading rates (OLR) and aeration rates (AR). An increase in OLR from 0.91 to 3.64kg COD/m(3)day increased the PHA content from 0.66 to 0.87g PHA/g CDW. Meanwhile, an AR increase from 1 to 4L/min only accelerated the maximum PHA accumulation without affecting the PHA content. However, the PHA composition only changes with AR, while the hydroxyvalerate (HV) content increased at a higher AR. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analytic Validation of RNA In Situ Hybridization (RISH) for AR and AR-V7 Expression in Human Prostate Cancer

PubMed Central

Guedes, Liana B.; Morais, Carlos L.; Almutairi, Fawaz; Haffner, Michael C.; Zheng, Qizhi; Isaacs, John T.; Antonarakis, Emmanuel S.; Lu, Changxue; Tsai, Harrison; Luo, Jun; De Marzo, Angelo M.; Lotan, Tamara L.

2016-01-01

Purpose RNA expression of androgen receptor splice variants may be a biomarker of resistance to novel androgen deprivation therapies in castrate resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). We analytically validated an RNA in situ hybridization (RISH) assay for total AR and AR-V7 for use in formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) prostate tumors. Experimental Design We used prostate cell lines and xenografts to validate chromogenic RISH to detect RNA containing AR exon 1 (AR-E1, surrogate for total AR RNA species) and cryptic exon 3 (AR-CE3, surrogate for AR-V7 expression). RISH signals were quantified in FFPE primary tumors and CRPC specimens, comparing to known AR and AR-V7 status by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR. Results The quantified RISH results correlated significantly with total AR and AR-V7 levels by RT-PCR in cell lines, xenografts and autopsy metastases. Both AR-E1 and AR-CE3 RISH signals were localized in nuclear punctae in addition to the expected cytoplasmic speckles. Compared to admixed benign glands, AR-E1 expression was significantly higher in primary tumor cells with a median fold increase of 3.0 and 1.4 in two independent cohorts (p<0.0001 and p=0.04, respectively). While AR-CE3 expression was detectable in primary prostatic tumors, levels were substantially higher in a subset of CRPC metastases and cell lines, and were correlated with AR-E1 expression. Conclusions RISH for AR-E1 and AR-CE3 is an analytically valid method to examine total AR and AR-V7 RNA levels in FFPE tissues. Future clinical validation studies are required to determine whether AR RISH is a prognostic or predictive biomarker in specific clinical contexts. PMID:27166397

The influence of the Ar/O2 ratio on the electron density and electron temperature in microwave discharges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espinho, S.; Hofmann, S.; Palomares, J. M.; Nijdam, S.

2017-10-01

The aim of this work is to study the properties of Ar-O2 microwave driven surfatron plasmas as a function of the Ar/O2 ratio in the gas mixture. The key parameters are the plasma electron density and electron temperature, which are estimated with Thomson scattering (TS) for O2 contents up to 50% of the total gas flow. A sharp drop in the electron density from {10}20 {{{m}}}-3 to approximately {10}18 {{{m}}}-3 is estimated as the O2 content in the gas mixture is increased up to 15%. For percentages of O2 lower than 10%, the electron temperature is estimated to be about 2-3 times higher than in the case of a pure argon discharge in the same conditions ({T}{{e}}≈ 1 eV) and gradually decreases as the O2 percentage is raised to 50%. However, for O2 percentages above 30%, the scattering spectra become Raman dominated, resulting in large uncertainties in the estimated electron densities and temperatures. The influence of photo-detached electrons from negative ions caused by the typical TS laser fluences is also likely to contribute to the uncertainty in the measured electron densities for high O2 percentages. Moreover, the detection limit of the system is reached for percentages of O2 higher than 25%. Additionally, both the electron density and temperature of microwave discharges with large Ar/O2 ratios are more sensitive to gas pressure variations.

Combined Effects of Lanthanum (III) and Acid Rain on Antioxidant Enzyme System in Soybean Roots.

PubMed

Zhang, Xuanbo; Du, Yuping; Wang, Lihong; Zhou, Qing; Huang, Xiaohua; Sun, Zhaoguo

2015-01-01

Rare earth element pollution (REEs) and acid rain (AR) pollution simultaneously occur in many regions, which resulted in a new environmental issue, the combined pollution of REEs and AR. The effects of the combined pollution on the antioxidant enzyme system of plant roots have not been reported. Here, the combined effects of lanthanum ion (La3+), one type of REE, and AR on the antioxidant enzyme system of soybean roots were investigated. In the combined treatment of La3+ (0.08 mM) and AR, the cell membrane permeability and the peroxidation of cell membrane lipid of soybean roots increased, and the superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase and reduced ascorbic acid served as scavengers of reactive oxygen species. In other combined treatments of La3+ (0.40 mM, 1.20 mM) and AR, the membrane permeability, malonyldialdehyde content, superoxide dismutase activity, peroxidase activity and reduced ascorbic acid content increased, while the catalase activity decreased. The increased superoxide dismutase activity, peroxidase activity and reduced ascorbic acid content were inadequate to scavenge the excess hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, leading to the damage of the cell membrane, which was aggravated with the increase in the concentration of La3+ and the level of AR. The deleterious effects of the combined treatment of La3+ and AR were stronger than those of the single treatment of La3+ or AR. Moreover, the activity of antioxidant enzyme system in the combined treatment group was affected directly and indirectly by mineral element content in soybean plants.

Combined Effects of Lanthanum (III) and Acid Rain on Antioxidant Enzyme System in Soybean Roots

PubMed Central

Zhang, Xuanbo; Du, Yuping; Wang, Lihong; Zhou, Qing; Huang, Xiaohua; Sun, Zhaoguo

2015-01-01

Rare earth element pollution (REEs) and acid rain (AR) pollution simultaneously occur in many regions, which resulted in a new environmental issue, the combined pollution of REEs and AR. The effects of the combined pollution on the antioxidant enzyme system of plant roots have not been reported. Here, the combined effects of lanthanum ion (La3+), one type of REE, and AR on the antioxidant enzyme system of soybean roots were investigated. In the combined treatment of La3+ (0.08 mM) and AR, the cell membrane permeability and the peroxidation of cell membrane lipid of soybean roots increased, and the superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase and reduced ascorbic acid served as scavengers of reactive oxygen species. In other combined treatments of La3+ (0.40 mM, 1.20 mM) and AR, the membrane permeability, malonyldialdehyde content, superoxide dismutase activity, peroxidase activity and reduced ascorbic acid content increased, while the catalase activity decreased. The increased superoxide dismutase activity, peroxidase activity and reduced ascorbic acid content were inadequate to scavenge the excess hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, leading to the damage of the cell membrane, which was aggravated with the increase in the concentration of La3+ and the level of AR. The deleterious effects of the combined treatment of La3+ and AR were stronger than those of the single treatment of La3+ or AR. Moreover, the activity of antioxidant enzyme system in the combined treatment group was affected directly and indirectly by mineral element content in soybean plants. PMID:26230263

Using learning analytics to evaluate a video-based lecture series.

PubMed

Lau, K H Vincent; Farooque, Pue; Leydon, Gary; Schwartz, Michael L; Sadler, R Mark; Moeller, Jeremy J

2018-01-01

The video-based lecture (VBL), an important component of the flipped classroom (FC) and massive open online course (MOOC) approaches to medical education, has primarily been evaluated through direct learner feedback. Evaluation may be enhanced through learner analytics (LA) - analysis of quantitative audience usage data generated by video-sharing platforms. We applied LA to an experimental series of ten VBLs on electroencephalography (EEG) interpretation, uploaded to YouTube in the model of a publicly accessible MOOC. Trends in view count; total percentage of video viewed and audience retention (AR) (percentage of viewers watching at a time point compared to the initial total) were examined. The pattern of average AR decline was characterized using regression analysis, revealing a uniform linear decline in viewership for each video, with no evidence of an optimal VBL length. Segments with transient increases in AR corresponded to those focused on core concepts, indicative of content requiring more detailed evaluation. We propose a model for applying LA at four levels: global, series, video, and feedback. LA may be a useful tool in evaluating a VBL series. Our proposed model combines analytics data and learner self-report for comprehensive evaluation.

Elevated nitrogen metabolism and nitric oxide production are involved in Arabidopsis resistance to acid rain.

PubMed

Qiao, Fang; Zhang, Xi-Min; Liu, Xiang; Chen, Juan; Hu, Wen-Jun; Liu, Ting-Wu; Liu, Ji-Yun; Zhu, Chun-Quan; Ghoto, Kabir; Zhu, Xue-Yi; Zheng, Hai-Lei

2018-06-01

Acid rain (AR) can induce great damages to plants and could be classified into different types according to the different SO 4 2- /NO 3 - ratio. However, the mechanism of plants' responding to different types of AR has not been elucidated clearly. Here, we found that nitric-rich simulated AR (N-SiAR) induced less leaves injury as lower necrosis percentage, better physiological parameters and reduced oxidative damage in the leaves of N-SiAR treated Arabidopsis thaliana compared with sulfate and nitrate mixed (SN-SiAR) or sulfuric-rich (S-SiAR) simulated AR treated ones. Of these three types of SiAR, N-SiAR treated Arabidopsis maintained the highest of nitrogen (N) content, nitrate reductase (NR) and nitrite reductase (NiR) activity as well as N metabolism related genes expression level. Nitric oxide (NO) content showed that N-SiAR treated seedlings had a higher NO level compared to SN-SiAR or S-SiAR treated ones. A series of NO production and elimination related reagents and three NO production-related mutants were used to further confirm the role of NO in regulating acid rain resistance in N-SiAR treated Arabidopsis seedlings. Taken together, we concluded that an elevated N metabolism and enhanced NO production are involved in the tolerance to different types of AR in Arabidopsis. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Localization of mineralization, its age, and relationship to magmatism at the Mogot silver-base-metal deposit, North Stanovoi metallogenic zone in the southeastern framework of the North Asian Craton

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buchko, I. V.; Buchko, Ir. V.; Sorokin, A. A.; Ponomarchuk, V. A.; Travin, A. V.

2014-03-01

The results of studying the Mogot silver-base-metal deposit located in the Dzhugdzhur-Stanovoi Superterrane are discussed in this paper. The main ore-controlling structural elements of the studied district are near-latitudinal and NE-trending faults, which are accompanied by zones of hydrothermal metasomatic potassic, propylitic, and argillic alterations, breccias with quartz and quartz-carbonate cement replacing metamorphic rocks and granitoids of the Late Stanovoi Complex. The total sulfide content in ore is 2-3%. The high Ag, Pb, and Zn contents in ore allow us to consider the Mogot deposit as silver-base-metal, since except of orebody 4, there are no silver minerals proper. This indicates that silver is incorporated into crystalline lattice of sulfides. The results of 40Ar/39Ar geochronological investigations show that the hydrothermal ore deposition dated at 127-125 Ma was related to emplacement of intrusions pertaining to the Tynda-Bakaran Complex.

Hexavalent chromium content in stainless steel welding fumes is dependent on the welding process and shield gas type.

PubMed

Keane, Michael; Stone, Samuel; Chen, Bean; Slaven, James; Schwegler-Berry, Diane; Antonini, James

2009-02-01

Occupational exposure to welding fumes is a known health hazard. To isolate elements in stainless steel welding fumes with high potential for adverse health outcomes, fumes were generated using a robotic gas metal arc system, using four shield gases of varying oxygen content. The objective was to measure Cr(VI) concentrations in a broad spectrum of gas metal arc welding processes, and identify processes of exceptionally high or low Cr(VI) content. The gases used were 95% Ar/5% O(2), 98% Ar/2% O(2), 95% Ar/5%CO(2), and 75% He/25% Ar. The welder was operated in axial spray mode (Ar/O(2), Ar/CO(2)), short-circuit (SC) mode (Ar/CO(2) low voltage and He/Ar), and pulsed axial-spray mode (98% Ar/2% O(2)). Results indicate large differences in Cr(VI) in the fumes, with Ar/O(2) (Pulsed)>Ar/O(2)>Ar/CO(2)>Ar/CO(2) (SC)>He/Ar; values were 3000+/-300, 2800+/-85, 2600+/-120, 1400+/-190, and 320+/-290 ppm respectively (means +/- standard errors for 2 runs and 3 replicates per run). Respective rates of Cr(VI) generation were 1.5, 3.2, 4.4, 1.3, and 0.46 microg/min; generation rates were also calculated in terms of microg Cr(VI) per metre of wire used. The generation rates of Cr(VI) increased with increasing O(3) concentrations. Particle size measurements indicated similar distributions, but somewhat higher >0.6 microm fractions for the short-circuit mode samples. Fumes were also sampled into 2 selected size ranges, a microspatter fraction (>or=0.6 microm) and a fine (<0.6 microm) fraction; analysis indicated that Cr(VI) is primarily associated with particles <0.6 microm. The conclusion of the study is that Cr(VI) concentrations vary significantly with welding type and shield gas type, and this presents an opportunity to tailor welding practices to lessen Cr(VI) exposures in workplaces by selecting low Cr(VI)-generating processes. Short-circuit processes generated less Cr(VI) than axial-spray methods, and inert gas shielding gave lower Cr(VI) content than shielding with active gases. A short circuit He/Ar shielded process and a pulsed axial spray Ar/O(2) process were both identified as having substantially lower Cr(VI) generation rates per unit of wire used relative to the other processes studied.

Alteration of natural (37)Ar activity concentration in the subsurface by gas transport and water infiltration.

PubMed

Guillon, Sophie; Sun, Yunwei; Purtschert, Roland; Raghoo, Lauren; Pili, Eric; Carrigan, Charles R

2016-05-01

High (37)Ar activity concentration in soil gas is proposed as a key evidence for the detection of underground nuclear explosion by the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty. However, such a detection is challenged by the natural background of (37)Ar in the subsurface, mainly due to Ca activation by cosmic rays. A better understanding and improved capability to predict (37)Ar activity concentration in the subsurface and its spatial and temporal variability is thus required. A numerical model integrating (37)Ar production and transport in the subsurface is developed, including variable soil water content and water infiltration at the surface. A parameterized equation for (37)Ar production in the first 15 m below the surface is studied, taking into account the major production reactions and the moderation effect of soil water content. Using sensitivity analysis and uncertainty quantification, a realistic and comprehensive probability distribution of natural (37)Ar activity concentrations in soil gas is proposed, including the effects of water infiltration. Site location and soil composition are identified as the parameters allowing for a most effective reduction of the possible range of (37)Ar activity concentrations. The influence of soil water content on (37)Ar production is shown to be negligible to first order, while (37)Ar activity concentration in soil gas and its temporal variability appear to be strongly influenced by transient water infiltration events. These results will be used as a basis for practical CTBTO concepts of operation during an OSI. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Combining Digital Archives Content with Serious Game Approach to Create a Gamified Learning Experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shih, D.-T.; Lin, C. L.; Tseng, C.-Y.

2015-08-01

This paper presents an interdisciplinary to develop content-aware application that combines game with learning on specific categories of digital archives. The employment of content-oriented game enhances the gamification and efficacy of learning in culture education on architectures and history of Hsinchu County, Taiwan. The gamified form of the application is used as a backbone to support and provide a strong stimulation to engage users in learning art and culture, therefore this research is implementing under the goal of "The Digital ARt/ARchitecture Project". The purpose of the abovementioned project is to develop interactive serious game approaches and applications for Hsinchu County historical archives and architectures. Therefore, we present two applications, "3D AR for Hukou Old " and "Hsinchu County History Museum AR Tour" which are in form of augmented reality (AR). By using AR imaging techniques to blend real object and virtual content, the users can immerse in virtual exhibitions of Hukou Old Street and Hsinchu County History Museum, and to learn in ubiquitous computing environment. This paper proposes a content system that includes tools and materials used to create representations of digitized cultural archives including historical artifacts, documents, customs, religion, and architectures. The Digital ARt / ARchitecture Project is based on the concept of serious game and consists of three aspects: content creation, target management, and AR presentation. The project focuses on developing a proper approach to serve as an interactive game, and to offer a learning opportunity for appreciating historic architectures by playing AR cards. Furthermore, the card game aims to provide multi-faceted understanding and learning experience to help user learning through 3D objects, hyperlinked web data, and the manipulation of learning mode, and then effectively developing their learning levels on cultural and historical archives in Hsinchu County.

Ultralow energy ion beam surface modification of low density polyethylene.

PubMed

Shenton, Martyn J; Bradley, James W; van den Berg, Jaap A; Armour, David G; Stevens, Gary C

2005-12-01

Ultralow energy Ar+ and O+ ion beam irradiation of low density polyethylene has been carried out under controlled dose and monoenergetic conditions. XPS of Ar+-treated surfaces exposed to ambient atmosphere show that the bombardment of 50 eV Ar+ ions at a total dose of 10(16) cm(-2) gives rise to very reactive surfaces with oxygen incorporation at about 50% of the species present in the upper surface layer. Using pure O+ beam irradiation, comparatively low O incorporation is achieved without exposure to atmosphere (approximately 13% O in the upper surface). However, if the surface is activated by Ar+ pretreatment, then large oxygen contents can be achieved under subsequent O+ irradiation (up to 48% O). The results show that for very low energy (20 eV) oxygen ions there is a dose threshold of about 5 x 10(15) cm(-2) before surface oxygen incorporation is observed. It appears that, for both Ar+ and O+ ions in this regime, the degree of surface modification is only very weakly dependent on the ion energy. The results suggest that in the nonequilibrium plasma treatment of polymers, where the ion flux is typically 10(18) m(-2) s(-1), low energy ions (<50 eV) may be responsible for surface chemical modification.

Oxidation kinetics of hydride-bearing uranium metal corrosion products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Totemeier, Terry C.; Pahl, Robert G.; Frank, Steven M.

The oxidation behavior of hydride-bearing uranium metal corrosion products from Zero Power Physics Reactor (ZPPR) fuel plates was studied using thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) in environments of Ar-4%O 2, Ar-9%O 2, and Ar-20%O 2. Ignition of corrosion product samples from two moderately corroded plates was observed between 125°C and 150°C in all environments. The rate of oxidation above the ignition temperature was found to be dependent only on the net flow rate of oxygen in the reacting gas. Due to the higher net oxygen flow rate, burning rates increased with increasing oxygen concentration. Oxidation rates below the ignition temperature were much slower and decreased with increasing test time. The hydride contents of the TGA samples from the two moderately corroded plates, determined from the total weight gain achieved during burning, were 47-61 wt% and 29-39 wt%. Samples from a lightly corroded plate were not reactive; X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed that they contained little hydride.

Radioactive rare gases and tritium in the sample return container, and the $sup 37$Ar and $sup 39$Ar depth profile in the Apollo 16 drill stem

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

Stoenner, R.W.; Davis, R. Jr.; Bauer, M.

1973-01-01

The gas was extracted from the sample return container from the Apollo 16 and 17 missions by adsorption on charcoal and activated vanadium metal. The hydrogen, argon, and radon were separated and counted to give the tritium, /sup 37/Ar, /suyp 39/Ar, and /sup 222 /Rn activities. The tritium and argon activities observed could be explained by diffusive losses of these gases from the fine material in the container. There was no excess tritium present in the Apollo 17 containers that could be attributed to solar tritons remaining from the intense flare of August 4, 1972. The /sup 222/Rn observed inmore » the sample return container was interpreted as an emanation product from lunar fines and an emanation yield of 1 x 10/sup -4/ was calculated. This yield is consistent with the low radon content observed in the lunar atmosphere. The tritium, sup 37/Ar, / sup 39/Ar, and /sup 222/Rn activities and the K, Ca, Ti, Fe, and Mn contents were measured on a set of samples from the Apollo 16 deep drill stem at depths from 83 to 343 g/cm/sup 2/. The /sup 37/Ar and /sup 39/Ar activities combined with similar measurements at more shallow depth by Fireman and associates (SAO) give the complete activity proflle in the lunar regolith. Since /sup 37/Ar is produced mainly by the /sup 40/Ca(n, alpha )/su p 37/Ar reaction it is possible to determine the neutron production rate in the regolith as a function of the depth. The /sup 222/Rn extracted from the samples by vacuum melting was found to be lower than expected in some samples based upon their uranium contents. The hydrogen and helium contents of the drill stem samples were measured and found to be relatively uniform with depth in contrast to similar measurements on Apollo 15 and 17 drill stems. The H/He atom ratio was higher than the accepted solar-wind value by a factor of two, possibly due to water contamination. (auth)« less

Throwing enhances humeral shaft cortical bone properties in pre-pubertal baseball players: a 12-month longitudinal pilot study.

PubMed

Weatherholt, Alyssa M; Warden, Stuart J

2018-06-01

To explore throwing athletes as a prospective, within-subject controlled model for studying the response of the skeleton to exercise. Male pre-pubertal throwing athletes (n=12; age=10.3±0.6 yrs) had distal humerus cortical volumetric bone mineral density (Ct.vBMD), cortical bone mineral content (Ct.BMC), total area (Tt.Ar), cortical area (Ct.Ar), medullary area (Me.Ar), cortical thickness (Ct.Th) and polar moment of inertia (IP) assessed within their throwing (exercised) and nonthrowing (control) arms by peripheral quantitative computed tomography at baseline and 12 months. Throwing-to-nonthrowing arm percent differences (i.e. bilateral asymmetry) were compared over time. Over 12 months, the throwing arm gained 4.3% (95% Cl=1.1% to 7.5%), 2.9% (95% Cl=0.3% to 5.4%), 3.9% (95% Cl=0.7% to 7.0%), and 8.2% (95% Cl=2.0% to 6.8%) more Ct.BMC, Ct.Ar, Tt.Ar, and I P than the nonthrowing arm, respectively (all p<0.05). There was no significant effect of throwing on Ct.vBMD, Ct.Th and Me.Ar (all p=0.18-0.82). Throwing induced surface-specific cortical bone adaptation at the distal humeral diaphysis that contributed to a gain in estimated strength. These longitudinal pilot data support the utility of throwing athletes as a within-subject controlled model to explore factors influencing exercise-induced bone adaptation during the critical growing years.

The Role of Tropical Moisture Export on Atmospheric River Intensity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, H.; Dominguez, F.

2017-12-01

There has been considerable debate regarding the relative importance of tropical moisture export (TME) and local evapotranspiration on the total moisture associated with atmospheric rivers (ARs). While case studies have related TME signatures with some extreme ARs affecting the U.S. West Coast, no robust relationship between them has been established. In this study, our goal is to quantify the role of TME on AR-related precipitation intensity. From a total of 244 identified ARs that have affected the U.S. Northwest Coast in winters of 1979 to 2016, we are focusing on a subset of 37 ARs with TME features (TME-ARs). These TME-ARs are identified using vapor-weighted wind vectors to back-track ARs 3 days before they reach the Northwest Coast. If their back-trajectories reach latitudes south of 25°N, the AR is labeled as a TME-AR. Compared with the rest of ARs without TME features, TME-ARs are associated with higher vertically integrated vapor transport (IVT) and greater precipitation intensity. At the same time, they also span a wide range of precipitation intensity and thus allow an examination of the TME effect on a full spectrum of AR intensity. To quantify the effect of TME on AR-related precipitable water and precipitation, we simulate the 37 TME-ARs using the tool of water vapor tracer in WRF model (WRF-WVT) to tag the moisture evaporated from latitudes lower than 25°N. Consequently, the total moisture can be separated into that from TME and that from midlatitude evaporation. Our analysis shows that as the AR gets stronger in terms of total precipitable water and precipitation, there is a significant increase of the contribution from TME to total precipitable water. Similarly, the contribution from TME to AR precipitation also increases but with a weaker correlation. Both of them suggest an increasing role of TME on more intense ARs. We also find a higher efficiency of TME moisture being converted to precipitation than that from local sources. However, this efficiency decreases when AR precipitation intensity increases, suggesting an increasing role of local (midlatitude) evaporation in generating precipitation. This is probably due to the thermodynamic changes associated with TME, which enhances local circulation and thus local moisture recycling.

Radioactivities in returned lunar materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

The Ar37, Ar39, and H3 were measured at four depths (from 0 to 19.5 cm) of the deep core from Apollo 16 and in four other Apollo 16 samples. The Ar37 increased steadily from 40 dpm/kg at the top of the core to 68 dpm/kg at 19-cm depth. The comparison of the Ar37 in the core with that in rock 15555 shows that the solar flare at the time of the Apollo 16 mission was approximately an order of magnitude less intense than solar flares of 24 January 1971 and 2 November 1969, which occurred before the Apollo 14 and 12 missions. The Ar39 activities in the top 19 cm of the deep core varied little with depth. Because the Apollo 16 samples have a much higher Ca content and much lower Fe and Ti contents than do the documented rocks from previous missions, the Ar39 in the Fe, Ca, and K can be determined from Ar39 measurements on lunar material if a Ti cross section is assumed.

An investigation of Ar metastable state density in low pressure dual-frequency capacitively coupled argon and argon-diluted plasmas

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

Liu, Wen-Yao; Xu, Yong, E-mail: yongxu@dlut.edu.cn; Peng, Fei

2015-01-14

An tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy has been used to determine the Ar*({sup 3}P{sub 2}) and Ar*({sup 3}P{sub 0}) metastable atoms densities in dual-frequency capacitively coupled plasmas. The effects of different control parameters, such as high-frequency power, gas pressure and content of Ar, on the densities of two metastable atoms and electron density were discussed in single-frequency and dual-frequency Ar discharges, respectively. Particularly, the effects of the pressure on the axial profile of the electron and Ar metastable state densities were also discussed. Furthermore, a simple rate model was employed and its results were compared with experiments to analyze themore » main production and loss processes of Ar metastable states. It is found that Ar metastable state is mainly produced by electron impact excitation from the ground state, and decayed by diffusion and collision quenching with electrons and neutral molecules. Besides, the addition of CF{sub 4} was found to significantly increase the metastable destruction rate by the CF{sub 4} quenching, especially for large CF{sub 4} content and high pressure, it becomes the dominant depopulation process.« less

Postharvest changes in the phenolic profile of watercress induced by post-packaging irradiation and modified atmosphere packaging.

PubMed

Pinela, José; Barros, Lillian; Barreira, João C M; Carvalho, Ana Maria; Oliveira, M Beatriz P P; Santos-Buelga, Celestino; Ferreira, Isabel C F R

2018-07-15

The effects of γ-ray irradiation and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) on watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. Br.) phenolic compounds were evaluated after 7-day storage at 4 °C. Irradiation doses of 1, 2 and 5 kGy were tested, as well as vacuum-packaging and MAP enriched with 100% N 2 and Ar. A non-irradiated, air-packaged control was included in all experiments. p-Coumaric acid was the most abundant compound in fresh watercress, followed by quercetin-3-O-sophoroside and isorhamnetin-O-hydroxyferuloylhexoside-O-hexoside. Four kaempferol glycoside derivatives were identified for the first time in this species. In general, flavonoids predominated over phenolic acids. Samples stored under vacuum and irradiated at 2 kGy revealed lower phenolic levels. Ar-enriched MAP and control conditions preserved the initial phenolic content. The 5 kGy dose also maintained concentrations of flavonoids and total phenolic compounds, but increased the phenolic acids content. Additionally, flavonoids were found strongly correlated to DPPH scavenging activity and β-carotene bleaching inhibition capacity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Upper-body resistance exercise augments vastus lateralis androgen receptor-DNA binding and canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling compared to lower-body resistance exercise in resistance-trained men without an acute increase in serum testosterone.

PubMed

Spillane, Mike; Schwarz, Neil; Willoughby, Darryn S

2015-06-01

The purpose of the study was to determine the effect of single bouts of lower-body (LB) and upper- and lower-body (ULB) resistance exercise on serum testosterone concentrations and the effects on muscle testosterone, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), androgen receptor (AR) protein content, and AR-DNA binding. A secondary purpose was to determine the effects on serum wingless-type MMTV integration site (Wnt4) levels and skeletal muscle β-catenin content. In a randomized cross-over design, exercise bouts consisted of a LB and ULB protocol, and each bout was separated by 1 week. Blood and muscle samples were obtained before exercise and 3 and 24h post-exercise; blood samples were also obtained at 0.5, 1, and 2 h post-exercise. Statistical analyses were performed by separate two-way factorial analyses of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures. No significant differences from baseline were observed in serum total and free testosterone and skeletal muscle testosterone and DHT with either protocol (p>0.05). AR protein was significantly increased at 3 h post-exercise and decreased at 24 h post-exercise for ULB, whereas AR-DNA binding was significantly increased at 3 and 24h post-exercise (p<0.05). In response to ULB, serum Wnt4 was significantly increased at 0.5, 1, and 2 h post-exercise (p<0.05) and β-catenin was significantly increased at 3 and 24 h post-exercise (p<0.05). It was concluded that, despite a lack of increase in serum testosterone and muscle androgen concentrations from either mode of resistance exercise, ULB resistance exercise increased Wnt4/β-catenin signaling and AR-DNA binding. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Publications - AR 2006 | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2006 main content DGGS AR 2006 Publication Details Title: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Annual

Publications - AR 2000 | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2000 main content DGGS AR 2000 Publication Details Title: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Annual

Publications - AR 2003 | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2003 main content DGGS AR 2003 Publication Details Title: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Annual

Publications - AR 2004 | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2004 main content DGGS AR 2004 Publication Details Title: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Annual

Development and Implementation of a High-Throughput High-Content Screening Assay to Identify Inhibitors of Androgen Receptor Nuclear Localization in Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Cells

PubMed Central

Nguyen, Minh M.; Dar, Javid A.; Ai, Junkui; Wang, Yujuan; Masoodi, Khalid Z.; Shun, Tongying; Shinde, Sunita; Camarco, Daniel P.; Hua, Yun; Huryn, Donna M.; Wilson, Gabriela Mustata; Lazo, John S.; Nelson, Joel B.; Wipf, Peter

2016-01-01

Abstract Patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) can be treated with abiraterone, a potent inhibitor of androgen synthesis, or enzalutamide, a second-generation androgen receptor (AR) antagonist, both targeting AR signaling. However, most patients relapse after several months of therapy and a majority of patients with relapsed CRPC tumors express the AR target gene prostate-specific antigen (PSA), suggesting that AR signaling is reactivated and can be targeted again to inhibit the relapsed tumors. Novel small molecules capable of inhibiting AR function may lead to urgently needed therapies for patients resistant to abiraterone, enzalutamide, and/or other previously approved antiandrogen therapies. Here, we describe a high-throughput high-content screening (HCS) campaign to identify small-molecule inhibitors of AR nuclear localization in the C4-2 CRPC cell line stably transfected with GFP-AR-GFP (2GFP-AR). The implementation of this HCS assay to screen a National Institutes of Health library of 219,055 compounds led to the discovery of 3 small molecules capable of inhibiting AR nuclear localization and function in C4-2 cells, demonstrating the feasibility of using this cell-based phenotypic assay to identify small molecules targeting the subcellular localization of AR. Furthermore, the three hit compounds provide opportunities to develop novel AR drugs with potential for therapeutic intervention in CRPC patients who have relapsed after treatment with antiandrogens, such as abiraterone and/or enzalutamide. PMID:27187604

Cellular androgen content influences enzalutamide agonism of F877L mutant androgen receptor

PubMed Central

Coleman, Daniel J.; Van Hook, Kathryn; King, Carly J.; Schwartzman, Jacob; Lisac, Robert; Urrutia, Joshua; Sehrawat, Archana; Woodward, Josha; Wang, Nicholas J.; Gulati, Roman; Thomas, George V.; Beer, Tomasz M.; Gleave, Martin; Korkola, James E.; Gao, Lina; Heiser, Laura M.; Alumkal, Joshi J.

2016-01-01

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed and second-most lethal cancer among men in the United States. The vast majority of prostate cancer deaths are due to castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) – the lethal form of the disease that has progressed despite therapies that interfere with activation of androgen receptor (AR) signaling. One emergent resistance mechanism to medical castration is synthesis of intratumoral androgens that activate the AR. This insight led to the development of the AR antagonist enzalutamide. However, resistance to enzalutamide invariably develops, and disease progression is nearly universal. One mechanism of resistance to enzalutamide is an F877L mutation in the AR ligand-binding domain that can convert enzalutamide to an agonist of AR activity. However, mechanisms that contribute to the agonist switch had not been fully clarified, and there were no therapies to block AR F877L. Using cell line models of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), we determined that cellular androgen content influences enzalutamide agonism of mutant F877L AR. Further, enzalutamide treatment of AR F877L-expressing cell lines recapitulated the effects of androgen activation of F877L AR or wild-type AR. Because the BET bromodomain inhibitor JQ-1 was previously shown to block androgen activation of wild-type AR, we tested JQ-1 in AR F877L-expressing CRPC models. We determined that JQ-1 suppressed androgen or enzalutamide activation of mutant F877L AR and suppressed growth of mutant F877L AR CRPC tumors in vivo, demonstrating a new strategy to treat tumors harboring this mutation. PMID:27276681

Effect of treadmill exercise on 5-HT, 5-HT1A receptor and brain derived neurophic factor in rats after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion.

PubMed

Lan, Xiaofang; Zhang, Meng; Yang, Wan; Zheng, Zongju; Wu, Yuan; Zeng, Qian; Liu, Shudong; Liu, Ke; Li, Guangqin

2014-05-01

It has been well documented that exercise promotes neurological rehabilitation in patients with cerebral ischemia. However, the exact mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to discuss the effect of treadmill exercise on expression levels of 5-HT, 5-HT1A receptor (5-HT1AR) and brain derived neurophic factor (BDNF) in rat brains after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO). A total of 55 rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: pMCAO group, pMCAO and treadmill exercise (pMCAO + Ex) group, and sham-operated group. Rats in pMCAO + Ex group underwent treadmill exercise for 16 days. Neurological function was evaluated by modified Neurological Severity Scores (mNSS). High-performance liquid chromatography-electrochemical detection system was used to determine the content of 5-HT in cortex tissues. The protein levels of 5-HT1AR, BDNF and synaptophysin were measured by Western blot. The mNSS in pMCAO + Ex group was lower than that in pMCAO group on day 19 post-MCAO (p < 0.001). The content of 5-HT dropped to 3.81 ± 1.86 ng/ml in pMCAO group (43.84 ± 2.05 ng/ml in sham-operated group), but increased in pMCAO + Ex group (10.06 ± 1.80 ng/ml). The protein expressions levels of synaptophysin, 5-HT1AR and BDNF were downregulated after cerebral ischemia (p < 0.05), and upregulated after treadmill exercise (p < 0.05). These results indicate that treadmill exercise improves neurologic function, enhances neuronal plasticity and upregulates the levels of 5-HT, 5-HT1AR and BDNF in rats with pMCAO.

Publications - AR 2010-D | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2010-D main content DGGS AR 2010-D Publication Details Title: Volcanology FY11 project descriptions Authors: Nye, C.J

Publications - AR 2011-D | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Visiting Alaska State Employees DGGS State of Alaska search Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Facebook DGGS News Natural Resources Geological & Geophysical Surveys Publications AR 2011-D main content DGGS AR 2011-D Publication Details Title: Volcanology FY12 project descriptions Authors: Nye, C.J

The development of AR book for computer learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phadung, Muneeroh; Wani, Najela; Tongmnee, Nur-aiynee

2017-08-01

Educators need to provide the alternative educational tools to foster learning outcomes of students. By using AR technology to create exciting edutainment experiences, this paper presents how augmented reality (AR) can be applied in the education. This study aims to develop the AR book for tenth grade students (age 15-16) and evaluate its quality. The AR book was developed based on ADDIE framework processes to provide computer learning on software computer knowledge. The content was accorded with the current Thai education curriculum. The AR book had 10 pages in three topics (the first was "Introduction," the second was "System Software" and the third was "Application Software"). Each page contained markers that placed virtual objects (2D animation and video clip). The obtained data were analyzed in terms of average and standard deviation. The validity of multimedia design of the AR book was assessed by three experts in multimedia design. A five-point Likert scale was used and the values were X¯ =4 .84 , S.D. = 1.27 which referred to very high. Moreover, three content experts, who specialize in computer teaching, evaluated the AR book's validity. The values determined by the experts were X¯ =4 .69 , S.D. = 0.29 which referred to very high. Implications for future study and education are discussed.

Particle length of silages affects apparent ruminal synthesis of B vitamins in lactating dairy cows.

PubMed

Castagnino, D S; Kammes, K L; Allen, M S; Gervais, R; Chouinard, P Y; Girard, C L

2016-08-01

Effects of particle length of silages on apparent ruminal synthesis (ARS) and postruminal supply of B vitamins were evaluated in 2 feeding trials. Diets containing alfalfa (trial 1) or orchardgrass (trial 2) silages, chopped to either 19mm (long cut, LC) or 10mm (short cut, SC) theoretical particle length, as the sole forage were offered to ruminally and duodenally cannulated lactating Holstein cows in crossover design experiments. Forages chopped to a theoretical particle length of 19 and 10mm had mean particles sizes of 14.1 and 8.1mm, respectively, in trial 1, and 15.3 and 11.3mm, respectively, in trial 2. Trial 1 was conducted with 13 multiparous cows in two 19-d treatment periods; both diets contained approximately 20% forage neutral detergent fiber (NDF), 25% total NDF, and forage-to-concentrate ratios were approximately 47:53. Trial 2 was conducted with 15 cows in two 18-d treatment periods; both diets contained approximately 23% forage NDF, 28% total NDF, and had a forage-to-concentrate ratio of 50:50. Thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folates, and vitamin B12 were measured in feed and duodenal content. Daily ARS was calculated as the duodenal flow minus the intake. In trial 1, daily intake of individual B vitamins was increased with the LC diet, but ARS of thiamine, riboflavin, vitamin B6, and folates was reduced. In trial 2, except for folates, intakes of the other B vitamins were decreased with the LC diets, whereas ARS of riboflavin, niacin, and vitamin B6 was increased. Daily ARS of thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, and vitamin B6 were correlated negatively with their intake, suggesting that ruminal bacteria reduced their synthesis when dietary supply increased. Microbial activity could have also reduced degradation of thiamine, riboflavin, and niacin, which is supported by (1) the negative correlation between ARS of these vitamins and ruminal pH or microbial N duodenal flow; and (2) the positive correlation between ARS and ruminal concentrations of volatile fatty acids. Folate ARS followed the opposite correlation pattern. Nevertheless, in spite of differences in intake and ARS, with both forages, decreasing particle length of silages had limited effects on the amounts of B vitamins reaching the sites of absorption in the small intestine of dairy cows. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

High-content screening identifies Src family kinases as potential regulators of AR-V7 expression and androgen-independent cell growth

PubMed Central

Szafran, Adam T.; Stephan, Cliff; Bolt, Michael; Mancini, Maureen G.; Marcelli, Marco; Mancini, Michael A.

2018-01-01

Background AR-V7 is an androgen receptor (AR) splice variant that lacks the ligand-binding domain and is isolated from prostate cancer cell lines. Increased expression of AR-V7 is associated with the transition from hormone-sensitive prostate cancer to more advanced castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Due to the loss of the ligand-binding domain, AR-V7 is not responsive to traditional AR-targeted therapies, and the mechanisms that regulate AR-V7 are still incompletely understood. Therefore, we aimed to explore existing classes of small molecules that may regulate AR-V7 expression and intracellular localization and their potential therapeutic role in CRPC. Methods We used AR high-content analysis (AR-HCA) to characterize the effects of a focused library of well-characterized clinical compounds on AR-V7 expression at the single-cell level in PC3 prostate cancer cells stably expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP)-AR-V7 (GFP-AR-V7:PC3). In parallel, an orthogonal AR-HCA screen of a small interfering (si)RNA library targeting 635 protein kinases was performed in GFP-AR-V7:PC3. The effect of the Src-Abl inhibitor PD 180970 was further characterized using cell-proliferation assays, quantitative PCR, and western blot analysis in multiple hormone-sensitive and CRPC cell lines. Results Compounds that tended to target Akt, Abl, and Src family kinases (SFKs) decreased overall AR-V7 expression, nuclear translocation, absolute nuclear level, and/or altered nuclear distribution. We identified 20 protein kinases that, when knocked down, either decreased nuclear GFP-AR-V7 levels or altered AR-V7 nuclear distribution, a set that included the SFKs Src and Fyn. The Src-Abl dual kinase inhibitor PD180970 decreased expression of AR-V7 by greater than 46% and decreased ligand-independent transcription of AR target genes in the 22RV1 human prostate carcinoma cell line. Further, PD180970 inhibited androgen-independent cell proliferation in endogenous–AR-V7–expressing prostate cancer cell lines and also overcame bicalutamide resistance observed in the 22RV1 cell line. Conclusions SFKs, especially Src and Fyn, may be important upstream regulators of AR-V7 expression and represent promising targets in a subset of CRPCs expressing high levels of AR-V7. PMID:27699828

Delivering Educational Multimedia Contents through an Augmented Reality Application: A Case Study on Its Impact on Knowledge Acquisition and Retention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perez-Lopez, David; Contero, Manuel

2013-01-01

This paper presents a study to analyze the use of augmented reality (AR) for delivering multimedia content to support the teaching and learning process of the digestive and circulatory systems at the primary school level, and its impact on knowledge retention. Our AR application combines oral explanations and 3D models and animations of anatomical…

Influence of the normalized ion flux on the constitution of alumina films deposited by plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition

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

Kurapov, Denis; Reiss, Jennifer; Trinh, David H.

2007-07-15

Alumina thin films were deposited onto tempered hot working steel substrates from an AlCl{sub 3}-O{sub 2}-Ar-H{sub 2} gas mixture by plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition. The normalized ion flux was varied during deposition through changes in precursor content while keeping the cathode voltage and the total pressure constant. As the precursor content in the total gas mixture was increased from 0.8% to 5.8%, the deposition rate increased 12-fold, while the normalized ion flux decreased by approximately 90%. The constitution, morphology, impurity incorporation, and the elastic properties of the alumina thin films were found to depend on the normalized ion flux. Thesemore » changes in structure, composition, and properties induced by normalized ion flux may be understood by considering mechanisms related to surface and bulk diffusion.« less

Effects of forage family on apparent ruminal synthesis of B vitamins in lactating dairy cows.

PubMed

Castagnino, D S; Seck, M; Beaudet, V; Kammes, K L; Linton, J A Voelker; Allen, M S; Gervais, R; Chouinard, P Y; Girard, C L

2016-03-01

Effects of forage family (legume vs. grass) on apparent ruminal synthesis (ARS) and postruminal supply of B vitamins were evaluated in 2 experiments. Diets containing either alfalfa (AL) or orchardgrass (OG) silages as the sole forage were offered to ruminally and duodenally cannulated lactating Holstein cows in crossover design experiments. Experiment 1 compared diets containing AL and OG [~23% forage neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and ~27% total NDF] offered to 8 cows in two 15-d treatment periods. Experiment 2 compared diets containing AL and OG (~25% forage NDF and ~30% total NDF) offered to 13 cows in two 18-d treatment periods. Thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folates, and vitamin B12 were analyzed in feeds and duodenal digesta. Apparent ruminal synthesis was calculated as the duodenal flow of each vitamin minus its intake. Forage family affected B vitamin intakes, duodenal flow, and ARS. In both experiments, AL diets increased vitamin B6 and decreased folate intakes. In experiment 1, riboflavin and niacin intakes were greater with the OG diet, whereas in experiment 2 thiamin intake was greater but riboflavin intake was smaller with the OG diet. In spite of the low contribution of either silage to the dietary folate content, folate intake was greater with OG diets than AL due to the difference in soybean meal contribution between diets. Niacin and folate ARS were not affected by the forage family. Duodenal microbial nitrogen flow was positively correlated with ARS of riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folates, and vitamin B12, but tended to be negatively correlated with thiamin ARS. Apparent ruminal synthesis of folates and vitamin B12 appear to be related to microbial biomass activity. Changes in nutrient composition of the diets likely affected the microbial population in the rumen and their B vitamin metabolism. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Single Chondrule K/Ar ages of Mexican Meteorites Using ID-TIMS.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hernandez, M.; Sole, J.

2007-05-01

We have determined the K/Ar ages of two H5 ordinary meteorites: Cosina and Nuevo Mercurio, neither dated until this study. We analyzed several single chondrules - weighing few milligrams - of each meteorite. Ages were obtained by using very precise K content determined by isotope dilution mass spectrometry. The K content in chondrules ranges between 650 and 1400 ppm. The 40Ar was measured by static vacuum noble gas mass spectrometry. Samples were fused with an infrared CO2 laser. Chondrule ages vary from 3.66 to 4.59 Ga for Cosina and from 4.20 to 4.87 Ga for Nuevo Mercurio. A comparison between our data and the published K/Ar ages of H and L whole rocks shows that dates obtained from single chondrules are older than those obtained from whole rocks and seem to preserve older events not evidenced in the WR ages. This implies that chondrules can preserve K/Ar ages very close to U-Pb crystallization ages.

Effect of variation in argon content of calibration gases on determination of atmospheric carbon dioxide.

PubMed

Min, Deullae; Kang, Namgoo; Moon, Dong Min; Lee, Jin Bok; Lee, Dong Soo; Kim, Jin Seog

2009-12-15

Carbon dioxide (CO(2)) is a greenhouse gas that makes by far the largest contribution to the global warming of the Earth's atmosphere. For the measurements of atmospheric CO(2) a non-dispersive infrared analyzer (NDIR) and gas chromatography are conventionally being used. We explored whether and to what degree argon content can influence the determination of atmospheric CO(2) using the comparison of CO(2) concentrations between the sample gas mixtures with varying Ar amounts at 0 and 18.6 mmol mol(-1) and the calibration gas mixtures with Ar at 8.4, 9.1, and 9.3 mmol mol(-1). We newly discovered that variation of Ar content in calibration gas mixtures could undermine accuracy for precise and accurate determination of atmospheric CO(2) in background air. The differences in CO(2) concentration due to the variation of Ar content in the calibration gas mixtures were negligible (<+/-0.03 micromol mol(-1)) for NDIR systems whereas they noticeably increased (<+/-1.09 micromol mol(-1)) especially for the modified GC systems to enhance instrumental sensitivity. We found that the thermal mass flow controller is the main source of the differences although such differences appeared only in the presence of a flow restrictor in GC systems. For reliable monitoring of real atmospheric CO(2) samples, one should use calibration gas mixtures that contain Ar content close to the level (9.332 mmol mol(-1)) in the ambient air as possible. Practical guidelines were highlighted relating to selection of appropriate analytical approaches for the accurate and precise measurements of atmospheric CO(2). In addition, theoretical implications from the findings were addressed.

TECHNICAL JUSTIFICATION FOR CHOOSING PROPANE AS A CALIBRATION AGENT FOR TOTAL FLAMMABLE VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUND (VOC) DETERMINATIONS

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

DOUGLAS, J.G.

2006-07-06

This document presents the technical justification for choosing and using propane as a calibration standard for estimating total flammable volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in an air matrix. A propane-in-nitrogen standard was selected based on a number of criteria: (1) has an analytical response similar to the VOCs of interest, (2) can be made with known accuracy and traceability, (3) is available with good purity, (4) has a matrix similar to the sample matrix, (5) is stable during storage and use, (6) is relatively non-hazardous, and (7) is a recognized standard for similar analytical applications. The Waste Retrieval Project (WRP) desiresmore » a fast, reliable, and inexpensive method for screening the flammable VOC content in the vapor-phase headspace of waste containers. Table 1 lists the flammable VOCs of interest to the WRP. The current method used to determine the VOC content of a container is to sample the container's headspace and submit the sample for gas chromatography--mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The driver for the VOC measurement requirement is safety: potentially flammable atmospheres in the waste containers must be allowed to diffuse prior to processing the container. The proposed flammable VOC screening method is to inject an aliquot of the headspace sample into an argon-doped pulsed-discharge helium ionization detector (Ar-PDHID) contained within a gas chromatograph. No actual chromatography is performed; the sample is transferred directly from a sample loop to the detector through a short, inert transfer line. The peak area resulting from the injected sample is proportional to the flammable VOC content of the sample. However, because the Ar-PDHID has different response factors for different flammable VOCs, a fundamental assumption must be made that the agent used to calibrate the detector is representative of the flammable VOCs of interest that may be in the headspace samples. At worst, we desire that calibration with the selected calibrating agent overestimate the value of the VOCs in a sample. By overestimating the VOC content of a sample, we want to minimize false negatives. A false negative is defined as incorrectly estimating the VOC content of the sample to be below programmatic action limits when, in fact, the sample,exceeds the action limits. The disadvantage of overestimating the flammable VOC content of a sample is that additional cost may be incurred because additional sampling and GC-MS analysis may be required to confirm results over programmatic action limits. Therefore, choosing an appropriate calibration standard for the Ar-PDHID is critical to avoid false negatives and to minimize additional analytical costs.« less

Observed impacts of duration and seasonality of atmospheric-river landfalls on soil moisture and runoff in coastal northern California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ralph, F.M.; Coleman, T.; Neiman, P.J.; Zamora, R.J.; Dettinger, Mike

2013-01-01

This study is motivated by diverse needs for better forecasts of extreme precipitation and floods. It is enabled by unique hourly observations collected over six years near California’s Russian River and by recent advances in the science of atmospheric rivers (ARs). This study fills key gaps limiting the prediction of ARs and, especially, their impacts by quantifying the duration of AR conditions and the role of duration in modulating hydrometeorological impacts. Precursor soil moisture conditions and their relationship to streamflow are also shown. On the basis of 91 well-observed events during 2004-10, the study shows that the passage of ARs over a coastal site lasted 20 h on average and that 12% of the AR events exceeded 30 h. Differences in storm-total water vapor transport directed up the mountain slope contribute 74% of the variance in storm-total rainfall across the events and 61% of the variance in storm-total runoff volume. ARs with double the composite mean duration produced nearly 6 times greater peak streamflow and more than 7 times the storm-total runoff volume. When precursor soil moisture was less than 20%, even heavy rainfall did not lead to significant streamflow. Predicting which AR events are likely to produce extreme impacts on precipitation and runoff requires accurate prediction of AR duration at landfall and observations of precursor soil moisture conditions.

Authorship in IPCC AR5 and its implications for content: climate change and Indigenous populations in WGII.

PubMed

Ford, James D; Vanderbilt, Will; Berrang-Ford, Lea

This essay examines the extent to which we can expect Indigenous Knowledge, understanding, and voices on climate change ('Indigenous content') to be captured in WGII of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5), based on an analysis of chapter authorship. Reviewing the publishing history of 309 chapter authors (CAs) to WGII, we document 9 (2.9%) to have published on climate change and Indigenous populations and involved as authors in 6/30 chapters. Drawing upon recent scholarship highlighting how authorship affect structure and content of assessment reports, we argue that, unaddressed, this will affect the extent to which Indigenous content is examined and assessed. While it is too late to alter the structure of AR5, there are opportunities to prioritize the recruitment of contributing authors and reviewers with expertise on Indigenous issues, raise awareness among CAs on the characteristics of impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability faced by Indigenous peoples, and highlight how Indigenous perspectives can help broaden our understanding of climate change and policy interventions.

K/Ar dating of lunar soils. II

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alexander, E. C., Jr.; Bates, A.; Coscio, M. R., Jr.; Dragon, J. C.; Murthy, V. R.; Pepin, R. O.; Venkatesan, T. R.

1976-01-01

An attempt is made to identify those K/Ar techniques which extract the most reliable chronological information from lunar soils and to define the situations in which the best data are obtainable. Results are presented for determinations of the exposure and K/Ar ages of five lunar soil samples, which were performed by applying correlation techniques for a two-component argon structure to stepwise-heated and neutron-irradiated aliquots of grain-sized separates. It is found that ages deduced from Ar-40/surface-correlated Ar-36 vs K-40/surface-correlated Ar-36 and analogous plots of data from grain-sized separates appear to be the best available K/Ar ages of submature to mature lunar soils, that ages deduced from Ar-40 vs Ar-36 and analogous plots which assume a uniform K content can be significantly in error, and that stepwise-heating (Ar-40)-(Ar-39) experiments yield useful information only for simple immature soils where the K-Ar systematics are dominated by a single component.

Evaluation of the acrosomal status in Lama glama sperm incubated with acrosome reaction inducers.

PubMed

Carretero, M I; Fumuso, F G; Neild, D M; Giuliano, S M; Cetica, P; Miragaya, M H

2015-09-01

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of different acrosome reaction (AR) inducers on viability and acrosomal status in llama spermatozoa, by using the FITC-PNA/PI technique and evaluate if there is a positive correlation between the FITC-PNA/PI and the Coomassie blue (CB) staining techniques. After incubating twenty ejaculates in 0.1% collagenase the centrifuged pellets were resuspended in TALP-BSA medium. An aliquot was sonicated to remove the acrosomal content (positive control). The rest of the sample was incubated for 3h at 38 °C with 5% CO2 and 100% humidity. Three aliquots were further incubated 1h with one of the following AR inducers: calcium ionophore, ionomycin or progesterone. One without inducers and the other, incubated with dimethyl sulfoxide (vehicle of the inducing agents). Acrosomes were evaluated at time 0 and after 4h incubation. Calcium ionophore was the most potent agent for inducing the AR (67.2 ± 14.4% live+dead AR sperm) (P < 0.05). These samples showed no motility and viability was very low (0-30%). Both ionomycin and progesterone presented significantly higher (P < 0.05) percentages of total AR sperm than the controls, but had similar percentages of dead reacted sperm to the controls. A positive correlation was observed between the intact acrosome FITC-PNA/PI pattern (live+dead sperm) and the acrosome-present CB pattern (r = 0.64; P = 0.000) in all the evaluated samples. the FITC-PNA/PI technique simultaneously evaluates viability and acrosomal status in llama spermatozoa and calcium ionophore could be used as a control of AR. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Establishment and Usability Evaluation of an Interactive AR Learning System on Conservation of Fish

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Hao-Chiang Koong; Hsieh, Min-Chai; Wang, Cheng-Hung; Sie, Zong-Yuan; Chang, Shei-Hsi

2011-01-01

In this study, we develop an interactive AR Learning System based on Augmented Reality and interactive touch-screen. The learning content knowledge is about conservation of fish in Taiwan. The system combines the game by the concept of AR book which allows children to learn about the importance of conservation of fish. A mechanism is designed to…

High-Content Screening Identifies Src Family Kinases as Potential Regulators of AR-V7 Expression and Androgen-Independent Cell Growth.

PubMed

Szafran, Adam T; Stephan, Cliff; Bolt, Michael; Mancini, Maureen G; Marcelli, Marco; Mancini, Michael A

2017-01-01

AR-V7 is an androgen receptor (AR) splice variant that lacks the ligand-binding domain and is isolated from prostate cancer cell lines. Increased expression of AR-V7 is associated with the transition from hormone-sensitive prostate cancer to more advanced castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Due to the loss of the ligand-binding domain, AR-V7 is not responsive to traditional AR-targeted therapies, and the mechanisms that regulate AR-V7 are still incompletely understood. Therefore, we aimed to explore existing classes of small molecules that may regulate AR-V7 expression and intracellular localization and their potential therapeutic role in CRPC. We used AR high-content analysis (AR-HCA) to characterize the effects of a focused library of well-characterized clinical compounds on AR-V7 expression at the single-cell level in PC3 prostate cancer cells stably expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP)-AR-V7 (GFP-AR-V7:PC3). In parallel, an orthogonal AR-HCA screen of a small interfering (si)RNA library targeting 635 protein kinases was performed in GFP-AR-V7:PC3. The effect of the Src-Abl inhibitor PD 180970 was further characterized using cell-proliferation assays, quantitative PCR, and western blot analysis in multiple hormone-sensitive and CRPC cell lines. Compounds that tended to target Akt, Abl, and Src family kinases (SFKs) decreased overall AR-V7 expression, nuclear translocation, absolute nuclear level, and/or altered nuclear distribution. We identified 20 protein kinases that, when knocked down, either decreased nuclear GFP-AR-V7 levels or altered AR-V7 nuclear distribution, a set that included the SFKs Src and Fyn. The Src-Abl dual kinase inhibitor PD180970 decreased expression of AR-V7 by greater than 46% and decreased ligand-independent transcription of AR target genes in the 22RV1 human prostate carcinoma cell line. Further, PD180970 inhibited androgen-independent cell proliferation in endogenous-AR-V7-expressing prostate cancer cell lines and also overcame bicalutamide resistance observed in the 22RV1 cell line. SFKs, especially Src and Fyn, may be important upstream regulators of AR-V7 expression and represent promising targets in a subset of CRPCs expressing high levels of AR-V7. Prostate 77:82-93, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Studies of fatty acid composition, physicochemical and thermal properties, and crystallization behavior of mango kernel fats from various Thai varieties.

PubMed

Sonwai, Sopark; Ponprachanuvut, Punnee

2014-01-01

Mango kernel fat (MKF) has received attention in recent years due to the resemblance between its characteristics and those of cocoa butter (CB). In this work, fatty acid (FA) composition, physicochemical and thermal properties and crystallization behavior of MKFs obtained from four varieties of Thai mangoes: Keaw-Morakot (KM), Keaw-Sawoey (KS), Nam-Dokmai (ND) and Aok-Rong (AR), were characterized. The fat content of the mango kernels was 6.40, 5.78, 5.73 and 7.74% (dry basis) for KM, KS, ND and AR, respectively. The analysis of FA composition revealed that all four cultivars had oleic and stearic acids as the main FA components with ND and AR exhibiting highest and lowest stearic acid content, respectively. ND had the highest slip melting point and solid fat content (SFC) followed by KS, KM and AR. All fat samples exhibited high SFC at 20℃ and below. They melted slowly as the temperature increased and became complete liquids as the temperature approached 35°C. During static isothermal crystallization at 20°C, ND displayed the highest Avrami rate constant k followed by KS, KM and AR, indicating that the crystallization was fastest for ND and slowest for AR. The Avrami exponent n of all samples ranged from 0.89 to 1.73. The x-ray diffraction analysis showed that all MKFs crystallized into a mixture of pseudo-β', β', sub-β and β structures with β' being the predominant polymorph. Finally, the crystals of the kernel fats from all mango varieties exhibited spherulitic morphology.

Augmented Reality 2.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmalstieg, Dieter; Langlotz, Tobias; Billinghurst, Mark

Augmented Reality (AR) was first demonstrated in the 1960s, but only recently have technologies emerged that can be used to easily deploy AR applications to many users. Camera-equipped cell phones with significant processing power and graphics abilities provide an inexpensive and versatile platform for AR applications, while the social networking technology of Web 2.0 provides a large-scale infrastructure for collaboratively producing and distributing geo-referenced AR content. This combination of widely used mobile hardware and Web 2.0 software allows the development of a new type of AR platform that can be used on a global scale. In this paper we describe the Augmented Reality 2.0 concept and present existing work on mobile AR and web technologies that could be used to create AR 2.0 applications.

Research on SAW Sensor Bias Stability

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-10-01

9Rockwell International MRDC4 1082 . 4AR TABLE OF CONTENTS LISTOF FGURS........................................ ge APECSLIST OF FIGURES...MRDC4 1082 . 4AR LIST OF FIGURES (continued) Figure Page 12. Theoretical behavior of resonator aging using logarithmic rate law with different B...3 180’ es Q % Rockwell International MRDC4 1082 . 4AR 3.0 TECHNICAL RESULTS During the first year of this program, the specific technical tasks were

Effects of rapeseed meal fiber content on phosphorus and calcium digestibility in growing pigs fed diets without or with microbial phytase.

PubMed

Bournazel, M; Lessire, M; Duclos, M J; Magnin, M; Même, N; Peyronnet, C; Recoules, E; Quinsac, A; Labussière, E; Narcy, A

2018-01-01

The optimization of dietary phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) supply requires a better understanding of the effect of dietary fiber content of co-products on the digestive utilization of minerals. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of dietary fiber content from 00-rapeseed meal (RSM) on P and Ca digestibility throughout the gastrointestinal tract in growing pigs fed diets without or with microbial phytase. In total, 48 castrated male pigs (initial BW=36.1±0.4 kg) were housed in metabolic crates for 29 days. After an 8-day adaptation period, pigs were allocated to one of the eight treatments. The impact of dietary fiber was modulated by adding whole RSM (wRSM), dehulled RSM (dRSM) or dRSM supplemented with 4.5% or 9.0% rapeseed hulls (dRSMh1 and dRSMh2). Diets contained 0 or 500 phytase unit of microbial phytase per kg. From day 14 to day 23, feces and urine were collected separately to determine apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) and apparent retention (AR) of P and Ca. At the end of the experiment, femurs and digestive contents were sampled. No effect of variables of interest was observed on growth performance. Microbial phytase increased ATTD and AR of P (P<0.001) but the P equivalency with the wRSM diet was lower than expected. Moreover, stomach inorganic P (iP) solubility was improved by microbial phytase (P<0.001). The ATTD of Ca was not affected by microbial phytase which increased AR of Ca and femur characteristics (P<0.05). Ileal recovery of P was not affected by microbial phytase but cecal recovery was considerably reduced by microbial phytase (P<0.001). The decrease in digesta pH between the distal ileum and cecum (7.6 v. 5.9) enhanced the solubility of iP and may have improved its absorption, as supported by the negative relationship between soluble iP and pH (R 2=0.40, P<0.001 without microbial phytase and R 2=0.24, P=0.026 with microbial phytase). The inclusion of hulls improved the solubility of iP (P<0.05). In conclusion, dehulling does not largely increase nutrient digestibility although dRSM seems to improve the efficacy of microbial phytase in releasing phosphate in the stomach. Moreover, dietary fiber may affect solubilization process in the cecum which potentiates the effect of microbial phytase on P digestibility.

Sequence Complexity of Amyloidogenic Regions in Intrinsically Disordered Human Proteins

PubMed Central

Das, Swagata; Pal, Uttam; Das, Supriya; Bagga, Khyati; Roy, Anupam; Mrigwani, Arpita; Maiti, Nakul C.

2014-01-01

An amyloidogenic region (AR) in a protein sequence plays a significant role in protein aggregation and amyloid formation. We have investigated the sequence complexity of AR that is present in intrinsically disordered human proteins. More than 80% human proteins in the disordered protein databases (DisProt+IDEAL) contained one or more ARs. With decrease of protein disorder, AR content in the protein sequence was decreased. A probability density distribution analysis and discrete analysis of AR sequences showed that ∼8% residue in a protein sequence was in AR and the region was in average 8 residues long. The residues in the AR were high in sequence complexity and it seldom overlapped with low complexity regions (LCR), which was largely abundant in disorder proteins. The sequences in the AR showed mixed conformational adaptability towards α-helix, β-sheet/strand and coil conformations. PMID:24594841

Observed Hydrologic Impacts of Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers in the Salt and Verde River Basins of Arizona, United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demaria, Eleonora M. C.; Dominguez, Francina; Hu, Huancui; von Glinski, Gerd; Robles, Marcos; Skindlov, Jonathan; Walter, James

2017-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs), narrow atmospheric water vapor corridors, can contribute substantially to winter precipitation in the semiarid Southwest U.S., where natural ecosystems and humans compete for over-allocated water resources. We investigate the hydrologic impacts of 122 ARs that occurred in the Salt and Verde river basins in northeastern Arizona during the cold seasons from 1979 to 2009. We focus on the relationship between precipitation, snow water equivalent (SWE), soil moisture, and extreme flooding. During the cold season (October through March) ARs contribute an average of 25%/29% of total seasonal precipitation for the Salt/Verde river basins, respectively. However, they contribute disproportionately to total heavy precipitation and account for 64%/72% of extreme total daily precipitation (exceeding the 98th percentile). Excess precipitation during AR occurrences contributes to snow accumulation; on the other hand, warmer than normal temperatures during AR landfallings are linked to rain-on-snow processes, an increase in the basins' area contributing to runoff generation, and higher melting lines. Although not all AR events are linked to extreme flooding in the basins, they do account for larger runoff coefficients. On average, ARs generate 43% of the annual maximum flows for the period studied, with 25% of the events exceeding the 10 year return period. Our analysis shows that the devastating 1993 flooding event in the region was caused by AR events. These results illustrate the importance of AR activity on the hydrology of inland semiarid regions: ARs are critical for water resources, but they can also lead to extreme flooding that affects infrastructure and human activities.

Soluble CD30 concentrations in ESRD patients with and without panel reactive HLA antibodies.

PubMed

Vaidya, Smita; Partlow, David; Barnes, Titus; Thomas, Phillip; Gugliuzza, Kristin

2006-01-01

In this retrospective study we compared accuracy of panel reactive antibodies (PRA) with serum soluble CD30 (sCD30) contents in predicting acute rejection crisis post-renal transplant. Pre-transplant sera from 115 patients were evaluated for their PRA and sCD30 concentrations. All patients received calcineurin inhibitor-based immunosuppressive therapy. Objective measurements for rejection were biopsy-proven acute rejection (AR) episodes within first six months of the transplant. Post-transplant sera of patients with AR were tested for the presence of donor-specific HLA antibodies (DSA). Overall AR rate was 16% (18/115). Patients positive for PRA and sCD30 tests were at significantly higher risk for AVR compared with those patients negative for both the tests (36% vs. 5%, p=0.01). Among negative PRA patients risk for AR was significantly elevated if they were also tested positive for sCD30 concentrations (21% vs. 5%, p=0.04). Of the 18 patients with AR, 14 were positive for sCD30, and 13 of them (93%) developed DSA post-transplant (p=0.001). These data showed that patients positive for sCD30 contents are at high risk for the development of DSA and AR post-transplant regardless of their pre-transplant PRA.

Genetic Transformation and Hairy Root Induction Enhance the Antioxidant Potential of Lactuca serriola L.

PubMed

El-Esawi, Mohamed A; Elkelish, Amr; Elansary, Hosam O; Ali, Hayssam M; Elshikh, Mohamed; Witczak, Jacques; Ahmad, Margaret

2017-01-01

Lactuca serriola L. is a herbaceous species, used for human nutrition and medicinal purposes. The high antioxidant capacity of L. serriola indicates the possibility of enhancing its edible and health potential by increasing the flavonoid and phenolic contents. The present study aimed at enhancing the production of phenolics and flavonoids by hairy root cultures in Lactuca serriola transformed with Agrobacterium rhizogenes strain AR15834 harbouring the rolB gene. The genetic transformation of rolB in transformed roots was validated, and rolB expression level was evaluated using real-time qPCR analysis. Expression levels of flavonoid biosynthesis genes (CHI, PAL, FLS, and CHS) were assessed in the hairy and nontransformed roots. Results showed higher expression levels in the transgenic roots than in the nontransformed ones ( p < 0.01). Transgenic hairy roots exhibited a 54.8-96.7% increase in the total phenolic content, 38.1-76.2% increase in the total flavonoid content, and 56.7-96.7% increase in the total reducing power when compared with the nontransgenic roots ( p < 0.01). DPPH results also revealed that the transgenic hairy roots exhibited a 31.6-50% increase in antioxidant potential, when compared to normal roots. This study addressed the enhancement of secondary metabolite biosynthesis by hairy root induction in L. serriola .

Evaluation of the moisture sources in two extreme landfalling atmospheric river events using an Eulerian WRF tracers tool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eiras-Barca, Jorge; Dominguez, Francina; Hu, Huancui; Garaboa-Paz, Daniel; Miguez-Macho, Gonzalo

2017-12-01

A new 3-D tracer tool is coupled to the WRF model to analyze the origin of the moisture in two extreme atmospheric river (AR) events: the so-called Great Coastal Gale of 2007 in the Pacific Ocean and the Great Storm of 1987 in the North Atlantic. Results show that between 80 and 90 % of moisture advected by the ARs, and a high percentage of the total precipitation produced by the systems have a tropical origin. The tropical contribution to precipitation is in general above 50 % and largely exceeds this value in the most affected areas. Local convergence transport is responsible for the remaining moisture and precipitation. The ratio of tropical moisture to total moisture is maximized as the cold front arrives on land. Vertical cross sections of the moisture content suggest that the maximum in tropical humidity does not necessarily coincide with the low-level jet (LLJ) of the extratropical cyclone. Instead, the amount of tropical humidity is maximized in the lowest atmospheric level in southern latitudes and can be located above, below or ahead of the LLJ in northern latitudes in both analyzed cases.

Influence of androgen receptor CAG polymorphism on sexual function recovery after testosterone therapy in late-onset hypogonadism.

PubMed

Tirabassi, Giacomo; Corona, Giovanni; Biagioli, Andrea; Buldreghini, Eddi; delli Muti, Nicola; Maggi, Mario; Balercia, Giancarlo

2015-02-01

Androgen receptor (AR) CAG polymorphism has been found to influence sexual function. However, no study has evaluated its potential to condition sexual function recovery after testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in a large cohort of hypogonadic subjects. To evaluate the role of this polymorphism in sexual function improvement after TRT in late-onset hypogonadism (LOH). Seventy-three men affected by LOH were retrospectively considered. Evaluations were performed before TRT started (time 0) and before the sixth undecanoate testosterone injection. International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire (erectile function [EF], orgasmic function [OF], sexual desire [SD], intercourse satisfaction [IS], overall satisfaction [OS], and total IIEF-15 score); total and free testosterone and estradiol; AR gene CAG repeat number. TRT induced a significant increase in total and free testosterone and estradiol. All IIEF domains significantly improved after TRT. AR CAG repeats negatively and significantly correlated with all the variations (Δ-) of sexual function domains, except for Δ-OS. Conversely, Δ-total testosterone was found to be positively and significantly correlated with sexual function domain variations, except for Δ-IS and Δ-OS. Δ-estradiol did not correlate significantly with any of the variations of sexual function domains. After inclusion in generalized linear models, the number of AR gene CAG triplets was found to be independently and negatively associated with Δ-EF, Δ-SD, Δ-IS, and Δ-Total IIEF-15 score, whereas Δ-total testosterone was independently and positively associated with Δ-EF, Δ-OF, Δ-SD, and Δ-Total IIEF-15 score. However, after including time 0 total testosterone in the model, AR gene CAG triplets remained independently and negatively associated only with Δ-EF and Δ-Total IIEF-15 score, whereas Δ-total testosterone was independently and positively associated only with Δ-EF. Longer length of AR gene CAG repeat tract seems to lower TRT-induced improvement of sexual function in LOH. © 2014 International Society for Sexual Medicine.

Autoantibodies Specifically Against β1 Adrenergic Receptors and Adverse Clinical Outcome in Patients With Chronic Systolic Heart Failure in the β-Blocker Era: The Importance of Immunoglobulin G3 Subclass.

PubMed

Nagatomo, Yuji; Li, Daniel; Kirsop, Jennifer; Borowski, Alan; Thakur, Akanksha; Tang, W H Wilson

2016-06-01

To elucidate the prevalence and role of β1 adrenergic receptor autoantibodies (β1AR-AAb) belonging to the immunoglobulin (Ig)G3 subclass in patients with heart failure (HF) treated with β-adrenergic blockers. Several cardiac AAbs have been reported to be present in sera from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and other etiologies. Among AAbs, those recognizing β1AR-AAbs show agonist-like effects, have detrimental effects on cardiomyocytes, and may induce persistent myocardial damage. We quantify total IgG and IgG3 subclass β1AR-AAb in subjects with chronic stable HF with long-term follow-up. In our study cohort of 121 subjects, non-IgG3-β1AR-AAb and IgG3-β1AR-AAb were found to be positive in 20 (17%) and 26 patients (21%), respectively. The positive rate of IgG3-β1AR-AAb was significantly higher for those with nonischemic compared with ischemic HF etiology (27% vs 8%, P = .01), but the positive rate for non-IgG3-β1AR-AAb was similar between the 2 groups (18% vs 16%, respectively, P = NS). There were no significant differences in clinical and echocardiographic measures among total β1AR-AAb negative, non-IgG3-β1AR-AAb positive, and IgG3-β1AR-AAb positive groups at baseline. During 2.2 ± 1.2 years of follow-up, we observed similar rates of the composite endpoint of all-cause mortality, cardiac transplantation, or hospitalization resulting from HF between total IgG-β1AR-AAb negative and positive patients. However, the composite endpoint events were significantly more common in the patients without than in those with IgG3-β1AR-AAb (P = .048, log-rank test). Presence of IgG3-β1AR-AAb, not total IgG, was associated with paradoxically more favorable outcomes in our cohort of patients with chronic systolic HF largely treated by β-blockers. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gas discharges from the Kueishantao hydrothermal vents, offshore northeast Taiwan: Implications for drastic variations of magmatic/hydrothermal activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xue-Gang; Lyu, Shuang-Shuang; Zhang, Ping-Ping; Yu, Ming-Zhen; Chen, Chen-Tung Arthur; Chen, Yun-Jie; Li, Xiaohu; Jin, Aimin; Zhang, Hai-Yan; Duan, Wei; Ye, Ying

2018-03-01

The chemical compositions of gas discharges from the Kueishantao (KST) hydrothermal field changed dramatically from 2000 to 2014. In this study, we established a gas mixing model for the KST gases. The N2, Ar, and CO2 contents were mixed from a magmatic endmember with CO2 of about 990 mmol/mol, a hydrothermal and an atmospheric endmember enriched in N2 and Ar. More than 71% KST gas components were mantle-derived/magmatic. The calculated endmember N2/Ar ratio and Ar contents of the hydrothermal endmember (percolated fluid) are about 140 and 5.28-5.52 mmol/mol, respectively. This relatively elevated N2/Ar ratio was probably caused by the thermogenic addition of N2. The log(CH4/CO2) values of the KST gas samples correlate well with the mixing temperature that estimated from the mixing ratio between the percolated fluid and the magmatic endmember. It is indicated that the KST CH4 and CO2 may have attained chemical equilibrium. The temporal variations of the KST gas compositions are determined by the mixing ratio, which is dependent on the magmatic activity underneath the KST field. With the decreasing of magmatic activity since 2005, the proportion of the hydrothermal endmember increased, along with the increasing of N2, Ar, and CH4 contents. This study proposed an effective model to quantitatively assess the sources of gas components discharged from submarine hydrothermal vents. In addition, it is suggested that the mixing between a magmatic and a hydrothermal endmember may play an important role in the concentrations of CO2 and CH4 in hydrothermal gas discharges.

Progenitor cells are mobilized by acute psychological stress but not beta-adrenergic receptor agonist infusion

PubMed Central

Riddell, Natalie E.; Burns, Victoria E.; Wallace, Graham R.; Edwards, Kate M.; Drayson, Mark; Redwine, Laura S.; Hong, Suzi; Bui, Jack D.; Fischer, Johannes C.; Mills, Paul J.; Bosch, Jos A.

2015-01-01

Objectives Stimuli that activate the sympathetic nervous system, such as acute psychological stress, rapidly invoke a robust mobilization of lymphocytes into the circulation. Experimental animal studies suggest that bone marrow-derived progenitor cells (PCs) also mobilize in response to sympathetic stimulation. Here we tested the effects of acute psychological stress and brief pharmacological β-adrenergic (βAR) stimulation on peripheral PC numbers in humans. Methods In two studies, we investigated PC mobilization in response to an acute speech task (n=26) and βAR-agonist (isoproterenol) infusion (n=20). A subset of 8 participants also underwent the infusion protocol with concomitant administration of the βAR-antagonist propranolol. Flow cytometry was used to enumerate lymphocyte subsets, total progenitor cells, total haematopoietic stem cells (HSC), early HSC (multi-lineage potential), late HSC (lineage committed), and endothelial PCs (EPCs). Results Both psychological stress and βAR-agonist infusion caused the expected mobilization of total monocytes and lymphocytes and CD8+ T lymphocytes. Psychological stress also induced a modest, but significant, increase in total PCs, HSCs, and EPC numbers in peripheral blood. However, infusion of a βAR-agonist did not result in a significant change in circulating PCs. Conclusion PCs are rapidly mobilized by psychological stress via mechanisms independent of βAR-stimulation, although the findings do not exclude βAR-stimulation as a possible cofactor. Considering the clinical and physiological relevance, further research into the mechanisms involved in stress-induced PC mobilization seems warranted. PMID:25747743

Progenitor cells are mobilized by acute psychological stress but not beta-adrenergic receptor agonist infusion.

PubMed

Riddell, Natalie E; Burns, Victoria E; Wallace, Graham R; Edwards, Kate M; Drayson, Mark; Redwine, Laura S; Hong, Suzi; Bui, Jack C; Fischer, Johannes C; Mills, Paul J; Bosch, Jos A

2015-10-01

Stimuli that activate the sympathetic nervous system, such as acute psychological stress, rapidly invoke a robust mobilization of lymphocytes into the circulation. Experimental animal studies suggest that bone marrow-derived progenitor cells (PCs) also mobilize in response to sympathetic stimulation. Here we tested the effects of acute psychological stress and brief pharmacological β-adrenergic (βAR) stimulation on peripheral PC numbers in humans. In two studies, we investigated PC mobilization in response to an acute speech task (n=26) and βAR-agonist (isoproterenol) infusion (n=20). A subset of 8 participants also underwent the infusion protocol with concomitant administration of the βAR-antagonist propranolol. Flow cytometry was used to enumerate lymphocyte subsets, total progenitor cells, total haematopoietic stem cells (HSC), early HSC (multi-lineage potential), late HSC (lineage committed), and endothelial PCs (EPCs). Both psychological stress and βAR-agonist infusion caused the expected mobilization of total monocytes and lymphocytes and CD8(+) T lymphocytes. Psychological stress also induced a modest, but significant, increase in total PCs, HSCs, and EPC numbers in peripheral blood. However, infusion of a βAR-agonist did not result in a significant change in circulating PCs. PCs are rapidly mobilized by psychological stress via mechanisms independent of βAR-stimulation, although the findings do not exclude βAR-stimulation as a possible cofactor. Considering the clinical and physiological relevance, further research into the mechanisms involved in stress-induced PC mobilization seems warranted. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

On the nature of the dirty ice at the bottom of the GISP2 ice core

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bender, Michael L.; Burgess, Edward; Alley, Richard B.; Barnett, Bruce; Clow, Gary D.

2010-01-01

We present data on the triple Ar isotope composition in trapped gas from clean, stratigraphically disturbed ice between 2800 and 3040m depth in the GISP2 ice core, and from basal dirty ice from 3040 to 3053m depth. We also present data for the abundance and isotopic composition of O2 and N2, and abundance of Ar, in the basal dirty ice. The Ar/N2 ratio of dirty basal ice, the heavy isotope enrichment (reflecting gravitational fractionation), and the total gas content all indicate that the gases in basal dirty ice originate from the assimilation of clean ice of the overlying glacier, which comprises most of the ice in the dirty bottom layer. O2 is partly to completely depleted in basal ice, reflecting active metabolism. The gravitationally corrected ratio of 40Ar/38Ar, which decreases with age in the global atmosphere, is compatible with an age of 100-250ka for clean disturbed ice. In basal ice, 40Ar is present in excess due to injection of radiogenic 40Ar produced in the underlying continental crust. The weak depth gradient of 40Ar in the dirty basal ice, and the distribution of dirt, indicate mixing within the basal ice, while various published lines of evidence indicate mixing within the overlying clean, disturbed ice. Excess CH4, which reaches thousands of ppm in basal dirty ice at GRIP, is virtually absent in overlying clean disturbed ice, demonstrating that mixing of dirty basal ice into the overlying clean ice, if it occurs at all, is very slow. Order-of-magnitude estimates indicate that the mixing rate of clean ice into dirty ice is sufficient to maintain a steady thickness of dirty ice against thinning from the mean ice flow. The dirty ice appears to consist of two or more basal components in addition to clean glacial ice. A small amount of soil or permafrost, plus preglacial snow, lake or ground ice could explain the observations.

Characteristics of southern California atmospheric rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, Sarah M.; Carvalho, Leila M. V.

2018-05-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are channels of high water vapor flux that transport moisture from low to higher latitudes on synoptic timescales. In areas of topographical variability, ARs may lead to high-intensity precipitation due to orographic forcing. ARs landfalling along North America's west coast are linked to extreme events including those leading to flooding and landslides. In southern California (SCA), proper AR forecasting is important for regional water resources as well as hazard mitigation and as the area's annual precipitation totals occur from relatively few storms per season, any changes to storm frequency and/or intensity may have dramatic consequences. Yet, as most regional AR studies focus on the Pacific Northwest, there is little information about SCA ARs. We develop an algorithm to identify ARs landfalling on North America's west coast between 1979 and 2013 within total precipitable water reanalysis fields. ARs are then categorized according to landfall region. To determine and differentiate the characteristics and spatial distributions of ARs affecting these areas, we examine lag composites of various atmospheric variables for each landfall region. SCA ARs differ from ARs landfalling farther north in the days prior to landfall with the position and amplitude of a trough offshore from the Asian continent and ridge over Alaska, as well as the displacement and eastward extension of the jet core that potentially guides AR moisture southwards. The relationships between AR landfalls and the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO), and the Pacific/North American Teleconnection Pattern (PNA) are also investigated.

Choleretic Activity of Turmeric and its Active Ingredients.

PubMed

Wang, Yonglu; Wang, Liyao; Zhu, Xinyi; Wang, Dong; Li, Xueming

2016-07-01

Turmeric, a rhizome of Curcumin longa L. is widely used as both a spice and an herbal medicine. The traditional use of turmeric in gastroenterology is mainly based on its choleretic activity. The aim of this study is to determine the effects of turmeric on bile flow (BF) and total bile acids (TBAs) excretion in a bile fistula rat model after acute duodenal administration. A significant dose-dependent enhancement in both BF and TBAs was detected after treatment with the turmeric decoctions which suggested the choleretic activity was bile acid-dependent secretion. In order to direct the active group of compounds, aqueous (AE), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and petroleum ether (PE) extracts were investigated. The EtOAc and PE extracts showing high effects were purified to locate the active ingredients. Three curcuminoids (curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin) and 2 sesquiterpenes (bisacurone B and ar-turmerone) were isolated. It was found Bisacurone B was the most potent choleretic ingredient followed by ar-turmerone, bisdemethoxycurcumin demethoxycurcumin, and then curcumin. The amounts of the active ingredients were quantitatively analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The EtOAc and PE extracts had high sesquiterpenes and curcuminoids content, while the AE extract had poor content of sesquiterpenes and curcuminoids which affected neither BF nor TBAs. Based on the results of multiple linear regression analysis, the content of BIS and TUR were dominant factors (P < 0.01) of controlling BL and TBAs in EtOAC and PE extracts. © 2016 Institute of Food Technologists®

Coronal Heating and the Magnetic Field in Solar Active Regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falconer, D. A.; Tiwari, S. K.; Winebarger, A. R.; Moore, R. L.

2017-12-01

A strong dependence of active-region (AR) coronal heating on the magnetic field is demonstrated by the strong correlation of AR X-ray luminosity with AR total magnetic flux (Fisher et al 1998 ApJ). AR X-ray luminosity is also correlated with AR length of strong-shear neutral line in the photospheric magnetic field (Falconer 1997). These two whole-AR magnetic parameters are also correlated with each other. From 150 ARs observed within 30 heliocentric degrees from disk center by AIA and HMI on SDO, using AR luminosity measured from the hot component of the AIA 94 Å band (Warren et al 2012, ApJ) near the time of each of 3600 measured HMI vector magnetograms of these ARs and a wide selection of whole-AR magnetic parameters from each vector magnetogram after it was deprojected to disk center, we find: (1) The single magnetic parameter having the strongest correlation with AR 94-hot luminosity is the length of strong-field neutral line. (2) The two-parameter combination having the strongest still-stronger correlation with AR 94-hot luminosity is a combination of AR total magnetic flux and AR neutral-line length weighted by the vertical-field gradient across the neutral line. We interpret these results to be consistent with the results of both Fisher et al (1998) and Falconer (1997), and with the correlation of AR coronal loop heating with loop field strength recently found by Tiwari et al (2017, ApJ Letters). Our interpretation is that, in addition to depending strongly on coronal loop field strength, AR coronal heating has a strong secondary positive dependence on the rate of flux cancelation at neutral lines at coronal loop feet. This work was funded by the Living With a Star Science and Heliophysics Guest Investigators programs of NASA's Heliophysics Division.

Uranium in agricultural soils and drinking water wells on the Swiss Plateau.

PubMed

Bigalke, Moritz; Schwab, Lorenz; Rehmus, Agnes; Tondo, Patrick; Flisch, Markus

2018-02-01

Mineral phosphorus fertilizers are regularly applied to agricultural sites, but their uranium (U) content is potentially hazardous to humans and the environment. Fertilizer-derived U can accumulate in the soil, but might also leach to ground-, spring and surface waters. We sampled 19 mineral fertilizers from the canton of Bern and soils of three arable and one forest reference sites at each of four locations with elevated U concentrations (7-28 μg L -1 ) in nearby drinking water wells. The total U concentrations of the fertilizers were measured. The soils were analysed at three depth intervals down to 1 m for general soil parameters, total Cd, P, U and NaHCO 3 -extractable U concentrations, and 234/238 U activity ratios (AR). The U concentrations and AR values of the drinking water samples were also measured. A theoretical assessment showed that fertilizer-derived U may cause high U concentrations in leaching waters (up to approx. 25 μg L -1 ), but normally contributes only a small amount (approx. 0-3 μg L -1 ). The arable soils investigated showed no significant U accumulation compared to the forest sites. The close positive correlation of AR with NaHCO 3 -extractable U (R = 0.7, p < 0.001) indicates that application of fertilizer can increase the extractable U pool. The lack of depth gradients in the soil U concentrations (1.5-2.7 mg kg -1 ) and AR (0.90-1.06) ratios are inconsistent with the accumulation of U in the surface soil, and might indicate some leaching of fertilizer-derived U. The AR values in the water samples were close to 1, possibly suggesting an influence of fertilizer-derived U. However, based on findings from the literature and considering the heterogeneity of the catchment area, the agricultural practices, and the comparatively long distance to the groundwater, we conclude that fertilizer-derived U makes only a minor contribution to the elevated U concentrations in the water samples. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of sputtering atmosphere on the characteristics of ZrOx resistive switching memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Pin; Ye, Cong; Wu, Jiaji; Wei, Wei; Wei, Xiaodi; Wang, Hao; Zhang, Rulin; Zhang, Li; Xia, Qing; Wang, Hanbin

2017-05-01

A ZrOx switching layer with different oxygen content for TiN/ZrOx/Pt resistive switching (RS) memory was prepared by magnetron sputtering in different atmospheres such as N2/Ar mixture, O2/Ar mixture as well as pure Ar. The morphology, structure and RS characteristics were systemically investigated and it was found that the RS performance is highly dependent on the sputtering atmosphere. For the memory device sputtered in N2/Ar mixture, with 8.06% nitrogen content in the ZrOx switching layer, the highest uniformity with smallest distribution of V set and high resistance states (HRS)/low resistance states (LRS) values were achieved. By analyzing the current conduction mechanisms combined with possible RS mechanisms for three devices, we deduce that for the device with a ZrOx layer sputtered in N2/Ar mixture, oxygen ions (O2-), which are decisive to the disruption/formation of the conductive filament, will gather around the tip of the filament due to the existence of doping nitrogen, and lead to the reduction of O2- migration randomness in the operation process, so that the uniformity of the N-doped ZrOx device can be improved.

Mantle Noble Gas Contents Controlled by Subduction of Serpentinite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krantz, J. A.; Parman, S. W.; Kelley, S. P.; Smye, A.; Jackson, C.

2017-12-01

Geochemical analyses of exhumed subduction zone material1, well gases2, MORB, and OIBs3 indicate that noble gases are being recycled from the surface of the earth into the mantle. However, the path taken by these noble gases is unclear. To estimate the distribution and quantity of Ar, Kr, and Xe in subducting slabs, a model consisting of layers of sediments, altered oceanic crust (AOC), and serpentinite (hydrously altered mantle) has been developed. The noble gas contents of sediments and AOC were calculated using the least air-like and most gas-rich analyses from natural systems4,5, while serpentinite was modelled using both data from natural systems1 and experimentally determined solubilities. Layer thicknesses were assessed over a range of values: 1 to 12 km of sediments, 5 to 9 km of AOC, and 1 to 30 km of serpentinite. In all cases, the serpentinite layer contains at least an order of magnitude more Ar and Kr than the other layers. For realistic layer thicknesses (1 km of sediments, 6 km of AOC, and 3 km of serpentinite), Xe is distributed roughly equally between the three layers. By incorporating global subduction rates6, fluxes of the heavy noble gases into the mantle have been calculated as 4 · 1012 mol/Ma for 36Ar, 6 · 1011 mol/Ma for 84Kr, and 8 · 109 mol/Ma for 130Xe. These fluxes are equivalent to the total 84Kr and 130Xe contents of the depleted and bulk mantle over 1 and 10 Ma7. Similarly, the flux of 36Ar is equivalent over 1 and 100 Ma. Since the Kr and Xe have not been completely overprinted by recycling, the large majority of subducted noble gases must escape in the subduction zone. However, even the small amounts that are subducted deeper have affected the mantle as measured in both MORB and OIBs. 1. Kendrick, M.A. et al., Nature Geoscience, 4, 807-812, 2011 2. Holland, G. and Ballentine, C.J., Nature, 441, 186-191, 2006 3. Parai, R. and Mukhopadhyay, S., G3, 16, 719-735, 2015 4. Matsuda, J. and Nagao, K., Geochemical Journal, 20, 71-80, 1986 5. Chavrit, D. et al., GCA, 183, 106-124, 2016 6. Hacker, B.R., G3, 9, 1-24,2008 7. Marty, B., EPSL, 313-314, 56-66, 2012

Vitamin E and regression of hypercholesterolemia-induced oxidative stress in kidney.

PubMed

Prasad, Kailash

2014-01-01

Hypercholesterolemia (HC) is an independent risk factor for the onset and progression of renal disease. HC induces oxidative stress (OS) in the kidney; Vitamin E (Vit.E), an antioxidant, slows the progression of OS in the kidney. This study was to investigate if Vit.E regresses the HC-induced OS, and the regression is associated with an increase in the antioxidant reserve (AR). The studies were carried out in four groups of rabbits. The kidneys were removed under anesthesia. OS and AR in the renal tissue were assessed by measuring malondialdetyde (MDA) and chemiluminescent (CL) activity, respectively. High-cholesterol diet elevated the serum total cholesterol (TC), and the regular diet with or without Vit.E following a high-cholesterol diet reduced the serum TC to control levels. HC increased the MDA levels of kidney by 5.54-fold compared to control. The MDA contents of the kidneys in groups on regular diet with or without Vit.E were, respectively, 56 and 53 % lower than the control group. The CL activity in the control group was 12.15 ± 0.73 × 10(6) RLU/mg protein. The CL activity in HC group was 45.26 % lower than that in control, indicating an increase in AR. The regular diet with or without Vit.E following high-cholesterol diet normalized the CL activity/AR. In conclusion, HC increases OS in the kidney; reduction of serum cholesterol by regular diet regresses the renal OS but Vit.E does not regress HC-induced OS in kidney.

Lipid-lowering and antioxidant activities of Jiang-Zhi-Ning in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

PubMed

Chen, Jianxin; Zhao, Huihui; Yang, Ying; Liu, Bing; Ni, Jian; Wang, Wei

2011-04-12

Jiang-Zhi-Ning (JZN) is composed of four Chinese herbs, i.e., Fleeceflower Root, Fructus Crataegi, Folium Nelumbinis and Semen Cassiae. It was used to strengthen blood circulation of coronary artery, arrhythmia and hyperlipidemia. The main objective of this paper is to evaluate lipid-lowering and antioxidant activities of extract and effective fraction of JZN by using in vitro experiments on hyperlipidemic rats. Moreover, in vivo experiments on cells were performed to investigate lipid-lowering and antioxidant activities of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN. Wistar rats with high fat diet-induced hyperlipidemia were used as in vitro models to study biological effects of lipid-lowering and antioxidant activities of extract and effective fraction of JZN. Serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), Coronary Index and Atherogenic Index were investigated to evaluate lipid-lowering effects of extract and effective fraction of JZN. Serum total nitric oxide synthase (NOS), nitric oxide (NO), endothelin-1 (ET-1), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) were detected to measure antioxidant effects of extract and effective fraction of JZN. Furthermore, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL) injured human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) model was employed as in vivo experiment to study lipid-lowering and antioxidant effects of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN. NO, ET-1, MDA SOD and T-AOC in HUVECs or culture media were investigated to evaluate antioxidant activity of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN. Using human hepatoma cell line Bel-7402, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technology was performed to investigate cholesterol metabolism effects of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN. Expressions of low density lipoprotein receptor (LDL-R), 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-HMG-coenzyme A reductase (HMG-CoAR), and cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) mRNA of the liver cells were investigated to evaluate JZN on associated receptor and enzymes of cholesterol metabolism. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and spectrophotometry were used to study the impact of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN on synthesis and translation of cholesterol during the process of metabolism by measuring inside and extracellular contents of total bile acid (TBA) of Bel-7402. Extract and effective fraction of JZN significantly reduced contents of TC, TG and LDL-C, CRI and AI in hyperlipidemic rats as well as significantly increased contents of HDL-C in the rats. Moreover, they significantly enhanced the activity of NOS and increased contents of NO. They also caused significant reductions in contents of ET-1 and MDA as well as significant increase in SOD activity and T-AOC in the hyperlipidemic rats. Several indicators were found to be concentration-dependent. As far as in vivo experiments to investigate biological activities of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN were concerned, it was found that they restored and enhanced the vitality of HUVECs with a concentration-dependent manner as well as content of NO in the culture media of HUVEC. They caused reductions in the contents of ET-1 in the culture media of HUVEC and contents of MDA in HUVECs. They also caused an increase in the vitality of SOD and T-AOC in HUVECs. Furthermore, they enhanced LDL-RmRNA expression, with a concentration-dependent manner. Low and medium concentrations of effective fraction and active constituents of JZN could inhibit expression of HMG-CoAR mRNA. High concentration counterpart could enhance expression of the HMG-CoAR mRNA. They enhanced expression of CYP7A1 mRNA in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, they caused reductions in the contents of cholesterol in Bel-7402. They also increased intercellular content of total bile acid as well as lowered extracellular contents of TBA in the cells in a concentration-dependent manner. We demonstrated for the first time lipid-lowering and antioxidant activities of extract and effective fractions as well as active constituents of JZN. Active constituents of JZN had the same biological effects with effective fraction and extract of JZN. Therefore, this study supports its ethnopharmacological use in Traditional Chinese Medicine to manage hyperlipidemia and paves a basis for establishing quality control method of Chinese medicine. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electric-current Neutralization, Magnetic Shear, and Eruptive Activity in Solar Active Regions

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

Liu, Yang; Sun, Xudong; Török, Tibor

The physical conditions that determine whether or not solar active regions (ARs) produce strong flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are not yet well understood. Here, we investigate the association between electric-current neutralization, magnetic shear along polarity inversion lines (PILs), and eruptive activity in four ARs: two emerging and two well-developed ones. We find that the CME-producing ARs are characterized by a strongly non-neutralized total current, while the total current in the ARs that did not produce CMEs is almost perfectly neutralized. The difference in the PIL shear between these two groups is much less pronounced, which suggests that themore » degree of current neutralization may serve as a better proxy for assessing the ability of ARs to produce CMEs.« less

RealityConvert: a tool for preparing 3D models of biochemical structures for augmented and virtual reality.

PubMed

Borrel, Alexandre; Fourches, Denis

2017-12-01

There is a growing interest for the broad use of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) in the fields of bioinformatics and cheminformatics to visualize complex biological and chemical structures. AR and VR technologies allow for stunning and immersive experiences, offering untapped opportunities for both research and education purposes. However, preparing 3D models ready to use for AR and VR is time-consuming and requires a technical expertise that severely limits the development of new contents of potential interest for structural biologists, medicinal chemists, molecular modellers and teachers. Herein we present the RealityConvert software tool and associated website, which allow users to easily convert molecular objects to high quality 3D models directly compatible for AR and VR applications. For chemical structures, in addition to the 3D model generation, RealityConvert also generates image trackers, useful to universally call and anchor that particular 3D model when used in AR applications. The ultimate goal of RealityConvert is to facilitate and boost the development and accessibility of AR and VR contents for bioinformatics and cheminformatics applications. http://www.realityconvert.com. dfourch@ncsu.edu. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Current Allergic Rhinitis Experiences Survey (CARES): Health-care practitioners' awareness, attitudes and practices.

PubMed

Blaiss, Michael S; Fromer, Leonard M; Jacob-Nara, Juby A; Long, Randall M; Mannion, Karen M; Lauersen, Lori A

2014-01-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a common health problem in the United States, with significant comorbidities and impairment of quality of life despite the availability of many prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC) medications. The health-care practitioners (HCPs) arm of the Current Allergic Rhinitis Experiences Survey (CARES) assessed HCPs' perceptions about the current management of AR. This U.S.-based national survey included 375 primary care physicians and 375 nurse practitioners/physician assistants. Participants were screened to ensure that they treat ≥15 AR sufferers per month during allergy season. The majority of HCPs (86%) agreed that AR patients can easily recognize allergy symptoms after diagnosis and that 57% of their patients come to them self-recognizing their symptoms. A total of 82% strongly agreed that AR sufferers are primarily diagnosed via history and physical and do not typically undergo diagnostic testing until after pharmacologic intervention. HCPs reported that 63-77% of AR sufferers can easily manage AR once treatment is established. According to surveyed HCPs, OTC medication should precede an Rx medication for AR management. A total of 82% HCPs considered intranasal steroids (INSs) to be the gold standard AR treatment and have minimal safety concerns about INS use. HCPs perceive that patients can easily recognize and self-manage their AR symptoms. Patient history/symptoms and physical examination are the primary methods of AR diagnosis. INSs are considered the gold standard for treatment of AR. However, most HCPs feel OTC medication should be tried before Rx medication for AR management.

Publications - AR 2010-C | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Alaska's Mineral Industry Reports AKGeology.info Rare Earth Elements WebGeochem Engineering Geology Alaska content DGGS AR 2010-C Publication Details Title: Engineering Geology FY11 project descriptions Authors , Engineering Geology FY11 project descriptions, in DGGS Staff, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Transformation of vector magnetograms and the problems associated with the effects of perspective and the azimuthal ambiguity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gary, G. Allen; Hagyard, M. J.

1990-01-01

Off-center vector magnetograms which use all three components of the measured field provide the maximum information content from the photospheric field and can provide the most consistent potential field independent of the viewing angle by defining the normal component of the field. The required transformations of the magnetic field vector and the geometric mapping of the observed field in the image plane into the heliographic plane have been described. Here we discuss the total transformation of specific vector magnetograms to detail the problems and procedures that one should be aware of in analyzing observational magnetograms. The effect of the 180-deg ambiguity of the observed transverse field is considered as well as the effect of curvature of the photosphere. Specific results for active regions AR 2684 (September 23, 1980) and AR 4474 (April 26, 1984) from the Marshall Space Flight Center Vector magnetograph are described which point to the need for the heliographic projection in determining the field structure of an active region.

Radioactivity in returned lunar materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

The H-3, Ar-37, and Ar-39 radioactivities were measured at several depths in the large documented lunar rocks 14321 and 15555. The comparison of the Ar-37 activities from similar locations in rocks 12002, 14321, and 15555 gives direct measures of the amount of Ar-37 produced by the 2 November 1969 and 24 January 1971 solar flares. The tritium contents in the documented rocks decreased with increasing depths. The solar flare intensity averaged over 30 years obtained from the tritium depth dependence was approximately the same as the flare intensity averaged over 1000 years obtained from the Ar-37 measurements. Radioactivities in two Apollo 15 soil samples, H-3 in several Surveyor 3 samples, and tritium and radon weepage were also measured.

Single and double capture in F9+ + Ar collisions: Comparison of total capture with capture occurring from the Ar K shell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

La Mantia, David; Kumara, Nuwan; Kayani, Asghar; Simon, Anna; Tanis, John

2016-05-01

Total cross sections for single and double capture, as well as the corresponding cross sections for capture resulting in the emission of an Ar K x ray, were measured. This work was performed at Western Michigan University with the use of the tandem Van de Graaff accelerator. A 45 MeV beam of fully-stripped fluorine ions was collided with argon gas molecules in a differentially pumped cell. Surface barrier detectors were used to observe the charge changed projectiles and a Si(Li) x-ray detector, placed at 90o to the incident beam, were used to measure coincidences with Ar K x rays. The total capture cross sections are compared to previously measured cross sections in the existing literature. The coincidence cross sections, considerably smaller than the total cross sections, are found to be nearly equal for single and double capture in contrast to the total cross sections, which vary by about an order of magnitude. Possible reasons for this behavior are discussed. Supported in part by the NSF.

Audience Response System Facilitates Prediction of Scores on In-Training Examination.

PubMed

Shah, Kaushal H; Jordan, Jaime; Jahnes, Katherine; Lisbon, David P; Lutfy-Clayton, Lucienne; Wei, Grant; Winkel, Gary; Santen, Sally A

2017-04-01

Audience response systems (ARS) are increasingly popular; however, their contribution to education is not completely clear. Our study found that scores from review quizzes delivered by an ARS correlate with in-training exam (ITE) scores and are viewed positively by residents. This information may be useful in identifying poor performers early so that targeted educational interventions can be made. The objective was to determine if scores on review quizzes delivered by an ARS correlate with ITE scores and to obtain participant feedback on use of the ARS for ITE preparation. This was a prospective observational study of emergency medicine (EM) residents at six accredited EM residency programs. Subjects included residents who had taken previous ITEs. Subjects participated in bimonthly review sessions using an ARS. Twelve review quizzes were administered, each consisting of 10 multiple-choice questions. After the ITE, subjects completed an attitudinal survey consisting of six Likert-scale items and one "yes/no" item. We used a mixed linear model to analyze the data, accounting for prior 2012 ITE scores and nesting due to institution. Among 192 participants, 135 (70.3%) completed the ITE in both 2012 and 2013; we analyzed their data for the first objective. Results from the mixed linear model indicate that the total mean score on the review quizzes was a significant [t(127) = 6.68; p < 0.001] predictor of the 2013 ITE after controlling for the 2012 ITE score. One hundred forty-six (76.0%) participants completed the attitudinal survey; 96% of respondents stated that they would like ARS to be used more often in resident education. Respondents felt the sessions aided in learning (mean 7.7/10), assisted in preparation for the ITE (mean 6.7/10), and helped identify content areas of weakness (mean 7.6/10). Our results suggest that scores from review quizzes delivered by an audience response system correlate with in-training exam scores and is viewed positively by residents.

Noble gases in CH 4-rich gas fields, Alberta, Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hiyagon, H.; Kennedy, B. M.

1992-04-01

The elemental and isotopic compositions of helium, neon, argon, and xenon in twenty-one CH 4-rich natural gas samples from Cretaceous and Devonian reservoirs in the Alberta, Canada, sedimentary basin were measured. In all but a few cases, radiogenic ( 4He, 40Ar, and 131-136Xe) and nucleogenic ( 21,22Ne) isotopes dominated. Based solely on the noble gas composition, two types of natural gas reservoirs are identified. One (Group B) is highly enriched in radiogenic-nucleogenic noble gases and varies little in composition: 3He /4He = 1.5 ± 0.5 × 10 -8, 40Ar /36Ar = 5000-6500 , 40∗Ar /4He = 0.10 , 136∗Xe /4He ~ 0.7 × 10 -9, and 21∗Ne /22∗Ne = 0.452 ± 0.041 (∗ denotes radiogenic or nucleogenic origin; all 4He is radiogenic). High nitrogen content with 4He /N 2 ~ 0.06 is also characteristic of Group B samples. The remaining samples (Group A) contain a radiogenic-nucleogenic component with a different composition and, relative to Group B samples, the extent of enrichment in this component is less and more variable: 3He /4He = 10-70 × 10 -8, 40Ar /36Ar < 1550 , and 40∗Ar /4He ~ 0.25 . The composition of Group B radiogenic-nucleogenic noble gases is consistent with production in crust of average composition. Enrichment in Group B noble gases and nitrogen increases with proximity to the underlying Precambrian basement, consistent with a present-day mass flux into the overlying sedimentary basin. Inferred 40∗Ar /136∗Xe 4He ratios imply a basement source enriched in thorium relative to uranium and potassium (Th/U > 20). Combined, the overall lower total radiogenic-nucleogenic content of Group A reservoirs, the greater variability in composition, and the appearance of Group A noble gases in reservoirs higher in the sedimentary sequence relative to the underlying basement implies that the Group A radiogenic-nucleogenic noble gases are indigenous to the sediments. The most interesting aspect of the Group A noble gases are the very high 3He /4He ratios; ~ 10-70 times greater than expected if derived from average crust. The mantle, surface cosmogenic 3He production, cosmic dust, or production in a lithium-enriched environment as potential sources for the 3He excesses are evaluated. The present data set would seem to rule out cosmogenic 3He. The mantle, cosmic dust, or high Li, however, remain viable candidates. The relative abundances of the nonradiogenic, non-nucleogenic noble gases show no correlation with the Group A-B reservoir classification. Compositional variations indicate three-component mixing between air or an air-like component, 10°C air-saturated water, and a third component enriched in xenon. Apparently, the latter cannot be derived from equilibrium solubility degassing of air-saturated water or oil-water mixtures, and may have been derived from devolatilization of C-rich petroleum source sediments.

Ar/Ar Dating Independent of Monitor Standard Ages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boswell, S.; Hemming, S. R.

2015-12-01

Because the reported age of an analyzed sample is dependent on the age of the co-irradiated monitor standard(s), Ar/Ar dating is a relative dating technique. There is disagreement at the 1% scale in the age of commonly used monitor standards, and there is a great need to improve the inter-laboratory calibrations. Additionally, new approaches and insights are needed to meet the challenge of bringing the Ar/Ar chronometer to the highest possible precision and accuracy. In this spirit, we present a conceptual framework for Ar/Ar dating that does not depend on the age of monitor standards, but only on the K content of a solid standard. The concept is demonstrated by introducing a re-expressed irradiation parameter (JK) that depends on the ratio of 39ArK to 40Ar* rather than the 40Ar*/39ArK ratio. JK is equivalent to the traditional irradiation parameter J and is defined as JK = (39Ar/40K) • (λ/λe). The ultimate precision and accuracy of the method will depend on how precisely and accurately the 39Ar and 40K can be estimated, and will require isotope dilution measurements of both from the same aliquot. We are testing the workability of our technique at the 1% level by measuring weighed and irradiated hornblende and biotite monitor standards using GLO-1 glauconite to define a calibration curve for argon signals versus abundance.

Connected Audiological Rehabilitation: 21st Century Innovations

PubMed Central

Saunders, Gabrielle H.; Chisolm, Theresa H.

2016-01-01

Background Tele-audiology provides a means to offer audiologic rehabilitation (AR) in a cost-, resource-, and time-effective manner. If designed appropriately, it also has the capability of personalizing rehabilitation to the user in terms of content, depth of detail, etc., thus permitting selection of the best content for a particular individual. Synchronous/real-time data collection, store and forward telehealth, remote monitoring and mobile health using smartphone applications have each been applied to components of audiologic rehabilitation intervention (sensory management, instruction in the use of technology and control of the listening environment, perceptual and communication strategies training, and counseling). In this article, the current state of tele-audiological rehabilitation interventions are described and discussed. Results The provision of AR via tele-audiology potentially provides a cost-effective mechanism for addressing barriers to the routine provision of AR beyond provisions of hearing technology. Furthermore, if designed appropriately, it has the capability of personalizing rehabilitation to the user in terms of content, depth of detail, etc., thus permitting selection of the best content for a particular individual. However, effective widespread implementation of tele-audiology will be dependent on good education of patients and clinician alike, and researchers must continue to examine the effectiveness of these new approaches to AR in order to ensure clinicians provide effective evidence-based rehabilitation to their patients. Conclusions While several barriers to the widespread use of tele-audiology for audiologic rehabilitation currently exist, it is concluded that through education of patients and clinicians alike, it will gain greater support from practitioners and patients over time and will become successfully and widely implemented. PMID:26415970

Genetic Transformation and Hairy Root Induction Enhance the Antioxidant Potential of Lactuca serriola L.

PubMed Central

Elkelish, Amr; Elansary, Hosam O.; Ali, Hayssam M.; Elshikh, Mohamed; Witczak, Jacques; Ahmad, Margaret

2017-01-01

Lactuca serriola L. is a herbaceous species, used for human nutrition and medicinal purposes. The high antioxidant capacity of L. serriola indicates the possibility of enhancing its edible and health potential by increasing the flavonoid and phenolic contents. The present study aimed at enhancing the production of phenolics and flavonoids by hairy root cultures in Lactuca serriola transformed with Agrobacterium rhizogenes strain AR15834 harbouring the rolB gene. The genetic transformation of rolB in transformed roots was validated, and rolB expression level was evaluated using real-time qPCR analysis. Expression levels of flavonoid biosynthesis genes (CHI, PAL, FLS, and CHS) were assessed in the hairy and nontransformed roots. Results showed higher expression levels in the transgenic roots than in the nontransformed ones (p < 0.01). Transgenic hairy roots exhibited a 54.8–96.7% increase in the total phenolic content, 38.1–76.2% increase in the total flavonoid content, and 56.7–96.7% increase in the total reducing power when compared with the nontransgenic roots (p < 0.01). DPPH results also revealed that the transgenic hairy roots exhibited a 31.6–50% increase in antioxidant potential, when compared to normal roots. This study addressed the enhancement of secondary metabolite biosynthesis by hairy root induction in L. serriola. PMID:28835782

Publications - AR 2011-C | Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical

Science.gov Websites

Alaska's Mineral Industry Reports AKGeology.info Rare Earth Elements WebGeochem Engineering Geology Alaska content DGGS AR 2011-C Publication Details Title: Engineering Geology FY12 project descriptions Authors Combellick, R.A., 2012, Engineering Geology FY12 project descriptions, in DGGS Staff, Alaska Division of

Sleep disorders in Latin-American children with asthma and/or allergic rhinitis and normal controls.

PubMed

Urrutia-Pereira, M; Solé, D; Chong Neto, H J; Acosta, V; Cepeda, A M; Álvarez-Castelló, M; Almendarez, C F; Lozano-Saenz, J; Sisul-Alvariza, J C; Rosario, N A; Castillo, A J; Valentin-Rostan, M; Badellino, H; Castro-Almarales, R L; González-León, M; Sanchez-Silot, C; Avalos, M M; Fernandez, C; Berroa, F; De la Cruz, M M; Sarni, R O S

Asthma and/or allergic rhinitis have been associated with sleep disorders. The aim of this study was to evaluate sleep disorders in Latin-American children (4-10 years) from nine countries, with persistent asthma (A) and/or allergic rhinitis (AR) and in normal controls (C). Parents from 454 C children and 700 A and/or AR children followed up in allergy reference clinics completed the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) which is a retrospective one-week questionnaire composed of 33 questions composed of seven subscales (bedtime resistance, sleep duration, sleep anxiety, night wakings, parasomnias, sleep-disordered breathing and daytime sleepiness). The total scale of CSHQ and the subscales were compared between groups C and A+AR, A (n=285) vs. AR (n=390), and between controlled A (CA, n=103) vs. partially controlled/uncontrolled A (UA, n=182). The comparison between C and A+AR showed no significant differences in age (6.7 years vs. 7.0 years, respectively), mean Body Mass Index and total scale of CSHQ (53.3 vs. 63.2, respectively) and the subscales were significantly higher in the A+AR group. Comparison between groups A and AR, except for sleep anxiety, showed significantly higher values for CSHQ total scale (66.9 vs. 61.0, respectively) and subscales for group A. The UA group showed significantly higher values for total CSHQ scale and subscales in comparison to CA (71.1 vs. 59.4, respectively). Latin-American children with asthma and/or allergic rhinitis showed sleep disorders identified by the CSHQ when compared to normal controls. Despite being treated, asthma causes sleep impairment, especially when uncontrolled. Copyright © 2016 SEICAP. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

In-situ Ar isotope, 40Ar/39Ar analysis and mineral chemistry of nosean in the phonolite from Olbrück volcano, East Eifel volcanic field, Germany: Implication for the source of excess 40Ar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sudo, Masafumi; Altenberger, Uwe; Günter, Christina

2014-05-01

Since the report by Lippolt et al. (1990), hauyne and nosean phenocrysts in certain phonolites from the northwest in the Quaternary East Eifel volcanic field in Germany were known to contain significant amounts of excess 40Ar, thus, show apparent older ages than the other minerals. However, its petrographic meaning have not been well known. Meanwhile, Sumino et al. (2008) has identified the source of the excess 40Ar in the plagioclase phenocrysts from the historic Unzen dacite lava as the melt inclusions in the zones parallely developed to the plagioclase rim by in-situ laser Ar isotope analysis. In order to obtain eruption ages of very young volcanoes as like Quaternary Eifel volcanic field by the K-Ar system, it is quite essential to know about the location of excess 40Ar in volcanic rocks. We have collected phonolites from the Olbrück volcano in East Eifel and investigated its petrography and mineral chemistry and also performed in-situ Ar isotope analyses of unirradiated rock section sample and also in-situ 40Ar/39Ar analysis of neutron irradiated section sample with the UV pulse laser (wavelength 266 nm) and 40Ar/39Ar analytical system of the University of Potsdam. Petrographically, nosean contained fine melt and/or gas inclusions of less than 5 micrometer, which mostly distribute linearly and are relatively enriched in chlorine than the areas without inclusions. Solid inclusions of similar sizes contain CaO and fluorine. In nosean, typically around 5 wt% of sulfur is contained. The 40Ar/39Ar dating was also performed to leucite, sanidine and groundmass in the same section for comparison of those ages with that of nosean. In each analysis, 200 micrometer of beam size was used for making a pit with depth of up to 300 micrometer by laser ablation. As our 40Ar/39Ar analyses were conducted one and half year after the neutron irradiation, thus, short lived 37Ar derived from Ca had decayed very much, we measured Ca and K contents in nosean by SEM-EDS then applied their Ca/K ratios to the Ar analytical results. The in-situ Ar isotopic analysis of nosean and leucite show clearly the different slope of isochron and implied apparent older age for the nosean. The in-situ 40Ar/39Ar analysis of nosean yields three various ages, from 6.86 ± 2.77 Ma to 41.57 ± 11.58 Ma, but clearly older than those of the other minerals and groundmass. However, it was difficult to analyze and compare the 40Ar/39Ar ages between different areas with or without inclusions by the UV-laser because of its less spatial resolution, therefore, was difficult to understand the correlation between ages and the presence of inclusions. Considering the enriched contents of S and Cl in nosean, the excess 40Ar could be derived from the common volatile component separated from the magma which provided S and Cl then be trapped in nosean during or after the formation of nosean. References: Lippolt, H. J., M. Troesch and J. C. Hess (1990) Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 101, 19-33 Sumino, H., K. Ikehata, A. Shimizu, K. Nagao and S. Nakada (2008) J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res., 175, 189-207

Speed of CMEs and the Magnetic Non-Potentiality of Their Source ARs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tiwari, Sanjiv K.; Falconer, David A.; Moore, Ronald L.; Venkatakrishnan, P.

2014-01-01

Most fast coronal mass ejections (CMEs) originate from solar active regions (ARs). Non-potentiality of ARs is expected to determine the speed and size of CMEs in the outer corona. Several other unexplored parameters might be important as well. To find out the correlation between the initial speed of CMEs and the non-potentiality of source ARs, we associated over a hundred of CMEs with source ARs via their co-produced flares. The speed of the CMEs are collected from the SOHO LASCO CME catalog. We have used vector magnetograms obtained mainly with HMI/SDO, also with Hinode (SOT/SP) when available within an hour of a CME occurrence, to evaluate various magnetic non-potentiality parameters, e.g. magnetic free-energy proxies, computed magnetic free energy, twist, shear angle, signed shear angle etc. We have also included several other parameters e.g. total unsigned flux, net current, magnetic area of ARs, area of sunspots, to investigate their correlation, if any, with the initial speeds of CMEs. Our preliminary results show that the ARs with larger non-potentiality and area mostly produce fast CMEs but they can also produce slower ones. The ARs with lesser non-potentiality and area generally produce only slower CMEs, however, there are a few exceptions. The total unsigned flux correlate with the non-potentiality parameters and area of ARs but some ARs with large unsigned flux are also found to be least non-potential. A more detailed analysis is underway.

Affordances of Augmented Reality in Science Learning: Suggestions for Future Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Kun-Hung; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2013-08-01

Augmented reality (AR) is currently considered as having potential for pedagogical applications. However, in science education, research regarding AR-aided learning is in its infancy. To understand how AR could help science learning, this review paper firstly has identified two major approaches of utilizing AR technology in science education, which are named as image- based AR and location- based AR. These approaches may result in different affordances for science learning. It is then found that students' spatial ability, practical skills, and conceptual understanding are often afforded by image-based AR and location-based AR usually supports inquiry-based scientific activities. After examining what has been done in science learning with AR supports, several suggestions for future research are proposed. For example, more research is required to explore learning experience (e.g., motivation or cognitive load) and learner characteristics (e.g., spatial ability or perceived presence) involved in AR. Mixed methods of investigating learning process (e.g., a content analysis and a sequential analysis) and in-depth examination of user experience beyond usability (e.g., affective variables of esthetic pleasure or emotional fulfillment) should be considered. Combining image-based and location-based AR technology may bring new possibility for supporting science learning. Theories including mental models, spatial cognition, situated cognition, and social constructivist learning are suggested for the profitable uses of future AR research in science education.

Processes and Parameters Controlling the Extent of Methanogenic Conditions in the Unsaturated Zone of a Crude Oil Spill Site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molins, S.; Mayer, K.

2007-12-01

Gas concentrations measured in the vadose zone at a crude oil spill site near Bemidji, MN, show that a large area near the oil body is currently dominated by methanogenic conditions. Away from the oil body methane concentrations decrease as it is degraded by methanotrophic bacteria under aerobic conditions. Numerical simulations have been conducted to quantify the contributions of the relevant transport and reaction processes to the production and attenuation of methane in the vadose zone. Methane is generated in the vadose zone by anaerobic degradation of oil and is also added by fluxes from the capillary fringe and the saturated zone. Gas diffusion and advection contribute to the transport of methane in the lateral direction and towards the ground surface. Attenuation of methane concentrations occurs through aerobic oxidation in the presence of methanotrophic bacteria. Critical parameters were varied within bounds provided by field data and previous studies. Simulation results confirm that the layered sediment structure present at the site plays a significant role in explaining the observed distribution of gases in the vadose zone. The presence of a low permeability lens in the area upgradient from the source results in higher moisture contents, limiting diffusion of oxygen into the zone of methane production, and contributes to the spread of methane. Diffusion was identified as the most significant transport mechanism for gases in the vadose zone. However, field-observed zones of depleted and enriched N2 and Ar concentrations could only be explained by the development of advective fluxes induced by reactive processes (methanogenesis and methanotrophy). The zones of gas production are characterized by slightly increased total gas pressures and low concentrations of N2 and Ar, while zones of gas consumption show slightly depressed total gas pressures and high concentrations of N2 and Ar. The simulations suggest that the advective flux that develops between these zones contributes up to 15% of the total methane flux.

Continued investigation of kinetic aspects of bone mineral metabolism. [determining body calcium by measuring argon after neutron irradiation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Palmer, H. E.

1974-01-01

The total body calcium in humans was determined by measuring expired Ar-37 after neutron irradiation. The excretion of Ar-37 from humans was found to be much slower than the excretion from rats and dogs, and to be related to the age of a person. A study of the uniformity of the Ar-37 production throughout the thickness of the body was studied using phantoms. The results indicate that it should be possible to obtain a uniformity within plus or minus 3% for the production of Ar-37 per unit of calcium by using a bilateral irradiation. New low background, large volume proportional counters were developed and constructed, for more sensitive measurement of Ar-37 in the expired air from patients. A new irradiation enclosure was developed for measuring total body calcium in rats by the Ar-37 method. With this enclosure the Ar-37 production per gram of calcium is constant with a standard deviation of plus or minus 2.8% for any size rat between 100 and 500 grams. The use of Na-22 as measure of bone replacement in the fractured femur of a dog was not successful.

Effect of Impingement Angle on landfalling Atmospheric River precipitation efficiency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mehran, A.; Cao, Q.; Wang, K.; Cannon, F.; Ralph, M.; Lettenmaier, D. P.

2017-12-01

Atmospheric Rivers (ARs) along the western coast of North America in wintertime are associated with heavy winter precipitation and most flood events. ARs are narrow, elongated, synoptic jets of water vapor that transport moisture from the eastern Pacific to North Pacific coast of North America. Furthermore, the lowest levels of the atmosphere account for almost 75% of the water vapor transport through these rivers. The combination of high integrated water vapor in AR events and strong upslope winds results in heavy orographic precipitation in regions where the narrow AR jets make landfall. We analyzed 19 years (1997 2015) of landfalling ARs over a transect along the U.S. West Coast consisting of two river basins from coastal Washington and Northern California (Chehalis basin and the Russian River basin) to highlight the impingement angle impact on precipitation rainout efficiency. We have studied water vapor data from Climate Forecast System reanalysis (CFSR) on AR dates to calculate the impingement angle and associated total amount of water vapor. Rainout efficiency is defined and calculated as the ratio of total amount of water vapor that has precipitated over each basin. Our results show that extreme AR events which impingement angle is orthogonal to basin exposure, have greater rainout efficiency.

Radioactivities vs. depth in Apollo 16 and 17 soil

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fireman, E. L.; D'Amico, J.; Defelice, J.

1973-01-01

The radioactivities of Ar-37, Ar-39, and H-3 measured at a number of depths for Apollo 16 and 17 soil are reported. The Ar-37 activities vs depth in the Apollo 16 drill string increased with depth and reached a broad maximum in the neighborhood of 50 g per sq cm before decreasing. The Ar-39 activities in Apollo 17 soil were higher than in Apollo 16 soil, probably owing to the higher Fe and Ti contents. The H-3 activities in Apollo 16 and 17 soil were quite similar and indicate that the 4 August 1972 flare produced very little H-3 compared to the amount produced by solar flares during the previous 50 years.

Location-Based Augmented Reality for Mobile Learning: Algorithm, System, and Implementation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Qing; Chang, William; Kinshuk

2015-01-01

AR technology can be considered as mainly consisting of two aspects: identification of real-world object and display of computer-generated digital contents related the identified real-world object. The technical challenge of mobile AR is to identify the real-world object that mobile device's camera aim at. In this paper, we will present a…

Inert gases in a terra sample - Measurements in six grain-size fractions and two single particles from Lunar 20.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heymann, D.; Lakatos, S.; Walton, J. R.

1973-01-01

Review of the results of inert gas measurements performed on six grain-size fractions and two single particles from four samples of Luna 20 material. Presented and discussed data include the inert gas contents, element and isotope systematics, radiation ages, and Ar-36/Ar-40 systematics.

Journal Impact Factor: Do the Numerator and Denominator Need Correction?

PubMed Central

Liu, Xue-Li; Gai, Shuang-Shuang; Zhou, Jing

2016-01-01

To correct the incongruence of document types between the numerator and denominator in the traditional impact factor (IF), we make a corresponding adjustment to its formula and present five corrective IFs: IFTotal/Total, IFTotal/AREL, IFAR/AR, IFAREL/AR, and IFAREL/AREL. Based on a survey of researchers in the fields of ophthalmology and mathematics, we obtained the real impact ranking of sample journals in the minds of peer experts. The correlations between various IFs and questionnaire score were analyzed to verify their journal evaluation effects. The results show that it is scientific and reasonable to use five corrective IFs for journal evaluation for both ophthalmology and mathematics. For ophthalmology, the journal evaluation effects of the five corrective IFs are superior than those of traditional IF: the corrective effect of IFAR/AR is the best, IFAREL/AR is better than IFTotal/Total, followed by IFTotal/AREL, and IFAREL/AREL. For mathematics, the journal evaluation effect of traditional IF is superior than those of the five corrective IFs: the corrective effect of IFTotal/Total is best, IFAREL/AR is better than IFTotal/AREL and IFAREL/AREL, and the corrective effect of IFAR/AR is the worst. In conclusion, not all disciplinary journal IF need correction. The results in the current paper show that to correct the IF of ophthalmologic journals may be valuable, but it seems to be meaningless for mathematic journals. PMID:26977697

Hourly storm characteristics along the U.S. West Coast: Role of atmospheric rivers in extreme precipitation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lamjiri, Maryam A.; Dettinger, Michael; Ralph, F. Martin; Guan, B.

2017-01-01

Gridded hourly precipitation observations over the conterminous U.S., from 1948 to 2002, are analyzed to determine climatological characteristics of storm precipitation totals. Despite generally lower hourly intensities, precipitation totals along the U.S. West Coast (USWC) are comparable to those in southeast U.S. (SEUS). Storm durations, more so than hourly intensities, strongly modulate precipitation-total variability over the USWC, where the correlation coefficients between storm durations and storm totals range from 0.7 to 0.9. Atmospheric rivers (ARs) contribute 30–50% of annual precipitation on the USWC and make such large contributions to extreme storms that 60–100% of the most extreme storms, i.e., storms with precipitation-total return intervals longer than 2 years, are associated with ARs. These extreme storm totals are more strongly tied to storm durations than to storm hourly or average intensities, emphasizing the importance of AR persistence to extreme storms on the USWC.

Increased aryl hydrocarbon receptor expression in patients with allergic rhinitis.

PubMed

Wei, P; Hu, G-H; Kang, H-Y; Yao, H-B; Kou, W; Liu, H; Hong, S-L

2014-02-01

A predominant Th17 population is a marker of allergic rhinitis (AR). As a ligand-activated transcription factor, the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) plays a vital role in promoting or inhibiting the development of specific Th cells. However, its role in AR remains undefined. To analyze the potential role of AhR in the pathogenesis of AR. In total, 30 AR patients and 13 healthy controls were recruited for this study and AR patients had clinical features, as demonstrated by rhinoconjunctivitis quality of life questionnaires, total symptom scores and visual analog scale scores. The expression of AhR, IL-17 and IL-22 and the presence of Th17 cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were measured before and after treatment with the nontoxic AhR ligand 2-(1'H-indole-3'-carbonyl)-thiazole-4-carboxylic acid methyl ester (ITE). Pretreatment ITE studies revealed that all AR patients had a significant increase in AhR expression compared with controls and AhR expression positively correlated with clinical parameters. After ITE intervention, a severe reduction in the differentiation of Th17 cells and the production of IL-17 and IL-22 was noted in both AR patients and normal subjects. Simultaneously, a dramatic enhancement of AhR expression was also observed in all healthy controls, but not in AR patients. The results suggested that the AhR may be one of the mechanisms underlying the Th17 response during the pathogenesis of AR and AhR levels were closely related to clinical severity in all AR patients. Additionally, ITE may represent a new drug candidate in the treatment of AR.

Androgen receptor CAG repeat polymorphism and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal function in Filipino young adult males

PubMed Central

Ryan, Calen P.; McDade, Thomas W; Gettler, Lee T.; Eisenberg, Dan T.A.; Rzhetskaya, Margarita; Hayes, M. Geoffey; Kuzawa, Christopher W.

2016-01-01

Objectives Testosterone (T), the primary androgenic hormone in males, is stimulated through pulsatile secretion of LH and regulated through negative feedback inhibition at the hypothalamus and pituitary. The hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis also controls sperm production through the secretion of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). Negative feedback in the HPG axis is achieved in part through the binding of T to the androgen receptor (AR), which contains a highly variable trinucleotide repeat polymorphism (AR-CAGn). The number of repeats in the AR-CAGn inversely correlates with transcriptional activity of the AR. Thus, we predicted longer AR-CAGn to be associated with higher T, LH, and FSH levels. Methods We examined the relationship between AR-CAGn and total plasma T, LH, and FSH, as well as 'bioavailable' morning (AM-T) and evening (PM-T) testosterone in 722 young (21.5 ± 0.5 years) Filipino males. Results There was no relationship between AR-CAGn and total T, AM-T, or LH (P > 0.25 for all). We did observe a marginally non-significant (P = 0.066) correlation between AR-CAGn and PM-T in the predicted direction, and a negative correlation between AR-CAGn and FSH (P = 0.005). Conclusions Our results both support and differ from previous findings in this area, and study parameters that differ between our study and others, such as participant age, sample time, and the role of other hormones should be considered when interpreting our findings. While our data point to a modest effect of AR-CAGn on HPG regulation at best, the AR-CAGn may still affect somatic traits by regulating androgenic activity at peripheral tissues. PMID:27417274

Comparative transcriptional analysis provides new insights into the molecular basis of adventitious rooting recalcitrance in Eucalyptus.

PubMed

de Almeida, Márcia Rodrigues; de Bastiani, Daniela; Gaeta, Marcos Letaif; de Araújo Mariath, Jorge Ernesto; de Costa, Fernanda; Retallick, Jeffrey; Nolan, Lana; Tai, Helen H; Strömvik, Martina V; Fett-Neto, Arthur Germano

2015-10-01

Adventitious rooting (AR) is essential in clonal propagation. Eucalyptus globulus is relevant for the cellulose industry due to its low lignin content. However, several useful clones are recalcitrant to AR, often requiring exogenous auxin, adding cost to clonal garden operations. In contrast, E. grandis is an easy-to-root species widely used in clonal forestry. Aiming at contributing to the elucidation of recalcitrance causes in E. globulus, we conducted a comparative analysis with these two species differing in rooting competence, combining gene expression and anatomical techniques. Recalcitrance in E. globulus is reversed by exposure to exogenous indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), which promotes important gene expression modifications in both species. The endogenous content of IAA was significantly higher in E. grandis than in E. globulus. The cambium zone was identified as an active area during AR, concentrating the first cell divisions. Immunolocalization assay showed auxin accumulation in cambium cells, further indicating the importance of this region for rooting. We then performed a cambium zone-specific gene expression analysis during AR using laser microdissection. The results indicated that the auxin-related genes TOPLESS and IAA12/BODENLOS and the cytokinin-related gene ARR1may act as negative regulators of AR, possibly contributing to the hard-to-root phenotype of E. globulus. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identification of the C-terminal domain of Daxx acts as a potential regulator of intracellular cholesterol synthesis in HepG2 cells

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

Sun, Shaowei; Medical School, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, Hunan; Wen, Juan

Daxx is a highly conserved nuclear transcriptional factor, which has been implicated in many nuclear processes including transcription and cell cycle regulation. Our previous study demonstrated Daxx also plays a role in regulation of intracellular cholesterol content. Daxx contains several domains that are essential for interaction with a growing number of proteins. To delineate the underlying mechanism of hypocholesterolemic activity of Daxx, we constructed a set of plasmids which can be used to overexpress different fragments of Daxx and transfected to HepG2 cells. We found that the C- terminal region Daxx626–740 clearly reduced intracellular cholesterol levels and inhibited the expressionmore » of SREBPs and SCAP. In GST pull-down experiments and Double immunofluorescence assays, Daxx626–740 was demonstrated to bind directly to androgen receptor (AR). Our findings suggest that the interaction of Daxx626-740 and AR abolishes the AR-mediated activation of SCAP/SREBPs pathway, which suppresses the de novo cholesterol synthesis. Thus, C-terminal domain of Daxx acts as a potential regulator of intracellular cholesterol content in HepG2 cells. - Highlights: • Daxx C-terminal domain reduces cholesterol levels. • Daxx C-terminal domain binds directly to AR. • The interaction of Daxx C-terminal domain and AR suppresses cholesterol synthesis.« less

Military Personnel Law Deskbook

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-08-01

Maintain physical and mental well-being. 3. Encourage the constructive use of time. B-3 4. Aid in recruitment and retention . 5. Assist in the... Job Grading System entalities (Oct. 1981). 4. AFI 34-262, para 2.3.4. and AFI 65-106, Chapter 4. ability. AR 215-1, para. 3-1, and para. 14-14. 1...Procedures. H. AR 600-37, Unfavorable Information. I. AR 601-280, Total Army Retention Program. J. AR 635-200, Active Duty Enlisted Administrative

Effects of calcium on seed germination, seedling growth and photosynthesis of six forest tree species under simulated acid rain.

PubMed

Liu, Ting-Wu; Wu, Fei-Hua; Wang, Wen-Hua; Chen, Juan; Li, Zhen-Ji; Dong, Xue-Jun; Patton, Janet; Pei, Zhen-Ming; Zheng, Hai-Lei

2011-04-01

We selected six tree species, Pinus massoniana Lamb., Cryptomeria fortunei Hooibr. ex Otto et Dietr., Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook., Liquidambar formosana Hance, Pinus armandii Franch. and Castanopsis chinensis Hance, which are widely distributed as dominant species in the forest of southern China where acid deposition is becoming more and more serious in recent years. We investigated the effects and potential interactions between simulated acid rain (SiAR) and three calcium (Ca) levels on seed germination, radicle length, seedling growth, chlorophyll content, photosynthesis and Ca content in leaves of these six species. We found that the six species showed different responses to SiAR and different Ca levels. Pinus armandii and C. chinensis were very tolerant to SiAR, whereas the others were more sensitive. The results of significant SiAR × Ca interactions on different physiological parameters of the six species demonstrate that additional Ca had a dramatic rescue effect on the seed germination and seedling growth for the sensitive species under SiAR. Altogether, we conclude that the negative effects of SiAR on seed germination, seedling growth and photosynthesis of the four sensitive species could be ameliorated by Ca addition. In contrast, the physiological processes of the two tolerant species were much less affected by both SiAR and Ca treatments. This conclusion implies that the degree of forest decline caused by long-term acid deposition may be attributed not only to the sensitivity of tree species to acid deposition, but also to the Ca level in the soil.

Detection of shallow buried objects using an autoregressive model on the ground penetrating radar signal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nabelek, Daniel P.; Ho, K. C.

2013-06-01

The detection of shallow buried low-metal content objects using ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a challenging task. This is because these targets are right underneath the ground and the ground bounce reflection interferes with their detections. They do not create distinctive hyperbolic signatures as required by most existing GPR detection algorithms due to their special geometric shapes and low metal content. This paper proposes the use of the Autoregressive (AR) modeling method for the detection of these targets. We fit an A-scan of the GPR data to an AR model. It is found that the fitting error will be small when such a target is present and large when it is absent. The ratio of the energy in an Ascan before and after AR model fitting is used as the confidence value for detection. We also apply AR model fitting over scans and utilize the fitting residual energies over several scans to form a feature vector for improving the detections. Using the data collected from a government test site, the proposed method can improve the detection of this kind of targets by 30% compared to the pre-screener, at a false alarm rate of 0.002/m2.

Ar-40/Ar-39 ages and cosmic ray exposure ages of Apollo 14 samples.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turner, G.; Huneke, J. C.; Podosek, F. A.; Wasserburg, G. J.

1971-01-01

We have used the Ar-40/Ar-39 dating technique on eight samples of Apollo 14 rocks (14053, 14310), breccia fragments (14321), and soil fragments (14001, 14167). The large basalt fragments give reasonable Ar-40/Ar-39 release patterns and yield well defined crystallization ages of 3.89-3.95 aeons. Correlation of the Ar-40/Ar-39 release patterns with Ar-39/Ar-37 patterns showed that the low temperature fractions with high radiogenic argon loss came from K-rich phases. A highly shocked sample and fragments included in the breccia yield complex release patterns with a low temperature peak. The total argon age of these fragments is 3.95 aeons. Cosmic ray exposure ages on these samples are obtained from the ratio of spallogenic Ar-38 to reactor induced Ar-37 and show a distinct grouping of low exposure ages of 26 m.y. correlated with Cone crater. Other samples have exposure ages of more than 260 m.y. and identify material with a more complex integrated cosmic age exposure history.

Augmented Reality, the Future of Contextual Mobile Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sungkur, Roopesh Kevin; Panchoo, Akshay; Bhoyroo, Nitisha Kirtee

2016-01-01

Purpose: This study aims to show the relevance of augmented reality (AR) in mobile learning for the 21st century. With AR, any real-world environment can be augmented by providing users with accurate digital overlays. AR is a promising technology that has the potential to encourage learners to explore learning materials from a totally new…

Development of optical coatings for 157-nm lithography. II. Reflectance, absorption, and scatter measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otani, Minoru; Biro, Ryuji; Ouchi, Chidane; Hasegawa, Masanobu; Suzuki, Yasuyuki; Sone, Kazuho; Niisaka, Shunsuke; Saito, Tadahiko; Saito, Jun; Tanaka, Akira

2002-06-01

The total loss that can be suffered by an antireflection (AR) coating consists of reflectance loss, absorption loss, and scatter loss. To separate these losses we developed a calorimetric absorption measurement apparatus and an ellipsoidal Coblentz hemisphere based scatterometer for 157-nm optics. Reflectance, absorption, and scatter of AR coatings were measured with these apparatuses. The AR coating samples were supplied by Japanese vendors. Each AR coating as supplied was coated with the vendor's coating design by that vendor's coating process. Our measurement apparatuses, methods, and results for these AR coatings are presented here.

Major trauma: the unseen financial burden to trauma centres, a descriptive multicentre analysis.

PubMed

Curtis, Kate; Lam, Mary; Mitchell, Rebecca; Dickson, Cara; McDonnell, Karon

2014-02-01

This research examines the existing funding model for in-hospital trauma patient episodes in New South Wales (NSW), Australia and identifies factors that cause above-average treatment costs. Accurate information on the treatment costs of injury is needed to guide health-funding strategy and prevent inadvertent underfunding of specialist trauma centres, which treat a high trauma casemix. Admitted trauma patient data provided by 12 trauma centres were linked with financial data for 2008-09. Actual costs incurred by each hospital were compared with state-wide Australian Refined Diagnostic Related Groups (AR-DRG) average costs. Patient episodes where actual cost was higher than AR-DRG cost allocation were examined. There were 16693 patients at a total cost of AU$178.7million. The total costs incurred by trauma centres were $14.7million above the NSW peer-group average cost estimates. There were 10 AR-DRG where the total cost variance was greater than $500000. The AR-DRG with the largest proportion of patients were the upper limb injury categories, many of whom had multiple body regions injured and/or a traumatic brain injury (P<0.001). AR-DRG classifications do not adequately describe the trauma patient episode and are not commensurate with the expense of trauma treatment. A revision of AR-DRG used for trauma is needed. WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THIS TOPIC? Severely injured trauma patients often have multiple injuries, in more than one body region and the determination of appropriate AR-DRG can be difficult. Pilot research suggests that the AR-DRG do not accurately represent the care that is required for these patients. WHAT DOES THIS PAPER ADD? This is the first multicentre analysis of treatment costs and coding variance for major trauma in Australia. This research identifies the limitations of the current AR-DRGS and those that are particularly problematic. The value of linking trauma registry and financial data within each trauma centre is demonstrated. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTITIONERS? Further work should be conducted between trauma services, clinical coding and finance departments to improve the accuracy of clinical coding, review funding models and ensure that AR-DRG allocation is commensurate with the expense of trauma treatment.

MAGNETIC ENERGY SPECTRA IN SOLAR ACTIVE REGIONS

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

Abramenko, Valentyna; Yurchyshyn, Vasyl

Line-of-sight magnetograms for 217 active regions (ARs) with different flare rates observed at the solar disk center from 1997 January until 2006 December are utilized to study the turbulence regime and its relationship to flare productivity. Data from the SOHO/MDI instrument recorded in the high-resolution mode and data from the BBSO magnetograph were used. The turbulence regime was probed via magnetic energy spectra and magnetic dissipation spectra. We found steeper energy spectra for ARs with higher flare productivity. We also report that both the power index, {alpha}, of the energy spectrum, E(k) {approx} k{sup -}{alpha}, and the total spectral energy,more » W = {integral}E(k)dk, are comparably correlated with the flare index, A, of an AR. The correlations are found to be stronger than those found between the flare index and the total unsigned flux. The flare index for an AR can be estimated based on measurements of {alpha} and W as A = 10{sup b}({alpha}W){sup c}, with b = -7.92 {+-} 0.58 and c = 1.85 {+-} 0.13. We found that the regime of the fully developed turbulence occurs in decaying ARs and in emerging ARs (at the very early stage of emergence). Well-developed ARs display underdeveloped turbulence with strong magnetic dissipation at all scales.« less

Factors influencing variation of bulk milk antibiotic residue occurrence, somatic cell count, and total bacterial count in dairy sheep flocks.

PubMed

Gonzalo, C; Carriedo, J A; García-Jimeno, M C; Pérez-Bilbao, M; de la Fuente, L F

2010-04-01

To study the variations of bulk tank milk variables in dairy ewe flocks and to identify the main target practices and flock groups to improve milk quality and safety, a total of 71,228 records of antibiotic residue (AR) and milk yield and 68,781 records of somatic cell count (SCC) and total bacterial count (TBC) were obtained over 5 yr from the same 209 dairy ewe flocks of the Assaf breed belonging to the Consortium for Ovine Promotion of Castilla-León (Spain). Based on a logistic regression model, year, month, semester, SCC, TBC, dry therapy, and milk yield significantly contributed to AR variation. High SCC was associated with increased AR violations. When antibiotic dry therapy was implemented, AR occurrence was higher than when this practice was not used. A polynomial monthly distribution throughout the year was observed for AR occurrence; the highest values were in autumn, coinciding with low milk yields per flock. Yearly occurrences drastically diminished from 2004 (1.36%) to 2008 (0.30%), probably as a result of effective educational programs. The mixed-model ANOVA of factors influencing variation in SCC and TBC indicated that year, month, AR, dry therapy group, milking type, and year interactions were significant variation factors for SCC and TBC; mathematical model accounted for 74.1 and 35.4% of total variance for each variable, respectively. Differences in management and hygiene practice caused significant SCC and TBC variations among flocks and within flocks throughout the 5-yr study. Over time, continuously dry treated flocks showed lower logSCC (5.80) and logTBC (4.92) than untreated (6.10 and 5.18, respectively) or discontinuously dry treated (6.01 and 5.05, respectively) flocks. Continuously dry treated flocks had lower AR occurrences than did discontinuously dry treated flocks. As a whole, AR occurrence and SCC and TBC bulk tank milk variables can be used for monitoring mammary health and milk hygiene and safety in dairy sheep throughout time. Copyright (c) 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Occurrence of alk(en)ylresorcinols in the fruits of two mango (Mangifera indica L.) cultivars during on-tree maturation and postharvest storage.

PubMed

Kienzle, Stefanie; Carle, Reinhold; Sruamsiri, Pittaya; Tosta, Carola; Neidhart, Sybille

2014-01-08

Regarding their relevance for the fungal resistance of mangoes in long supply chains, the alk(en)ylresorcinols (AR) were quantitated in peel and mesocarp throughout storage (27 days, 14 °C, ethylene absorption). The 12 'Chok Anan' and 11 'Nam Dokmai #4' lots picked between 83 and 115 days after full bloom (DAFB) had different harvest maturity indices. The development of dry matter and fruit growth indicated physiological maturity ∼100 DAFB. During storage, all fruits ripened slowly, mostly until over-ripeness and visible decay. The total AR contents always ranged at 73 ± 4.5 and 6.4 ± 0.7 mg hg(-1) of 'Chok Anan' and 'Nam Dokmai #4' peel dry weight, respectively, but only at 6.7 ± 0.7 and 0.9 ± 0.1 mg hg(-1) for the corresponding mesocarp (P ≤ 0.05). These narrow concentration ranges were contradictory to the decreasing fungal resistance. Accordingly, the alk(en)ylresorcinols have not been a deciding factor for the fungal resistance.

Mineralogical, chemical and K-Ar isotopic changes in Kreyenhagen Shale whole rocks and <2 μm clay fractions during natural burial and hydrous-pyrolysis experimental maturation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clauer, N.; Lewan, M. D.; Dolan, M. P.; Chaudhuri, S.; Curtis, J. B.

2014-04-01

Progressive maturation of the Eocene Kreyenhagen Shale from the San Joaquin Basin of California was studied by combining mineralogical and chemical analyses with K-Ar dating of whole rocks and <2 μm clay fractions from naturally buried samples and laboratory induced maturation by hydrous pyrolysis of an immature outcrop sample. The K-Ar age decreases from 89.9 ± 3.9 and 72.4 ± 4.2 Ma for the outcrop whole rock and its <2 μm fraction, respectively, to 29.7 ± 1.5 and 21.0 ± 0.7 Ma for the equivalent materials buried to 5167 m. The natural maturation does not produce K-Ar ages in the historical sense, but rather K/Ar ratios of relative K and radiogenic 40Ar amounts resulting from a combined crystallization of authigenic and alteration of initial detrital K-bearing minerals of the rocks. The Al/K ratio of the naturally matured rocks is essentially constant for the entire depth sequence, indicating that there is no detectable variation in the crystallo-chemical organization of the K-bearing alumino-silicates with depth. No supply of K from outside of the rock volumes occurred, which indicates a closed-system behavior for it. Conversely, the content of the total organic carbon (TOC) content decreases significantly with burial, based on the progressive increasing Al/TOC ratio of the whole rocks. The initial varied mineralogy and chemistry of the rocks and their <2 μm fractions resulting from differences in detrital sources and depositional settings give scattered results that homogenize progressively during burial due to increased authigenesis, and concomitant increased alteration of the detrital material. Hydrous pyrolysis was intended to alleviate the problem of mineral and chemical variations in initially deposited rocks of naturally matured sequences. However, experiments on aliquots from thermally immature Kreyenhagen Shale outcrop sample did not mimic the results from naturally buried samples. Experiments conducted for 72 h at temperatures from 270 to 365 °C did not induce significant changes at temperatures above 310 °C in the mineralogical composition and K-Ar ages of the rock and <2 μm fraction. The K-Ar ages of the <2 μm fraction range from 72.4 ± 4.2 Ma in the outcrop sample to 62.4 ± 3.4 Ma in the sample heated the most at 365 °C for 216 h. This slight decrease in age outlines some loss of radiogenic 40Ar, together with losses of organic matter as oil, gas, and aqueous organic species. Large amounts of smectite layers in the illite-smectite mixed layers of the pyrolyzed outcrop <2 μm fraction remain during thermal experiments, especially above 310 °C. With no illitization detected above 310 °C, smectite appears to have inhibited rather than promoted generation of expelled oil from decomposition of bitumen. This hindrance is interpreted to result from bitumen impregnating the smectite interlayer sites and rock matrix. Bitumen remains in the <2 μm fraction despite leaching with H2O2. Its presence in the smectite interlayers is apparent by the inability of the clay fraction to fully expand or collapse once bitumen generation from the thermal decomposition of the kerogen is completed, and by almost invariable K-Ar ages confirming for the lack of any K supply and/or radiogenic 40Ar removal. This suggests that once bitumen impregnates the porosity of a progressively maturing source rock, the pore system is no longer wetted by water and smectite to illite conversion ceases. Experimental attempts to evaluate the smectite conversion to illite should preferentially use low-TOC rocks to avoid inhibition of the reaction by bitumen impregnation.

Replacement for a Flex Hose Coating at the Space Shuttle Launch Pad

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitten, Mary; Vinje, Rubiela; Curran, Jerome; Meneghelli, Barry; Calle, Luz Marina

2009-01-01

Aerocoat AR-7 is a coating that has been used to protect stainless steel flex hoses at NASA's Kennedy Space Center launch complex and hydraulic lines of the mobile launch platform (MLP). This coating has great corrosion control performance and low temperature application. AR-7 was developed by NASA and produced exclusively for NASA but its production has been discontinued due to its high content of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and significant environmental impact. The purpose of this project was to select and evaluate candidate coatings to find a replacement coating that is more environmentally friendly, with similar properties to AR-7. No coatings were identified that perform the same as AR-7 in all areas. Candidate coatings failed in comparison to AR-7 in salt fog, beachside atmospheric exposure, pencil hardness, Mandrel bend, chemical compatibility, adhesion, and ease of application tests. However, two coatings were selected for further evaluation.

Effect of oxygen concentration and metal electrode on the resistive switching in MIM capacitors with transition metal oxides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spassov, D.; Paskaleva, A.; Fröhlich, K.; Ivanov, Tz

2017-01-01

The influence of the oxygen content in the dielectric layer and the effect of the bottom electrode on the resistive switching in Au/Pt/TaOx/TiN and Au/Pt/TaOx/Ta structures have been studied. The sputtered TaOx layers have been prepared by using oxygen concentrations of 10 or 7% O 2 in the Ar+O2 working ambient as well as by a gradual variation of the O2 content in the deposition process from 5 to 10%. Two deposition regimes for TiN electrodes have been investigated: reactive sputtering of Ti target in Ar+N2 ambient, and sputtering of TiN target in pure Ar. Bipolar resistive switching behavior is observed in all examined structures. It is demonstrated that the resistive switching effect is affected by the oxygen content in the working ambient as well as by the type and the deposition conditions of the bottom electrodes. Most stable effect, with ON/OFF ratio above 100 is obtained in TaOx deposited with variable O2 content in the ambient. The obtained switching voltage between the high resistive and low resistive state (SET) is about -1.5 V and the reverse changeover (RESET) is ∼2 V. A well pronounced resistive switching is achieved with reactively sputtered TiN while for the other bottom electrodes the effect is negligible.

Reconfiguring the AR-TIF2 Protein–Protein Interaction HCS Assay in Prostate Cancer Cells and Characterizing the Hits from a LOPAC Screen

PubMed Central

Fancher, Ashley T.; Hua, Yun; Camarco, Daniel P.; Close, David A.; Strock, Christopher J.

2016-01-01

Abstract The continued activation of androgen receptor (AR) transcription and elevated expression of AR and transcriptional intermediary factor 2 (TIF2) coactivator observed in prostate cancer (CaP) recurrence and the development of castration-resistant CaP (CRPC) support a screening strategy for small-molecule inhibitors of AR-TIF2 protein–protein interactions (PPIs) to find new drug candidates. Small molecules can elicit tissue selective effects, because the cells of distinct tissues express different levels and cohorts of coregulatory proteins. We reconfigured the AR-TIF2 PPI biosensor (PPIB) assay in the PC-3 CaP cell line to determine whether AR modulators and hits from an AR-TIF2 PPIB screen conducted in U-2 OS cells would behave differently in the CaP cell background. Although we did not observe any significant differences in the compound responses between the assay performed in osteosarcoma and CaP cells, the U-2 OS AR-TIF2 PPIB assay would be more amenable to screening, because both the virus and cell culture demands are lower. We implemented a testing paradigm of counter-screens and secondary hit characterization assays that allowed us to identify and deprioritize hits that inhibited/disrupted AR-TIF2 PPIs and AR transcriptional activation (AR-TA) through antagonism of AR ligand binding or by non-specifically blocking nuclear receptor trafficking. Since AR-TIF2 PPI inhibitor/disruptor molecules act distally to AR ligand binding, they have the potential to modulate AR-TA in a cell-specific manner that is distinct from existing anti-androgen drugs, and to overcome the development of resistance to AR antagonism. We anticipate that the application of this testing paradigm to characterize the hits from an AR-TIF2 PPI high-content screening campaign will enable us to prioritize the AR-TIF2 PPI inhibitor/disruptor leads that have potential to be developed into novel therapeutics for CaP and CRPC. PMID:27606620

Progressive skeletal benefits of physical activity when young as assessed at the midshaft humerus in male baseball players.

PubMed

Warden, S J; Weatherholt, A M; Gudeman, A S; Mitchell, D C; Thompson, W R; Fuchs, R K

2017-07-01

Physical activity benefits the skeleton, but there is contrasting evidence regarding whether benefits differ at different stages of growth. The current study demonstrates that physical activity should be encouraged at the earliest age possible and be continued into early adulthood to gain most skeletal benefits. The current study explored physical activity-induced bone adaptation at different stages of somatic maturity by comparing side-to-side differences in midshaft humerus properties between male throwing athletes and controls. Throwers present an internally controlled model, while inclusion of control subjects removes normal arm dominance influences. Throwing athletes (n = 90) and controls (n = 51) were categorized into maturity groups (pre, peri, post-early, post-mid, and post-late) based on estimated years from peak height velocity (<-2, -2 to 2, 2 to 4, 4 to 10, and >10 years). Side-to-side percent differences in midshaft humerus cortical volumetric bone mineral density (Ct.vBMD) and bone mineral content (Ct.BMC); total (Tt.Ar), medullary (Me.Ar), and cortical (Ct.Ar) areas; average cortical thickness (Ct.Th); and polar Strength Strain Index (SSI P ) were assessed. Significant interactions between physical activity and maturity on side-to-side differences in Ct.BMC, Tt.Ar, Ct.Ar, Me.Ar, Ct.Th, and SSI P resulted from the following: (1) greater throwing-to-nonthrowing arm differences than dominant-to-nondominant arm differences in controls (all p < 0.05) and (2) throwing-to-nonthrowing arm differences in throwers being progressively greater across maturity groups (all p < 0.05). Regional analyses revealed greatest adaptation in medial and lateral sectors, particularly in the three post-maturity groups. Years throwing predicted 59% of the variance of the variance in throwing-to-nonthrowing arm difference in SSI P (p < 0.001). These data suggest that physical activity has skeletal benefits beginning prior to and continuing beyond somatic maturation and that a longer duration of exposure to physical activity has cumulative skeletal benefits. Thus, physical activity should be encouraged at the earliest age possible and be continued into early adulthood to optimize skeletal benefits.

Ice melt influence on summertime net community production along the Western Antarctic Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eveleth, R.; Cassar, N.; Sherrell, R. M.; Ducklow, H.; Meredith, M. P.; Venables, H. J.; Lin, Y.; Li, Z.

2017-05-01

The Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a highly productive marine environment that is undergoing rapid change, with consequences for productivity and total ecosystem carbon cycling. We present continuous underway O2/Ar estimates of net community production (NCPO2Ar) in austral summer 2012, 2013 and 2014 at sub-kilometer horizontal resolution within the Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (Pal-LTER) grid region of the WAP. Substantial spatial variability is observed with NCPO2Ar ranging from 0 to 790 mmol O2 m-2 d-1 and considerable interannual variability with mean values in the grid region of 54.4±48.5, 44.6±40.5, and 85.6±75.9 mmol O2 m-2 d-1 in 2012, 2013 and 2014 respectively. Based on a strong correlation (r2=0.83) between residence time integrated NCPO2Ar and NCPDIC derived from seasonal DIC drawdown, we find the observed NCPO2Ar spatial and interannual variability to be consistent with the December-January NCPDIC magnitude. Seeking to explain the mechanistic drivers of NCP in the WAP, we observe a linear relationship between NCPO2Ar and meteoric water content derived from δ18O and salinity. This correlation may be due to Fe supply from glacial melt and/or strengthening of stratification and relief of light limitation. Elevated surface Fe availability, as indicated by Fv/Fm and measurements of surface water dissolved Fe and Mn (a rough proxy for recent potential Fe availability), and shallower, more stable mixed layers are present where meteoric water and/or sea ice melt is high near the coast. Light limitation is evident in the WAP when mixed layer depths are greater than 40 m. Additionally we document hotspots of NCP associated with submarine canyons along the WAP. While it is difficult to predict how the physical-biological system might evolve under changing climatic conditions, it is evident that NCP, and potentially carbon flux out of the mixed layer, along the WAP will be sensitive to shifts in meltwater input and timing.

Ar Atmosphere: Implications for Structure and Composition of Mercury's Crust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Killen, R. M.; Morgan, T. H.

2001-01-01

We examine the possibilities of sustaining an argon atmosphere by diffusion from the upper 10 km of crust, and alternatively by effusion from a molten or previously molten area at great depth . Ar-40 in the atmospheres of the planets is a measure of potassium abundance in the interiors since Ar-40 is a product of radiogenic decay of K-40 by electron capture with the subsequent emission of a 1.46 eV gamma-ray. Although the Ar-40 in the earth's atmosphere is expected to have accumulated since the late bombardment, Ar-40 in surface-bounded exospheres is eroded quickly by photoionization and electron impact ionization. Thus, the argon content in the exospheres of the Moon, Mercury and probably Europa is representative of current effusion rather than accumulation over the lifetime of the body. Argon content will be a function of K content, temperature, grain size distribution, connected pore volume and possible seismic activity. Although Mercury and the Moon differ in many details, we can train the solutions to diffusion equations to predict the average lunar atmosphere. Then these parameters can be varied for Hermean conditions. Assuming a lunar crustal potassium abundance of 300 ppm, the observed argon atmosphere requires equilibrium between the argon production in the upper 9 Km of the moon (1.135 x 10(exp -3) cm(exp -3) s(exp -1)) and its loss. Hodges et al. conclude that this loss rate and the observed time variability requires argon release through seismic activity, tapping a deep argon source. An important observation is that the extreme surface of the Moon is enhanced in argon rather than depleted, as one would expect from outgassing of radiogenic argon. Manka and Michel concluded that ion implantation explains the surface enhancement of Ar-40. About half of the argon ions produced in the lunar atmosphere would return to the surface, where they would become embedded in the rocks. Similarly, at Mercury we expect the surface rocks to be enhanced in Ar-40 wherever the magnetosphere has been open over time. Thus the measurement of surface composition will reveal the long-term effects of solar wind-magnetosphere interaction. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Roles of methyltrienolone (R1881) in AKTs and AR expression patterns of cultured granulosa-lutein cells.

PubMed

Nekoonam, Saeid; Naji, Mohammad; Mortezaee, Keywan; Amidi, Fardin

2018-05-11

AR-mediated androgen signaling plays a key role in female reproductive system. Granulosa-lutein cells (GCs) are the main sites for expression of androgen receptor (AR). There is also a close relation between AKT signaling and AR. Here, we assayed the role for a synthetic AR ligand methyltrienolone (R1881) in expressions of AKTs and AR. Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) was performed in 20 normal women. Mural GCs were isolated by filtration method, cultured, and passaged. Then, the cells were starved for 48 h with 10% charcoal stripped FBS. The cells were then treated with R1881, bicalutamide (AR blocker), LY294002 (PI3K/AKT pathway blocker), and combination of them for 48 h. Finally, GCs were evaluated for quantitative real-time PCR analysis of AKT1, AKT2, AKT3, and AR, and also Western blot assessment of total AKT and phosphorylated AKT (p-AKT) [Ser473 and Thr308]. Addition of R1881 to the GCs culture showed high expressions of AKT1, AKT2, and AKT3 (P ≤ 0.05 vs LY294002 group and bicalutamide group). Expressions of AKT1 and AKT2 were decreased in the GCs under exposure to bicalutamide or LY294002 (P ≤ 0.05 vs R1881). AKT1, AKT2, and AKT3 showed decreased rates of expressions in the LY294002 + bicalutamide group (P ≤ 0.05 vs R1881). AR, total AKT and p-AKT showed no significant differences between groups. Our findings indicate that 46 h exposure with R1881 could affect AKTs expressions in the GCs of pre-ovulatory phase, but it cannot promote AR expression and AKTs activation. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Glutathione metabolic status in the aged rabbit aorta.

PubMed

Lapenna, Domenico; Ciofani, Giuliano; Giamberardino, Maria Adele

2017-05-01

It is not known whether aging alters glutathione metabolic status of the mammalian arterial tissue favoring vascular oxidative stress and dysfunction. Thus we assessed total, reduced and oxidized glutathione (TG, GSH and GSSG, respectively), the glutathione redox ratio (GRR, namely [GSSG]/[GSH+2GSSG]×100), and the activities of the glutathione status-regulating enzymes glutathione reductase (GSSG-Red), γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase (γ-GCS) and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT) in the aortic tissue of 9 young adult control rabbits (YACR, about 4months old) and 9 aged rabbits (AR, about 4.5years old); aortic lipid and protein oxidation and H 2 O 2 were also determined as oxidative stress indicators. Vascular function was assessed on aortic ring preparations. TG and GSH concentrations, together with γ-GCS and γ-GT activities, were significantly lower, while GSSG content and the GRR higher, in the AR than in the YACR aortas; GSSG-Red activity did not differ significantly between the two groups. Heightened levels of lipid and protein oxidation and H 2 O 2 occurred in the AR aortas, indicating age-dependent vascular oxidative stress. Moreover, in the whole population of 18 rabbits, the aortic values of GSH and related enzyme activities were inversely and significantly correlated with those of lipid and protein oxidation and H 2 O 2 , highlighting the antioxidant role of GSH and related enzymes in the vascular tissue. Aortic endothelium-dependent vasodilation was lower in the AR than in the YACR. In conclusion, glutathione metabolic status is altered in the aged rabbit aorta reflecting depressed γ-GCS- and γ-GT-related GSH biosynthesis and GSSG burden eventually favoring vascular oxidative stress and dysfunction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Field safety notices released by manufacturers in cases of failure of products for infection testing: analysis of cases reported to the BfArM between 2005 and 2007

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

The European Directive 98/79/EC for in vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVD) regulates marketing and post marketing surveillance of IVD in the European Economic Area. Manufacturers have to inform the responsible Competent Authorities (CA) about incidents and field safety corrective actions (FSCA) related to IVD. In Germany, the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) is the responsible CA for most IVD, only few IVD as specified in Annex II of the Directive are under the responsibility of the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI). In case of a FSCA manufacturers have to inform customers by means of a Field Safety Notice (FSN) which should be sent to BfArM prior to release and is published on the BfArM home-page. Between beginning of 2005 and end of 2007 the BfArM received a total of 1025 reports regarding IVD. From these, 38 related to tests, reagents, calibrators, and control materials for infection testing, 13 related to analysers and general consumables (n = 8 and n = 5, respectively) based on culture techniques, and 7 related to analysers and general consumables (n = 5 and n = 2, respectively) based on molecular biological methods. FSCA were performed in Germany in 32 (84.2%) of all notifications related to tests reagents, calibrators, and control materials as well as in 13 (100%) and 7 (100%) of notifications related to analysers and consumables based on culture techniques and molecular biological methods, respectively. A number of relevant deficiencies regarding the quality of the FSN were separately demonstrated for FSN in German and English language. In brief, manufacturers often sent their FSN to the BfArM with delay. Additionally, a subset of FSN provided insufficient information on the product related risks or the measures to be performed by the customer to mitigate product related risks. Furthermore, customer confirmation forms often were missing in the FSN sent to the BfArM. Our data suggest that for IVD for infection testing FSCA and FSN are frequently performed. For better vigilance performance, manufacturers could shorten the time until release and improve the contents of FSN to ensure the safety of IVD in cases of product related corrective actions. PMID:21147647

Field safety notices released by manufacturers in cases of failure of products for infection testing: analysis of cases reported to the BfArM between 2005 and 2007.

PubMed

Siekmeier, R; Lisson, K; Wetzel, D

2010-11-04

The European Directive 98/79/EC for in vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVD) regulates marketing and post marketing surveillance of IVD in the European Economic Area. Manufacturers have to inform the responsible Competent Authorities (CA) about incidents and field safety corrective actions (FSCA) related to IVD. In Germany, the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) is the responsible CA for most IVD, only few IVD as specified in Annex II of the Directive are under the responsibility of the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI). In case of a FSCA manufacturers have to inform customers by means of a Field Safety Notice (FSN) which should be sent to BfArM prior to release and is published on the BfArM homepage. Between beginning of 2005 and end of 2007 the BfArM received a total of 1025 reports regarding IVD. From these, 38 related to tests, reagents, calibrators, and control materials for infection testing, 13 related to analysers and general consumables (n = 8 and n = 5, respectively) based on culture techniques, and 7 related to analysers and general consumables (n = 5 and n = 2, respectively) based on molecular biological methods. FSCA were performed in Germany in 32 (84.2%) of all notifications related to tests reagents, calibrators, and control materials as well as in 13 (100%) and 7 (100%) of notifications related to analysers and consumables based on culture techniques and molecular biological methods, respectively. A number of relevant deficiencies regarding the quality of the FSN were separately demonstrated for FSN in German and English language. In brief, manufacturers often sent their FSN to the BfArM with delay. Additionally, a subset of FSN provided insufficient information on the product related risks or the measures to be performed by the customer to mitigate product related risks. Furthermore, customer confirmation forms often were missing in the FSN sent to the BfArM. Our data suggest that for IVD for infection testing FSCA and FSN are frequently performed. For better vigilance performance, manufacturers could shorten the time until release and improve the contents of FSN to ensure the safety of IVD in cases of product related corrective actions.

Effective ionization coefficients, limiting electric fields, and electron energy distributions in CF{sub 3}I + CF{sub 4} + Ar ternary gas mixtures

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

Tezcan, S. S.; Dincer, M. S.; Bektas, S.

2016-07-15

This paper reports on the effective ionization coefficients, limiting electric fields, electron energy distribution functions, and mean energies in ternary mixtures of (Trifluoroiodomethane) CF{sub 3}I + CF{sub 4} + Ar in the E/N range of 100–700 Td employing a two-term solution of the Boltzmann equation. In the ternary mixture, CF{sub 3}I component is increased while the CF{sub 4} component is reduced accordingly and the 40% Ar component is kept constant. It is seen that the electronegativity of the mixture increases with increased CF{sub 3}I content and effective ionization coefficients decrease while the limiting electric field values increase. Synergism in themore » mixture is also evaluated in percentage using the limiting electric field values obtained. Furthermore, it is possible to control the mean electron energy in the ternary mixture by changing the content of CF{sub 3}I component.« less

Simulation of water removal process and optimization of aeration strategy in sewage sludge composting.

PubMed

Zhou, Hai-Bin; Chen, Tong-Bin; Gao, Ding; Zheng, Guo-Di; Chen, Jun; Pan, Tian-Hao; Liu, Hong-Tao; Gu, Run-Yao

2014-11-01

Reducing moisture in sewage sludge is one of the main goals of sewage sludge composting and biodrying. A mathematical model was used to simulate the performance of water removal under different aeration strategies. Additionally, the correlations between temperature, moisture content (MC), volatile solids (VS), oxygen content (OC), and ambient air temperature and aeration strategies were predicted. The mathematical model was verified based on coefficients of correlation between the measured and predicted results of over 0.80 for OC, MC, and VS, and 0.72 for temperature. The results of the simulation showed that water reduction was enhanced when the average aeration rate (AR) increased to 15.37 m(3) min(-1) (6/34 min/min, AR: 102.46 m(3) min(-1)), above which no further increase was observed. Furthermore, more water was removed under a higher on/off time of 7/33 (min/min, AR: 87.34 m(3) min(-1)), and when ambient air temperature was higher. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Age of the Hawaiian-Emperor bend

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dalrymple, G.B.; Clague, D.A.

1976-01-01

40Ar/39Ar age data on alkalic and tholeiitic basalts from Diakakuji and Kinmei Seamounts in the vicinity of the Hawaiian-Emperor bend indicate that these volcanoes are about 41 and 39 m.y. old, respectively. Combined with previously published age data on Yuryaku and Ko??ko Seamounts, the new data indicate that the best age for the bend is 42.0 ?? 1.4 m.y. Petrochemical data indicate that the volcanic rocks recovered from bend seamounts are indistinguishable from Hawaiian volcanic rocks, strengthening the hypothesis that the Hawaiian-Emperor bend is part of the Hawaiian volcanic chain. 40Ar/39Ar total fusion ages on altered whole-rock basalt samples are consistent with feldspar ages and with 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating data and appear to reflect the crystallization ages of the samples even though conventional K-Ar ages are significantly younger. The cause of this effect is not known but it may be due to low-temperature loss of 39Ar from nonretentive montmorillonite clays that have also lost 40Ar. ?? 1976.

Solid recovered fuel: influence of waste stream composition and processing on chlorine content and fuel quality.

PubMed

Velis, Costas; Wagland, Stuart; Longhurst, Phil; Robson, Bryce; Sinfield, Keith; Wise, Stephen; Pollard, Simon

2012-02-07

Solid recovered fuel (SRF) produced by mechanical-biological treatment (MBT) of municipal waste can replace fossil fuels, being a CO(2)-neutral, affordable, and alternative energy source. SRF application is limited by low confidence in quality. We present results for key SRF properties centered on the issue of chlorine content. A detailed investigation involved sampling, statistical analysis, reconstruction of composition, and modeling of SRF properties. The total chlorine median for a typical plant during summer operation was 0.69% w/w(d), with lower/upper 95% confidence intervals of 0.60% w/w(d) and 0.74% w/w(d) (class 3 of CEN Cl indicator). The average total chlorine can be simulated, using a reconciled SRF composition before shredding to <40 mm. The relative plastics vs paper mass ratios in particular result in an SRF with a 95% upper confidence limit for ash content marginally below the 20% w/w(d) deemed suitable for certain power plants; and a lower 95% confidence limit of net calorific value (NCV) at 14.5 MJ kg(ar)(-1). The data provide, for the first time, a high level of confidence on the effects of SRF composition on its chlorine content, illustrating interrelationships with other fuel properties. The findings presented here allow rational debate on achievable vs desirable MBT-derived SRF quality, informing the development of realistic SRF quality specifications, through modeling exercises, needed for effective thermal recovery.

In vivo modulation of androgen receptor by androgens.

PubMed

Kumar, V L; Majumder, P K; Kumar, V

2002-09-01

To study the effect of androgen and antiandrogen on the level of androgen receptor (AR) mRNA. The total RNA was extracted from the prostate and analyzed by slot blot analysis. The blots were hybridized with AR cDNA probe and 1A probe (internal control) and autoradiography was performed. The intensity of signal was measured with a densitometer and the ratio of AR RNA and 1A RNA was calculated. Androgenic deprivation produced by castration decreased the weight of the prostate and increased the levels of AR mRNA. Treatment of the castrated rats with testostrone increased the weight of prostate and decreased the levels of AR mRNA. Treatment of normal rats with flutamide decreased the weight of the gland and increased the levels of AR mRNA. Androgens produce proliferative effect on the prostate and negatively regulate the AR transcription.

Persistent landfalling atmospheric rivers over the west coast of North America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Payne, Ashley E.; Magnusdottir, Gudrun

2016-11-01

Landfalling atmospheric rivers (ARs) are linked to heavy precipitation and extreme flooding, and are well known along the western coast of North America. The hydrological impacts of ARs upon landfall are correlated with their duration and magnitude. In order to improve the forecast of these hydrologically significant landfalling events, a better understanding of how they differ from other landfalling events must be established through an investigation of the mechanisms leading to their development prior to landfall. A subset of persistent landfalling AR events between 30°N and 50°N is identified in 3-hourly Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications reanalysis and validated against existing data sets. These events are identified as features in the low troposphere with high moisture transport and extended geometry that persist over a limited region of the coastline for longer than 63 h (85th percentile of AR duration). A composite analysis shows that persistent events have distinct thermodynamical and dynamical characteristics compared to all AR events. They are characterized by greater moisture content, suggestive of Pineapple Express-type events, a perturbed upper level jet and anticyclonic overturning of potential vorticity contours associated with anticyclonic Rossby wave breaking. Moreover, the location of the Rossby wave breaking is shifted inland compared to all AR events. Analogue analysis of the 500 hPa geopotential height anomalies is used to find nonpersistent events with similar dynamical characteristics to persistent events. Despite their similarity to persistent events, nonpersistent analogues show very little shift toward longer duration. A comparison of the development of persistent and nonpersistent analogues shows that persistent events have much greater moisture content.

Investigating the role of hydrogen in silicon deposition using an energy-resolved mass spectrometer and a Langmuir probe in an Ar/H2 radio frequency magnetron discharge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mensah, S. L.; Naseem, Hameed H.; Abu-Safe, Husam; Gordon, M. H.

2012-07-01

The plasma parameters and ion energy distributions (IED) of the dominant species in an Ar-H2 discharge are investigated with an energy resolved mass spectrometer and a Langmuir probe. The plasmas are generated in a conventional magnetron chamber powered at 150 W, 13.56 MHz at hydrogen flow rates ranging from 0 to 25 sccm with a fixed argon gas flow rate of 15 sccm. Various Hn+, SiHn+, SiHn fragments (with n = 1, 2, 3) together with Ar+ and ArH+ species are detected in the discharge. The most important species for the film deposition is SiHn (with n = 0, 1, 2). H fragments affect the hydrogen content in the material. The flux of Ar+ decreases and the flux of ArH+ increases when the hydrogen flow rate is increased; however, both fluxes saturate at hydrogen flow rates above 15 sccm. Electron density, ne, electron energy, Te, and ion density, ni, are estimated from the Langmuir probe data. Te is below 1.2 eV at hydrogen flow rates below 8 sccm, and about 2 eV at flow rates above 8 sccm. ne and ni decrease with increased hydrogen flow but the ratio of ni to ne increases. The formation of H+ ions with energies above 36 eV and electrons with energies greater than 2 eV contributes to the decrease in hydrogen content at hydrogen flow rates above 8 sccm. Analysis of the IEDs indicates an inter-dependence of the species and their contribution to the thin film growth and properties.

Nuclear pumped laser II

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deyoung, R. J.; Lee, J. H.; Pinkston, W. T.

1977-01-01

The first direct nuclear pumped laser using the He-2-(n,p) H-3 reaction is reported. Lasing took place on the 1.79 microns Ar I transition in a mixture of He-3-Ar at approximately 600 Torr total pressure. It was found that the electrically pulsed afterglow He-Ar laser had the same concentration profile as the nuclear pumped laser. As a result, nuclear lasing was also achieved in He-3-Xe (2.027 micron) and He-3-Kr (2.52 micron). Scaling of laser output with both thermal flux and total pressure as well as minority concentration has been completed. A peak output (He-3-Ar) of 3.7 watts has been achieved at a total pressure of 4 atm. Direct nuclear pumping of He-3-Ne has also been achieved. Nuclear pumping of a He-3-NF3 mixture was attempted, lasing in FI at approximately 7000 A, without success, although the potential lasing transitions appeared in spontaneous emission. Both NF3 and 238UF6 appear to quench spontaneous emission when they constitute more than 1% of the gas mixture.

Intestinal microbial variation may predict early acute rejection after liver transplantation in rats.

PubMed

Ren, Zhigang; Jiang, Jianwen; Lu, Haifeng; Chen, Xinhua; He, Yong; Zhang, Hua; Xie, Haiyang; Wang, Weilin; Zheng, Shusen; Zhou, Lin

2014-10-27

Acute rejection (AR) remains a life-threatening complication after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) and there are few available diagnostic biomarkers clinically for AR. This study aims to identify intestinal microbial profile and explore potential application of microbial profile as a biomarker for AR after OLT. The OLT models in rats were established. Hepatic graft histology, ultrastructure, function, and intestinal barrier function were tested. Ileocecal contents were collected for intestinal microbial analysis. Hepatic graft suffered from the ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury on day 1, initial AR on day 3, and severe AR on day 7 after OLT. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction results showed that genus Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Lactobacillus were decreased, whereas Clostridium bolteae was increased during AR. Notably, cluster analysis of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiles showed the 7AR and 3AR groups clustered together with 73.4% similarity, suggesting that intestinal microbiota was more sensitive than hepatic function in responding to AR. Microbial diversity and species richness were decreased during AR. Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that most of the decreased key bacteria belonged to phylum Firmicutes, whereas increased key bacteria belonged to phylum Bacteroidetes. Moreover, intestinal microvilli loss and tight junction damage were noted, and intestinal barrier dysfunction during AR presented a decrease of fecal secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) and increase of blood bacteremia, endotoxin, and tumor necrosis factor-α. We dynamically detail intestinal microbial characterization and find a high sensitivity of microbial change during AR after OLT, suggesting that intestinal microbial variation may predict AR in early phase and become an assistant therapeutic target to improve rejection after OLT.

Intestinal Microbial Variation May Predict Early Acute Rejection after Liver Transplantation in Rats

PubMed Central

Ren, Zhigang; Jiang, Jianwen; Lu, Haifeng; Chen, Xinhua; He, Yong; Zhang, Hua; Xie, Haiyang; Wang, Weilin; Zheng, Shusen; Zhou, Lin

2014-01-01

Background Acute rejection (AR) remains a life-threatening complication after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) and there are few available diagnostic biomarkers clinically for AR. This study aims to identify intestinal microbial profile and explore potential application of microbial profile as a biomarker for AR after OLT. Methods The OLT models in rats were established. Hepatic graft histology, ultrastructure, function, and intestinal barrier function were tested. Ileocecal contents were collected for intestinal microbial analysis. Results Hepatic graft suffered from the ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury on day 1, initial AR on day 3, and severe AR on day 7 after OLT. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction results showed that genus Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Lactobacillus were decreased, whereas Clostridium bolteae was increased during AR. Notably, cluster analysis of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiles showed the 7AR and 3AR groups clustered together with 73.4% similarity, suggesting that intestinal microbiota was more sensitive than hepatic function in responding to AR. Microbial diversity and species richness were decreased during AR. Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that most of the decreased key bacteria belonged to phylum Firmicutes, whereas increased key bacteria belonged to phylum Bacteroidetes. Moreover, intestinal microvilli loss and tight junction damage were noted, and intestinal barrier dysfunction during AR presented a decrease of fecal secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) and increase of blood bacteremia, endotoxin, and tumor necrosis factor-α. Conclusion We dynamically detail intestinal microbial characterization and find a high sensitivity of microbial change during AR after OLT, suggesting that intestinal microbial variation may predict AR in early phase and become an assistant therapeutic target to improve rejection after OLT. PMID:25321166

Atmospheric Rivers in VR-CESM: Historical Comparison and Future Projections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McClenny, E. E.; Ullrich, P. A.

2016-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are responsible for most of the horizontal vapor transport from the tropics, and bring upwards of half the annual precipitation to midlatitude west coasts. The difference between a drought year and a wet year can come down to 1-2 ARs. Such few events transform an otherwise arid region into one which supports remarkable biodiversity, productive agriculture, and booming human populations. It follows that such a sensitive hydroclimate feature would demand priority in evaluating end-of-century climate runs, and indeed, the AR subfield has grown significantly over the last decade. However, results tend to vary wildly from study to study, raising questions about how to best approach ARs in models. The disparity may result from any number of issues, including the ability for a model to properly resolve a precipitating AR, to the formulation and application of an AR detection algorithm. ARs pose a unique problem in global climate models (GCMs) computationally and physically, because the GCM horizontal grid must be fine enough to resolve coastal mountain range topography and force orographic precipitation. Thus far, most end-of-century projections on ARs have been performed on models whose grids are too coarse to resolve mountain ranges, causing authors to draw conclusions on AR intensity from water vapor content or transport alone. The use of localized grid refinement in the Variable Resolution version of NCAR's Community Earth System Model (VR-CESM) has succeeded in resolving AR landfall. This study applies an integrated water vapor AR detection algorithm to historical and future projections from VR-CESM, with historical ARs validated against NASA's Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications. Results on end-of-century precipitating AR frequency, intensity, and landfall location will be discussed.

Evaluation of humic substances during co-composting of sewage sludge and corn stalk under different aeration rates.

PubMed

Li, Shuyan; Li, Danyang; Li, Jijin; Li, Guoxue; Zhang, Bangxi

2017-12-01

Sewage sludge and corn stalk were co-composted under different aeration rates 0.12 (AR0.12), 0.24 (AR0.24), 0.36 (AR0.36)L·kg -1 DMmin -1 , respectively. Transformation of humic substance was evaluated by a series of chemical and spectroscopic methods to reveal compost humification. Results showed that aeration rate could significantly affect compost stability and humification process. Humic acid contents in AR0.24 were significantly higher than those in the other two treatments. The final humic acid/fulvic acid ratios in AR0.12, AR0.24 and AR0.36 treatment were 1.0, 1.9 and 0.8, respectively, corresponding to the final E 4 /E 6 of 4.7, 3.2 and 5.5. Moreover, compost in AR0.24 treatment had a high stability degree due to the low C/N atom ratio and high C/H atom ratio. However, it is noteworthy that composting could not significantly affect the structure of HA in a 35-day period. These results indicate that composting with the aeration rate of 0.24L·kg -1 DMmin -1 could accelerated the humification process. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

BET Bromodomain Inhibitors Enhance Efficacy and Disrupt Resistance to AR Antagonists in the Treatment of Prostate Cancer.

PubMed

Asangani, Irfan A; Wilder-Romans, Kari; Dommeti, Vijaya L; Krishnamurthy, Pranathi M; Apel, Ingrid J; Escara-Wilke, June; Plymate, Stephen R; Navone, Nora M; Wang, Shaomeng; Feng, Felix Y; Chinnaiyan, Arul M

2016-04-01

Next-generation antiandrogen therapies, such as enzalutamide and abiraterone, have had a profound impact on the management of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). However, mCRPC patients invariably develop resistance to these agents. Here, a series of clonal cell lines were developed from enzalutamide-resistant prostate tumor xenografts to study the molecular mechanism of resistance and test their oncogenic potential under various treatment conditions. Androgen receptor (AR) signaling was maintained in these cell lines, which acquired potential resistance mechanisms, including expression of AR-variant 7 (AR-v7) and glucocorticoid receptor. BET bromodomain inhibitors were shown previously to attenuate AR signaling in mCRPC; here, we demonstrate the efficacy of bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) inhibitors in enzalutamide-resistant prostate cancer models. AR antagonists, enzalutamide, and ARN509 exhibit enhanced prostate tumor growth inhibition when combined with BET inhibitors, JQ1 and OTX015, respectively. Taken together, these data provide a compelling preclinical rationale to combine BET inhibitors with AR antagonists to subvert resistance mechanisms. Therapeutic combinations of BET inhibitors and AR antagonists may enhance the clinical efficacy in the treatment of mCRPC. http://mcr.aacrjournals.org/content/molcanres/14/4/324/F1.large.jpg ©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.

40Ar/39Ar Dating of Volcanic Glass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morgan, L. E.; Renne, P. R.; Watkins, J. M.

2007-12-01

Application of the 40Ar/39Ar method to volcanic glasses has been somewhat stigmatized following several studies demonstrating secondary mobility of K and Ar. Much of the stigma is unwarranted, however, since most studies only impugned the reliability of the K-Ar and 40Ar/39Ar techniques when applied to glass shards rather than obsidian clasts with low surface area to volume ratios. We provide further evidence for problematic K loss and/or 39Ar recoil ejection from glass shards in 40Ar/39Ar step heating results for comagmatic feldspars and shards. In an extreme case, the plateau age of the feldspars (0.17 ± 0.03 Ma at 2σ) is significantly younger than the plateau age of the glass (0.85 ± 0.05 Ma at 2σ). If the feldspar age is reasonably interpreted as the eruption age of the ash, it is likely that the glass shards experienced K and/or 39Ar loss. Electron microprobe analyses of the glass shards have low totals (~93%) and no systematic lateral variability (i.e., diffusion gradients) in K, suggesting that the lengthscale of the glass shards is smaller than the lengthscale of K diffusion. Obsidian clasts should not be as susceptible to K loss since any hydrated (K-depleted) volume represents a small fraction of the total material and can often be physically removed prior to analysis. Samples described here are detrital obsidian clasts from the Afar region of Ethiopia. Evidence from Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and previous work by Anovitz (1999), confirm that the scale of water and potassium mobility are often small in comparison to the size of obsidian clasts but large enough to effect the bulk composition of glass shards. This expectation is confirmed in another tuff wherein comagmatic obsidian clasts and sanidine phenocrysts yield indistinguishable 40Ar/39Ar ages of 4.4 Ma High abundances of non-radiogenic 40Ar, and kinetic fractionation of Ar isotopes during quenching and/or laboratory degassing resulting in incomplete equilibration between atmospheric and magmatic argon, may also hinder accurate 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of volcanic glasses. Clasts derived from single flows (as determined by extrusion age and trace element geochemistry) display variations as much as 3-4 orders of magnitude in atmospheric 40Ar concentrations. The clasts were likely sourced from different parts of the flows with varying proximity to the surface and thus differing thermal and atmospheric uptake histories. Because radiogenic and non-radiogenic components of 40Ar are energetically indistinct in glass, most samples fail to yield isochrons due to limited range in 40Ar: 39Ar: 36Ar. Most yield plateau ages, whose validity rests on the assumption of atmospheric initial 40Ar/36Ar. Some samples yield inverse isochrons with sub-atmospheric 40Ar/36Ar intercepts; unirradiated subsamples of these same samples also have sub-atmospheric 38Ar/36Ar ratios that are too high to be explained by mass fractionation. While the effects of non-radiogenic 40Ar remain poorly understood, this sample set yielded 32 out of 41 clasts having plateau and isochron ages within 2σ error of each other, and potentially problematic samples are generally identified with non-atmospheric isochron 40Ar/36Ar intercepts.

Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide ameliorates anoxia/reoxygenation-mediated oxidative stress and apoptosis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

PubMed

Zhang, Yan-Song; Li, Wen-Juan; Zhang, Xian-Yi; Yan, Yu-Xin; Nie, Shao-Ping; Gong, De-Ming; Tang, Xiao-Fang; He, Ming; Xie, Ming-Yong

2017-05-01

Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide (PSG-1), a main polysaccharide from Ganoderma atrum, possesses potent antioxidant capacity and cardiovascular benefits. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of PSG-1 in oxidative stress and apoptosis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) under anoxia/reoxygenation (A/R) injury conditions. The results showed that exposure of HUVECs to A/R triggered cell death and apoptosis. Administration of PSG-1 significantly inhibited A/R-induced cell death and apoptosis in HUVECs. PSG-1-reduced A/R injury was mediated via mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, as evidenced by elevation of mitochondrial Bcl-2 protein and mitochondrial membrane potential, and attenuation of Bax translocation, cytochrome c release and caspases activation. Furthermore, PSG-1 enhanced the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase and glutathione content, and concomitantly attenuated reactive oxygen species generation, lipid peroxidation and glutathione disulfide content. The antioxidant, N-acetyl-l-cysteine, significantly ameliorated all of these endothelial injuries caused by A/R, suggesting that antioxidant activities might play a key role in PSG-1-induced endothelial protection. Taken together, these findings suggested that PSG-1 could be as a promising adjuvant against endothelial dysfunction through ameliorating oxidative stress and apoptosis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High throughput microscopy identifies bisphenol AP, a bisphenol A analog, as a novel AR down-regulator.

PubMed

Stossi, Fabio; Dandekar, Radhika D; Bolt, Michael J; Newberg, Justin Y; Mancini, Maureen G; Kaushik, Akash K; Putluri, Vasanta; Sreekumar, Arun; Mancini, Michael A

2016-03-29

Prostate cancer remains a deadly disease especially when patients become resistant to drugs that target the Androgen Receptor (AR) ligand binding domain. At this stage, patients develop recurring castrate-resistant prostate cancers (CRPCs). Interestingly, CRPC tumors maintain dependency on AR for growth; moreover, in CRPCs, constitutively active AR splice variants (e.g., AR-V7) begin to be expressed at higher levels. These splice variants lack the ligand binding domain and are rendered insensitive to current endocrine therapies. Thus, it is of paramount importance to understand what regulates the expression of AR and its splice variants to identify new therapeutic strategies in CRPCs. Here, we used high throughput microscopy and quantitative image analysis to evaluate effects of selected endocrine disruptors on AR levels in multiple breast and prostate cancer cell lines. Bisphenol AP (BPAP), which is used in chemical and medical industries, was identified as a down-regulator of both full length AR and the AR-V7 splice variant. We validated its activity by performing time-course, dose-response, Western blot and qPCR analyses. BPAP also reduced the percent of cells in S phase, which was accompanied by a ~60% loss in cell numbers and colony formation in anchorage-independent growth assays. Moreover, it affected mitochondria size and cell metabolism. In conclusion, our high content analysis-based screening platform was used to classify the effect of compounds on endogenous ARs, and identified BPAP as being capable of causing AR (both full-length and variants) down-regulation, cell cycle arrest and metabolic alterations in CRPC cell lines.

40Ar/39Ar technique of KAr dating: a comparison with the conventional technique

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brent, Dalrymple G.; Lanphere, M.A.

1971-01-01

K-Ar ages have been determined by the 40Ar/39Ar total fusion technique on 19 terrestrial samples whose conventional K-Ar ages range from 3.4 my to nearly 1700 my. Sample materials included biotite, muscovite, sanidine, adularia, plagioclase, hornblende, actinolite, alunite, dacite, and basalt. For 18 samples there are no significant differences at the 95% confidence level between the KAr ages obtained by these two techniques; for one sample the difference is 4.3% and is statistically significant. For the neutron doses used in these experiments (???4 ?? 1018 nvt) it appears that corrections for interfering Ca- and K-derived Ar isotopes can be made without significant loss of precision for samples with K/Ca > 1 as young as about 5 ?? 105 yr, and for samples with K/Ca < 1 as young as about 107 yr. For younger samples the combination of large atmospheric Ar corrections and large corrections for Ca- and K-derived Ar may make the precision of the 40Ar/39Ar technique less than that of the conventional technique unless the irradiation parameters are adjusted to minimize these corrections. ?? 1971.

Global Floods and Water Availability Driven by Atmospheric Rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paltan, Homero; Waliser, Duane; Lim, Wee Ho; Guan, Bin; Yamazaki, Dai; Pant, Raghav; Dadson, Simon

2017-10-01

While emerging regional evidence shows that atmospheric rivers (ARs) can exert strong impacts on local water availability and flooding, their role in shaping global hydrological extremes has not yet been investigated. Here we quantify the relative contribution of ARs variability to both flood hazard and water availability. We find that globally, precipitation from ARs contributes 22% of total global runoff, with a number of regions reaching 50% or more. In areas where their influence is strongest, ARs may increase the occurrence of floods by 80%, while absence of ARs may increase the occurrence of hydrological droughts events by up to 90%. We also find that 300 million people are exposed to additional floods and droughts due the occurrence of ARs. ARs provide a source of hydroclimatic variability whose beneficial or damaging effects depend on the capacity of water resources managers to predict and adapt to them.

K/Ar dating of lunar soils. IV - Orange glass from 74220 and agglutinates from 14259 and 14163

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alexander, E. C., Jr.; Coscio, M. R., Jr.; Dragon, J. C.; Saito, K.

1980-01-01

Total fusion Ar-40 - A-39 analyses of orange glass from lunar soil 74220 combined with the sums of earlier stepwise heating data by other workers have yielded a precise K/Ar isochron with a slope corresponding to an age of 3.66 + or - 0.03 G.y. for the orange glass. The result is in marginal agreement with Huneke's (1978) age of 3.60 + or - 0.04 G.y. for 74220 glass. The Ar systematics in the agglutinates from 14259 and 14163 are dominated by volume correlated argon. Step-wise heating analyses yield data which define experimentally reproducible linear arrays in Ar-40/Ar-36 vs. K-40/Ar-36 diagrams. The slopes of these arrays correspond formally to very old ages, but it is not clear, however, that such ages have any physical significance.

Molecular Mechanism of Nkx3.1 Deregulation and its Function in Murine Pten Prostate Cancer Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-09-01

of transfected 293T cells using total protein lysate (Figure 2B, upper row in the right panel) or eGFP-sorted cells (Figure 2B, middle row in the...through an AR-dependent mechanism A: NKX3.1 regulates AR transcription and re- duces AKT phosphorylation in vitro. Total RNA and protein were...resulting in de- creased total p53 protein level (compare lanes 1 and 2 of Figure 6F). In contrast, coexpressing Nkx3.1 reduces p53- HDAC1 association

Changes in the HOAr isotope composition of clays during retrograde alteration

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wilson, M.R.; Kyser, T.K.; Mehnert, H.H.; Hoeve, J.

1987-01-01

K-Ar ages of illite alteration associated with Middle Proterozoic Athabasca unconformity-type U deposits in Saskatchewan range from 414 to 1493 Ma. The K-Ar ages correlate with water contents and ??D values such that illites with young K-Ar ages have ??D values as low as -169 and water contents as high as 7.7 wt.% whereas illites with older ages have ??D values near -70 and water contents near 4 wt.%. Water extracted at 400??C from illites with low ??D values and high water contents has low ??D and ??18O values similar to those of modern meteoric water suggesting that some of the illites associated with the original deposition of the ore underwent varying degrees of retrograde alteration. The alteration is initiated by hydration of sites in the interlayer region of the illite which results in the partial resetting of the K-Ar ages and introduction of excess structural water in the form of interlamellar water. The interlamellar water is enriched in 18O by about 7 per mil relative to the water that physically surrounded the clay particle. Further alteration decreases the ??D value and increases the ??18O value of the illite by isotopic exchange between the mineral and the interlamellar water. Although the chemical compositions and XRD patterns of the altered illites indicate that no detectable smectite component is present in the samples, the isotopic results suggest that the altered illites may be an early precursor in the formation of mixed-layer illite/smectite by retrograde alteration of pure illite. The wide variation of ??D values of chlorite and kaolinite from these U deposits is analogous to that of the illite suggesting that retrograde alteration of clays by meteoric water can be substantial. The general association of altered clays with areas containing the highest concentrations of U is probably related to localized permeability within the ore zone. ?? 1987.

Volatilization of Arsenic from Polluted Soil by Pseudomonas putida Engineered for Expression of the arsM Arsenic(III) S-Adenosine Methyltransferase Gene

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Even though arsenic is one of the most widespread environmental carcinogens, methods of remediation are still limited. In this report we demonstrate that a strain of Pseudomonas putida KT2440 endowed with chromosomal expression of the arsM gene encoding the As(III) S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) methyltransfase from Rhodopseudomonas palustris to remove arsenic from contaminated soil. We genetically engineered the P. putida KT2440 with stable expression of an arsM-gfp fusion gene (GE P. putida), which was inserted into the bacterial chromosome. GE P. putida showed high arsenic methylation and volatilization activity. When exposed to 25 μM arsenite or arsenate overnight, most inorganic arsenic was methylated to the less toxic methylated arsenicals methylarsenate (MAs(V)), dimethylarsenate (DMAs(V)) and trimethylarsine oxide (TMAs(V)O). Of total added arsenic, the species were about 62 ± 2.2% DMAs(V), 25 ± 1.4% MAs(V) and 10 ± 1.2% TMAs(V)O. Volatilized arsenicals were trapped, and the predominant species were dimethylarsine (Me2AsH) (21 ± 1.0%) and trimethylarsine (TMAs(III)) (10 ± 1.2%). At later times, more DMAs(V) and volatile species were produced. Volatilization of Me2AsH and TMAs(III) from contaminated soil is thus possible with this genetically engineered bacterium and could be instrumental as an agent for reducing the inorganic arsenic content of soil and agricultural products. PMID:25122054

Volatilization of arsenic from polluted soil by Pseudomonas putida engineered for expression of the arsM Arsenic(III) S-adenosine methyltransferase gene.

PubMed

Chen, Jian; Sun, Guo-Xin; Wang, Xiao-Xue; Lorenzo, Víctor de; Rosen, Barry P; Zhu, Yong-Guan

2014-09-02

Even though arsenic is one of the most widespread environmental carcinogens, methods of remediation are still limited. In this report we demonstrate that a strain of Pseudomonas putida KT2440 endowed with chromosomal expression of the arsM gene encoding the As(III) S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) methyltransfase from Rhodopseudomonas palustris to remove arsenic from contaminated soil. We genetically engineered the P. putida KT2440 with stable expression of an arsM-gfp fusion gene (GE P. putida), which was inserted into the bacterial chromosome. GE P. putida showed high arsenic methylation and volatilization activity. When exposed to 25 μM arsenite or arsenate overnight, most inorganic arsenic was methylated to the less toxic methylated arsenicals methylarsenate (MAs(V)), dimethylarsenate (DMAs(V)) and trimethylarsine oxide (TMAs(V)O). Of total added arsenic, the species were about 62 ± 2.2% DMAs(V), 25 ± 1.4% MAs(V) and 10 ± 1.2% TMAs(V)O. Volatilized arsenicals were trapped, and the predominant species were dimethylarsine (Me2AsH) (21 ± 1.0%) and trimethylarsine (TMAs(III)) (10 ± 1.2%). At later times, more DMAs(V) and volatile species were produced. Volatilization of Me2AsH and TMAs(III) from contaminated soil is thus possible with this genetically engineered bacterium and could be instrumental as an agent for reducing the inorganic arsenic content of soil and agricultural products.

A Pilot Study of Augmented Reality Technology Applied to the Acetabular Cup Placement During Total Hip Arthroplasty.

PubMed

Ogawa, Hiroyuki; Hasegawa, Seiichirou; Tsukada, Sachiyuki; Matsubara, Masaaki

2018-06-01

We developed an acetabular cup placement device, the AR-HIP system, using augmented reality (AR). The AR-HIP system allows the surgeon to view an acetabular cup image superimposed in the surgical field through a smartphone. The smartphone also shows the placement angle of the acetabular cup. This preliminary study was performed to assess the accuracy of the AR-HIP system for acetabular cup placement during total hip arthroplasty (THA). We prospectively measured the placement angles using both a goniometer and AR-HIP system in 56 hips of 54 patients undergoing primary THA. We randomly determined the order of intraoperative measurement using the 2 devices. At 3 months after THA, the placement angle of the acetabular cup was measured on computed tomography images. The primary outcome was the absolute value of the difference between intraoperative and postoperative computed tomography measurements. The measurement angle using AR-HIP was significantly more accurate in terms of radiographic anteversion than that using a goniometer (2.7° vs 6.8°, respectively; mean difference 4.1°; 95% confidence interval, 3.0-5.2; P < .0001). There was no statistically significant difference in terms of radiographic inclination (2.1° vs 2.6°; mean difference 0.5°; 95% confidence interval, -1.1 to 0.1; P = .13). In this pilot study, the AR-HIP system provided more accurate information regarding acetabular cup placement angle than the conventional method. Further studies are required to confirm the utility of the AR-HIP system as a navigation tool. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Androgen receptor (AR) pathophysiological roles in androgen-related diseases in skin, bone/muscle, metabolic syndrome and neuron/immune systems: lessons learned from mice lacking AR in specific cells

PubMed Central

Chang, Chawnshang; Yeh, Shuyuan; Lee, Soo Ok; Chang, Ta-min

2013-01-01

The androgen receptor (AR) is expressed ubiquitously and plays a variety of roles in a vast number of physiological and pathophysiological processes. Recent studies of AR knockout (ARKO) mouse models, particularly the cell type- or tissue-specific ARKO models, have uncovered many AR cell type- or tissue-specific pathophysiological roles in mice, which otherwise would not be delineated from conventional castration and androgen insensitivity syndrome studies. Thus, the AR in various specific cell types plays pivotal roles in production and maturation of immune cells, bone mineralization, and muscle growth. In metabolism, the ARs in brain, particularly in the hypothalamus, and the liver appear to participate in regulation of insulin sensitivity and glucose homeostasis. The AR also plays key roles in cutaneous wound healing and cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis and abdominal aortic aneurysm. This article will discuss the results obtained from the total, cell type-, or tissue-specific ARKO models. The understanding of AR cell type- or tissue-specific physiological and pathophysiological roles using these in vivo mouse models will provide useful information in uncovering AR roles in humans and eventually help us to develop better therapies via targeting the AR or its downstream signaling molecules to combat androgen/AR-related diseases. PMID:24653668

An Audience Response System Strategy to Improve Student Motivation, Attention, and Feedback

PubMed Central

Black, Esther P.; Rohr, Jürgen

2009-01-01

Objective To implement an audience response system (ARS) to improve student motivation and attention during lectures and provide immediate feedback to the instructor concerning student understanding of lecture content in a Physiological Chemistry/Molecular Biology course. Design Students used ARS devices to respond to strategically placed questions throughout physiological chemistry/molecular biology lectures. The instructor inserted 6 to 7 questions that promoted student/class interactivity into each of several 50-minute lectures to focus students' attention and provide feedback on students' comprehension of material. Assessment Ninety-eight percent of first-year pharmacy (P1) students (n = 109) reported that strategically placed ARS questions throughout lectures helped them maintain attention. Reports from an independent focus group indicated that students favored this strategy. Furthermore, ARS feedback helped the instructor gauge student comprehension and adjust lectures accordingly. Conclusions Focused, strategically placed ARS questions throughout lectures may help students maintain attention and stay motivated to learn. Feedback from these questions also allows instructors to adapt lectures to address areas of deficiency. PMID:19513159

An audience response system strategy to improve student motivation, attention, and feedback.

PubMed

Cain, Jeff; Black, Esther P; Rohr, Jürgen

2009-04-07

To implement an audience response system (ARS) to improve student motivation and attention during lectures and provide immediate feedback to the instructor concerning student understanding of lecture content in a Physiological Chemistry/Molecular Biology course. Students used ARS devices to respond to strategically placed questions throughout physiological chemistry/molecular biology lectures. The instructor inserted 6 to 7 questions that promoted student/class interactivity into each of several 50-minute lectures to focus students' attention and provide feedback on students' comprehension of material. Ninety-eight percent of first-year pharmacy (P1) students (n = 109) reported that strategically placed ARS questions throughout lectures helped them maintain attention. Reports from an independent focus group indicated that students favored this strategy. Furthermore, ARS feedback helped the instructor gauge student comprehension and adjust lectures accordingly. Focused, strategically placed ARS questions throughout lectures may help students maintain attention and stay motivated to learn. Feedback from these questions also allows instructors to adapt lectures to address areas of deficiency.

32 CFR 651.43 - Format of the EIS.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS OF ARMY ACTIONS (AR 200-2) Environmental Impact Statement § 651.43 Format of the EIS. The... following (detailed content is discussed in appendix E of this part): (a) Cover sheet. (b) Summary. (c) Table of contents. (d) Purpose of and need for the action. (e) Alternatives considered, including...

The Potassium-Argon Laser Experiment (KArLE): In Situ Geochronology for Planetary Robotic Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cohen, Barbara

2016-01-01

The Potassium (K) - Argon (Ar) Laser Experiment (KArLE) will make in situ noble-gas geochronology measurements aboard planetary robotic landers and roverss. Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is used to measure the K abun-dance in a sample and to release its noble gases; the evolved Ar is measured by mass spectrometry (MS); and rela-tive K content is related to absolute Ar abundance by sample mass, determined by optical measurement of the ablated volume. KArLE measures a whole-rock K-Ar age to 10% or better for rocks 2 Ga or older, sufficient to resolve the absolute age of many planetary samples. The LIBS-MS approach is attractive because the analytical components have been flight proven, do not require further technical development, and provide complementary measurements as well as in situ geochronology.

Droplet Digital PCR Based Androgen Receptor Variant 7 (AR-V7) Detection from Prostate Cancer Patient Blood Biopsies.

PubMed

Ma, Yafeng; Luk, Alison; Young, Francis P; Lynch, David; Chua, Wei; Balakrishnar, Bavanthi; de Souza, Paul; Becker, Therese M

2016-08-04

Androgen receptor splice variant V7 (AR-V7) was recently identified as a valuable predictive biomarker in metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer. Here, we report a new, sensitive and accurate screen for AR-V7 mRNA expression directly from circulating tumor cells (CTCs): We combined EpCAM-based immunomagnetic CTC isolation using the IsoFlux microfluidic platform with droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) to analyze total AR and AR-V7 expression from prostate cancer patients CTCs. We demonstrate that AR-V7 is reliably detectable in enriched CTC samples with as little as five CTCs, even considering tumor heterogeneity, and confirm detection of AR-V7 in CTC samples from advanced prostate cancer (PCa) patients with AR-V7 detection limited to castrate resistant disease status in our sample set. Sensitive molecular analyses of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) or circulating tumor nucleic acids present exciting strategies to detect biomarkers, such as AR-V7 from non-invasive blood samples, so-called blood biopsies.

Welding fumes from stainless steel gas metal arc processes contain multiple manganese chemical species.

PubMed

Keane, Michael; Stone, Samuel; Chen, Bean

2010-05-01

Fumes from a group of gas metal arc welding (GMAW) processes used on stainless steel were generated using three different metal transfer modes and four different shield gases. The objective was to identify and measure manganese (Mn) species in the fumes, and identify processes that are minimal generators of Mn species. The robotic welding system was operated in short-circuit (SC) mode (Ar/CO2 and He/Ar), axial spray (AXS) mode (Ar/O2 and Ar/CO2), and pulsed axial-spray (PAXS) mode (Ar/O2). The fumes were analyzed for Mn by a sequential extraction process followed by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) analysis, and by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Total elemental Mn, iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni) were separately measured after aqua regia digestion and ICP-AES analysis. Soluble Mn2+, Fe2+, Fe3+, and Ni2+ in a simple biological buffer (phosphate-buffered saline) were determined at pH 7.2 and 5.0 after 2 h incubation at 37 C by ion chromatography. Results indicate that Mn was present in soluble form, acid-soluble form, and acid-soluble form after reduction by hydroxylamine, which represents soluble Mn0 and Mn2+ compounds, other Mn2+ compounds, and (Mn3+ and Mn4+) compounds, respectively. The dominant fraction was the acid-soluble Mn2+ fraction, but results varied with the process and shield gas. Soluble Mn mass percent in the fume ranged from 0.2 to 0.9%, acid-soluble Mn2+ compounds ranged from 2.6 to 9.3%, and acid plus reducing agent-soluble (Mn3+ and Mn4+) compounds ranged from 0.6 to 5.1%. Total Mn composition ranged from 7 to 15%. XRD results showed fumes had a crystalline content of 90-99% Fe3O4, and showed evidence of multiple Mn oxides, but overlaps and weak signals limited identification. Small amounts of the Mn2+ in the fume (<0.01 to ≈ 1% or <0.1 to ≈ 10 microg ml(-1)) and Ni2+ (<0.01 to ≈ 0.2% or <0.1 to ≈ 2 mg ml(-1)) ions were found in biological buffer media, but amounts were highly dependent on pH and the welding process. Mn generation rates for the fractions were tabulated, and the influence of ozone is discussed. The conclusions are that exposures to welding fumes include multiple Mn species, both soluble and insoluble, and that exposures to Mn species vary with specific processes and shield gases.

The relation between isotopic composition of argon and carbon in natural gases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gavrilov, Y. Y.; Zhurov, Y. A.; Teplinskiy, G. I.

1977-01-01

The methods and results of determination of the argon and carbon isotope compositions of hydrocarbon gases of Mezozoic complexes of Western Siberia are presented. Based on the Ar-36, Ar-40, C-12, C-13 content of the various deposits and on the presumed mechanisms of entry of these isotopes into the deposits, it is concluded that formation of natural gas in some deposits included vertical migration from a lower complex.

Heterodimerization with beta2-adrenergic receptors promotes surface expression and functional activity of alpha1D-adrenergic receptors.

PubMed

Uberti, Michelle A; Hague, Chris; Oller, Heide; Minneman, Kenneth P; Hall, Randy A

2005-04-01

The alpha1D-adrenergic receptor (alpha1D-AR) is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that is poorly trafficked to the cell surface and largely nonfunctional when heterologously expressed by itself in a variety of cell types. We screened a library of approximately 30 other group I GPCRs in a quantitative luminometer assay for the ability to promote alpha1D-AR cell surface expression. Strikingly, these screens revealed only two receptors capable of inducing robust increases in the amount of alpha1D-AR at the cell surface: alpha1B-AR and beta2-AR. Confocal imaging confirmed that coexpression with beta2-AR resulted in translocation of alpha1D-AR from intracellular sites to the plasma membrane. Additionally, coimmunoprecipitation studies demonstrated that alpha1D-AR and beta2-AR specifically interact to form heterodimers when coexpressed in HEK-293 cells. Ligand binding studies revealed an increase in total alpha1D-AR binding sites upon coexpression with beta2-AR, but no apparent effect on the pharmacological properties of the receptors. In functional studies, coexpression with beta2-AR significantly enhanced the coupling of alpha1D-AR to norepinephrine-stimulated Ca2+ mobilization. Heterodimerization of beta2-AR with alpha1D-AR also conferred the ability of alpha1D-AR to cointernalize upon beta2-AR agonist stimulation, revealing a novel mechanism by which these different adrenergic receptor subtypes may regulate each other's activity. These findings demonstrate that the selective association of alpha1D-AR with other receptors is crucial for receptor surface expression and function and also shed light on a novel mechanism of cross talk between alpha1- and beta2-ARs that is mediated through heterodimerization and cross-internalization.

Precise K-Ar, 40Ar/39Ar, Rb-Sr and U/Pb mineral ages from the 27.5 Ma fish canyon tuff reference standard

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lanphere, M.A.; Baadsgaard, H.

2001-01-01

The accuracy of ages measured using the 40Ar/39Ar technique is affected by uncertainties in the age of radiation fluence-monitor minerals. At present, there is lack of agreement about the ages of certain minerals used as fluence monitors. The accuracy of the age of a standard may be improved if the age can be measured using different decay schemes. This has been done by measuring ages on minerals from the Oligocene Fish Canyon Tuff (FCT) using the K-Ar, 40Ar/39Ar. Rb-Sr and U/Pb methods. K-Ar and 40Ar/39Ar total fusion ages of sanidine, biotite and hornblende yielded a mean age of 27.57 ?? 0.36 Ma. The weighted mean 40Ar/39Ar plateau age of sanidine and biotite is 27.57 ?? 0.18 Ma. A biotite-feldspar Rb-Sr isochron yielded an age of 27.44 ?? 0.16 Ma. The U-Pb data for zircon are complex because of the presence of Precambrian zircons and inheritance of radiogenic Pb. Zircons with 207Pb/235U < 0.4 yielded a discordia line with a lower concordia intercept of 27.52 ?? 0.09 Ma. Evaluation of the combined data suggests that the best age for FCT is 27.51 Ma. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.

Antibiotic Resistome: Improving Detection and Quantification Accuracy for Comparative Metagenomics.

PubMed

Elbehery, Ali H A; Aziz, Ramy K; Siam, Rania

2016-04-01

The unprecedented rise of life-threatening antibiotic resistance (AR), combined with the unparalleled advances in DNA sequencing of genomes and metagenomes, has pushed the need for in silico detection of the resistance potential of clinical and environmental metagenomic samples through the quantification of AR genes (i.e., genes conferring antibiotic resistance). Therefore, determining an optimal methodology to quantitatively and accurately assess AR genes in a given environment is pivotal. Here, we optimized and improved existing AR detection methodologies from metagenomic datasets to properly consider AR-generating mutations in antibiotic target genes. Through comparative metagenomic analysis of previously published AR gene abundance in three publicly available metagenomes, we illustrate how mutation-generated resistance genes are either falsely assigned or neglected, which alters the detection and quantitation of the antibiotic resistome. In addition, we inspected factors influencing the outcome of AR gene quantification using metagenome simulation experiments, and identified that genome size, AR gene length, total number of metagenomics reads and selected sequencing platforms had pronounced effects on the level of detected AR. In conclusion, our proposed improvements in the current methodologies for accurate AR detection and resistome assessment show reliable results when tested on real and simulated metagenomic datasets.

Inhibition of Androgen Receptor Function and Level in Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Cells by 2-[(isoxazol-4-ylmethyl)thio]-1-(4-phenylpiperazin-1-yl)ethanone.

PubMed

Masoodi, Khalid Z; Eisermann, Kurtis; Yang, Zhenyu; Dar, Javid A; Pascal, Laura E; Nguyen, Minh; O'Malley, Katherine; Parrinello, Erica; Feturi, Firuz G; Kenefake, Alex N; Nelson, Joel B; Johnston, Paul A; Wipf, Peter; Wang, Zhou

2017-10-01

The androgen receptor (AR) plays a critical role in the development of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) as well as in the resistance to the second-generation AR antagonist enzalutamide and the selective inhibitor of cytochrome P450 17A1 (CYP17A1) abiraterone. Novel agents targeting AR may inhibit the growth of prostate cancer cells resistant to enzalutamide and/or abiraterone. Through a high-throughput/high-content screening of a 220,000-member small molecule library, we have previously identified 2-[(isoxazol-4-ylmethyl)thio]-1-(4-phenylpiperazin-1-yl)ethanone (IMTPPE) (SID 3712502) as a novel small molecule capable of inhibiting AR transcriptional activity and protein level in C4-2 prostate cancer cells. In this study, we show that IMTPPE inhibits AR-target gene expression using real-time polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and luciferase assays. IMTPPE inhibited proliferation of AR-positive, but not AR-negative, prostate cancer cells in culture. IMTPPE inhibited the transcriptional activity of a mutant AR lacking the ligand-binding domain (LBD), indicating that IMTPPE inhibition of AR is independent of the LBD. Furthermore, animal studies showed that IMTPPE inhibited the growth of 22Rv1 xenograft tumor, a model for enzalutamide-resistant prostate cancer. These findings suggest that IMTPPE is a potential lead compound for developing clinical candidates for the treatment of CRPC, including those resistant to enzalutamide. Copyright © 2017 Endocrine Society.

Direct Measurement of Recoil Effects on Ar-Ar Standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, C. M.

2011-12-01

Advances in the precision possible with the Ar-Ar method using new techniques and equipment have led to considerable effort to improve the accuracy of the calibration of interlaboratory standards. However, ultimately the accuracy of the method relies on the measurement of 40Ar*/39ArK ratios on primary standards that have been calibrated with the K-Ar method and, in turn, on secondary standards that are calibrated against primary standards. It is usually assumed that an Ar-Ar total gas age is equivalent to a K-Ar age, but this assumes that there is zero loss of Ar due to recoil. Instead, traditional Ar-Ar total gas ages are in fact Ar retention ages [1] and not, strictly speaking, comparable to K-Ar ages. There have been efforts to estimate the importance of this effect on standards along with prescriptions for minimizing recoil effects [2,3], but these studies have relied on indirect evidence for 39Ar recoil. We report direct measurements of 39Ar recoil for a set of primary and secondary standards using the vacuum encapsulation techniques of [1] and show that significant adjustments to ages assigned to some standards may be needed. The fraction f of 39Ar lost due to recoil for primary standards MMhb-1 hornblende and GA-1550 biotite are 0.00367 and 0.00314 respectively. It is possible to modify the assumed K-Ar ages of these standards so that when using their measured Ar retention 40Ar*/39ArK ratios, one obtains a correct K-Ar age for an unknown, assuming that the unknown sample has zero loss of 39Ar due to recoil. Assuming a primary K-Ar age for MMhb-1 of 520.4 Ma, the modified age would be 522.1 Ma and assuming a primary K-Ar age for GA-1550 of 98.79 Ma [4] yields a modified effective age of 99.09 Ma. Measured f values for secondary standards FCT-3 biotite, FCT-2 sanidine and TCR-2 sanidine are 0.00932, 0.00182 and 0.00039 respectively. Using an R value for FCT-3 biotite relative to MMhb-1 [5], the K-Ar age for this standard would be 27.83 Ma and using R values for FCT and TC sanidines [4] against GA-1550, their K-Ar ages would be 28.06 Ma and 28.41 Ma respectively. For retrospective recalculation purposes, the effective Ar-Ar age of these samples that should yield correct K-Ar ages for unknowns with zero recoil loss would be 28.09 Ma, 28.11 Ma and 28.42 Ma for FCT-3 biotite, FCT-2 sanidine and TCR-2 sanidine respectively. The measured f for FCT-3 appears to explain the R value of it relative to FCT sanidine of 1.0086 found by [8]. From the low T portion of the Ar release spectra of the biotite and amphibole standards, it is clear that the dominant recoil artifact affecting Ar release is the re-implantation mechanism seen in clay samples [1,6,7] and not the loss of 39Ar at the surface of the grain. The geometry of neighboring grains during irradiation and internal defects may predominate in controlling recoil loss. [1] Dong et al., 1995, Science, 267, 355-359. [2] Paine et al., 2006, Geochim.Cosmochim. Acta, 70, 1507-1517. [3] Jourdan et al., 2007, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 71, 2791-2808 [4] Renne et al., 1998, Chem. Geol., 145 117-152. [5] Hall & Farrell, 1995, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 133, 327-338. [6] Hall et al., 1997, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 148, 287-298. [7] Hall et al., 2000, Econ. Geol., 95, 1739-1752. [8] Di Vincenzo & Roman Skála, 2009, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 73, 493-513.

Androgen Receptor Functional Analyses by High Throughput Imaging: Determination of Ligand, Cell Cycle, and Mutation-Specific Effects

PubMed Central

Szafran, Adam T.; Szwarc, Maria; Marcelli, Marco; Mancini, Michael A.

2008-01-01

Background Understanding how androgen receptor (AR) function is modulated by exposure to steroids, growth factors or small molecules can have important mechanistic implications for AR-related disease therapies (e.g., prostate cancer, androgen insensitivity syndrome, AIS), and in the analysis of environmental endocrine disruptors. Methodology/Principal Findings We report the development of a high throughput (HT) image-based assay that quantifies AR subcellular and subnuclear distribution, and transcriptional reporter gene activity on a cell-by-cell basis. Furthermore, simultaneous analysis of DNA content allowed determination of cell cycle position and permitted the analysis of cell cycle dependent changes in AR function in unsynchronized cell populations. Assay quality for EC50 coefficients of variation were 5–24%, with Z' values reaching 0.91. This was achieved by the selective analysis of cells expressing physiological levels of AR, important because minor over-expression resulted in elevated nuclear speckling and decreased transcriptional reporter gene activity. A small screen of AR-binding ligands, including known agonists, antagonists, and endocrine disruptors, demonstrated that nuclear translocation and nuclear “speckling” were linked with transcriptional output, and specific ligands were noted to differentially affect measurements for wild type versus mutant AR, suggesting differing mechanisms of action. HT imaging of patient-derived AIS mutations demonstrated a proof-of-principle personalized medicine approach to rapidly identify ligands capable of restoring multiple AR functions. Conclusions/Significance HT imaging-based multiplex screening will provide a rapid, systems-level analysis of compounds/RNAi that may differentially affect wild type AR or clinically relevant AR mutations. PMID:18978937

Teaching binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy to novice residents using an augmented reality simulator.

PubMed

Rai, Amandeep S; Rai, Amrit S; Mavrikakis, Emmanouil; Lam, Wai Ching

2017-10-01

To compare the traditional teaching approach of binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy (BIO) to the EyeSI augmented reality (AR) BIO simulator. Prospective randomized control trial. 28 post-graduate year one (PGY1) ophthalmology residents. Residents were recruited at the 2012 Toronto Ophthalmology Residents Introductory Course (TORIC). 15 were randomized to conventional teaching (Group 1), and 13 to augmented reality simulator training (Group 2). 3 vitreoretinal fellows were enrolled to serve as experts. Evaluations were completed on the simulator, with 3 tasks, and outcome measures were total raw score, total time elapsed, and performance. Following conventional training, Group 1 residents were outperformed by vitreoretinal fellows with respect to all 3 outcome measures. Following AR training, Group 2 residents demonstrated superior total scores and performance compared to Group 1 residents. Once the Group 1 residents also completed the AR BIO training, there was a significant improvement compared to their baseline scores, and were now on par with Group 2 residents. This study provides construct validity for the EyeSI AR BIO simulator and demonstrates that it may be superior to conventional BIO teaching for novice ophthalmology residents. Copyright © 2017 Canadian Ophthalmological Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Direct Inhibitory Effect of Dutasteride or Finasteride on Androgen Receptor Activity is Cell Line Specific

PubMed Central

Chhipa, Rishi Raj; Halim, Danny; Cheng, Jinrong; Zhang, Huan Yi; Mohler, James L.; Ip, Clement; Wu, Yue

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND Finasteride and dutasteride were developed originally as 5α-reductase inhibitors to block the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). These drugs may possess off-target effects on the androgen receptor (AR) due to their structural similarity to DHT. METHODS A total of 4 human prostate cancer cell models were examined: LNCaP (T877A mutant AR), 22Rv1 (H874Y mutant AR), LAPC4 (wild type AR) and VCaP (wild type AR). Cells were cultured in 10% charcoal-stripped fetal bovine serum, either with or without DHT added to the medium. AR activity was evaluated using the ARE-luciferase assay or the expression of AR regulated genes. RESULTS Dutasteride was more potent than finasteride in interfering with DHT-stimulated AR signaling. Disruption of AR function was accompanied by decreased cell growth. Cells that rely on DHT for protection against death were particularly vulnerable to dutasteride. Different prostate cancer cell models exhibited different sensitivities to dutasteride and finasteride. LNCaP was most sensitive, LAPC4 and VCaP were intermediate, while 22Rv1 was least sensitive. Regardless of the AR genotype, if AR was transfected into drug-sensitive cells, AR was inhibited by drug treatment; and if AR was transfected into drug-resistant cells, AR was not inhibited. CONCLUSIONS The direct inhibitory effect of dutasteride or finasteride on AR signaling is cell line specific. Mutations in the ligand binding domain of AR do not appear to play a significant role in influencing the AR antagonistic effect of these drugs. Subcellular constituent is an important factor in determining the drug effect on AR function. PMID:23813737

Intercalibration of radioisotopic and astrochronologic time scales for the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary interval, western interior Basin, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meyers, S.R.; Siewert, S.E.; Singer, B.S.; Sageman, B.B.; Condon, D.J.; Obradovich, J.D.; Jicha, B.R.; Sawyer, D.A.

2012-01-01

We develop an intercalibrated astrochronologic and radioisotopic time scale for the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary (CTB) interval near the Global Stratotype Section and Point in Colorado, USA, where orbitally influenced rhythmic strata host bentonites that contain sanidine and zircon suitable for 40Ar/ 39Ar and U-Pb dating. Paired 40Ar/ 39Ar and U-Pb ages are determined from four bentonites that span the Vascoceras diartianum to Pseudaspidoceras flexuosum ammonite biozones, utilizing both newly collected material and legacy sanidine samples of J. Obradovich. Comparison of the 40Ar/ 39Ar and U-Pb results underscores the strengths and limitations of each system, and supports an astronomically calibrated Fish Canyon sanidine standard age of 28.201 Ma. The radioisotopic data and published astrochronology are employed to develop a new CTB time scale, using two statistical approaches: (1) a simple integration that yields a CTB age of 93.89 ?? 0.14 Ma (2??; total radioisotopic uncertainty), and (2) a Bayesian intercalibration that explicitly accounts for orbital time scale uncertainty, and yields a CTB age of 93.90 ?? 0.15 Ma (95% credible interval; total radioisotopic and orbital time scale uncertainty). Both approaches firmly anchor the floating orbital time scale, and the Bayesian technique yields astronomically recalibrated radioisotopic ages for individual bentonites, with analytical uncertainties at the permil level of resolution, and total uncertainties below 2???. Using our new results, the duration between the Cenomanian-Turonian and the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundaries is 27.94 ?? 0.16 Ma, with an uncertainty of less than one-half of a long eccentricity cycle. ?? 2012 Geological Society of America.

Evidence for Upward Flow of Saline Water from Depth into the Mississippi River Valley Alluvial Aquifer in Southeastern Arkansas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larsen, D.; Paul, J.

2017-12-01

Groundwater salinization is occurring in the Mississippi River Valley Alluvial (MRVA) aquifer in southeastern Arkansas (SE AR). Water samples from the MRVA aquifer in Chicot and Desha counties have yielded elevated Cl-concentrations with some as high as 1,639 mg/L. Considering that the MRVA aquifer is the principle source of irrigation water for the agricultural economy of SE AR, salinization needs to be addressed to ensure the sustainability of crop, groundwater, and soil resources in the area. The origin of elevated salinity in MRVA aquifer was investigated using spatial and factor analysis of historical water quality data, and sampling and tracer analysis of groundwater from irrigation, municipal, and flowing industrial wells in SE AR. Spatial analysis of Cl- data in relation to soil type, geomorphic features and sand-blow density indicate that the Cl- anomalies are more closely related to the sand-blow density than soil data, suggesting an underlying tectonic control for the distribution of salinity. Factor analysis of historical geochemical data from the MRVA and underlying Sparta aquifer shows dilute and saline groups, with saline groups weighted positively with Cl- or Na+ and Cl-. Tracer data suggest a component of evaporatively evolved crustal water of pre-modern age has mixed with younger, fresher meteoric sources in SE AR to create the saline conditions in the MRVA aquifer. Stable hydrogen and oxygen values of waters sampled from the Tertiary Sparta and MRVA aquifers deviate from the global and local meteoric water lines along an evaporative trend (slope=4.4) and mixing line with Eocene Wilcox Group groundwaters. Ca2+ and Cl- contents vary with Br- along mixing trends between dilute MRVA water and Jurassic Smackover Formation pore fluids in southern AR. Increasing Cl- content with C-14 age in MRVA aquifer groundwater suggests that the older waters are more saline. Helium isotope ratios decrease with He gas content for more saline water, consistent with crustal He production. Our model for the system invokes upward migration of Smackover pore fluids and other deep groundwater along faults in SE AR, whereby the saline fluids intrude and mix with dilute water in the MRVA aquifer to create saline conditions. Other processes, such as infiltration of saline irrigation runoff, may also be contributing to the problem.

A novel approach for estimating sugar and alcohol concentrations in wines using refractometer and hydrometer.

PubMed

Son, H S; Hong, Y S; Park, W M; Yu, M A; Lee, C H

2009-03-01

To estimate true Brix and alcoholic strength of must and wines without distillation, a novel approach using a refractometer and a hydrometer was developed. Initial Brix (I.B.), apparent refractometer Brix (A.R.), and apparent hydrometer Brix (A.H.) of must were measured by refractometer and hydrometer, respectively. Alcohol content (A) was determined with a hydrometer after distillation and true Brix (T.B.) was measured in distilled wines using a refractometer. Strong proportional correlations among A.R., A.H., T.B., and A in sugar solutions containing varying alcohol concentrations were observed in preliminary experiments. Similar proportional relationships among the parameters were also observed in must, which is a far more complex system than the sugar solution. To estimate T.B. and A of must during alcoholic fermentation, a total of 6 planar equations were empirically derived from the relationships among the experimental parameters. The empirical equations were then tested to estimate T.B. and A in 17 wine products, and resulted in good estimations of both quality factors. This novel approach was rapid, easy, and practical for use in routine analyses or for monitoring quality of must during fermentation and final wine products in a winery and/or laboratory.

Investigating highly replicated asthma genes as candidate genes for allergic rhinitis.

PubMed

Andiappan, Anand Kumar; Nilsson, Daniel; Halldén, Christer; Yun, Wang De; Säll, Torbjörn; Cardell, Lars Olaf; Tim, Chew Fook

2013-05-10

Asthma genetics has been extensively studied and many genes have been associated with the development or severity of this disease. In contrast, the genetic basis of allergic rhinitis (AR) has not been evaluated as extensively. It is well known that asthma is closely related with AR since a large proportion of individuals with asthma also present symptoms of AR, and patients with AR have a 5-6 fold increased risk of developing asthma. Thus, the relevance of asthma candidate genes as predisposing factors for AR is worth investigating. The present study was designed to investigate if SNPs in highly replicated asthma genes are associated with the occurrence of AR. A total of 192 SNPs from 21 asthma candidate genes reported to be associated with asthma in 6 or more unrelated studies were genotyped in a Swedish population with 246 AR patients and 431 controls. Genotypes for 429 SNPs from the same set of genes were also extracted from a Singapore Chinese genome-wide dataset which consisted of 456 AR cases and 486 controls. All SNPs were subsequently analyzed for association with AR and their influence on allergic sensitization to common allergens. A limited number of potential associations were observed and the overall pattern of P-values corresponds well to the expectations in the absence of an effect. However, in the tests of allele effects in the Chinese population the number of significant P-values exceeds the expectations. The strongest signals were found for SNPs in NPSR1 and CTLA4. In these genes, a total of nine SNPs showed P-values <0.001 with corresponding Q-values <0.05. In the NPSR1 gene some P-values were lower than the Bonferroni correction level. Reanalysis after elimination of all patients with asthmatic symptoms excluded asthma as a confounding factor in our results. Weaker indications were found for IL13 and GSTP1 with respect to sensitization to birch pollen in the Swedish population. Genetic variation in the majority of the highly replicated asthma genes were not associated to AR in our populations which suggest that asthma and AR could have less in common than previously anticipated. However, NPSR1 and CTLA4 can be genetic links between AR and asthma and associations of polymorphisms in NPSR1 with AR have not been reported previously.

An Analysis of Program Managers as Total Life Cycle Systems Managers

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-09-01

S) AND ADDRESS(ES) N/A 10. SPONSORING / MONITORING AGENCY REPORT NUMBER 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES The views expressed in this thesis are those of...Total Life Cycle Systems Management (TLCSM) is a term used in Army Regulation ( AR ) 70-1 to describe the responsibility of the Army Program Manager (PM...away from the PM. However, other Army guidance challenges AR 70-1 when transitioning to the Operations and Support phase of the acquisition life

Total Water Vapor Transport Observed in Twelve Atmospheric Rivers over the Northeastern Pacific Ocean Using Dropsondes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ralph, F. M.; Iacobellis, S.; Neiman, P. J.; Cordeira, J. M.; Spackman, J. R.; Waliser, D. E.; Wick, G. A.; White, A. B.; Fairall, C. W.

2014-12-01

Demory et al (2013) recently showed that the global water cycle in climate models, including the magnitude of water vapor transport, is strongly influenced by the model's spatial resolution. The lack of offshore observations is noted as a serious limitation in determining the correct amount of transport. Due to the key role of atmospheric rivers (ARs) in determining the global distribution of water vapor, quantifying transport from ARs is a high priority. This forms a foundation of the CalWater-2 experiment aimed at sampling many ARs during 2014-2018. In February 2014, an "early-start" deployment of the NOAA G-IV research aircraft sampled 10 ARs over the northeast Pacific Ocean. On six of these flights, dropsondes were deployed in a line crossing the AR so as to robustly sample the total water vapor transport (TVT). The TVT is defined here as the sum of the vertically integrated horizontal water vapor transport (IVT) in the AR using a baseline that stretches from its warm southern (or eastern) edge to its cool northern (or western) edge. TVT includes both AR-parallel and AR-perpendicular transport. These data double the overall number of such cross-AR airborne samples suitable for calculating TVT. Analysis of TVT for these six new samples, in combination with the six previous samples from the preceding 16 years (from CalJet, WISPAR, and a Hawaii-based campaign), will be shown. A comparison will be made of the AR width and TVT determined using the well-established integrated water vapor (IWV) threshold of 2 cm, versus an IVT threshold of 250 kg m-1 s-1. Finally, the data from a well sampled case on 13 February 2014 (23 sondes with 75-100 km spacing) will be used to assess the sensitivity of TVT to dropsonde horizontal spacing and vertical resolution. This sensitivity analysis is of practical importance for the upcoming CalWater-2 field campaign where the G-IV will be used to sample many additional AR events, due to the relatively high cost of the dropsondes.

Validation of Reported Whole-Grain Intake from a Web-Based Dietary Record against Plasma Alkylresorcinol Concentrations in 8- to 11-Year-Olds Participating in a Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Biltoft-Jensen, Anja; Damsgaard, Camilla T; Andersen, Elisabeth W; Ygil, Karin H; Andersen, Rikke; Ege, Majken; Christensen, Tue; Thorsen, Anne-Vibeke; Tetens, Inge; Wu, Huaxing; Landberg, Rikard

2016-02-01

Whole-grain (WG) intake is important for human health, but accurate intake estimation is challenging. Use of a biomarker for WG intake provides a possible way to validate dietary assessment methods. Our aim was to validate WG intake from 2 diets reported by children, using plasma alkylresorcinol (AR) concentrations, and to investigate the 3-mo reproducibility of AR concentrations and reported WG intake. AR concentrations were analyzed in fasting blood plasma samples, and WG intake was estimated in a 7-d web-based diary by 750 participants aged 8-11 y in a 2 school meal × 3 mo crossover trial. Reported WG intake and plasma AR concentrations were compared when children ate their usual bread-based lunch (UBL) and when served a hot lunch meal (HLM). Correlations and cross-classification were used to rank subjects according to intake. The intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) between subjects' measurements at baseline and after the UBL were used to assess reproducibility. Correlations between reported WG wheat + rye intake and plasma AR were 0.40 and 0.37 (P < 0.001) for the UBL and the HLM diets, and 78% and 77% were classified in the same or adjacent quartiles for the UBL and HLM diets, respectively. The ICC over 3 mo was 0.47 (95% CI: 0.38, 0.55) for plasma total ARs and 0.64 (95% CI: 0.58, 0.70) for reported WG intake. Correlations were higher when using the AR C17:0 homolog as a biomarker, reflecting rye intake instead of plasma total ARs [UBL: r = 0.47; HLM: r = 0.43, P < 0.001; ICC = 0.51 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.59)]. Self-reported WG wheat + rye intake among children showed moderate correlations with plasma AR concentrations. Substantial intraindividual variation was found in WG intake and plasma AR concentrations. The AR homolog C17:0 may be used as a biomarker for WG intake when the WG intake primarily comes from rye as in the present study. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01457794. © 2016 American Society for Nutrition.

40Ar/ 39Ar dating of micas from granites of NE Kibaran Belt (Karagwe-Ankolean), NW Tanzania

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ikingura, J. R.; Reynolds, P. H.; Watkinson, D. H.; Bell, K.

1992-11-01

40Ar/ 39Ar total gas ages of muscovites and biotites from granites associated with NE Kibaran belt (Karagwe-Ankolean) in NW Tanzanian are in the range of about 945-700 Ma, much less than the estimated age of the granites. Age gradients in the muscovite spectra are indicative of partial gas loss as a result of thermal overprinting. Evidence for at least two tectonothermal events, at ca. 950 Ma and ca. 700 Ma, is noted. The older of these correlates with the formation of tin-bearing pegmatites and hydrothermal veins in the Kibaran belt; the younger with vein emplacements in the Burundian and/or a deformational episode. Correlation of 40Ar/ 39Ar age data with K-Ar and Rb-Sr data from other parts of the Kibaran belt in Burundi, Rwanda and Zaire indicates that the NE Kibaran belt, east of the Western Rift, experienced a tectonothermal history similar to that of the western part of the during the late-Proterozoic.

High-resolution study of the prominent near-threshold resonances in the Ar 3s-electron photoionization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lauer, S.; Liebel, H.; Vollweiler, F.; Schmoranzer, H.; Reichardt, G.; Wilhelmi, O.; Mentzel, G.; Schartner, K.-H.; Sukhorukov, V. L.; Lagutin, B. M.; Petrov, I. D.; Demekhin, Ph. V.

1998-10-01

The absolute Ar 3s-electron photoionization cross section was measured in the exciting-photon energy range from 30.65 to 31.75 eV by photon-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (PIFS). The bandwidth of the exciting synchrotron radiation was 4.8 meV. The profiles of the resonances observed in the Ar 3s-electron photoionization were compared with the profiles of the resonances in the total photoabsorption.

Coeval Ar-40/Ar-39 ages of 65.0 million years ago from Chicxulub crater melt rock and Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary tektites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swisher, Carl C., III; Grajales-Nishimura, Jose M.; Montanari, Alessandro; Margolis, Stanley V.; Claeys, Philippe; Alvarez, Walter; Renne, Paul; Cedillo-Pardo, Esteban; Maurrasse, Florentin J.-M. R.; Curtis, Garniss H.

1992-01-01

Ar-40/Ar-39 dating of drill-core samples of a glassy melt rock recovered from beneath a massive impact breccia contained with the 180-kilometer subsurface Chicxulub crater yields well-behaved incremental heating spectra with a mean plateau age of 64.98 +/- 0.05 million years ago (Ma). The glassy melt rock of andesitic composition was obtained from core 9 (1390 to 1393 meters) in the Chicxulub 1 well. The age of the melt rock is virtually indistinguishable from Ar-40/Ar-39 ages obtained on tektite glass from Beloc, Haiti, and Arroyo el Mimbral, northeastern Mexico, of 65.01 +/- 0.08 Ma (mean plateau age for Beloc) and 65.07 +/- 0.10 Ma (mean total fusion age for both sites). The Ar-40/Ar-39 ages, in conjunction with geochemical and petrological similarities, strengthen the suggestion that the Chicxulub structure is the source for the Haitian and Mexican tektites and is a viable candidate for the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary impact site.

Does allergic rhinitis affect communication skills in young adults?

PubMed

Cingi, Can Cemal; Sakallıoğlu, Öner; Muluk, Nuray Bayar; Cingi, Cemal

2016-01-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a chronic disorder with a high prevalence in the general population. The symptoms of AR can impair the cognitive capabilities of the affected people. The study of communication skills and AR interaction has not been adequately discussed. We aimed to analyze Social Communication Skills of university students with AR. Fifty patients suffering from AR and 50 healthy subjects were studied. All participants completed two questionnaires [Social Communication Skills Rating Scale (SCSRS) and Communication Questionnaire] for the assessment of social communication skills. Total scores of both SCSRS and Communication Questionnaire were higher in participants with AR than controls. When the questions of SCSRS were compared between the groups one by one, significant difference was observed between the groups for questions numbered 1-9 and 11, 12 (p < 0.05). Also, significant differences were observed between the groups for questions numbered 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of Communication Questionnaire (p < 0.05). Results of our study indicate that AR could negatively affect the social communication skills of the patients with AR. More research is however needed to validate this hypothesis.

Effects of attributional retraining on writing performance and perceived competence of Taiwanese university nursing students.

PubMed

Tai, Hung-Cheng; Pan, Mei-Yu; Lee, Bih-O

2016-09-01

Attributional retraining (AR) has been applied in various professional fields. The application of AR in nursing education is rarely seen. This study explores the effects of AR on university nursing students' writing performance, perceived competence, and the relationship between writing performance and perceived competence using a blended platform of online and face-to-face approaches. A single-group experimental study was used. A total of 187 students participated in this study. The setting was the two-year vocational nursing course in a university. The Scale for Rating Composition Tasks and the Perceived Competence Scale were used before and after the AR intervention. The students' writing performance showed significant improvement after the intervention. AR had effectively influenced the students' perceived competence. The perceived competence of the students interacted with the writing performance improvements after the AR intervention. The AR intervention suggests an alternative teaching approach that can help enhance students' English writing performance as well as perceived competence. The AR programme may be applied in English language teaching and professional courses. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Inductively coupled Cl2/Ar plasma: Experimental investigation and modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Efremov, A. M.; Kim, Dong-Pyo; Kim, Chang-Il

2003-07-01

Electrophysical and kinetic characteristics of Cl2/Ar plasma were investigated to understand the influence of the addition of Ar on the volume densities and fluxes of active particles, both neutral and charged. Our analysis combined both experimental methods and plasma modeling. It was found that addition of Ar to Cl2 leads to deformation of the electron energy distribution function and an increase of the electron mean energy due to the ``transparency'' effect. Direct electron impact dissociation of Cl2 molecules represents the main source of chlorine atoms in the plasma volume. The contributions of stepwise dissociation and ionization involving Ar metastable atoms were found to be negligible. Addition of Ar to Cl2 causes the decrease of both electron and ion densities due to a decrease in the total ionization rate and the acceleration of heterogeneous decay of charged particles.

Possible Mesozoic age of Ellenville Zn-Pb-Cu(Ag) deposit, Shawangunk Mountains, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Friedman, J.D.; Conrad, J.E.; McKee, E.H.; Mutschler, F.E.; Zartman, R.E.

1994-01-01

Ore textures, epithermal open-space filling of Permian structures of the Alleghanian orogeny, and largely postorogenic mineralization of the Ellenville, New York, composite Zn-Pb-Cu(Ag) vein system, provide permissive evidence for post-Permian mineralization. Isochron ages determined by 40Ar/39Ar laser-fusion techniques for K-bearing liquid inclusions in main-stage quartz from the Ellenville deposit additionally suggest a Mesozoic time of mineralization, associated with extensional formation of the Newark basin. The best 40Ar/39Ar total-fusion age range is 165 ?? 30 to 193 ?? 35 Ma. The Mesozoic 40Ar/39Ar age agrees with that of many other dated northern Appalachian Zn-Pb-Cu(Ag) deposits with near-matching lead isotope ratios, and adds new evidence of Jurassic tectonism and mineralization as an overprint to Late Paleozoic tectonism at least as far north as Ellenville (lat. 41??43???N). ?? 1994 Springer-Verlag.

Ionospheric effects in uncalibrated phase delay estimation and ambiguity-fixed PPP based on raw observable model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Shengfeng; Shi, Chuang; Lou, Yidong; Liu, Jingnan

2015-05-01

Zero-difference (ZD) ambiguity resolution (AR) reveals the potential to further improve the performance of precise point positioning (PPP). Traditionally, PPP AR is achieved by Melbourne-Wübbena and ionosphere-free combinations in which the ionosphere effect are removed. To exploit the ionosphere characteristics, PPP AR with L1 and L2 raw observable has also been developed recently. In this study, we apply this new approach in uncalibrated phase delay (UPD) generation and ZD AR and compare it with the traditional model. The raw observable processing strategy treats each ionosphere delay as an unknown parameter. In this manner, both a priori ionosphere correction model and its spatio-temporal correlation can be employed as constraints to improve the ambiguity resolution. However, theoretical analysis indicates that for the wide-lane (WL) UPD retrieved from L1/L2 ambiguities to benefit from this raw observable approach, high precision ionosphere correction of better than 0.7 total electron content unit (TECU) is essential. This conclusion is then confirmed with over 1 year data collected at about 360 stations. Firstly, both global and regional ionosphere model were generated and evaluated, the results of which demonstrated that, for large-scale ionosphere modeling, only an accuracy of 3.9 TECU can be achieved on average for the vertical delays, and this accuracy can be improved to about 0.64 TECU when dense network is involved. Based on these ionosphere products, WL/narrow-lane (NL) UPDs are then extracted with the raw observable model. The NL ambiguity reveals a better stability and consistency compared to traditional approach. Nonetheless, the WL ambiguity can be hardly improved even constrained with the high spatio-temporal resolution ionospheric corrections. By applying both these approaches in PPP-RTK, it is interesting to find that the traditional model is more efficient in AR as evidenced by the shorter time to first fix, while the three-dimensional positioning accuracy of the RAW model outperforms the combination model by about . This reveals that, with the current ionosphere models, there is actually no optimal strategy for the dual-frequency ZD ambiguity resolution, and the combination approach and raw approach each has merits and demerits.

Defining and Measuring the Success of Services Contracts in the United States Navy

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-06

mlpqdo^ar^qb=p`elli= Table of Contents I.  Introduction ...7  A.  Introduction ... Introduction .................................................................................... 29  B.  Overview

Organic carbon burial in fjords: Terrestrial versus marine inputs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cui, Xingqian; Bianchi, Thomas S.; Savage, Candida; Smith, Richard W.

2016-10-01

Fjords have been identified as sites of enhanced organic carbon (OC) burial and may play an important role in regulating climate change on glacial-interglacial timescales. Understanding sediment processes and sources of sedimentary OC are necessary to better constrain OC burial in fjords. In this study, we use Fiordland, New Zealand, as a case study and present data on surface sediments, sediment down-cores and terrestrial end-members to examine dynamics of sediments and the sources of OC in fjord sediments. Sediment cores showed evidence of multiple particle sources, frequent bioturbation and mass-wasting events. A multi-proxy approach (stable isotopes, lignin-phenols and fatty acids) allowed for separation of marine, soil and vascular plant OC in surface sediments. The relationship between mass accumulation rate (MAR) and OC contents in fjord surface sediments suggested that mineral dilution is important in controlling OC content on a global scale, but is less important for specific regions (e.g., New Zealand). The inconsistency of OC budgets calculated by using MAR weighted %OC and OC accumulation rates (AR; 6 vs 21-31 Tg OC yr-1) suggested that sediment flux in fjords was likely underestimated. By using end-member models, we propose that 55% to 62% of total OC buried in fjords is terrestrially derived, and accounts for 17 ± 12% of the OCterr buried in all marine sediments. The strong correlation between MAR and OC AR indicated that OC flux will likely decrease in fjords in the future with global warming due to decrease in sediment flux caused by glacier denudation.

Investigating the role of hydrogen in silicon deposition using an energy-resolved mass spectrometer and a Langmuir probe in an Ar/H{sub 2} radio frequency magnetron discharge

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

Mensah, S. L.; Naseem, Hameed H.; Abu-Safe, Husam

2012-07-15

The plasma parameters and ion energy distributions (IED) of the dominant species in an Ar-H{sub 2} discharge are investigated with an energy resolved mass spectrometer and a Langmuir probe. The plasmas are generated in a conventional magnetron chamber powered at 150 W, 13.56 MHz at hydrogen flow rates ranging from 0 to 25 sccm with a fixed argon gas flow rate of 15 sccm. Various H{sub n}{sup +}, SiH{sub n}{sup +}, SiH{sub n} fragments (with n = 1, 2, 3) together with Ar{sup +} and ArH{sup +} species are detected in the discharge. The most important species for the filmmore » deposition is SiH{sub n} (with n = 0, 1, 2). H fragments affect the hydrogen content in the material. The flux of Ar{sup +} decreases and the flux of ArH{sup +} increases when the hydrogen flow rate is increased; however, both fluxes saturate at hydrogen flow rates above 15 sccm. Electron density, n{sub e}, electron energy, T{sub e}, and ion density, n{sub i}, are estimated from the Langmuir probe data. T{sub e} is below 1.2 eV at hydrogen flow rates below 8 sccm, and about 2 eV at flow rates above 8 sccm. n{sub e} and n{sub i} decrease with increased hydrogen flow but the ratio of n{sub i} to n{sub e} increases. The formation of H{sup +} ions with energies above 36 eV and electrons with energies greater than 2 eV contributes to the decrease in hydrogen content at hydrogen flow rates above 8 sccm. Analysis of the IEDs indicates an inter-dependence of the species and their contribution to the thin film growth and properties.« less

Order-of-magnitude differences in retention of low-energy Ar implanted in Si and SiO{sub 2}

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

Wittmaack, Klaus, E-mail: wittmaack@helmholtz-muenchen.de; Giordani, Andrew; Umbel, Rachel

The retention of 1 and 5 keV Ar implanted at 45° in Si and 4.3 nm SiO{sub 2} on Si was studied at fluences between 3 × 10{sup 14} and 1.5 × 10{sup 16} cm{sup −2}. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) served to monitor the accumulation of Ar as well as the removal of SiO{sub 2}. Bombardment induced changes in oxygen chemistry caused the O 1s peak position to move toward lower binding energies by as much as 2.2 eV. Plotted versus depth of erosion, the fluence dependent changes in oxygen content, and peak position were similar at 1 and 5 keV. The Ar content of Si increased with increasingmore » exposure, saturating at fluences of ∼2 × 10{sup 15} cm{sup −2} (1 keV) and ∼6 × 10{sup 15} cm{sup −2} (5 keV). Much less Ar was retained in the SiO{sub 2}/Si sample, notably at 1 keV, in which case the low-fluence Ar signal amounted to only 8% of the Si reference. The results imply that essentially no Ar was trapped in undamaged SiO{sub 2}, i.e., the Ar atoms initially observed by XPS were located underneath the oxide. At the lowest fluence of 5 keV Ar, the retention ratio was much higher (43%) because the oxide was already highly damaged, with an associated loss of oxygen. The interpretation was assisted by TRIM(SRIM) calculations of damage production. Partial maloperation of the ion beam raster unit, identified only at a late stage of this work, enforced a study on the uniformity of bombardment. The desired information could be obtained by determining x,y line scan profiles of O 1s across partially eroded SiO{sub 2}/Si samples. Fluence dependent Ar retention in Si was described using an extended version of the rapid relocation model which takes into account that insoluble implanted rare-gas atoms tend to migrate to the surface readily under ongoing bombardment. The range parameters required for the modeling were determined using TRIM(SRIM); sputtering yields were derived from the literature. The other three parameters determining the Ar signal, i.e., (1) the thickness w of the near-surface Si region devoid of Ar, (2) the relocation efficiency Ψ{sub rlc}, and (3) the effective attenuation length L in XPS analysis were varied within reasonable limits until the calculated retention curves for 1 and 5 keV Ar in Si agreed with experimental data to better than 8%, using the same XPS sensitivity factor throughout. Results: w = 1.4 ± 0.1 nm, Ψ{sub rlc} = 6.6 ± 0.5, and L = 2.7 ± 0.2 nm. Combining experimental and calculated data, it was found that the Ar trapping efficiency of the damaged oxide is intimately correlated with the loss of oxygen. The calculated stationary areal densities of all retained Ar are compared with results obtained by high-resolution medium-energy ion scattering spectrometry. Attractive areas of future research in rare gas retention and nanobubble formation are sketched briefly.« less

miR-22 and miR-29a Are Members of the Androgen Receptor Cistrome Modulating LAMC1 and Mcl-1 in Prostate Cancer.

PubMed

Pasqualini, Lorenza; Bu, Huajie; Puhr, Martin; Narisu, Narisu; Rainer, Johannes; Schlick, Bettina; Schäfer, Georg; Angelova, Mihaela; Trajanoski, Zlatko; Börno, Stefan T; Schweiger, Michal R; Fuchsberger, Christian; Klocker, Helmut

2015-07-01

The normal prostate as well as early stages and advanced prostate cancer (PCa) require a functional androgen receptor (AR) for growth and survival. The recent discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) as novel effector molecules of AR disclosed the existence of an intricate network between AR, miRNAs and downstream target genes. In this study DUCaP cells, characterized by high content of wild-type AR and robust AR transcriptional activity, were chosen as the main experimental model. By integrative analysis of chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing (ChIP-seq) and microarray expression profiling data, miRNAs putatively bound and significantly regulated by AR were identified. A direct AR regulation of miR-22, miR-29a, and miR-17-92 cluster along with their host genes was confirmed. Interestingly, endogenous levels of miR-22 and miR-29a were found to be reduced in PCa cells expressing AR. In primary tumor samples, miR-22 and miR-29a were less abundant in the cancerous tissue compared with the benign counterpart. This specific expression pattern was associated with a differential DNA methylation of the genomic AR binding sites. The identification of laminin gamma 1 (LAMC1) and myeloid cell leukemia 1 (MCL1) as direct targets of miR-22 and miR-29a, respectively, suggested a tumor-suppressive role of these miRNAs. Indeed, transfection of miRNA mimics in PCa cells induced apoptosis and diminished cell migration and viability. Collectively, these data provide additional information regarding the complex regulatory machinery that guides miRNAs activity in PCa, highlighting an important contribution of miRNAs in the AR signaling.

Artesunate/dihydroartemisinin pharmacokinetics in acute falciparum malaria in pregnancy: absorption, bioavailability, disposition and disease effects.

PubMed

McGready, Rose; Phyo, Aung Pyae; Rijken, Marcus J; Tarning, Joel; Lindegardh, Niklas; Hanpithakpon, Warunee; Than, Hla Hla; Hlaing, Nathar; Zin, Naw Thida; Singhasivanon, Pratap; White, Nicholas J; Nosten, François

2012-03-01

To determine if reported lower plasma concentrations of artemisinin derivatives for malaria in pregnancy result from reduced oral bioavailability, expanded volume of distribution or increased clearance. In a sequentially assigned crossover treatment study, pregnant women with uncomplicated falciparum malaria received i.v. artesunate (i.v. ARS) (4mgkg(-1) ) on the first day and oral ARS (4mgkg(-1) ) on the second, or, oral on the first and i.v. on the second, in both groups followed by oral ARS (4mgkg(-1) day(-1) ) for 5 days. Plasma concentrations of ARS and dihyroartemisinin (DHA) were measured by liquid chromatography-mass-spectrometry on days 0, 1, 2 and 6. Controls were the same women restudied when healthy (3 months post partum). I.v. ARS administration resulted in similar ARS and DHA pharmacokinetics in pregnant women with malaria (n= 20) and in controls (n= 14). Oral administration resulted in higher total drug exposure in pregnancy [AUC (95% CI) in (ngml(-1) h)/(mgkg(-1) )] of 55.1 (30.1, 100.0) vs. 26.5 (12.2, 54.3) for ARS, P= 0.002 and 673 (386, 1130) vs. 523 (351, 724) for DHA, P= 0.007. The corresponding median absolute oral bioavailability (F%) was 21.7 (12.6, 75.1) vs. 9.9 (6.0, 36.81) for ARS (P= 0.046) and 77.0 (42.2, 129) vs. 72.7 (42.0, 87.7) for DHA, P= 0.033. Total DHA exposure was lower at day 6 in pregnant women with malaria (P < 0.001) compared with day 0 or 1, but not in the controls (P= 0.084). This study demonstrates the effects of malaria on oral ARS drug disposition are greater than those of pregnancy. This probably results from a disease related reduction in first pass metabolism. The data are reassuring regarding current dosing recommendations. © 2011 The Authors. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology © 2011 The British Pharmacological Society.

Beta-Adrenergic Receptor Expression in Muscle Cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, Ronald B.; Bridge, K.; Vaughn, J. R.

1999-01-01

beta-adrenergic receptor (bAR) agonists presumably exert their physiological action on skeletal muscle cells through the bAR. Since the signal generated by the bAR is cyclic AMP (cAMP), experiments were initiated in primary chicken muscle cell cultures to determine if artificial elevation of intracellular cAMP by treatment with forskolin would alter the population of bAR expressed on the surface of muscle cells. Chicken skeletal muscle cells after 7 days in culture were employed for the experiments because muscle cells have attained a steady state with respect to muscle protein metabolism at this stage. Cells were treated with 0-10 uM forskolin for a total of three days. At the end of the 1, 2, and 3 day treatment intervals, the concentration of cAMP and the bAR population were measured. Receptor population was measured in intact muscle cell cultures as the difference between total binding of [H-3]CGP-12177 and non-specific binding of [H-3]CGP-12177 in the presence of 1 uM propranolol. Intracellular cAMP concentration was measured by radioimmunoassay. The concentration of cAMP in forskolin-treated cells increased up to 10-fold in a dose dependent manner. Increasing concentrations of forskolin also led to an increase in (beta)AR population, with a maximum increase of approximately 50% at 10 uM. This increase in (beta)AR population was apparent after only 1 day of treatment, and the pattern of increase was maintained for all 3 days of the treatment period. Thus, increasing the intracellular concentration of cAMP leads to up-regulation of (beta)AR population. Clenbuterol and isoproterenol gave similar effects on bAR population. The effect of forskolin on the quantity and apparent synthesis rate of the heavy chain of myosin (mhc) were also investigated. A maximum increase of 50% in the quantity of mhc was observed at 0.2 UM forskolin, but higher concentrations of forskolin reduced the quantity of mhc back to control levels.

Characterization of multiple antibiotic resistance of culturable microorganisms and metagenomic analysis of total microbial diversity of marine fish sold in retail shops in Mumbai, India.

PubMed

Naik, Onkar A; Shashidhar, Ravindranath; Rath, Devashish; Bandekar, Jayant R; Rath, Archana

2018-03-01

Marine fish species were analyzed for culturable and total metagenomic microbial diversity, antibiotic resistance (AR) pattern, and horizontal gene transfer in culturable microorganisms. We observed a high AR microbial load of 3 to 4 log CFU g -1 . Many fish pathogens like Providencia, Staphylococcus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter, Vagococcus, and Aeromonas veronii were isolated. Photobacterium and Vibrio were two major fish and human pathogens which were identified in the fish metagenome. Other pathogens that were identified were Shewanella, Acinetobacter, Psychrobacter, and Flavobacterium. Most of these pathogens were resistant to multiple antibiotics such as erythromycin, kanamycin, neomycin, streptomycin, penicillin, cefotaxime, bacitracin, rifampicin, trimethoprim, ciprofloxacin, and doxycycline with a high multiple antibiotic resistance index of 0.54-0.77. The fish microflora showed high prevalence of AR genes like bla TEM , Class I integron, tetA, aph(3')-IIIa, ermB, aadA, and sul1. Nineteen of 26 AR isolates harbored Class I integrons showing high co-resistance to trimethoprim, kanamycin, doxycycline, and cefotaxime. Mobile R-plasmids from 6 of the 12 AR pathogens were transferred to recipient E. coli after conjugation. The transconjugants harbored the same R-plasmid carrying bla CTX-M , dfr1, tetA, bla TEM , and cat genes. This study confirms that fish is a potential carrier of AR pathogens which can enter the human gut via food chain. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study in the Indian subcontinent reporting a direct evidence of spread of AR pathogens to humans from specific marine fish consumption.

On the possibility of developing quasi-CW high-power high-pressure laser on 4p-4s transition of ArI with electron beam—optical pumping: quenching of 4s (3P2) lower laser level

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ionin, A. A.; Kholin, I. V.; L'dov, A. Yu; Seleznev, L. V.; Ustinovskii, N. N.; Zayarnyi, D. A.

2017-12-01

A new electron beam-optical procedure is proposed for quasi-cw pumping of high-pressure large-volume He-Ar laser on the 4p[1/2]1-4s[3/2]20 argon atom transition at the wavelength of 912.5 nm. It consists of creation and maintenance of a necessary density of the 4s[3/2]20 metastable state in the gain medium by a fast electron beam and subsequent optical pumping of the upper laser level via the classical three-level scheme using a laser diode. Absorption probing is used to study collisional quenching of Ar* metastable in electron-beam-excited high-pressure He-Ar mixtures with a low content of argon. The rate constants for plasma-chemical reactions Ar*  +  He  +  Ar  >  Ar2*   +  He (3.6  ±  0.4)  ×  10-33 cm6 s-1, Ar*  +  2He  >  HeAr*  +  He (4.4  ±  0.9)  ×  10-36 cm6 s-1 and Ar*  +  He  >  Products  +  He (2.4  ±  0.3)  ×  10-15 cm3 s-1 were for the first time measured.

Aged refuse enhances anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge.

PubMed

Zhao, Jianwei; Gui, Lin; Wang, Qilin; Liu, Yiwen; Wang, Dongbo; Ni, Bing-Jie; Li, Xiaoming; Xu, Rui; Zeng, Guangming; Yang, Qi

2017-10-15

In this work, a low-cost alternative approach (i.e., adding aged refuse (AR) into waste activated sludge) to significantly enhance anaerobic digestion of sludge was reported. Experimental results showed that with the addition dosage of AR increasing from 0 to 400 mg/g dry sludge soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) increased from 1150 to 5240 mg/L at the digestion time of 5 d, while the maximal production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) increased from 82.6 to 183.9 mg COD/g volatile suspended solids. Although further increase of AR addition decreased the concentrations of both soluble COD and VFA, their contents in these systems with AR addition at any concentration investigated were still higher than those in the blank, which resulted in higher methane yields in these systems. Mechanism studies revealed that pertinent addition of AR promoted solubilization, hydrolysis, and acidogenesis processes and did not affect methanogenesis significantly. It was found that varieties of enzymes and anaerobes in AR were primary reason for the enhancement of anaerobic digestion. Humic substances in AR benefited hydrolysis and acidogenesis but inhibited methanogenesis. The effect of heavy metals in AR on sludge anaerobic digestion was dosage dependent. Sludge anaerobic digestion was enhanced by appropriate amounts of heavy metals but inhibited by excessive amounts of heavy metals. The relative abundances of microorganisms responsible for sludge hydrolysis and acidogenesis were also observed to be improved in the system with AR addition, which was consistent with the performance of anaerobic digestion. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

3-D Reconstructions of Subsurface Pleistocene Basalt Flows from Paleomagnetic Inclination Data and 40Ar/39Ar Ages in the Southern Part of the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho (USA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hodges, M. K.; Champion, D. E.; Turrin, B. D.; Swisher, C. C.

2012-12-01

The U. S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, is mapping the distribution of basalt flows and sedimentary interbeds at the Idaho National Laboratory in three dimensions to provide data for refining numerical models of groundwater flow and contaminant transport in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. Paleomagnetic inclination and polarity data from basalt samples from 47 coreholes are being used to create a three-dimensional (3-D) model of the subsurface of the southern part of the INL. Surface and sub-surface basalt flows can be identified in individual cores and traced in three dimensions on the surface and in the subsurface for distances of more than 20 km using a combination of paleomagnetic, stratigraphic, and 40Ar/39Ar data. Eastern Snake River Plain olivine tholeiite basalts have K2O contents of 0.2 to 1.0 weight per cent. In spite of the low-K content, high-precision 40Ar/39Ar ages were obtained by applying a protocol that employs short irradiation times (minimizing interferences from Ca derived 36Ar), frequent measurement of various size atmospheric Ar pipettes to monitor and correct for temporal variation, and signal size dependent nonlinearity in spectrometer mass bias, resulting in age dates with resolution generally between 2 to 10% of the age. 3-D models of subsurface basalt flows are being used to: (1) Estimate eruption volumes; (2) locate the approximate vent areas and extent of sub-surface flows; and (3) Help locate high and low transmissivity zones. Results indicate that large basalt eruptions (>3 km3) occurred at and near the Central Facilities Area between 637 ka and 360 ka; at and near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex before 540 ka; and north of the Naval Reactors Facility at about 580 ka. Since about 360 ka, large basalt flows have erupted along the Arco-Big Southern Butte Volcanic Rift Zone and the Axial Volcanic Zone, and flowed northerly towards the Central Facilities Area. Basalt eruptions shifted the course of the Big Lost River from a more southerly course to its present one.

3-D reconstructions of subsurface Pleistocene basalt flows from paleomagnetic inclination data and 40Ar/39Ar ages in the southern part of the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho (USA)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hodges, Mary K. V.; Champion, Duane E.; Turrin, B.D.; Swisher, C. C.

2012-01-01

The U. S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, is mapping the distribution of basalt flows and sedimentary interbeds at the Idaho National Laboratory in three dimensions to provide data for refining numerical models of groundwater flow and contaminant transport in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. Paleomagnetic inclination and polarity data from basalt samples from 47 coreholes are being used to create a three-dimensional (3-D) model of the subsurface of the southern part of the INL. Surface and sub-surface basalt flows can be identified in individual cores and traced in three dimensions on the surface and in the subsurface for distances of more than 20 km using a combination of paleomagnetic, stratigraphic, and 40Ar/39Ar data. Eastern Snake River Plain olivine tholeiite basalts have K2O contents of 0.2 to 1.0 weight per cent. In spite of the low-K content, high-precision 40Ar/39Ar ages were obtained by applying a protocol that employs short irradiation times (minimizing interferences from Ca derived 36Ar), frequent measurement of various size atmospheric Ar pipettes to monitor and correct for temporal variation, and signal size dependent nonlinearity in spectrometer mass bias, resulting in age dates with resolution generally between 2 to 10% of the age. 3-D models of subsurface basalt flows are being used to: (1) Estimate eruption volumes; (2) locate the approximate vent areas and extent of sub-surface flows; and (3) Help locate high and low transmissivity zones. Results indicate that large basalt eruptions (>3 km3) occurred at and near the Central Facilities Area between 637 ka and 360 ka; at and near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex before 540 ka; and north of the Naval Reactors Facility at about 580 ka. Since about 360 ka, large basalt flows have erupted along the Arco-Big Southern Butte Volcanic Rift Zone and the Axial Volcanic Zone, and flowed northerly towards the Central Facilities Area. Basalt eruptions shifted the course of the Big Lost River from a more southerly course to its present one.

Hypothermia in mouse is caused by adenosine A1 and A3 receptor agonists and AMP via three distinct mechanisms.

PubMed

Carlin, Jesse Lea; Jain, Shalini; Gizewski, Elizabeth; Wan, Tina C; Tosh, Dilip K; Xiao, Cuiying; Auchampach, John A; Jacobson, Kenneth A; Gavrilova, Oksana; Reitman, Marc L

2017-03-01

Small mammals have the ability to enter torpor, a hypothermic, hypometabolic state, allowing impressive energy conservation. Administration of adenosine or adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP) can trigger a hypothermic, torpor-like state. We investigated the mechanisms for hypothermia using telemetric monitoring of body temperature in wild type and receptor knock out (Adora1 -/- , Adora3 -/- ) mice. Confirming prior data, stimulation of the A 3 adenosine receptor (AR) induced hypothermia via peripheral mast cell degranulation, histamine release, and activation of central histamine H 1 receptors. In contrast, A 1 AR agonists and AMP both acted centrally to cause hypothermia. Commonly used, selective A 1 AR agonists, including N 6 -cyclopentyladenosine (CPA), N 6 -cyclohexyladenosine (CHA), and MRS5474, caused hypothermia via both A 1 AR and A 3 AR when given intraperitoneally. Intracerebroventricular dosing, low peripheral doses of Cl-ENBA [(±)-5'-chloro-5'-deoxy-N 6 -endo-norbornyladenosine], or using Adora3 -/- mice allowed selective stimulation of A 1 AR. AMP-stimulated hypothermia can occur independently of A 1 AR, A 3 AR, and mast cells. A 1 AR and A 3 AR agonists and AMP cause regulated hypothermia that was characterized by a drop in total energy expenditure, physical inactivity, and preference for cooler environmental temperatures, indicating a reduced body temperature set point. Neither A 1 AR nor A 3 AR was required for fasting-induced torpor. A 1 AR and A 3 AR agonists and AMP trigger regulated hypothermia via three distinct mechanisms. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Metabolic analysis of the increased adventitious rooting mutant of Artemisia annua reveals a role for the plant monoterpene borneol in adventitious root formation.

PubMed

Tian, Na; Liu, Shuoqian; Li, Juan; Xu, Wenwen; Yuan, Lin; Huang, Jianan; Liu, Zhonghua

2014-08-01

Adventitious root (AR) formation is a critical process for plant clonal propagation. The role of plant secondary metabolites in AR formation is still poorly understood. Chemical and physical mutagenesis in combination with somatic variation were performed on Artemisia annua in order to obtain a mutant with changes in adventitious rooting and composition of plant secondary metabolites. Metabolic and morphological analyses of the iar (increased adventitious rooting) mutant coupled with in vitro assays were used to elucidate the relationship between plant secondary metabolites and AR formation. The only detected differences between the iar mutant and wild-type were rooting capacity and borneol/camphor content. Consistent with this, treatment with borneol in vitro promoted adventitious rooting in wild-type. The enhanced rooting did not continue upon removal of borneol. The iar mutant displayed no significant differences in AR formation upon treatment with camphor. Together, our results suggest that borneol promotes adventitious rooting whereas camphor has no effect on AR formation. © 2013 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

Reference Atmosphere for Mercury

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Killen, Rosemary M.

2002-01-01

We propose that Ar-40 measured in the lunar atmosphere and that in Mercury's atmosphere is due to current diffusion into connected pore space within the crust. Higher temperatures at Mercury, along with more rapid loss from the atmosphere will lead to a smaller column abundance of argon at Mercury than at the Moon, given the same crustal abundance of potassium. Because the noble gas abundance in the Hermean atmosphere represents current effusion, it is a direct measure of the crustal potassium abundance. Ar-40 in the atmospheres of the planets is a measure of potassium abundance in the interiors, since Ar-40 is a product of radiogenic decay of K-40 by electron capture with the subsequent emission of a 1.46 eV gamma-ray. Although the Ar-40 in the Earth's atmosphere is expected to have accumulated since the late bombardment, Ar-40 in the atmospheres of Mercury and the Moon is eroded quickly by photoionization and electron impact ionization. Thus, the argon content in the exospheres of the Moon and Mercury is representative of current effusion rather than accumulation over the lifetime of the planet.

Augmented reality in medical education?

PubMed

Kamphuis, Carolien; Barsom, Esther; Schijven, Marlies; Christoph, Noor

2014-09-01

Learning in the medical domain is to a large extent workplace learning and involves mastery of complex skills that require performance up to professional standards in the work environment. Since training in this real-life context is not always possible for reasons of safety, costs, or didactics, alternative ways are needed to achieve clinical excellence. Educational technology and more specifically augmented reality (AR) has the potential to offer a highly realistic situated learning experience supportive of complex medical learning and transfer. AR is a technology that adds virtual content to the physical real world, thereby augmenting the perception of reality. Three examples of dedicated AR learning environments for the medical domain are described. Five types of research questions are identified that may guide empirical research into the effects of these learning environments. Up to now, empirical research mainly appears to focus on the development, usability and initial implementation of AR for learning. Limited review results reflect the motivational value of AR, its potential for training psychomotor skills and the capacity to visualize the invisible, possibly leading to enhanced conceptual understanding of complex causality.

Petrochemistry of late miocene peraluminous silicic volcanic rocks from the Morococala field, Bolivia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morgan, VI G.B.; London, D.; Luedke, R.G.

1998-01-01

Late Miocene peraluminous volcanic rocks of the Morococala field, Bolivia, define a layered stratigraphy of basal andalusite-, biotite-(?? Muscovite)-bearing rhyolite tuffs (AR), overlain by cordierite-, biotite-bearing rhyolite tuffs (CR), and capped by biotite-beanng quartz latite tuffs, lavas, and late domal flows (QL). Mineral and whole-rock compositions become more evolved from top to bottom, with differentiation reflected by decreasing Ca, Ba, Mg, Fe, and rare earth elements (REE) versus increasing F, Na/K, and aluminosity from QL to AR. Mineral, whole-rock, and glass inclusion compositions are consistent with derivation of all three rock types from a single stratified magma reservoir, but age and spatial relations between the three units make this unlikely. Genesis of the QL involved biotite-dehydration melting of an aluminous source at T > 750??C and P ??? 4-6 kbar. If not co-magmatic with QL, the other units were generated primarily by muscovite-dehydration melting at T = 730-750??C and P ??? 3??5-4??5 kbar for CR, and T ??? 750??C for AR with pre-emptive residence at low pressure (1??5-3??0 kbar). Low hematite contents (XHem ??? 0??06) of ilmenite grains in AR, CR, and early grains (as inclusions in plagioclase and sanidine cores) in QL indicate reduced conditions imposed by a graphite-bearing source. Compositional variability among texturally later oxides (ilmenite with XHem = 0??06-0??50, primary magnetite), however, apparently records progressive increases in pre-eruptive f(O2) in QL. Plagioclase-melt equilibria and electron microprobe analysis difference for quartz-hosted glass inclusions suggest pre-emptive melt H2O contents ??? 5-7 wt % for the AR, ???4-6 wt % for the CR, and ???3-5 wt % for the QL.

Lateral Reaction Jet Flow Interaction Effects on a Generic Fin-Stabilized Munition in Supersonic Crossflows

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-11-01

freestream conditions ( 0 =300 K). .........22  Table 7. Results from nozzle parameter study, variation with jet gas total temperature (AR=1, M=2.5...end. Two additional supersonic nozzles of AR=2 and AR=8 (figures 3e and 3f) were also investigated, also with a throat diameter of 2.54 mm. The...walls, due to the different flow properties from the gas expansion there. Therefore, the plenum and nozzle exit walls were modeled with an advanced

Streak Spectrograph Temperature Analysis from Electrically Exploded Ni/Al Nanolaminates

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

present. Using the spectral information of Ar, we analyzed the relative intensities of four Ar peaks between 425 and 455 nm, with respect to their...Ar peaks and their expected Boltzmann distribution functions yielded temperature values for each sample as a function of time. The following section...in the circuit was d2i dt2 + R L di dt + 1 LC i = 0 ð1Þ where L and R represent the total series inductance and resistance, respectively. By fitting

Conducting the Softer Side of Counterinsurgency

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

Donini , Larry Minear, Ian Smillie, Ted van Baarda and Anthony and Welch, Mapping the Security...Content Analysis Matrix In fo rm at io n O pe ra tio n S itu at io na l A w ar en es s C ul tu ra l A w ar en es s E m pa th y C om m an d In...Journal, no. JUL-AUG (2008): 42-44, 43. 90 Donini et al., Mapping the Security Environment: Understanding the perceptions of local communities,

Quantitative fluid inclusion gas analysis of airburst, nuclear, impact and fulgurite glasses.

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

Parnell, John; Newsom, Horton E.; Blamey, Nigel J. F.

We present quantitative fluid inclusion gas analysis on a suite of violently-formed glasses. We used the incremental crush mass spectrometry method (Norman & Blamey, 2001) to analyze eight pieces of Libyan Desert Glass (LDG). As potential analogues we also analyzed trinitite, three impact crater glasses, and three fulgurites. The 'clear' LDG has the lowest CO{sub 2} content and O{sub 2}/Ar ratios are two orders of magnitude lower than atmospheric. The 'foamy' glass samples have heterogeneous CO{sub 2} contents and O{sub 2}/Ar ratios. N{sub 2}/Ar ratios are similar to atmospheric (83.6). H{sub 2} and He are elevated but it is difficultmore » to confirm whether they are of terrestrial or meteoritic origin. Combustion cannot account for oxygen depletion that matches the amount of CO{sub 2} produced. An alternative mechanism is required that removes oxygen without producing CO{sub 2}. Trinitite has exceedingly high CO{sub 2} which we attribute to carbonate breakdown of the caliche at ground zero. The O{sub 2}/Ar ratio for trinitite is lower than atmospheric but higher than all LDG samples. N{sub 2}/Ar ratios closely match atmospheric. Samples from Lonar, Henbury and Aouelloul impact craters have atmospheric N{sub 2}/Ar ratios. O{sub 2}/Ar ratios at Lonar and Henbury are 9.5 to 9.9 whereas the O{sub 2}/Ar ratio is 0.1 for the Aouelloul sample. In most fulgurites the N{sub 2}/Ar ratio is higher than atmospheric, possibly due to interference from CO. Oxygen ranges from 1.3 to 19.3%. Gas signatures of LDG inclusions neither match those from the craters, trinitite nor fulgurites. It is difficult to explain both the observed depletion of oxygen in the LDG and a CO{sub 2} level that is lower than it would be if the CO{sub 2} were simply a product of hydrocarbon combustion in air. One possible mechanism for oxygen depletion is that as air turbulently mixed with a hot jet of vaporized asteroid from an airburst and expanded, the atmospheric oxygen reacted with the metal vapor to form metal oxides that condensed. This observation is compatible with the model of Boslough & Crawford (2008) who suggest that an airburst incinerates organic materials over a large area, melting surface materials that then quench to form glass. Bubbles would contain a mixture of pre-existing atmosphere with combustion products from organic material and products of the reaction between vaporized cosmic materials (including metals) and terrestrial surface and atmosphere.« less

Impurity incorporation, deposition kinetics, and microstructural evolution in sputtered Ta films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitacre, Jay Fredric

There is an increasing need to control the microstructure in thin sputtered Ta films for application as high-temperature coatings or diffusion barriers in microelectronic interconnect structures. To this end, the relationship between impurity incorporation, deposition kinetics, and microstructural evolution was examined for room-temperature low growth rate DC magnetron sputtered Ta films. Impurity levels present during deposition were controlled by pumping the chamber to various base pressures before growth. Ar pressures ranging from 2 to 20 mTorr were used to create contrasting kinetic environments in the sputter gas. This affected both the distribution of adatom kinetic energies at the substrate as well as the rate of impurity desorption from the chamber walls: at higher Ar pressures adatoms has lower kinetic energies, and there was an increase in impurity concentration. X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM), transmission electron diffraction (TED), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), and x-ray photoelectron. spectroscopy (XPS) were used to examine film crystallography, microstructure, and composition. A novel laboratory-based in-situ x-ray diffractometer was constructed. This new set-up allowed for the direct observation of microstructural evolution during growth. Films deposited at increasingly higher Ar pressures displayed a systematic decrease in grain size and degree of texturing, while surface morphology was found to vary from a nearly flat surface to a rough surface with several length scales of organization. In-situ x-ray results showed that the rate of texture evolution was found to be much higher in films grown using lower Ar pressures. These effects were studied in films less than 200 A thick using high resolution x-ray diffraction in conjunction with a synchrotron light source (SSRL B.L. 7-2). Films grown using higher Ar pressures (above 10 mTorr) with a pre-growth base pressure of 1 x 10--6 Torr had grains less than 10 nm in diameter and significant amorphous content Calculated radial distribution functions show a significant increase in average inter-atomic spacing in films grown using higher base pressures and Ar pressures. The amorphous content in the films was determined via comparison between ideal crystalline diffraction patterns and actual data. Thinner films grown at higher Ar pressures had relatively greater amorphous content. Real-time process control using the in-situ diffractometer was also demonstrated. The effects observed are discussed in the context of previous theories and experiments that document room-temperature sputter film growth. The changes in film microstructure observed were impurity mediated. Specifically, oxygen desorbed from the chamber walls during growth were incorporated into the film and subsequently limited grain development and texturing. A second phase consisting of amorphous Ta2O5 formed between the grain nuclei. Adatom kinetics played a role in determining surface morphology: at low Ar pressures (2 mTorr) significant adatom kinetic energies served to flattened the film surface, though impurity levels dominated grain development even in these conditions.

Cardiac Alpha1-Adrenergic Receptors: Novel Aspects of Expression, Signaling Mechanisms, Physiologic Function, and Clinical Importance

PubMed Central

O’Connell, Timothy D.; Jensen, Brian C.; Baker, Anthony J.

2014-01-01

Adrenergic receptors (AR) are G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that have a crucial role in cardiac physiology in health and disease. Alpha1-ARs signal through Gαq, and signaling through Gq, for example, by endothelin and angiotensin receptors, is thought to be detrimental to the heart. In contrast, cardiac alpha1-ARs mediate important protective and adaptive functions in the heart, although alpha1-ARs are only a minor fraction of total cardiac ARs. Cardiac alpha1-ARs activate pleiotropic downstream signaling to prevent pathologic remodeling in heart failure. Mechanisms defined in animal and cell models include activation of adaptive hypertrophy, prevention of cardiac myocyte death, augmentation of contractility, and induction of ischemic preconditioning. Surprisingly, at the molecular level, alpha1-ARs localize to and signal at the nucleus in cardiac myocytes, and, unlike most GPCRs, activate “inside-out” signaling to cause cardioprotection. Contrary to past opinion, human cardiac alpha1-AR expression is similar to that in the mouse, where alpha1-AR effects are seen most convincingly in knockout models. Human clinical studies show that alpha1-blockade worsens heart failure in hypertension and does not improve outcomes in heart failure, implying a cardioprotective role for human alpha1-ARs. In summary, these findings identify novel functional and mechanistic aspects of cardiac alpha1-AR function and suggest that activation of cardiac alpha1-AR might be a viable therapeutic strategy in heart failure. PMID:24368739

Accelerated hematopoietic syndrome after radiation doses bridging hematopoietic (H-ARS) and gastrointestinal (GI-ARS) acute radiation syndrome: early hematological changes and systemic inflammatory response syndrome in minipig.

PubMed

Moroni, Maria; Elliott, Thomas B; Deutz, Nicolaas E; Olsen, Cara H; Owens, Rossitsa; Christensen, Christine; Lombardini, Eric D; Whitnall, Mark H

2014-05-01

To characterize acute radiation syndrome (ARS) sequelae at doses intermediate between the bone marrow (H-ARS) and full gastrointestinal (GI-ARS) syndrome. Male minipigs, approximately 5 months old, 9-12 kg in weight, were irradiated with Cobalt-60 (total body, bilateral gamma irradiation, 0.6 Gy/min). Endpoints were 10-day survival, gastrointestinal histology, plasma citrulline, bacterial translocation, vomiting, diarrhea, vital signs, systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), febrile neutropenia (FN). We exposed animals to doses (2.2-5.0 Gy) above those causing H-ARS (1.6-2.0 Gy), and evaluated development of ARS. Compared to what was observed during H-ARS (historical data: Moroni et al. 2011a , 2011c ), doses above 2 Gy produced signs of increasingly severe pulmonary damage, faster deterioration of clinical conditions, and faster increases in levels of C-reactive protein (CRP). In the range of 4.6-5.0 Gy, animals died by day 9-10; signs of the classic GI syndrome, as measured by diarrhea, vomiting and bacterial translocation, did not occur. At doses above 2 Gy we observed transient reduction in circulating citrulline levels, and animals exhibited earlier depletion of blood elements and faster onset of SIRS and FN. An accelerated hematopoietic subsyndrome (AH-ARS) is observed at radiation doses between those producing H-ARS and GI-ARS. It is characterized by early onset of SIRS and FN, and greater lung damage, compared to H-ARS.

Comparative Proteomic Analysis Reveals the Effects of Exogenous Calcium against Acid Rain Stress in Liquidambar formosana Hance Leaves.

PubMed

Hu, Wen-Jun; Wu, Qian; Liu, Xiang; Shen, Zhi-Jun; Chen, Juan; Liu, Ting-Wu; Chen, Juan; Zhu, Chun-Quan; Wu, Fei-Hua; Chen, Lin; Wei, Jia; Qiu, Xiao-Yun; Shen, Guo-Xin; Zheng, Hai-Lei

2016-01-04

Acid rain (AR) impacts forest health by leaching calcium (Ca) away from soils and plants. Ca is an essential element and participates in various plant physiological responses. In the present study, the protective role of exogenous Ca in alleviating AR stress in Liquidambar formosana Hance at the physiological and proteomic levels was examined. Our results showed that low Ca condition resulted in the chlorophyll content and photosynthesis decreasing significantly in L. formosana leaves; however, these effects could be reversed by high Ca supplementation. Further proteomic analyses successfully identified 81 differentially expressed proteins in AR-treated L. formosana under different Ca levels. In particular, some of the proteins are involved in primary metabolism, photosynthesis, energy production, antioxidant defense, transcription, and translation. Moreover, quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) results indicated that low Ca significantly increased the expression level of the investigated Ca-related genes, which can be reversed by high Ca supplementation under AR stress. Further, Western blotting analysis revealed that exogenous Ca supply reduced AR damage by elevating the expression of proteins involved in the Calvin cycle, reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging system. These findings allowed us to better understand how woody plants respond to AR stress at various Ca levels and the protective role of exogenous Ca against AR stress in forest tree species.

Gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome in Göttingen minipigs (Sus scrofa domestica).

PubMed

Elliott, Thomas B; Deutz, Nicolaas E; Gulani, Jatinder; Koch, Amory; Olsen, Cara H; Christensen, Christine; Chappell, Mark; Whitnall, Mark H; Moroni, Maria

2014-12-01

In the absence of supportive care, exposing Göttingen minipigs to γ-radiation doses of less than 2 Gy achieves lethality due to hematopoietic acute radiation syndrome. Doses of 2 to 5 Gy are associated with an accelerated hematopoietic syndrome, characterized by villus blunting and fusion, the beginning of sepsis, and a mild transient reduction in plasma citrulline concentration. We exposed male Göttingen minipigs (age, 5 mo; weight, 9 to 11 kg) to γ-radiation doses of 5 to 12 Gy (total body; (60)Co, 0.6 Gy/min) to test whether these animals exhibit classic gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome (GI-ARS). After exposure, the minipigs were monitored for 10 d by using clinical signs, CBC counts, and parameters associated with the development of the gastrointestinal syndrome. Göttingen minipigs exposed to γ radiation of 5 to 12 Gy demonstrate a dose-dependent occurrence of all parameters classically associated with acute GI-ARS. These results suggest that Göttingen minipigs may be a suitable model for studying GI-ARS after total body irradiation, but the use of supportive care to extend survival beyond 10 d is recommended. This study is the first step toward determining the feasibility of using Göttingen minipigs in testing the efficacy of candidate drugs for the treatment of GI-ARS after total body irradiation.

Augmented reality glass-free three-dimensional display with the stereo camera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pang, Bo; Sang, Xinzhu; Chen, Duo; Xing, Shujun; Yu, Xunbo; Yan, Binbin; Wang, Kuiru; Yu, Chongxiu

2017-10-01

An improved method for Augmented Reality (AR) glass-free three-dimensional (3D) display based on stereo camera used for presenting parallax contents from different angle with lenticular lens array is proposed. Compared with the previous implementation method of AR techniques based on two-dimensional (2D) panel display with only one viewpoint, the proposed method can realize glass-free 3D display of virtual objects and real scene with 32 virtual viewpoints. Accordingly, viewers can get abundant 3D stereo information from different viewing angles based on binocular parallax. Experimental results show that this improved method based on stereo camera can realize AR glass-free 3D display, and both of virtual objects and real scene have realistic and obvious stereo performance.

Mid-Holocene paleoclimatic changes and solar activity in San'in District, mid-latitude North Pacific Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okazaki, Y.; Seto, K.; Sakai, T.; Ooki, A.; yamada, K.; Dettman, D. L.

2011-12-01

Evidence shows that solar activity influences climate on a global scale. In the mid-latitude region, climate change is expected to change precipitation patterns. Concurrently, variation in solar activity may influence phytoplankton productivity. It seems that these changes should be recorded in sediment and organic matter deposits in coastal lagoons. In this study, we discuss the relationship between climate change and solar activity in the mid-Holocene in the northern hemisphere mid-latitude region based on grain size analysis, total organic carbon (TOC) content and organic carbon accumulation rates (Corg A.R.) in coastal lagoon sediment core samples. The INB core was drilled to produce a high resolution record of Holocene paleoenvironmental change in the San'in District, western Japan. The core is 19.17m in total length and is divided into Unit I~VII by lithofacies. Holocene sediment, primarily organic silt, forms Unit III and above in this core. Unit III was deposited from 8.4 to 5.4 ka, when sea level rose during the Jomon transgression; its depositional environment is a coastal lagoon. Progradation of the river mouth during the sea level rise lead to an increase in the C/N ratio of organic matter. Unit IV contains the volcanic Shigaku pyroclastic flow (the sixth stage of volcanic activity of the Sanbe volcano), and Unit V reflects deposition in a freshwater lake or swamp. Above this aggredational sediments were deposited by small rivers. This study focused on the coastal lagoon sediments of Unit III (8.4 to 5.4 ka); we carried out CNS elemental analysis and grain size analysis with a resolution of approximately five years. TOC content is variable and increases from 0.5 to 5%. Variation in TOC content is relatively well correlated with atmospheric radiocarbon 14C (Delta 14C) and therefore with solar activity, although the relationship is unclear in the upper portion of Unit III. The trend in Corg A.R. is different than TOC contents, about 40g/m/yr at ~8ka and about 20g/m/yr at 6-7 ka. This trend is also observed in a sediment core of Nakaumi Lagoon in San'in District, where it is due to a dilution effect caused by increased precipitation and high productivity because of a higher nutrient load during a warm interval (Sampei et al.,1997). It seems that the correspondence between TOC content and Delta 14C in this core is caused by similar factors. That is, a positive peak of Delta 14C indicating low solar activity and a cold period shows high TOC content because of concentration of TOC. On the other hand, a negative peak in Delta 14C indicates a warm period, and has a low TOC content because of clastic dilution. In the upper portion this relationship becomes complex because of changes in the terrestrial plant input due to river mouth progradation. Using these relationships, we may be able to estimate precipitation change based on the change in TOC content, and discuss its implications for global climate change.

XRD-based 40Ar/39Ar age correction for fine-grained illite, with application to folded carbonates in the Monterrey Salient (northern Mexico)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitz-Díaz, Elisa; Hall, Chris M.; van der Pluijm, Ben A.

2016-05-01

Due to their minute size, 40Ar/39Ar analysis of illite faces significant analytical challenges, including mineral characterization and, especially, effects of grain size and crystallography on 39Ar recoil. Quantifying the effects of 39Ar recoil requires the use of sample vacuum encapsulation during irradiation, which permits the measurement of the fraction of recoiled 39Ar as well as the 39Ar and 40Ar∗ retained within illite crystals that are released during step heating. Total-Gas Ages (TGA) are calculated by using both recoiled and retained argon, which is functionally equivalent to K-Ar ages, while Retention Ages (RA) only involve retained Ar in the crystal. Natural applications have shown that TGA fits stratigraphic constraints of geological processes when the average illite crystallite thickness (ICT) is smaller than 10 nm, and that RA matches these constraints for ICTs larger than 50 nm. We propose a new age correction method that takes into account the average ICT and corresponding recoiled 39Ar for a sample, with X-ray Corrected Ages (XCA) lying between Total-Gas and Retention Ages depending on ICT. This correction is particularly useful in samples containing authigenic illite formed in the anchizone, with typical ICT values between 10 and 50 nm. In three samples containing authigenic illite from Cretaceous carbonates in the Monterrey Salient in northern Mexico, there is a range in TGAs among the different size-fractions of 46-49, 36-43 and 40-52 Ma, while RAs range from 54-64, 47-52 and 53-54 Ma, respectively. XCA calculations produce tighter age ranges for these samples of 52.5-56, 45.5-48.5 and 49-52.5 Ma, respectively. In an apparent age vs ICT or %2M 1illite plot, authigenic illite grains show a slope that is in general slightly positive for TGA, slightly negative for RA, but close to zero for XCA, with thinner crystallites showing more dispersion than thicker ones. In order to test if dispersion is due to a different formation history or the result of retention capability, degassing spectra were modeled for site XCA averages and overall XCA average. Modeling shows that local site age average best match the measured spectra, instead of a global average age, indicating that illite growth reflects local deformation, and is not the result of regional metamorphism. Modeling also shows that Ar-degassing spectra are very sensitive to grain size, such that age interpretation based on Ar-plateaus is meaningless for most fine-grained clays.

ON POLAR MAGNETIC FIELD REVERSAL AND SURFACE FLUX TRANSPORT DURING SOLAR CYCLE 24

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

Sun, Xudong; Todd Hoeksema, J.; Liu, Yang

As each solar cycle progresses, remnant magnetic flux from active regions (ARs) migrates poleward to cancel the old-cycle polar field. We describe this polarity reversal process during Cycle 24 using four years (2010.33-2014.33) of line-of-sight magnetic field measurements from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager. The total flux associated with ARs reached maximum in the north in 2011, more than two years earlier than the south; the maximum is significantly weaker than Cycle 23. The process of polar field reversal is relatively slow, north-south asymmetric, and episodic. We estimate that the global axial dipole changed sign in 2013 October; the northernmore » and southern polar fields (mean above 60° latitude) reversed in 2012 November and 2014 March, respectively, about 16 months apart. Notably, the poleward surges of flux in each hemisphere alternated in polarity, giving rise to multiple reversals in the north. We show that the surges of the trailing sunspot polarity tend to correspond to normal mean AR tilt, higher total AR flux, or slower mid-latitude near-surface meridional flow, while exceptions occur during low magnetic activity. In particular, the AR flux and the mid-latitude poleward flow speed exhibit a clear anti-correlation. We discuss how these features can be explained in a surface flux transport process that includes a field-dependent converging flow toward the ARs, a characteristic that may contribute to solar cycle variability.« less

Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers in California—Historical and Future Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dettinger, M. D.; Ralph, F. M.

2014-12-01

During the past decade, a wide range of insights about the character and causes of extreme orographic precipitation in California has emerged, based on our growing understanding of the presence, mechanisms and impacts of "atmospheric rivers" (ARs) in the extratropical atmosphere. When an AR reaches and encounters the Coastal Ranges and Sierra Nevada of California, the resulting orographically driven storms are key players in many important weather, hydrologic and ecological processes in the State, including floods and floodplain inundations, droughts, groundwater recharge, and surface-water resources (see table). The intensities, storm totals, geographical distributions and impacts of AR storms in California are determined by many factors, including among the most straightforward: The numbers of ARs making landfall each year The amounts of vapor being transported by the ARs The direction of vapor transport by the AR relative to perpendiculars to the mountain ranges (for maximum uplift) The duration of AR passage overhead of a given location The temperature of an AR as a determinant of snowline altitudes The stability of the atmosphere within which the AR is embedded The closeness of the air in the AR to saturation (how much uplift is needed to drive intense precipitation) ARs are present in weather forecast models as well as in the long-range climate models used to project future climate changes in response to increasing greenhouse-gas concentrations in the atmosphere. Research into the future of ARs over California was first reported in the literature in 2011 (based on IPCC AR4 climate models) and is being extended now (to IPCC AR5 models) to assess projected changes in the full range of factors listed above with the aim of predicting how climate change will affect these important storms and their impacts in coming decades.

Effects of a preemptive alveolar recruitment strategy on arterial oxygenation during one-lung ventilation with different tidal volumes in patients with normal pulmonary function test.

PubMed

Jung, Jong Dal; Kim, Sang Hun; Yu, Byung Sik; Kim, Hye Ji

2014-08-01

Hypoxemia during one-lung ventilation (OLV) remains a major concern. The present study compared the effect of alveolar recruitment strategy (ARS) on arterial oxygenation during OLV at varying tidal volumes (Vt) with or without positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP). In total, 120 patients undergoing wedge resection by video assisted thoracostomy were randomized into four groups comprising 30 patients each: those administered a 10 ml/kg tidal volume with or without preemptive ARS (Group H and Group H-ARS, respectively) and those administered a 6 ml/kg tidal volume and a 8 cmH2O PEEP with or without preemptive ARS (Group L and Group L-ARS, respectively). ARS was performed using pressure-controlled ventilation with a 40 cmH2O plateau airway pressure and a 15 cmH2O PEEP for at least 10 breaths until OLV began. Preemptive ARS significantly improved the PaO2/FiO2 ratio compared to the groups that did not receive ARS (P < 0.05). The H-ARS group showed a highest PaO2/FiO2 ratio during OLV, the L-ARS and H groups showed similarly improved arterial oxygenation, which was significantly higher than in group L (P < 0.05). The plateau airway pressure in group H-ARS was significantly higher than in group L-ARS (P < 0.05). Preemptive ARS can improve arterial oxygenation during OLV. Furthermore, a 6 ml/kg tidal volume combined with 8 cmH2O PEEP after preemptive ARS may reduce the risk of pulmonary injury caused by high tidal volume during one-lung ventilation in patients with normal pulmonary function.

A Survey of Nanoflare Properties in Solar Active Regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viall, N. M.; Klimchuk, J. A.

2013-12-01

We investigate coronal heating using a systematic technique to analyze the properties of nanoflares in active regions (AR). Our technique computes cooling times, or time-lags, on a pixel-by-pixel basis using data taken with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory. Our technique has the advantage that it allows us to analyze all of the coronal AR emission, including the so-called diffuse emission. We recently presented results using this time-lag analysis on NOAA AR 11082 (Viall & Klimchuk 2012) and found that the majority of the pixels contained cooling plasma along their line of sight, consistent with impulsive coronal nanoflare heating. Additionally, our results showed that the nanoflare energy is stronger in the AR core and weaker in the active region periphery. Are these results representative of the nanoflare properties exhibited in the majority of ARs, or is AR 11082 unique? Here we present the time-lag results for a survey of ARs and show that these nanoflare patterns are born out in other active regions, for a range of ages, magnetic complexity, and total unsigned magnetic flux. Other aspects of the nanoflare properties, however, turn out to be dependent on certain AR characteristics.

Stimulation of StAR expression by cAMP is controlled by inhibition of highly inducible SIK1 via CRTC2, a co-activator of CREB.

PubMed

Lee, Jinwoo; Tong, Tiegang; Takemori, Hiroshi; Jefcoate, Colin

2015-06-15

In mouse steroidogenic cells the activation of cholesterol metabolism is mediated by steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR). Here, we visualized a coordinated regulation of StAR transcription, splicing and post-transcriptional processing, which are synchronized by salt inducible kinase (SIK1) and CREB-regulated transcription coactivator (CRTC2). To detect primary RNA (pRNA), spliced primary RNA (Sp-RNA) and mRNA in single cells, we generated probe sets by using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). These methods allowed us to address the nature of StAR gene expression and to visualize protein-nucleic acid interactions through direct detection. We show that SIK1 represses StAR expression in Y1 adrenal and MA10 testis cells through inhibition of processing mediated by CRTC2. Digital image analysis matches qPCR analyses of the total cell culture. Evidence is presented for spatially separate accumulation of StAR pRNA and Sp-RNA at the gene loci in the nucleus. These findings establish that cAMP, SIK and CRTC mediate StAR expression through activation of individual StAR gene loci. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Melt-inclusion-hosted excess 40Ar in quartz crystals of the Bishop and Bandelier magma systems

USGS Publications Warehouse

Winick, J.A.; McIntosh, W.C.; Dunbar, N.W.

2001-01-01

40Ar/39Ar experiments on melt-inclusion-bearing quartz (MIBQ) from the Bishop and Bandelier Tuff Plinian deposits indicate high concentrations of excess 40Ar in melt inclusions. Two rhyolite glass melt inclusion populations are present in quartz; exposed melt inclusions and trapped melt inclusions. Air-abrasion mill grinding and hydrofluoric acid treatments progressively remove exposed melt inclusions while leaving trapped melt inclusions unaffected. Laser step-heating of MIBQ yields increasing apparent ages as a function of exposed melt inclusion removal, reflecting the higher nonatmospheric 40Ar concentrations hosted in trapped melt inclusions. Exposed melt inclusion-free MIBQ from the Bishop, Upper Bandelier, and Lower Bandelier Tufts yield total-gas ages of 3.70 ?? 1.00 Ma, 11.54 ?? 0.87 Ma, and 14.60 ?? 1.50 Ma, respectively. We interpret these old apparent ages as compelling evidence for the presence of excess 40Ar in MIBQ. Trapped melt inclusions in sanidine phenocrysts may contain excess 40Ar concentrations similar to those in MIBQ. This excess 40Ar has the potential to increase single-crystal laser-fusion ages of sanidine by tens of thousands of years, relative to the actual eruption age.

Experimental study of NO2 reduction in N2/Ar and O2/Ar mixtures by pulsed corona discharge.

PubMed

Zhu, Xinbo; Zheng, Chenghang; Gao, Xiang; Shen, Xu; Wang, Zhihua; Luo, Zhongyang; Cen, Kefa

2014-11-01

Non-thermal plasma technology has been regarded as a promising alternative technology for NOx removal. The understanding of NO2 reduction characteristics is extremely important since NO2 reduction could lower the total NO oxidation rate in the plasma atmosphere. In this study, NO2 reduction was experimentally investigated using a non-thermal plasma reactor driven by a pulsed power supply for different simulated gas compositions and operating parameters. The NO2 reduction was promoted by increasing the specific energy density (SED), and the highest conversion rates were 33.7%, 42.1% and 25.7% for Ar, N2/Ar and O2/Ar, respectively. For a given SED, the NO2 conversion rate had the order N2/Ar>Ar>O2/Ar. The highest energy yield of 3.31g/kWh was obtained in N2/Ar plasma and decreased with increasing SED; the same trends were also found in the other two gas compositions. The conversion rate decreased with increasing initial NO2 concentration. Furthermore, the presence of N2 or O2 led to different reaction pathways for NO2 conversion due to the formation of different dominating reactive radicals. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

A closer look at 40Ar/39Ar systematics of illite, recoil, retention ages, total gas ages, and a new correction method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitz-Diaz, E.; Hall, C. M.; van der Pluijm, B.

2013-12-01

One of the fundamentals of 40Ar-39Ar systematics of illite considers the effects of 39Ar recoil (ejection of 39Ar from tiny illite crystallites during the nuclear reaction 39K(n,p)39Ar), for which sample vacuum encapsulation prior to irradiation has been used since the 1990's. This technique separately measures the fraction of recoiled 39Ar and the Ar (39Ar and 40Ar) retained within illite crystals as they degas during step heating in vacuum. Total-gas ages (TGA) are calculated by using both recoiled and retained argon, while retention ages (RA) only involve retained Ar. Observations in numerous natural examples have shown that TGA fit stratigraphic constraints of geological processes when the average illite crystallite thickness (ICT) is smaller than 10nm, and that RA better matches these constrains for larger ICTs. Illite crystals with ICT >50nm show total gas and retention ages within a few My and they are identical, within analytical error, when ICT exceeds 150nm. We propose a new age correction that takes into account the average ICT and corresponding recoil for a sample , with such corrected ages (XCA) lying between the TGA and RA end-member ages. We apply this correction to samples containing one generation of illite and it particularly affects illite populations formed in the anchizone, with typical ICT values between 10-40nm. We analyzed bentonitic samples (S1, S2 and S3) from sites in Cretaceous carbonates in the front of the Monterrey salient in northern Mexico. Four size fractions (<0.05, 0.05-0.2, 0.2-1 & 1-2 μm) were separated, analyzed with XRD and dated by Ar-Ar. XRD analysis provides mineralogic characterization, illite polytype quantification, and illite crystallite thickness (ICT) determination using half-height peak width (illite crystallinity) and the Scherrer equation. All samples contain illite as the main mineral phase, ICT values between 8-27nm, from fine to coarser grain size fractions. Ages show a range in TGA among the different size fractions of S1, S2 and S3, respectively: 46-49, 36-43 and 40-52 My) and RA (54-64, 47-52 and 53-54 My. XCA calculations produce tighter constrained ranges (53-57, 45.5-48.5 and 49-52 My) with an overall average 51.1Ma×3.9 My. In the ICT vs. apparent age plot, authigenic illite grains show a greater slope that is in general slightly positive for TGA, slightly negative for RA, but close to zero for XCA. In the ICT vs. XCA plot thinner crystallites shows more dispersion than thicker ones. In order to test if such dispersion in the age of the finer/thinner illite is due to a different formation history in each site or the result of retention capability, degassing spectra were modeled for site XCA averages and overall XCA average. The modeling shows that local site ages best match the measured spectra, instead of a single age for the combined sites. The closeness between experimental and artificial degassing patterns also supports the hypothesis that each sample preserves a single age population. All illite grains in these samples grew progressively during folding in a time window that is constrained by the three sites. Small and large grains represent the same population in each sample, representing progressive degrees of grain growth (Ostwald ripening).

Novel Confocal Microscopic and Flow Cytometric Based Assays to Visualize and Detect the (Beta)2-Adrenergic Receptor in Human Lymphocyte and Mononuclear Cell Populations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Salicru, A. N.; Crucian, B. E.; Nelman, M. A.; Sams, C. F.; Actor, J. K.; Marshall, G. D.

2006-01-01

The data show that immunophenotyping of leukocyte populations with (beta)2AR is possible with the commercially available Ab, although the FC assay is limited to the IST as a result of the Ab binding site to the intracellular C-terminus of the 2AR. The FC assay has applications for measuring alterations in total (beta)2AR in human leukocyte populations as changes in fluorescence. In addition, CM confirms that both surface and intracellular compartments stain positively for the (beta)2AR and can be used for qualitative assays that screen for changes in receptor compartmentalization and localization.

Significance of the cosmogenic argon correction in deciphering the 40Ar/39Ar ages of the Nakhlite (Martian) meteorites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cohen, B. E.; Cassata, W.; Mark, D. F.; Tomkinson, T.; Lee, M. R.; Smith, C. L.

2015-12-01

All meteorites contain variable amounts of cosmogenic 38Ar and 36Ar produced during extraterrestrial exposure, and in order to calculate reliable 40Ar/39Ar ages this cosmogenic Ar must be removed from the total Ar budget. The amount of cosmogenic Ar has usually been calculated from the step-wise 38Ar/36Ar, minimum 36Ar/37Ar, or average 38Arcosmogenic/37Ar from the irradiated meteorite fragment. However, if Cl is present in the meteorite, then these values will be disturbed by Ar produced during laboratory neutron irradiation of Cl. Chlorine is likely to be a particular issue for the Nakhlite group of Martian meteorites, which can contain over 1000 ppm Cl [1]. An alternative method for the cosmogenic Ar correction uses the meteorite's exposure age as calculated from an un-irradiated fragment and step-wise production rates based on the measured Ca/K [2]. This calculation is independent of the Cl concentration. We applied this correction method to seven Nakhlites, analyzed in duplicate or triplicate. Selected samples were analyzed at both Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and SUERC to ensure inter-laboratory reproducibility. We find that the cosmogenic argon correction of [2] has a significant influence on the ages calculated for individual steps, particularly for those at lower temperatures (i.e., differences of several tens of million years for some steps). The lower-temperature steps are more influenced by the alternate cosmogenic correction method of [2], as these analyses yielded higher concentrations of Cl-derived 38Ar. As a result, the Nakhlite data corrected using [2] yields step-heating spectra that are flat or nearly so across >70% of the release spectra (in contrast to downward-stepping spectra often reported for Nakhlite samples), allowing for the calculation of precise emplacement ages for these meteorites. [1] Cartwright J. A. et al. (2013) GCA, 105, 255-293. [2] Cassata W. S., and Borg L. E. (2015) 46th LPSC, Abstract #2742.

The immunohistochemical expression and potential prognostic value of HDAC6 and AR in invasive breast cancer.

PubMed

Li, Congying; Cao, Lu; Xu, Cong; Liu, Fang; Xiang, Guomin; Liu, Xiaozhen; Jiao, Jiao; Niu, Yun

2018-05-01

Previous studies have investigated the role of histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) in the regulation of androgen receptor (AR) in prostate cancer; however, the role of HDAC6 has not yet been clearly identified in breast cancer. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of HDAC6 and AR, determine the correlation between HDAC6 and AR, and assess the prognostic value of HDAC6 and AR in breast cancer. A total of 228 cases of invasive breast cancer were randomly selected. The expression of HDAC6 and AR was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. χ 2 Tests were performed to determine the association between conventional clinicopathological factors and HDAC6, AR, and HDAC6/AR co-expression. Spearman correlation methods were performed to determine the correlation between HDAC6 and AR, and Kaplan-Meier analyses were performed to determine the prognostic impact of HDAC6, AR and HDAC6/AR co-expression; 58.8% (134/228) patients exhibited high expression of HDAC6. High HDAC6 expression was significantly associated with high histologic grade (G3) (P<.001) and p53 overexpression (P=.002). HDAC6 and AR expression levels were significantly associated (r=0.382, P<.01). In estrogen receptor (ER)-negative samples, high expression of HDAC6 was more common in the AR+ groups (P<.001) and correlated with high histologic grade (G3) (P=.009), as well as higher HER2 (P=.006) and p53 levels (P=.012). Higher expression of AR and HDAC6 and HDAC6/AR co-expression had a worse clinical prognosis. The expression levels of HDAC6 and AR are correlated in breast cancer; moreover, HDAC6 and AR have prognostic value in predicting the overall survival (OS) of ER-negative breast cancer patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Speed of CMEs and the Magnetic Non-Potentiality of their Source Active Regions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tiwari, Sanjiv Kumar; Falconer, David Allen; Moore, Ronald L.; Venkatakrishnan, P.; Winebarger, Amy R.; Khazanov, Igor G.

2014-01-01

Most fast coronal mass ejections (CMEs) originate from solar active regions (ARs). Non-potentiality of ARs plausibly determines the speed of CMEs in the outer corona. Several other unexplored parameters might be important as well. To find out the relation between the intial speed of CMEs and the non-potentiality of source ARs, we identified over a hundred of CMEs with source ARs via their co-produced flares. The speed of the CMEs are collected from the SOHO LASCO CME catalog. We have used vector magnetograms obtained with HMI/SDO, to evaluate various magnetic non-potentiality parameters, e.g. magnetic free-energy proxies, twist, shear angle, signed shear angle, net current etc. We have also included several other parameters e.g. total unsigned flux, magnetic area of ARs, area of sunspots, to investigate their correlation, if any, with the initial speeds of CMEs. Our preliminary results show that the ARs with larger non-potentiality and area produce faster CMEs but they can also produce slow ones. The ARs with lesser non-potentiality and area generally produce only slower CMEs.

Elucidation of arctigenin pharmacokinetics after intravenous and oral administrations in rats: integration of in vitro and in vivo findings via semi-mechanistic pharmacokinetic modeling.

PubMed

Gao, Qiong; Zhang, Yufeng; Wo, Siukwan; Zuo, Zhong

2014-11-01

Although arctigenin (AR) has attracted substantial research interests due to its promising and diverse therapeutic effects, studies regarding its biotransformation were limited. The current study aims to provide information regarding the pharmacokinetic properties of AR via various in vitro and in vivo experiments as well as semi-mechanistic pharmacokinetic modeling. Our in vitro rat microsome incubation studies revealed that glucuronidation was the main intestinal and liver metabolic pathway of AR, which occurred with V max, K m, and Clint of 47.5 ± 3.4 nmol/min/mg, 204 ± 22 μM, and 233 ± 9 μl/min/mg with intestinal microsomes and 2.92 ± 0.07 nmol/min/mg, 22.7 ± 1.2 μM, and 129 ± 4 μl/min/mg with liver microsomes, respectively. In addition, demethylation and hydrolysis of AR occurred with liver microsomes but not with intestinal microsomes. In vitro incubation of AR and its metabolites in intestinal content demonstrated that glucuronides of AR excreted in bile could be further hydrolyzed back to the parent compound, suggesting its potential enterohepatic circulation. Furthermore, rapid formation followed by fast elimination of arctigenic acid (AA) and arctigenin-4'-O-glucuronide (AG) was observed after both intravenous (IV) and oral administrations of AR in rats. Linear pharmacokinetics was observed at three different doses for AR, AA, and AG after IV administration of AR (0.48-2.4 mg/kg, r (2) > 0.99). Finally, an integrated semi-mechanistic pharmacokinetic model using in vitro enzyme kinetic and in vivo pharmacokinetic parameters was successfully developed to describe plasma concentrations of AR, AA, and AG after both IV and oral administration of AR at all tested doses.

Comparative simulation analysis on the ignition threshold of atmospheric He and Ar dielectric barrier discharge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Congwei; Chang, Zhengshi; Chen, Sile; Ma, Hengchi; Mu, Haibao; Zhang, Guan-Jun

2017-09-01

Dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) is widely applied in many fields, and the discharge characteristics of insert gas have been the research focus for years. In this paper, fluid models of atmospheric Ar and He DBDs driven by 22 kHz sinusoidal voltage are built to analyze their ignition processes. The contributions of different electron sources in ignition process are analyzed, including the direct ionization of ground state atom, stepwise ionization of metastable particles, and secondary electron emission from dielectric wall, and they play different roles in different discharge stages. The Townsend direct ionization coefficient of He is higher than Ar with the same electrical field intensity, which is the direct reason for the different ignition thresholds between He and Ar. Further, the electron energy loss per free electron produced in Ar and He DBDs is discussed. It is found that the total electron energy loss rate of Ar is higher than He when the same electrical field is applied. The excitation reaction of Ar consumes the major electron energy but cannot produce free electrons effectively, which is the essential reason for the higher ignition threshold of Ar. The computation results of He and Ar extinction voltages can be explained in the view of electron energy loss, as well as the experimental results of different extinction voltages between Ar/NH3 and He DBDs.

Uranium isotopes in groundwater occurring at Amazonas State, Brazil.

PubMed

da Silva, Márcio Luiz; Bonotto, Daniel Marcos

2015-03-01

This paper reports the behavior of the dissolved U-isotopes (238)U and (234)U in groundwater providing from 15 cities in Amazonas State, Brazil. The isotope dilution technique accompanied by alpha spectrometry were utilized for acquiring the U content and (234)U/(238)U activity ratio (AR) data, 0.01-1.4µgL(-1) and 1.0-3.5, respectively. These results suggest that the water is circulating in a reducing environment and leaching strata containing minerals with low uranium concentration. A tendency to increasing ARs values following the groundwater flow direction is identified in Manaus city. The AR also increases according to the SW-NE directions: Uarini→Tefé; Manacapuru→Manaus; Presidente Figueiredo→São Sebastião do Uatumã; and Boa Vista do Ramos→Parintins. Such trends are possibly related to several factors, among them the increasing acid character of the waters. The waters analyzed are used for human consumption and the highest dissolved U content is much lower than the maximum established by the World Health Organization. Therefore, in view of this radiological parameter they can be used for drinking purposes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preoperative morphometric differences in the distal femur are based on skeletal size in Japanese patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty.

PubMed

Nishikawa, Masataka; Owaki, Hajime; Kaneshiro, Shoichi; Fuji, Takeshi

2014-12-01

The objectives of this study were to measure the morphometric parameters of preoperative distal femurs to determine the differences by diagnosis and gender after accounting for skeletal size. One-hundred and seventy-nine Japanese patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty (TKA) (25 males and 154 females) were assessed. The anteroposterior length (AP), mediolateral width (ML), aspect ratio (AR), surgical epicondylar axis (SEA) to posterior condylar axis (PCA) angle, and Whiteside to SEA angle were measured on preoperative computed tomography scans. The AP/ML, AR/ML, SEA/PCA, and Whiteside/PCA relationships were evaluated and compared by patient diagnosis and gender. The results were also compared with the sizes of 10 currently available TKA implants in Japan. The mean AP, ML, AR, SEA/PCA angle, and Whiteside/PCA angle were 58.8 mm, 64.7 mm, 0.91, external rotation (ER) 3.5°, and ER 1.6°, respectively. AP and AR each were significantly correlated with ML (p < 0.001). AP, ML, and AR were not significantly different between patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. AP/ML and AR/ML were significantly correlated within each diagnosis (p < 0.001), but the analysis of covariance showed no significant differences between the diagnoses. AP and ML were significantly longer (p < 0.001) in males (63.6, 72.7 mm) than in females (58.1, 63.4 mm), while AR was smaller in males (0.88 vs. 0.92), with significant correlations for AP/ML (male: p < 0.010, female: p < 0.001) and AR/ML (male: p = 0.002, female: p < 0.001) in each gender. However, the analysis of covariance showed no significant differences between gender in the AP/ML and AR/MR correlations. The AP/ML ratio of our data was similar to the size variations of the 10 TKA implants, but the AR/ML ratio was quite different from almost all the implants. No differences in preoperative femur morphometry were found between patients with different diagnoses, but the gender difference in AR was related to the difference in skeletal size between males and females. Case series with no comparison groups, Level IV.

MAGNETIC PROPERTIES OF SOLAR ACTIVE REGIONS THAT GOVERN LARGE SOLAR FLARES AND ERUPTIONS

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

Toriumi, Shin; Schrijver, Carolus J.; Harra, Louise K.

Solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), especially the larger ones, emanate from active regions (ARs). With the aim of understanding the magnetic properties that govern such flares and eruptions, we systematically survey all flare events with Geostationary Orbiting Environmental Satellite levels of ≥M5.0 within 45° from disk center between 2010 May and 2016 April. These criteria lead to a total of 51 flares from 29 ARs, for which we analyze the observational data obtained by the Solar Dynamics Observatory . More than 80% of the 29 ARs are found to exhibit δ -sunspots, and at least three ARs violatemore » Hale’s polarity rule. The flare durations are approximately proportional to the distance between the two flare ribbons, to the total magnetic flux inside the ribbons, and to the ribbon area. From our study, one of the parameters that clearly determine whether a given flare event is CME-eruptive or not is the ribbon area normalized by the sunspot area, which may indicate that the structural relationship between the flaring region and the entire AR controls CME productivity. AR characterization shows that even X-class events do not require δ -sunspots or strong-field, high-gradient polarity inversion lines. An investigation of historical observational data suggests the possibility that the largest solar ARs, with magnetic flux of 2 × 10{sup 23} Mx, might be able to produce “superflares” with energies of the order of 10{sup 34} erg. The proportionality between the flare durations and magnetic energies is consistent with stellar flare observations, suggesting a common physical background for solar and stellar flares.« less

Ab initio based study of the ArO- photoelectron spectra: Selectivity of spin-orbit transitions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buchachenko, A. A.; Jakowski, Jacek; Chałasiński, Grzegorz; Szczȩśniak, M. M.; Cybulski, S. M.

2000-04-01

A combined ab initio atoms-in-molecule approach was implemented to model the photoelectron spectra of the ArO- anion. The lowest adiabatic states of Σ and Π symmetry of ArO and ArO- were investigated using the fourth-order Møller-Plessett perturbation theory including bond functions. The total energies were dissected into electrostatic, exchange, induction, and dispersion components. The complex of Ar with atomic oxygen is only weakly bound, primarily by dispersion interaction. The Π state possesses a deeper minimum (Re=3.4Å,De=380μEh) than the Σ state (Re=3.8Å,De=220μEh). In contrast, the anion complex is fairly strongly bound, primarily by ion-induced dipole induction forces, and the Σ state possesses a deeper minimum at shorter interatomic distances (Re=3.02Å,De=3600μEh) than the Π state (Re=3.35Å,De=2400μEh). The Σ-Π splittings in both systems are mainly due to differences in the exchange repulsion terms. Atoms-in-molecule models were used to account for the spin-orbit interaction, and to generate adiabatic relativistic potentials and wave functions. Collisional properties, diffusion, and mobility coefficients of O and O- in Ar, and absolute total Ar+O scattering cross sections, were calculated and found to agree well with the available experimental data. The photoelectron spectra were simulated within vibronic model, and were found in excellent agreement with the experimental measurements. The bimodal electron kinetic energy distribution was shown to stem from the strong selectivity of spin-orbit transitions, which split into two dense groups, depending on the initial electronic state of the anion. The latter feature cannot be described without explicit consideration of electronic intensity factor.

Towards cybernetic surgery: robotic and augmented reality-assisted liver segmentectomy.

PubMed

Pessaux, Patrick; Diana, Michele; Soler, Luc; Piardi, Tullio; Mutter, Didier; Marescaux, Jacques

2015-04-01

Augmented reality (AR) in surgery consists in the fusion of synthetic computer-generated images (3D virtual model) obtained from medical imaging preoperative workup and real-time patient images in order to visualize unapparent anatomical details. The 3D model could be used for a preoperative planning of the procedure. The potential of AR navigation as a tool to improve safety of the surgical dissection is outlined for robotic hepatectomy. Three patients underwent a fully robotic and AR-assisted hepatic segmentectomy. The 3D virtual anatomical model was obtained using a thoracoabdominal CT scan with a customary software (VR-RENDER®, IRCAD). The model was then processed using a VR-RENDER® plug-in application, the Virtual Surgical Planning (VSP®, IRCAD), to delineate surgical resection planes including the elective ligature of vascular structures. Deformations associated with pneumoperitoneum were also simulated. The virtual model was superimposed to the operative field. A computer scientist manually registered virtual and real images using a video mixer (MX 70; Panasonic, Secaucus, NJ) in real time. Two totally robotic AR segmentectomy V and one segmentectomy VI were performed. AR allowed for the precise and safe recognition of all major vascular structures during the procedure. Total time required to obtain AR was 8 min (range 6-10 min). Each registration (alignment of the vascular anatomy) required a few seconds. Hepatic pedicle clamping was never performed. At the end of the procedure, the remnant liver was correctly vascularized. Resection margins were negative in all cases. The postoperative period was uneventful without perioperative transfusion. AR is a valuable navigation tool which may enhance the ability to achieve safe surgical resection during robotic hepatectomy.

Activation of microglial cells triggers a release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) inducing their proliferation in an adenosine A2A receptor-dependent manner: A2A receptor blockade prevents BDNF release and proliferation of microglia

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has been shown to control microglial responses in neuropathic pain. Since adenosine A2A receptors (A2ARs) control neuroinflammation, as well as the production and function of BDNF, we tested to see if A2AR controls the microglia-dependent secretion of BDNF and the proliferation of microglial cells, a crucial event in neuroinflammation. Methods Murine N9 microglial cells were challenged with lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 100 ng/mL) in the absence or in the presence of the A2AR antagonist, SCH58261 (50 nM), as well as other modulators of A2AR signaling. The BDNF cellular content and secretion were quantified by Western blotting and ELISA, A2AR density was probed by Western blotting and immunocytochemistry and cell proliferation was assessed by BrdU incorporation. Additionally, the A2AR modulation of LPS-driven cell proliferation was also tested in primary cultures of mouse microglia. Results LPS induced time-dependent changes of the intra- and extracellular levels of BDNF and increased microglial proliferation. The maximal LPS-induced BDNF release was time-coincident with an LPS-induced increase of the A2AR density. Notably, removing endogenous extracellular adenosine or blocking A2AR prevented the LPS-mediated increase of both BDNF secretion and proliferation, as well as exogenous BDNF-induced proliferation. Conclusions We conclude that A2AR activation plays a mandatory role controlling the release of BDNF from activated microglia, as well as the autocrine/paracrine proliferative role of BDNF. PMID:23363775

Ion Energy Distribution Studies of Ions and Radicals in an Ar/H2 Radio Frequency Magnetron Discharge During a-Si:H Deposition Using Energy-Resolved Mass Spectrometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mensah, Samuel; Abu-Safe, Husam; Naseem, Hameed; Gordon, Matt

2012-02-01

Ion energy distributions of sputtered Si particles have been measured by an energy-resolved mass spectrometer, and we correlate the results with measured thin film properties. The plasmas have been generated in a conventional magnetron chamber powered at 150W, 13.56MHz at hydrogen flow rates ranging from 0-25sccm. Various Hn^+, SiHn^+, SiHn fragments (with n = 1, 2, 3) together with Ar^+ and ArH^+ species were detected in the discharge. The most important species for the film deposition is SiHn with n = 0,1,2, and H fragments affect the hydrogen content in the material. The flux of Ar^+ decreases and that of ArH^+ increases when the hydrogen flow rate was increased. However both fluxes saturate at hydrogen flow rates above 15sccm. Plasma parameters, such as plasma potential Vp, electron density ne and electron energy Te, are measured with the Langmuir probe. The ion energy distribution (IED) of all prominent species in the plasma is measured with an energy resolved mass analyzer. The plasma parameters decreased with increasing hydrogen flow rate; Vp, ne and Te decreased from 36.5V, 7.2x10^15 m-3, 5.6eV to 32.8, 2.2x10^15m-3 and 3.8eV respectively. The ion energy of the heavy species, Ar, Ar^+, ArH, ArH^+, SiHn and SiHn^+ radicals have ion energies comparable to the plasma potential. Analysis of the IEDs shows an inter-dependence of the species and their contribution to the thin film growth and properties.

Audience Response Systems in Higher Education: Applications and Cases

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Banks, David

2006-01-01

Taking advantage of user-friendly technology, Audience Response Systems (ARS) facilitates greater interaction with participants engaged in a variety of group activities. Each participant has an input device that permits them to express a view in complete anonymity, and the composite view of the total group appears on a public screen. ARS can then…

Using Augmented Reality to Support a Software Editing Course for College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Y.-H.

2017-01-01

This study aimed to explore whether integrating augmented reality (AR) techniques could support a software editing course and to examine the different learning effects for students using online-based and AR-based blended learning strategies. The researcher adopted a comparative research approach with a total of 103 college students participating…

Applying RNA Sequencing to investigate pathogenic mechanisms of Ascochyta rabiei

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Ascochyta rabiei causes Ascochyta blight of chickpea. To study the pathogenic mechanisms of A. rabiei, total mRNAs were isolated from isolates AR19 of pathotype I and AR628 of pathotype II of A. rabiei, and also from diseased tissues of chickpea ‘Spanish White’ inoculated with these two isolates at ...

Augmented reality on poster presentations, in the field and in the classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hawemann, Friedrich; Kolawole, Folarin

2017-04-01

Augmented reality (AR) is the direct addition of virtual information through an interface to a real-world environment. In practice, through a mobile device such as a tablet or smartphone, information can be projected onto a target- for example, an image on a poster. Mobile devices are widely distributed today such that augmented reality is easily accessible to almost everyone. Numerous studies have shown that multi-dimensional visualization is essential for efficient perception of the spatial, temporal and geometrical configuration of geological structures and processes. Print media, such as posters and handouts lack the ability to display content in the third and fourth dimensions, which might be in space-domain as seen in three-dimensional (3-D) objects, or time-domain (four-dimensional, 4-D) expressible in the form of videos. Here, we show that augmented reality content can be complimentary to geoscience poster presentations, hands-on material and in the field. In the latter example, location based data is loaded and for example, a virtual geological profile can be draped over a real-world landscape. In object based AR, the application is trained to recognize an image or object through the camera of the user's mobile device, such that specific content is automatically downloaded and displayed on the screen of the device, and positioned relative to the trained image or object. We used ZapWorks, a commercially-available software application to create and present examples of content that is poster-based, in which important supplementary information is presented as interactive virtual images, videos and 3-D models. We suggest that the flexibility and real-time interactivity offered by AR makes it an invaluable tool for effective geoscience poster presentation, class-room and field geoscience learning.

Perturbed atrial calcium handling in an ovine model of heart failure: Potential roles for reductions in the L-type calcium current

PubMed Central

Clarke, Jessica D.; Caldwell, Jessica L.; Horn, Margaux A.; Bode, Elizabeth F.; Richards, Mark A.; Hall, Mark C.S.; Graham, Helen K.; Briston, Sarah J.; Greensmith, David J.; Eisner, David A.; Dibb, Katharine M.; Trafford, Andrew W.

2015-01-01

Heart failure (HF) is commonly associated with reduced cardiac output and an increased risk of atrial arrhythmias particularly during β-adrenergic stimulation. The aim of the present study was to determine how HF alters systolic Ca2 + and the response to β-adrenergic (β-AR) stimulation in atrial myocytes. HF was induced in sheep by ventricular tachypacing and changes in intracellular Ca2 + concentration studied in single left atrial myocytes under voltage and current clamp conditions. The following were all reduced in HF atrial myocytes; Ca2 + transient amplitude (by 46% in current clamped and 28% in voltage clamped cells), SR dependent rate of Ca2 + removal (kSR, by 32%), L-type Ca2 + current density (by 36%) and action potential duration (APD90 by 22%). However, in HF SR Ca2 + content was increased (by 19%) when measured under voltage-clamp stimulation. Inhibiting the L-type Ca2 + current (ICa-L) in control cells reproduced both the decrease in Ca2 + transient amplitude and increase of SR Ca2 + content observed in voltage-clamped HF cells. During β-AR stimulation Ca2 + transient amplitude was the same in control and HF cells. However, ICa-L remained less in HF than control cells whilst SR Ca2 + content was highest in HF cells during β-AR stimulation. The decrease in ICa-L that occurs in HF atrial myocytes appears to underpin the decreased Ca2 + transient amplitude and increased SR Ca2 + content observed in voltage-clamped cells. PMID:25463272

High-Content Positional Biosensor Screening Assay for Compounds to Prevent or Disrupt Androgen Receptor and Transcriptional Intermediary Factor 2 Protein–Protein Interactions

PubMed Central

Hua, Yun; Shun, Tong Ying; Strock, Christopher J.

2014-01-01

Abstract The androgen receptor–transcriptional intermediary factor 2 (AR-TIF2) positional protein–protein interaction (PPI) biosensor assay described herein combines physiologically relevant cell-based assays with the specificity of binding assays by incorporating structural information of AR and TIF2 functional domains along with intracellular targeting sequences and fluorescent reporters. Expression of the AR-red fluorescent protein (RFP) “prey” and TIF2-green fluorescent protein (GFP) “bait” components of the biosensor was directed by recombinant adenovirus constructs that expressed the ligand binding and activation function 2 surface domains of AR fused to RFP with nuclear localization and nuclear export sequences, and three α-helical LXXLL motifs from TIF2 fused to GFP and an HIV Rev nucleolar targeting sequence. In unstimulated cells, AR-RFP was localized predominantly to the cytoplasm and TIF2-GFP was localized to nucleoli. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) treatment induced AR-RFP translocation into the nucleus where the PPIs between AR and TIF2 resulted in the colocalization of both biosensors within the nucleolus. We adapted the translocation enhanced image analysis module to quantify the colocalization of the AR-RFP and TIF2-GFP biosensors in images acquired on the ImageXpress platform. DHT induced a concentration-dependent AR-TIF2 colocalization and produced a characteristic condensed punctate AR-RFP PPI nucleolar distribution pattern. The heat-shock protein 90 inhibitor 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG) and antiandrogens flutamide and bicalutamide inhibited DHT-induced AR-TIF2 PPI formation with 50% inhibition concentrations (IC50s) of 88.5±12.5 nM, 7.6±2.4 μM, and 1.6±0.4 μM, respectively. Images of the AR-RFP distribution phenotype allowed us to distinguish between 17-AAG and flutamide, which prevented AR translocation, and bicalutamide, which blocked AR-TIF2 PPIs. We screened the Library of Pharmacologically Active Compounds (LOPAC) set for compounds that inhibited AR-TIF2 PPI formation or disrupted preexisting complexes. Eleven modulators of steroid family nuclear receptors (NRs) and 6 non-NR ligands inhibited AR-TIF2 PPI formation, and 10 disrupted preexisting complexes. The hits appear to be either AR antagonists or nonspecific inhibitors of NR activation and trafficking. Given that the LOPAC set represents such a small and restricted biological and chemical diversity, it is anticipated that screening a much larger and more diverse compound library will be required to find AR-TIF2 PPI inhibitors/disruptors. The AR-TIF2 protein–protein interaction biosensor (PPIB) approach offers significant promise for identifying molecules with potential to modulate AR transcriptional activity in a cell-specific manner that is distinct from the existing antiandrogen drugs that target AR binding or production. Small molecules that disrupt AR signaling at the level of AR-TIF2 PPIs may also overcome the development of resistance and progression to castration-resistant prostate cancer. PMID:25181412

The contemporary degassing rate of 40Ar from the solid Earth.

PubMed

Bender, Michael L; Barnett, Bruce; Dreyfus, Gabrielle; Jouzel, Jean; Porcelli, Don

2008-06-17

Knowledge of the outgassing history of radiogenic (40)Ar, derived over geologic time from the radioactive decay of (40)K, contributes to our understanding of the geodynamic history of the planet and the origin of volatiles on Earth's surface. The (40)Ar inventory of the atmosphere equals total (40)Ar outgassing during Earth history. Here, we report the current rate of (40)Ar outgassing, accessed by measuring the Ar isotope composition of trapped gases in samples of the Vostok and Dome C deep ice cores dating back to almost 800 ka. The modern outgassing rate (1.1 +/- 0.1 x 10(8) mol/yr) is in the range of values expected by summing outgassing from the continental crust and the upper mantle, as estimated from simple calculations and models. The measured outgassing rate is also of interest because it allows dating of air trapped in ancient ice core samples of unknown age, although uncertainties are large (+/-180 kyr for a single sample or +/-11% of the calculated age, whichever is greater).

Uncertainties in Projecting Future Changes in Atmospheric Rivers and Their Impacts on Heavy Precipitation over Europe

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

Gao, Yang; Lu, Jian; Leung, L. Ruby

This study investigates the North Atlantic atmospheric rivers (ARs) making landfall over western Europe in the present and future climate from the multi-model ensemble of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). Overall, CMIP5 captures the seasonal and spatial variations of historical landfalling AR days, with the large inter-model variability strongly correlated with the inter-model spread of historical jet position. Under RCP 8.5, AR frequency is projected to increase a few times by the end of this century. While thermodynamics plays a dominate role in the future increase of ARs, wind changes associated with the midlatitude jet shifts alsomore » significantly contribute to AR changes, resulting in dipole change patterns in all seasons. In the North Atlantic, the model projected jet shifts are strongly correlated with the simulated historical jet position. As models exhibit predominantly equatorward biases in the historical jet position, the large poleward jet shifts reduce AR days south of the historical mean jet position through the dynamical connections between the jet positions and AR days. Using the observed historical jet position as an emergent constraint, dynamical effects further increase AR days in the future above the large increases due to thermodynamical effects. In the future, both total and extreme precipitation induced by AR contribute more to the seasonal mean and extreme precipitation compared to present primarily because of the increase in AR frequency. While AR precipitation intensity generally increases more relative to the increase in integrated vapor transport, AR extreme precipitation intensity increases much less.« less

Spheroidization of silica powders by radio frequency inductively coupled plasma with Ar-H2 and Ar-N2 as the sheath gases at atmospheric pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Lin; Ni, Guo-hua; Guo, Qi-jia; Lin, Qi-fu; Zhao, Peng; Cheng, Jun-li

2017-09-01

Amorphous spherical silica powders were prepared by inductively coupled thermal plasma treatment at a radio frequency of 36.2 MHz. The effects of the added content of hydrogen and nitrogen into argon (serving as the sheath gas), as well as the carrier gas flow rate, on the spheroidization rate of silica powders, were investigated. The prepared silica powders before and after plasma treatment were examined by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and laser granulometric analysis. Results indicated that the average size of the silica particles increased, and the transformation of crystals into the amorphous state occurred after plasma treatment. Discharge image processing was employed to analyze the effect of the plasma temperature field on the spheroidization rate. The spheroidization rate of the silica powder increased with the increase of the hydrogen content in the sheath gas. On the other hand, the spheroidization rate of the silica power first increased and then decreased with the increase of the nitrogen content in the sheath gas. Moreover, the amorphous content increased with the increase of the spheroidization rate of the silica powder.

Measuring 36Ar without H35Cl interference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saxton, John

2015-04-01

Noble gas measurements are usually made in static mode, when the mass spectrometer sensitivity is inversely proportional to volume: this makes the building of very large instruments to obtain high mass resolution impracticable. A particularly challenging interference has hitherto been H35Cl, which differs in mass from 36Ar by 1 part in 3937. We have developed a method which makes improved use of the available MRP to remove interferences, and used it to obtain HCl-free 36Ar measurements on a multicollector instrument with MRP of only ~6000 (MRP= mass resolving power = m/dm 5-95% on side of peak). By arranging that the target mass position on a minor isotope (e.g. 36Ar), from which the interference must be removed, coincides with the ~50% point on the side of a major isotope (e.g. 40Ar), it is possible both to set the mass accurately and to verify the mass position and stability during measurements. The peak top of 40Ar is measured in a separate mass step. Two small corrections are necessary. One compensates for the residual HCl tail at the 36Ar position. The other arises because the peak is not totally flat in the region of interest: 40Ar and 36Ar+HCl are measured on the peak top, whilst 36Ar is measured at the extreme edge, with slightly lower efficiency. The required correction parameters can be obtained from a series of air calibrations with different target/interference ratios. With samples containing 4x10-15to 3x10-14moles of 40Ar, 36Ar/40Ar was measured, without HCl interference, to a 1σ precision of 0.5%, only slightly worse than counting statistics. This is potentially useful for 40Ar/39Ar dating, where 36Ar is used to correct for trapped air, and may be particularly significant for smaller or younger samples.

Evidence of Significant Energy Input in the Late Phase of a Solar Flare from NuSTAR X-Ray Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuhar, Matej; Krucker, Säm; Hannah, Iain G.; Glesener, Lindsay; Saint-Hilaire, Pascal; Grefenstette, Brian W.; Hudson, Hugh S.; White, Stephen M.; Smith, David M.; Marsh, Andrew J.; Wright, Paul J.; Boggs, Steven E.; Christensen, Finn E.; Craig, William W.; Hailey, Charles J.; Harrison, Fiona A.; Stern, Daniel; Zhang, William W.

2017-01-01

We present observations of the occulted active region AR 12222 during the third Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope ARray (NuSTAR) solar campaign on 2014 December 11, with concurrent Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)/AIA and FOXSI-2 sounding rocket observations. The active region produced a medium-size solar flare 1 day before the observations, at ˜18 UT on 2014 December 10, with the post-flare loops still visible at the time of NuSTAR observations. The time evolution of the source emission in the SDO/AIA 335 Å channel reveals the characteristics of an extreme-ultraviolet late-phase event, caused by the continuous formation of new post-flare loops that arch higher and higher in the solar corona. The spectral fitting of NuSTAR observations yields an isothermal source, with temperature 3.8-4.6 MK, emission measure (0.3-1.8) × 1046 cm-3, and density estimated at (2.5-6.0) × 108 cm-3. The observed AIA fluxes are consistent with the derived NuSTAR temperature range, favoring temperature values in the range of 4.0-4.3 MK. By examining the post-flare loops’ cooling times and energy content, we estimate that at least 12 sets of post-flare loops were formed and subsequently cooled between the onset of the flare and NuSTAR observations, with their total thermal energy content an order of magnitude larger than the energy content at flare peak time. This indicates that the standard approach of using only the flare peak time to derive the total thermal energy content of a flare can lead to a large underestimation of its value.

EVIDENCE OF SIGNIFICANT ENERGY INPUT IN THE LATE PHASE OF A SOLAR FLARE FROM NuSTAR X-RAY OBSERVATIONS

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

Kuhar, Matej; Krucker, Säm; Hannah, Iain G.

We present observations of the occulted active region AR 12222 during the third Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope ARray ( NuSTAR ) solar campaign on 2014 December 11, with concurrent Solar Dynamics Observatory ( SDO )/AIA and FOXSI-2 sounding rocket observations. The active region produced a medium-size solar flare 1 day before the observations, at ∼18 UT on 2014 December 10, with the post-flare loops still visible at the time of NuSTAR observations. The time evolution of the source emission in the SDO/ AIA 335 Å channel reveals the characteristics of an extreme-ultraviolet late-phase event, caused by the continuous formation of newmore » post-flare loops that arch higher and higher in the solar corona. The spectral fitting of NuSTAR observations yields an isothermal source, with temperature 3.8–4.6 MK, emission measure (0.3–1.8) × 10{sup 46} cm{sup −3}, and density estimated at (2.5–6.0) × 10{sup 8} cm{sup −3}. The observed AIA fluxes are consistent with the derived NuSTAR temperature range, favoring temperature values in the range of 4.0–4.3 MK. By examining the post-flare loops’ cooling times and energy content, we estimate that at least 12 sets of post-flare loops were formed and subsequently cooled between the onset of the flare and NuSTAR observations, with their total thermal energy content an order of magnitude larger than the energy content at flare peak time. This indicates that the standard approach of using only the flare peak time to derive the total thermal energy content of a flare can lead to a large underestimation of its value.« less

Evidence of Significant Energy Input in the Late Phase of A Solar Flare from NuSTAR X-Ray Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuhar, Matej; Krucker, Sam; Hannah, Iain G.; Glesener, Lindsay; Saint-Hilaire, Pascal; Grefenstette, Brian W.; Hudson, Hugh S.; White, Stephen M.; Smith, David M.; Marsh, Andrew J.;

Assessing Precipitation Isotope Variations during Atmospheric River Events to Reveal Dominant Atmospheric/Hydrologic Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCabe-Glynn, S. E.; Johnson, K. R.; Yoshimura, K.; Buenning, N. H.; Welker, J. M.

2015-12-01

Extreme precipitation events across the Western US commonly associated with atmospheric rivers (ARs), whereby extensive fluxes of moisture are transported from the subtropics, can result in major damage and are projected by most climate models to increase in frequency and severity. However, they are difficult to project beyond ~ten days and the location of landfall and topographically induced precipitation is even more uncertain. Water isotopes, often used to reconstruct past rainfall variability, are useful natural tracers of atmospheric hydrologic processes. Because of the typical tropical and sub-tropical origins, ARs can carry unique water isotope (δ18O and δ2H, d-excess) signatures that can be utilized to provide source and process information that can lead to improving AR predictions. Recent analysis of the top 10 weekly precipitation total samples from Sequoia National Park, CA, of which 9 contained AR events, shows a high variability in the isotopic values. NOAA Hysplit back trajectory analyses reveals a variety of trajectories and varying latitudinal source regions contributed to moisture delivered to this site, which may explain part of the high variability (δ2H = -150.03 to -49.52 ‰, δ18O = -19.27 to -7.20 ‰, d-excess = 4.1 to 25.8). Here we examine the top precipitation totals occurring during AR events and the associated isotopic composition of precipitation samples from several sites across the Western US. We utilize IsoGSM, an isotope-enabled atmospheric general circulation model, to characterize the hydrologic processes and physical dynamics contributing to the observed isotopic variations. We investigate isotopic influences from moisture source location, AR speed, condensation height, and associated temperature. We explore the dominant controls on spatial and temporal variations of the isotopic composition of AR precipitation which highlights different physical processes for different AR events.

Biological and physical controls on O2/Ar, Ar and pCO2 variability at the Western Antarctic Peninsula and in the Drake Passage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eveleth, R.; Cassar, N.; Doney, S. C.; Munro, D. R.; Sweeney, C.

2017-05-01

Using simultaneous sub-kilometer resolution underway measurements of surface O2/Ar, total O2 and pCO2 from annual austral summer surveys in 2012, 2013 and 2014, we explore the impacts of biological and physical processes on the O2 and pCO2 system spatial and interannual variability at the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP). In the WAP, mean O2/Ar supersaturation was (7.6±9.1)% and mean pCO2 supersaturation was (-28±22)%. We see substantial spatial variability in O2 and pCO2 including sub-mesoscale/mesoscale variability with decorrelation length scales of 4.5 km, consistent with the regional Rossby radius. This variability is embedded within onshore-offshore gradients. O2 in the LTER grid region is driven primarily by biological processes as seen by the median ratio of the magnitude of biological oxygen (O2/Ar) to physical oxygen (Ar) supersaturation anomalies (%) relative to atmospheric equilibrium (2.6), however physical processes have a more pronounced influence in the southern onshore region of the grid where we see active sea-ice melting. Total O2 measurements should be interpreted with caution in regions of significant sea-ice formation and melt and glacial meltwater input. pCO2 undersaturation predominantly reflects biological processes in the LTER grid. In contrast we compare these results to the Drake Passage where gas supersaturations vary by smaller magnitudes and decorrelate at length scales of 12 km, in line with latitudinal changes in the regional Rossby radius. Here biological processes induce smaller O2/Ar supersaturations (mean (0.14±1.3)%) and pCO2 undersaturations (mean (-2.8±3.9)%) than in the WAP, and pressure changes, bubble and gas exchange fluxes drive stable Ar supersaturations.

Coagulation factor VII is regulated by androgen receptor in breast cancer.

PubMed

Naderi, Ali

2015-02-01

Androgen receptor (AR) is widely expressed in breast cancer; however, there is limited information on the key molecular functions and gene targets of AR in this disease. In this study, gene expression data from a cohort of 52 breast cancer cell lines was analyzed to identify a network of AR co-expressed genes. A total of 300 genes, which were significantly enriched for cell cycle and metabolic functions, showed absolute correlation coefficients (|CC|) of more than 0.5 with AR expression across the dataset. In this network, a subset of 35 "AR-signature" genes were highly co-expressed with AR (|CC|>0.6) that included transcriptional regulators PATZ1, NFATC4, and SPDEF. Furthermore, gene encoding coagulation factor VII (F7) demonstrated the closest expression pattern with AR (CC=0.716) in the dataset and factor VII protein expression was significantly associated to that of AR in a cohort of 209 breast tumors. Moreover, functional studies demonstrated that AR activation results in the induction of factor VII expression at both transcript and protein levels and AR directly binds to a proximal region of F7 promoter in breast cancer cells. Importantly, AR activation in breast cancer cells induced endogenous factor VII activity to convert factor X to Xa in conjunction with tissue factor. In summary, F7 is a novel AR target gene and AR activation regulates the ectopic expression and activity of factor VII in breast cancer cells. These findings have functional implications in the pathobiology of thromboembolic events and regulation of factor VII/tissue factor signaling in breast cancer. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Artemisinin disrupts androgen responsiveness of human prostate cancer cells by stimulating the 26S proteasome-mediated degradation of the androgen receptor protein.

PubMed

Steely, Andrea M; Willoughby, Jamin A; Sundar, Shyam N; Aivaliotis, Vasiliki I; Firestone, Gary L

2017-10-01

Androgen receptor (AR) expression and activity is highly linked to the development and progression of prostate cancer and is a target of therapeutic strategies for this disease. We investigated whether the antimalarial drug artemisinin, which is a sesquiterpene lactone isolated from the sweet wormwood plant Artemisia annua, could alter AR expression and responsiveness in cultured human prostate cancer cell lines. Artemisinin treatment induced the 26S proteasome-mediated degradation of the receptor protein, without altering AR transcript levels, in androgen-responsive LNCaP prostate cancer cells or PC-3 prostate cancer cells expressing exogenous wild-type AR. Furthermore, artemisinin stimulated AR ubiquitination and AR receptor interactions with the E3 ubiquitin ligase MDM2 in LNCaP cells. The artemisinin-induced loss of AR protein prevented androgen-responsive cell proliferation and ablated total AR transcriptional activity. The serine/threonine protein kinase AKT-1 was shown to be highly associated with artemisinin-induced proteasome-mediated degradation of AR protein. Artemisinin treatment activated AKT-1 enzymatic activity, enhanced receptor association with AKT-1, and induced AR serine phosphorylation. Treatment of LNCaP cells with the PI3-kinase inhibitor LY294002, which inhibits the PI3-kinase-dependent activation of AKT-1, prevented the artemisinin-induced AR degradation. Furthermore, in transfected receptor-negative PC-3 cells, artemisinin failed to stimulate the degradation of an altered receptor protein (S215A/S792A) with mutations in its two consensus AKT-1 serine phosphorylation sites. Taken together, our results indicate that artemisinin induces the degradation of AR protein and disrupts androgen responsiveness of human prostate cancer cells, suggesting that this natural compound represents a new potential therapeutic molecule that selectively targets AR levels.

Androgen receptor polyglutamine repeat length (AR-CAGn) modulates the effect of testosterone on androgen-associated somatic traits in Filipino young adult men.

PubMed

Ryan, Calen P; Georgiev, Alexander V; McDade, Thomas W; Gettler, Lee T; Eisenberg, Dan T A; Rzhetskaya, Margarita; Agustin, Sonny S; Hayes, M Geoffrey; Kuzawa, Christopher W

2017-06-01

The androgen receptor (AR) mediates expression of androgen-associated somatic traits such as muscle mass and strength. Within the human AR is a highly variable glutamine short-tandem repeat (AR-CAGn), and CAG repeat number has been inversely correlated to AR transcriptional activity in vitro. However, evidence for an attenuating effect of long AR-CAGn on androgen-associated somatic traits has been inconsistent in human populations. One possible explanation for this lack of consistency is that the effect of AR-CAGn on AR bioactivity in target tissues likely varies in relation to circulating androgen levels. We tested whether relationships between AR-CAGn and several androgen-associated somatic traits (waist circumference, lean mass, arm muscle area, and grip strength) were modified by salivary (waking and pre-bed) and circulating (total) testosterone (T) levels in young adult males living in metropolitan Cebu, Philippines (n = 675). When men's waking T was low, they had a reduction in three out of four androgen-associated somatic traits with lengthening AR-CAGn (p < .1), consistent with in vitro research. However, when waking T was high, we observed the opposite effect-lengthening AR-CAGn was associated with an increase in these same somatic traits. Our finding that longer AR-CAGn predicts greater androgen-associated trait expression among high-T men runs counter to in vitro work, but is generally consistent with the few prior studies to evaluate similar interactions in human populations. Collectively, these results raise questions about the applicability of findings derived from in vitro AR-CAGn studies to the receptor's role in maintaining androgen-associated somatic traits in human populations. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Shelf life extension and antioxidant activity of 'Hayward' kiwi fruit as a result of prestorage conditioning and 1-methylcyclopropene treatment.

PubMed

Park, Yong Seo; Im, Myeng He; Gorinstein, Shela

2015-05-01

Kiwi fruits (Actinidia deliciosa C.F. Liang et A.R. Ferguson) were treated by prestorage conditioning (20 °C for 2 days), 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP, 1 ppm for 16 h) and conditioning plus 1-MCP. After the treatment the fruits were immediately stored at 0 °C during 24 weeks. Flesh firmness gradually decreased with storage time and the rate of its loss was lower in 1-MCP and conditioning plus 1-MCP treatments than those of control or conditioning. However, SSC, acidity and pH did not change among treatments. Starch content decreased during the storage time regardless of treatments. Oppositely the amount of reducing sugars increased at the same duration of the treatments. Rate and incidence of fruit decay was the lowest in fruit treated with conditioning plus 1-MCP treatment. Fruit decay mainly caused pathogen Botrytis cinerea and its rate significantly decreased with conditioning plus 1-MCP treatment. Ethylene and respiration abruptly increased after 8 weeks of storage, but their contents were lower in 1-MCP and conditioning plus 1-MCP. Total soluble phenolics, flavonoids, and total antioxidant capacities were much higher than in other treatments. Kiwi fruits treated with conditioning plus 1-MCP extended the shelf life by reducing the rate of fruit decay and softening during the storage. The bioactive compounds and total antioxidant status of fruits increased during the treatment.

Geologic and Geochronologic Studies of the Early Proterozoic Kanektok Metamorphic Complex of Southwestern Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Turner, Donald L.; Forbes, Robert B.; Aleinikoff, John N.; McDougall, Ian; Hedge, Carl E.; Wilson, Frederic H.; Layer, Paul W.; Hults, Chad P.

2009-01-01

The Kanektok complex of southwestern Alaska appears to be a rootless terrane of early Proterozoic sedimentary, volcanic, and intrusive rocks which were metamorphosed to amphibolite and granulite facies and later underwent a pervasive late Mesozoic thermal event accompanied by granitic plutonism and greenschist facies metamorphism of overlying sediments. The terrane is structurally complex and exhibits characteristics generally attributed to mantled gneiss domes. U-Th-Pb analyses of zircon and sphene from a core zone granitic orthogneiss indicate that the orthogneiss protolith crystallized about 2.05 b.y. ago and that the protolithic sedimentary, volcanic and granitic intrusive rocks of the core zone were metamorphosed to granulite and amphibolite facies about 1.77 b.y. ago. A Rb-Sr study of 13 whole-rock samples also suggests metamorphism of an early Proterozoic [Paleoproterozoic] protolith at 1.77 Ga, although the data are scattered and difficult to interpret. Seventy-seven conventional 40K/40Ar mineral ages were determined for 58 rocks distributed throughout the outcrop area of the complex. Analysis of the K-Ar data indicate that nearly all of these ages have been totally or partially reset by a pervasive late Mesozoic thermal event accompanied by granitic plutonism and greenschist facies metamorphism. Several biotites gave apparent K-Ar ages over 2 Ga. These ages appear to be controlled by excess radiogenic 40Ar produced by the degassing protolith during the 1.77 Ga metamorphism and incorporated by the biotites when they were at temperatures at which Ar could diffuse through the lattice. Five amphibolites yielded apparent Precambrian 40K/40Ar hornblende ages. There is no evidence that these hornblende ages have been increased by excess argon. The oldest 40K/40Ar hornblende age of 1.77 Ga is identical to the sphene 207Pb/206Pb orthogneiss age and to the Rb-Sr 'isochron' age for six of the 13 whole-rock samples. The younger hornblende ages are interpreted as having been partially reset during the late Mesozoic thermal event. 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating experiments suggest metamorphism occurred at least 1.2 b.y. ago but do not exhibit high temperature plateau ages significantly older than the 40Ar/39Ar total fusion ages of these samples. The age spectra are much more uniform than expected from a terrane with such a complex thermal history, perhaps caused by the small grain size of the samples which may possibly be less than the effective Ar diffusion radii of the analyzed hornblendes.

A low-protein, high-carbohydrate diet increases browning in perirenal adipose tissue but not in inguinal adipose tissue.

PubMed

Pereira, Mayara P; Ferreira, Laís A A; da Silva, Flávia H S; Christoffolete, Marcelo A; Metsios, George S; Chaves, Valéria E; de França, Suélem A; Damazo, Amílcar S; Flouris, Andreas D; Kawashita, Nair H

2017-10-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the browning and origin of fatty acids (FAs) in the maintenance of triacylglycerol (TG) storage and/or as fuel for thermogenesis in perirenal adipose tissue (periWAT) and inguinal adipose tissue (ingWAT) of rats fed a low-protein, high-carbohydrate (LPHC) diet. LPHC (6% protein, 74% carbohydrate) or control (C; 17% protein, 63% carbohydrate) diets were administered to rats for 15 d. The tissues were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histologic analysis. The content of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) was determined by immunofluorescence. Levels of T-box transcription factor (TBX1), PR domain containing 16 (PRDM16), adipose triacylglycerol lipase (ATGL), hormone-sensitive lipase, lipoprotein lipase (LPL), glycerokinase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK), glucose transporter 4, β 3 -adrenergic receptor (AR), β 1 -AR, protein kinase A (PKA), adenosine-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), and phospho-AMPK were determined by immunoblotting. Serum fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) was measured using a commercial kit (Student's t tests, P < 0.05). The LPHC diet increased FGF21 levels by 150-fold. The presence of multilocular adipocytes, combined with the increased contents of UCP1, TBX1, and PRDM16 in periWAT of LPHC-fed rats, suggested the occurrence of browning. The contents of β 1 -AR and LPL were increased in the periWAT. The ingWAT showed higher ATGL and PEPCK levels, phospho-AMPK/AMPK ratio, and reduced β 3 -AR and PKA levels. These findings suggest that browning occurred only in the periWAT and that higher utilization of FAs from blood lipoproteins acted as fuel for thermogenesis. Increased glycerol 3-phosphate generation by glyceroneogenesis increased FAs reesterification from lipolysis, explaining the increased TG storage in the ingWAT. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

TRITIUM, ARGON 37, AND MANGANESE 54 RADIOACTIVITIES IN A FRAGMENT OF SPUTNIK 4

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

DeFelice, J.; Fireman, E.L.; Tilles, D.

1963-09-15

Tritium, Ar/sup 37/, and Mn/sup 54/ radioactivities were measured in samples from a steel fragment of Sputnik 4. The tritium activity was low compared with the amount expected to be produced by cosmic rays. Some metallurgical evidence suggests the possibility that the lowest tritium content was in the sample that may have experienced the most heating. The amount of manganese 54 radioactivity was approximately 40% of the value obtained in Aroos by others, whereas the amount of Ar/sup 37/ was about 20% of that measured in Aroos and about 30% of that estimated from the Ar/sup 39/ measurements in Aroos,more » Norfork, Pitts, and Treysa, together with the ratio of production cross sections. (auth)« less

A Study on AR 3D Objects Shading Method Using Electronic Compass Sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, Sungmo; Kim, Seoksoo

More effective communications can be offered to users by applying NPR (Non-Photorealistic Rendering) methods to 3D graphics. Thus, there has been much research on how to apply NPR to mobile contents. However, previous studies only propose cartoon rendering for pre-treatment with no consideration for directions of light in the surrounding environment. In this study, therefore, ECS(Electronic Compass Sensor) is applied to AR 3D objects shading in order to define directions of light as per time slots for assimilation with the surrounding environment.

Quantitative analysis of aortic regurgitation: real-time 3-dimensional and 2-dimensional color Doppler echocardiographic method--a clinical and a chronic animal study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shiota, Takahiro; Jones, Michael; Tsujino, Hiroyuki; Qin, Jian Xin; Zetts, Arthur D.; Greenberg, Neil L.; Cardon, Lisa A.; Panza, Julio A.; Thomas, James D.

2002-01-01

BACKGROUND: For evaluating patients with aortic regurgitation (AR), regurgitant volumes, left ventricular (LV) stroke volumes (SV), and absolute LV volumes are valuable indices. AIM: The aim of this study was to validate the combination of real-time 3-dimensional echocardiography (3DE) and semiautomated digital color Doppler cardiac flow measurement (ACM) for quantifying absolute LV volumes, LVSV, and AR volumes using an animal model of chronic AR and to investigate its clinical applicability. METHODS: In 8 sheep, a total of 26 hemodynamic states were obtained pharmacologically 20 weeks after the aortic valve noncoronary (n = 4) or right coronary (n = 4) leaflet was incised to produce AR. Reference standard LVSV and AR volume were determined using the electromagnetic flow method (EM). Simultaneous epicardial real-time 3DE studies were performed to obtain LV end-diastolic volumes (LVEDV), end-systolic volumes (LVESV), and LVSV by subtracting LVESV from LVEDV. Simultaneous ACM was performed to obtain LVSV and transmitral flows; AR volume was calculated by subtracting transmitral flow volume from LVSV. In a total of 19 patients with AR, real-time 3DE and ACM were used to obtain LVSVs and these were compared with each other. RESULTS: A strong relationship was found between LVSV derived from EM and those from the real-time 3DE (r = 0.93, P <.001, mean difference (3D - EM) = -1.0 +/- 9.8 mL). A good relationship between LVSV and AR volumes derived from EM and those by ACM was found (r = 0.88, P <.001). A good relationship between LVSV derived from real-time 3DE and that from ACM was observed (r = 0.73, P <.01, mean difference = 2.5 +/- 7.9 mL). In patients, a good relationship between LVSV obtained by real-time 3DE and ACM was found (r = 0.90, P <.001, mean difference = 0.6 +/- 9.8 mL). CONCLUSION: The combination of ACM and real-time 3DE for quantifying LV volumes, LVSV, and AR volumes was validated by the chronic animal study and was shown to be clinically applicable.

Beta-Adrenergic Receptor Population is Up-Regulated in Chicken Skeletal Muscle Cells Treated with Forskolin

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bridge, K. Y.; Young, R. B.; Vaughn, J. R.

1998-01-01

Skeletal muscle hypertrophy is promoted by in vivo administration of beta-adrenergic receptor (betaAR) agonists. These compounds presumably exert their physiological action through the betaAR, and alterations in the population of betaAR could potentially change the ability of the cell to respond to the betaAR agonists. Since the intracellular chemical signal generated by the betaAR is cyclic AMP (cAMP), experiments were initiated in primary chicken muscle cell cultures to determine if artificial elevation of intracellular cAMP by treatment with forskolin would alter the population of functional betaAR expressed on the surface of muscle cells. Chicken skeletal muscle cells after 7 days in culture were employed for the experiments because muscle cells have attained a steady state with respect to muscle protein metabolism at this stage. Cells were treated with 0-10 microM forskolin for a total of three days. At the end of the 1, 2, and 3 day treatment intervals, the concentration of cAMP and the betaAR population were measured. Receptor population was measured in intact muscle cell cultures as the difference between total binding of [H-3]CGP-12177 and non-specific binding of [H-3]CGP-12177 in the presence of 1 microM propranolol. Intracellular cAMP concentration was measured by radioimmunoassay. The concentration of cAMP in forskolin-treated cells increased up to 10-fold in a dose dependent manner. Increasing concentrations of forskolin also led to an increase in betaAR population, with a maximum increase of approximately 50% at 10 microM. This increase in PAR population was apparent after only 1 day of treatment, and the pattern of increase was maintained for all 3 days of the treatment period. Thus, increasing the intracellular concentration of cAMP leads to up-regulation of betaAR population. The effect of forskolin on the quantity and apparent synthesis rate of the heavy chain of myosin (mhc) were also investigated. A maximum increase of 50% in the quantity of mhc was observed at 0.2 microM forskolin, but higher concentrations of forskolin reduced the quantity of mhc back to control levels.

Earths Climate Sensitivity: Apparent Inconsistencies in Recent Assessments

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

Schwartz, Stephen E.; Charlson, Robert J.; Kahn, Ralph

Earth's equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) and forcing of Earth's climate system over the industrial era have been re-examined in two new assessments: the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and a study by Otto et al. (2013). The ranges of these quantities given in these assessments and also in the Fourth (2007) IPCC Assessment are analyzed here within the framework of a planetary energy balance model, taking into account the observed increase in global mean surface temperature over the instrumental record together with best estimates of the rate of increase of planetary heat content.more » This analysis shows systematic differences among the several assessments and apparent inconsistencies within individual assessments. Importantly, the likely range of ECS to doubled CO₂ given in AR5, 1.5–4.5 K/(3.7 W m⁻²) exceeds the range inferred from the assessed likely range of forcing, 1.2–2.9 K/(3.7 W m⁻²), where 3.7 W ⁻² denotes the forcing for doubled CO₂. Such differences underscore the need to identify their causes and reduce the underlying uncertainties. Explanations might involve underestimated negative aerosol forcing, overestimated total forcing, overestimated climate sensitivity, poorly constrained ocean heating, limitations of the energy balance model, or a combination of effects.« less

Earths Climate Sensitivity: Apparent Inconsistencies in Recent Assessments

DOE PAGES

Schwartz, Stephen E.; Charlson, Robert J.; Kahn, Ralph; ...

2014-12-08

Earth's equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) and forcing of Earth's climate system over the industrial era have been re-examined in two new assessments: the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and a study by Otto et al. (2013). The ranges of these quantities given in these assessments and also in the Fourth (2007) IPCC Assessment are analyzed here within the framework of a planetary energy balance model, taking into account the observed increase in global mean surface temperature over the instrumental record together with best estimates of the rate of increase of planetary heat content.more » This analysis shows systematic differences among the several assessments and apparent inconsistencies within individual assessments. Importantly, the likely range of ECS to doubled CO₂ given in AR5, 1.5–4.5 K/(3.7 W m⁻²) exceeds the range inferred from the assessed likely range of forcing, 1.2–2.9 K/(3.7 W m⁻²), where 3.7 W ⁻² denotes the forcing for doubled CO₂. Such differences underscore the need to identify their causes and reduce the underlying uncertainties. Explanations might involve underestimated negative aerosol forcing, overestimated total forcing, overestimated climate sensitivity, poorly constrained ocean heating, limitations of the energy balance model, or a combination of effects.« less

HPLC-ESI-MS(n) Analysis, Fed-Batch Cultivation Enhances Bioactive Compound Biosynthesis and Immune-Regulative Effect of Adventitious Roots in Pseudostellaria heterophylla.

PubMed

Wang, Juan; Li, Jing; Li, Hongfa; Wu, Xiaolei; Gao, Wenyuan

2015-09-01

A electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS(n)) analysis was performed in order to identify the active composition in Pseudostellaria heterophylla adventitious roots. Pseudostellarin A, C, D, and G were identified from P. heterophylla adventitious roots on the basis of LC-MS(n) analysis. The culture conditions of adventitious roots were optimized, and datasets were subjected to a partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), in which the growth ratio and some compounds showed a positive correlation with an aeration volume of 0.3 vvm and inoculum density of 0.15 %. Fed-batch cultivation enhanced the contents of total saponin, polysaccharides, and specific oxygen uptaker rate (SOUR). The maximum dry root weight (4.728 g l(-1)) was achieved in the 3/4 Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium group. PLS-DA showed that polysaccharides contributed significantly to the clustering of different groups and showed a positive correlation in the MS medium group. The delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reaction on the mice induced by 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB) was applied to compare the immunocompetence effects of adventitious roots (AR) with field native roots (NR) of P. heterophylla. As a result, AR possessed a similar immunoregulation function as NR.

A Data Acquisition Parallel Bus for Wind Tunnels at ARL (Aeronautical Research Laboratory).

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-08-01

I’TV F.E AROPY62 ARL-FLIGHT-MECH-TM-412 AR-005-629 NN 0 ( N1 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE I DEFENCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ORGANISATION AERONAUTICAL RESEARCH...Library SPARES (10 copies) TOTAL (73 copies) AL~ 140 DEPRTENT OF DEEC P-AGE CLASSIFICATION DOCUMENT CONTROL DATA UNCLASSIFIED PRIVACY MARING 1.. AR

Foraging Parameters Influencing the Detection and Interpretation of Area-Restricted Search Behaviour in Marine Predators: A Case Study with the Masked Booby

PubMed Central

Sommerfeld, Julia; Kato, Akiko; Ropert-Coudert, Yan; Garthe, Stefan; Hindell, Mark A.

2013-01-01

Identification of Area-restricted search (ARS) behaviour is used to better understand foraging movements and strategies of marine predators. Track-based descriptive analyses are commonly used to detect ARS behaviour, but they may be biased by factors such as foraging trip duration or non-foraging behaviours (i.e. resting on the water). Using first-passage time analysis we tested if (I) daylight resting at the sea surface positions falsely increase the detection of ARS behaviour and (II) short foraging trips are less likely to include ARS behaviour in Masked Boobies Sula dactylatra. We further analysed whether ARS behaviour may be used as a proxy to identify important feeding areas. Depth-acceleration and GPS-loggers were simultaneously deployed on chick-rearing adults to obtain (1) location data every 4 minutes and (2) detailed foraging activity such as diving rates, time spent sitting on the water surface and in flight. In 82% of 50 foraging trips, birds adopted ARS behaviour. In 19.3% of 57 detected ARS zones, birds spent more than 70% of total ARS duration resting on the water, suggesting that these ARS zones were falsely detected. Based on generalized linear mixed models, the probability of detecting false ARS zones was 80%. False ARS zones mostly occurred during short trips in close proximity to the colony, with low or no diving activity. This demonstrates the need to account for resting on the water surface positions in marine animals when determining ARS behaviour based on foraging locations. Dive rates were positively correlated with trip duration and the probability of ARS behaviour increased with increasing number of dives, suggesting that the adoption of ARS behaviour in Masked Boobies is linked to enhanced foraging activity. We conclude that ARS behaviour may be used as a proxy to identify important feeding areas in this species. PMID:23717471

Associated reactions during a visual pursuit position tracking task in hemiplegic and quadriplegic cerebral palsy.

PubMed

Chiu, Hsiu-Ching; Halaki, Mark; O'Dwyer, Nicholas

2013-04-30

Most previous studies of associated reactions (ARs) in people with cerebral palsy have used observation scales, such as recording the degree of movement through observation. The sensitive quantitative method can detect ARs that are not amply visible. The aim of this study was to provide quantitative measures of ARs during a visual pursuit position tracking task. Twenty-three hemiplegia (H) (mean +/- SD: 21y 8m +/- 11y 10m), twelve quadriplegia (Q) (21y 5m +/- 10y 3m) and twenty-two subjects with normal development (N) (21y 2m +/- 10y 10m) participated in the study. An upper limb visual pursuit tracking task was used to study ARs. The participants were required to follow a moving target with a response cursor via elbow flexion and extension movements. The occurrence of ARs was quantified by the overall coherence between the movements of tracking and non-tracking limbs and the amount of movement due to ARs was quantified by the amplitude of movement the non-tracking limbs. The amplitude of movement of the non-tracking limb indicated that the amount of ARs was larger in the Q group than the H and N groups with no significant differences between the H and N groups. The amplitude of movement of the non-tracking limb was larger during non-dominant than dominant tracking in all three groups. Some movements in the non-tracking limb were correlated with the tracking limb (correlated ARs) and some movements that were not correlated with the tracking limb (uncorrelated ARs). The correlated ARs comprised less than 40% of the total ARs for all three groups. Correlated ARs were negatively associated with clinical evaluations, but not the uncorrelated ARs. The correlated and uncorrelated ARs appear to have different relationships with clinical evaluations, implying the effect of ARs on upper limb activities could be varied.

Foraging parameters influencing the detection and interpretation of area-restricted search behaviour in marine predators: a case study with the masked booby.

PubMed

Sommerfeld, Julia; Kato, Akiko; Ropert-Coudert, Yan; Garthe, Stefan; Hindell, Mark A

2013-01-01

Identification of Area-restricted search (ARS) behaviour is used to better understand foraging movements and strategies of marine predators. Track-based descriptive analyses are commonly used to detect ARS behaviour, but they may be biased by factors such as foraging trip duration or non-foraging behaviours (i.e. resting on the water). Using first-passage time analysis we tested if (I) daylight resting at the sea surface positions falsely increase the detection of ARS behaviour and (II) short foraging trips are less likely to include ARS behaviour in Masked Boobies Sula dactylatra. We further analysed whether ARS behaviour may be used as a proxy to identify important feeding areas. Depth-acceleration and GPS-loggers were simultaneously deployed on chick-rearing adults to obtain (1) location data every 4 minutes and (2) detailed foraging activity such as diving rates, time spent sitting on the water surface and in flight. In 82% of 50 foraging trips, birds adopted ARS behaviour. In 19.3% of 57 detected ARS zones, birds spent more than 70% of total ARS duration resting on the water, suggesting that these ARS zones were falsely detected. Based on generalized linear mixed models, the probability of detecting false ARS zones was 80%. False ARS zones mostly occurred during short trips in close proximity to the colony, with low or no diving activity. This demonstrates the need to account for resting on the water surface positions in marine animals when determining ARS behaviour based on foraging locations. Dive rates were positively correlated with trip duration and the probability of ARS behaviour increased with increasing number of dives, suggesting that the adoption of ARS behaviour in Masked Boobies is linked to enhanced foraging activity. We conclude that ARS behaviour may be used as a proxy to identify important feeding areas in this species.

The use of augmented reality glasses in central line simulation: "see one, simulate many, do one competently, and teach everyone".

PubMed

Huang, Cynthia Y; Thomas, Jonathan B; Alismail, Abdullah; Cohen, Avi; Almutairi, Waleed; Daher, Noha S; Terry, Michael H; Tan, Laren D

2018-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of using augmented reality (AR) glasses in central line simulation by novice operators and compare its efficacy to standard central line simulation/teaching. This was a prospective randomized controlled study enrolling 32 novice operators. Subjects were randomized on a 1:1 basis to either simulation using the augmented virtual reality glasses or simulation using conventional instruction. The study was conducted in tertiary-care urban teaching hospital. A total of 32 adult novice central line operators with no visual or auditory impairments were enrolled. Medical doctors, respiratory therapists, and sleep technicians were recruited from the medical field. The mean time for AR placement in the AR group was 71±43 s, and the time to internal jugular (IJ) cannulation was 316±112 s. There was no significant difference in median (minimum, maximum) time (seconds) to IJ cannulation for those who were in the AR group and those who were not (339 [130, 550] vs 287 [35, 475], p =0.09), respectively. There was also no significant difference between the two groups in median total procedure time (524 [329, 792] vs 469 [198, 781], p =0.29), respectively. There was a significant difference in the adherence level between the two groups favoring the AR group ( p =0.003). AR simulation of central venous catheters in manikins is feasible and efficacious in novice operators as an educational tool. Future studies are recommended in this area as it is a promising area of medical education.

Evaluating the impact of allergic rhinitis on quality of life among Thai students.

PubMed

Sapsaprang, Siwaporn; Setabutr, Dhave; Kulalert, Prapasri; Temboonnark, Panipak; Poachanukoon, Orapan

2015-09-01

The prevalence of allergic rhinitis (AR) in Thailand continues to rise. We report the prevalence and evaluate its impact upon quality of life (QoL) in students on a metropolitan campus. From March 2013 to February 2014, 222 students from Thammasat University Medical School were evaluated using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood Questionnaire (ISAAC) questionnaire and the rhinoconjunctivitis QoL questionnaire (Rcq-36) to assess subjective symptoms. Those students with clinical symptoms of AR underwent skin prick testing (SPT) using 5 common allergens found in Thailand. The association between AR and QoL was then determined using a paired t test. A total of 222 students were enrolled in the study; 86 (38.7%) were men. There were 183 (81.9%) students with AR symptoms and 130 (71.4%) students with positive results for SPT. The students' QoL as defined by the Rcq-36 revealed a significant worsening in students who self-reported rhinitis symptoms within the past 12 months. Compared to the non-AR group, in those with AR, eye symptoms were significantly more common. The prevalence of AR at a college campus was 58.5%. The presence of rhinitis symptoms was the highest predictor of the presence of AR, with 67.7% having subsequent positive SPT. Students with AR had poorer scores in every dimension of QoL as defined by the Rcq-36 when compared to their non-AR counterparts. Educational performances among the 2 groups were unaffected. © 2015 ARS-AAOA, LLC.

Annual Review Clinic improves care in children with cystic fibrosis.

PubMed

Chuang, Sandra; Doumit, Michael; McDonald, Rebecca; Hennessy, Erika; Katz, Tamarah; Jaffe, Adam

2014-03-01

It is unclear whether annual multidisciplinary reviews in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients should be conducted in dedicated annual review (AR) clinics or during continuous assessments throughout the year. Our aim was to assess the effect of introducing an AR clinic. A retrospective written and electronic record review of CF patients was carried out for 2007 (no AR Clinic) and 2010 (established AR Clinic) calendar years. An internet-based satisfaction survey was distributed to families attending the AR clinic. In total, 123 children (mean age 9.5 years, range 1.32-18.8 years) and 141 children (8.3 years, 1.1-18.3 years) were included in 2007 and 2010 respectively. There was a significant increase in multidisciplinary reviews (documented annual review 28% vs 85%, P < 0.001; dietary assessment 46% vs 92%, P < 0.001) and investigations (OGTT 2% vs 74%, P < 0.001; abdominal ultrasound 35% vs 85%, P < 0.001) conducted after the introduction of AR clinic. The majority of the families surveyed (85%) were satisfied or very satisfied with the AR clinic. CF AR clinic significantly improves the number of annual investigations and multidisciplinary reviews performed. Families were satisfied with this new process. © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of European Cystic Fibrosis Society. All rights reserved.

Comparative Proteomic Analysis of Differential Responses of Pinus massoniana and Taxus wallichiana var. mairei to Simulated Acid Rain

PubMed Central

Hu, Wen-Jun; Chen, Juan; Liu, Ting-Wu; Simon, Martin; Wang, Wen-Hua; Chen, Juan; Wu, Fei-Hua; Liu, Xiang; Shen, Zhi-Jun; Zheng, Hai-Lei

2014-01-01

Acid rain (AR), a serious environmental issue, severely affects plant growth and development. As the gymnosperms of conifer woody plants, Pinus massoniana (AR-sensitive) and Taxus wallichiana var. mairei (AR-resistant) are widely distributed in southern China. Under AR stress, significant necrosis and collapsed lesions were found in P. massoniana needles with remarkable yellowing and wilting tips, whereas T. wallichiana var. mairei did not exhibit chlorosis and visible damage. Due to the activation of a large number of stress-related genes and the synthesis of various functional proteins to counteract AR stress, it is important to study the differences in AR-tolerance mechanisms by comparative proteomic analysis of tolerant and sensitive species. This study revealed a total of 65 and 26 differentially expressed proteins that were identified in P. massoniana and T. wallichiana var. mairei, respectively. Among them, proteins involved in metabolism, photosynthesis, signal transduction and transcription were drastically down-regulated in P. massoniana, whereas most of the proteins participating in metabolism, cell structure, photosynthesis and transcription were increased in T. wallichiana var. mairei. These results suggest the distinct patterns of protein expression in the two woody species in response to AR, allowing a deeper understanding of diversity on AR tolerance in forest tree species. PMID:24625662

Prevalence of pollen-induced allergic rhinitis with high pollen exposure in grasslands of northern China.

PubMed

Wang, X-Y; Ma, T-T; Wang, X-Y; Zhuang, Y; Wang, X-D; Ning, H-Y; Shi, H-Y; Yu, R-L; Yan, D; Huang, H-D; Bai, Y-F; Shan, G-L; Zhang, B; Song, Q-K; Zhang, Y-F; Zhang, T-J; Jia, D-Z; Liu, X-L; Kang, Z-X; Yan, W-J; Yang, B-T; Bao, X-Z; Sun, S-H; Zhang, F-F; Yu, W-H; Bai, C-L; Wei, T; Yang, T; Ma, T-Q; Wu, X-B; Liu, J-G; Du, H; Zhang, L; Yan, Y; Wang, D-Y

2018-06-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of epidemiologic and physician-diagnosed pollen-induced AR (PiAR) in the grasslands of northern China and to study the impact of the intensity and time of pollen exposure on PiAR prevalence. A multistage, clustered and proportionately stratified random sampling with a field interviewer-administered survey study was performed together with skin prick tests (SPT) and measurements of the daily pollen count. A total of 6043 subjects completed the study, with a proportion of 32.4% epidemiologic AR and 18.5% PiAR. The prevalence was higher in males than females (19.6% vs 17.4%, P = .024), but no difference between the two major residential and ethnic groups (Han and Mongolian) was observed. Subjects from urban areas showed higher prevalence of PiAR than rural areas (23.1% vs 14.0%, P < .001). Most PiAR patients were sensitized to two or more pollens (79.4%) with artemisia, chenopodium, and humulus scandens being the most common pollen types, which were similarly found as the top three sensitizing pollen allergens by SPT. There were significant regional differences in the prevalence of epidemiologic AR (from 18.6% to 52.9%) and PiAR (from 10.5% to 31.4%) among the six areas investigated. PiAR symptoms were positively associated with pollen counts, temperature, and precipitation (P < .05), but negatively with wind speed and pressure P < .05). Pollen-induced AR (PiAR) prevalence in the investigated region is extremely high due to high seasonal pollen exposure, which was influenced by local environmental and climate conditions. © 2018 The Authors. Allergy Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd.

Total and available heavy metal concentrations in soils of the Thriassio plain (Greece) and assessment of soil pollution indexes.

PubMed

Massas, Ioannis; Kalivas, Dionisios; Ehaliotis, Constantions; Gasparatos, Dionisios

2013-08-01

The Thriassio plain is located 25 km west of Athens city, the capital of Greece. Two major towns (Elefsina and Aspropyrgos), heavy industry plants, medium to large-scale manufacturing, logistics plants, and agriculture comprise the main land uses of the studied area. The aim of the present study was to measure the total and available concentrations of Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, Co, Mn, Ba, Cu, and Fe in the top soils of the plain, and to asses soil contamination by these metals by using the geoaccumulation index (I geo), the enrichment factor (EF), and the availability ratio (AR) as soil pollution indexes. Soil samples were collected from 90 sampling sites, and aqua regia and DTPA extractions were carried out to determine total and available metal forms, respectively. Median total Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, Co, Mn, Ba, Cu, and Fe concentrations were 78, 155, 81, 112, 24, 321, 834, 38, and 16 × 10(3) mg kg(-1), respectively. The available fractions showed much lower values with medians of 0.4, 5.6, 1.7, 6.9, 0.8, 5.7, 19.8, 2.1, and 2.9 mg kg(-1). Though median total metal concentrations are not considered as particularly high, the I geo and the EF values indicate moderate to heavy soil enrichment. For certain metals such as Cr, Ni, Cu, and Ba, the different distribution patterns between the EFs and the ARs suggest different origin of the total and the available metal forms. The evaluation of the EF and AR data sets for the soils of the two towns further supports the argument that the EFs can well demonstrate the long-term history of soil pollution and that the ARs can adequately portray the recent history of soil pollution.

Adult body size and physical activity in relation to risk of breast cancer according to tumor androgen receptor status.

PubMed

Zhang, Xuehong; Eliassen, A Heather; Tamimi, Rulla M; Hazra, Aditi; Beck, Andrew H; Brown, Myles; Collins, Laura C; Rosner, Bernard; Hankinson, Susan E

2015-06-01

Obesity and physical activity have been hypothesized to affect breast cancer risk partly via the androgen signaling pathway. We conducted the first study to evaluate these associations by tumor androgen receptor (AR) status. Height, weight, and physical activity were assessed using questionnaires in the Nurses' Health Study. AR, estrogen receptor (ER), and progesterone receptor (PR) status were determined using immunohistochemistry on tumor tissue and medical/pathology reports. A total of 1,701 AR(+) and 497 AR(-) cases were documented during 26 years of follow-up of 103,577 women. After adjusting for ER/PR status and other risk factors, the relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for every 5 kg/m(2) increase in body mass index (BMI) were 1.07 (1.01-1.13) for AR(+) and 1.16 (1.05-1.29) for AR(-) tumors (P-heterogeneity = 0.17). The RRs (95% CIs) per 5 hours of brisk walking/week were 0.87 (0.73-1.04) for AR(+) and 0.67 (0.45-0.99) for AR(-) tumors (P-heterogeneity = 0.22). Further, BMI, but not physical activity, associations differed significantly across ER/PR/AR subtypes (P-heterogeneity = 0.04 and 0.63, respectively). The RRs (95% CIs) for 5 kg/m(2) increase in BMI were 1.23 (1.04-1.45) for ER(+)PR(+)AR(-), 1.19 (1.01-1.39) for ER(-)PR(-)AR(-), 1.15 (1.08-1.23) for ER(+)PR(+)AR(+), and 0.88 (0.75-1.03) for ER(+)PR(-)AR(+) tumors. Higher BMI was associated with an increased risk of both AR(+) and AR(-) breast tumors in postmenopausal women, whereas physical activity, including brisk walking, was associated with a reduced risk of both subtypes. In addition, a significant positive association was observed between higher BMI and ER(-)PR(-)AR(-) tumors. The similar associations observed by AR status suggest that mechanisms other than androgen signaling underlie these two breast cancer risk factors. ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

Androgenic and Estrogenic Response of Green Mussel Extracts from Singapore’s Coastal Environment Using a Human Cell-Based Bioassay

PubMed Central

Bayen, Stéphane; Gong, Yinhan; Chin, Hong Soon; Lee, Hian Kee; Leong, Yong Eu; Obbard, Jeffrey Philip

2004-01-01

In the last decade, evidence of endocrine disruption in biota exposed to environmental pollutants has raised serious concern. Human cell-based bioassays have been developed to evaluate induced androgenic and estrogenic activities of chemical compounds. However, bioassays have been sparsely applied to environmental samples. In this study we present data on sex hormone activities in the green mussel, Perna viridis, in Singapore’s coastal waters. P. viridis is a common bioindicator of marine contamination, and this study is a follow-up to an earlier investigation that reported the presence of sex hormone activities in seawater samples from Singapore’s coastal environment. Specimens were collected from eight locations around the Singapore coastline and analyzed for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and heavy metals. Tissue extracts were then screened for activities on androgen receptors (ARs) and estrogen receptors (ER-α and ER-β) using a reporter gene bio-assay based on a HeLa human cell line. Mussel extracts alone did not exhibit AR activity, but in the presence of the reference androgenic hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT), activities were up to 340% higher than those observed for DHT alone. Peak activities were observed in locations adjacent to industrial and shipping activities. Estrogenic activities of the mussel extract both alone and in the presence of reference hormone were positive. Correlations were statistically investigated between sex hormone activities, levels of pollutants in the mussel tissues, and various biological parameters (specimen size, sex ratio, lipid and moisture content). Significant correlations exist between AR activities, in the presence of DHT, and total concentration of POPs (r = 0.725, p < 0.05). PMID:15531429

Precipitation Phase Partitioning during Inland Penetrating Atmospheric River events: Role of Initial Land Surface Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rudisill, W. J.; Flores, A. N.; FitzGerald, K.; Masarik, M. T.

2017-12-01

In the Western US, the occurrence (or lack thereof) of a handful of cool-season Atmospheric River (AR) events exerts significant controls on the seasonal water budget in many watersheds. The occurrence of these ARs can serve to alleviate drought and can also lead to significant flooding. In winter seasons, ARs typically bring warmer than average conditions and both rain and snow. To date, there has been little effort to understand how the land surface hydrological states prior to and during the arrival of ARs, acting on the surface water and energy balance, impact the onset, extent, and evolution of precipitation intensity and phase during AR events. While precipitation arriving as snow can contribute to seasonal snowpacks that lead to runoff later in hot/dry seasons, liquid precipitation can contribute to more rapid runoff or deplete existing snowpacks. The latter case, in which latent and advected heat from fallen rain causes snowmelt, is a key mechanism of flood and landslide-producing runoff in the Western United States. Motivated by an extensive, flood producing AR in 2010, we examine the sensitivity of hydrometeor phase to land surface forcings (sensible/latent heating, short/longwave radiation) using the WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) model in Central Idaho. Specifically, we evaluate whether pre-existing snow covered area extent, snow water equivalent (SWE), and cold-content influence the partitioning of precipitation into solid and liquid phases during inland AR events. Our experimental design leverages a long-term coupled land-atmosphere simulation with WRF over the study domain in order to evaluate how a set of particular AR events evolve when exposed to initial land surface states capturing a broad range of climatological conditions during the past 30 years.

Dynamic defect annealing in wurtzite MgZnO implanted with Ar ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azarov, A. Yu.; Wendler, E.; Du, X. L.; Kuznetsov, A. Yu.; Svensson, B. G.

2015-09-01

Successful implementation of ion beams for modification of ternary ZnO-based oxides requires understanding and control of radiation-induced defects. Here, we study structural disorder in wurtzite ZnO and MgxZn1-xO (x ⩽ 0.3) samples implanted at room and 15 K temperatures with Ar ions in a wide fluence range (5 × 1012-3 × 1016 cm-2). The samples were characterized by Rutherford backscattering/channeling spectrometry performed in-situ without changing the sample temperature. The results show that all the samples exhibit high radiation resistance and cannot be rendered amorphous even for high ion fluences. Increasing the Mg content leads to some damage enhancement near the surface region; however, irrespective of the Mg content, the fluence dependence of bulk damage in the samples displays the so-called IV-stage evolution with a reverse temperature effect for high ion fluences.

Effect of Argon/Oxygen Flow Rate Ratios on DC Magnetron Sputtered Nano Crystalline Zirconium Titanate Thin Films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rani, D. Jhansi; Kumar, A. GuruSampath; Sarmash, T. Sofi; Chandra Babu Naidu, K.; Maddaiah, M.; Rao, T. Subba

2016-06-01

High transmitting, non absorbent, nano crystalline zirconium titanate (ZT) thin films suitable for anti reflection coatings (ARC) were deposited on to glass substrates by direct current (DC) magnetron reactive sputtering technique, under distinct Argon to Oxygen (Ar/O2) gas flow rate ratios of 31/1, 30/2, 29/3 and 28/4, with a net gas flow (Ar + O2) of 32sccm, at an optimum substrate temperature of 250°C. The influence of the gas mixture ratio on the film properties has been investigated by employing x-ray diffraction (XRD), ultra violet visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDX) and four point probe methods. The films showed a predominant peak at 30.85° with (111) orientation. The crystallite size reduced from 22.94 nm to 13.5 nm and the surface roughness increased from 11.53 nm to 50.58 nm with increase in oxygen content respectively. The films deposited at 31/1 and 30/2 showed almost similar chemical composition. Increased oxygen content results an increase in electrical resistivity from 3.59 × 103 to 2.1 × 106 Ωm. The film deposited at Ar/O2 of 28/4 exhibited higher average optical transmittance of 91%, but its refractive index is higher than that of what is required for ARC. The films deposited at 31/1 and 30/2 of Ar/O2 possess higher transmittance (low absorbance) apart from suitable refractive index. Thus, these films are preferable candidates for ARC.

Development of a low-level 39Ar calibration standard – Analysis by absolute gas counting measurements augmented with simulation

DOE PAGES

Williams, Richard M.; Aalseth, C. E.; Brandenberger, J. M.; ...

2017-02-17

Here, this paper describes the generation of 39Ar, via reactor irradiation of potassium carbonate, followed by quantitative analysis (length-compensated proportional counting) to yield two calibration standards that are respectively 50 and 3 times atmospheric background levels. Measurements were performed in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's shallow underground counting laboratory studying the effect of gas density on beta-transport; these results are compared with simulation. The total expanded uncertainty of the specific activity for the ~50 × 39Ar in P10 standard is 3.6% (k=2).

Development of a low-level 39Ar calibration standard – Analysis by absolute gas counting measurements augmented with simulation

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

Williams, Richard M.; Aalseth, C. E.; Brandenberger, J. M.

Here, this paper describes the generation of 39Ar, via reactor irradiation of potassium carbonate, followed by quantitative analysis (length-compensated proportional counting) to yield two calibration standards that are respectively 50 and 3 times atmospheric background levels. Measurements were performed in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's shallow underground counting laboratory studying the effect of gas density on beta-transport; these results are compared with simulation. The total expanded uncertainty of the specific activity for the ~50 × 39Ar in P10 standard is 3.6% (k=2).

The contemporary degassing rate of 40Ar from the solid Earth

PubMed Central

Bender, Michael L.; Barnett, Bruce; Dreyfus, Gabrielle; Jouzel, Jean; Porcelli, Don

2008-01-01

Knowledge of the outgassing history of radiogenic 40Ar, derived over geologic time from the radioactive decay of 40K, contributes to our understanding of the geodynamic history of the planet and the origin of volatiles on Earth's surface. The 40Ar inventory of the atmosphere equals total 40Ar outgassing during Earth history. Here, we report the current rate of 40Ar outgassing, accessed by measuring the Ar isotope composition of trapped gases in samples of the Vostok and Dome C deep ice cores dating back to almost 800 ka. The modern outgassing rate (1.1 ± 0.1 × 108 mol/yr) is in the range of values expected by summing outgassing from the continental crust and the upper mantle, as estimated from simple calculations and models. The measured outgassing rate is also of interest because it allows dating of air trapped in ancient ice core samples of unknown age, although uncertainties are large (±180 kyr for a single sample or ±11% of the calculated age, whichever is greater). PMID:18550816

Study of inelastic processes in Li+-Ar, K+-Ar, and Na+-He collisions in the energy range 0.5-10 keV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lomsadze, Ramaz A.; Gochitashvili, Malkhaz R.; Kezerashvili, Roman Ya; Schulz, Michael

2017-11-01

Absolute cross sections are measured for charge-exchange, ionization, and excitation processes within the same experimental setup for the Li{}+-Ar, K{}+-Ar, and Na{}+-He collisions in the ion energy range of 0.5-10 keV. The results of the measurements and schematic correlation diagrams are used to analyze and determine the mechanisms for these processes. The experimental results show that the charge-exchange processes occur with high probabilities and electrons are predominantly captured in ground states. The contributions of various partial inelastic channels to the total ionization cross section are estimated, and a primary mechanism for the process is identified. In addition, the energy-loss spectrum is applied in order to estimate the relative contribution of different inelastic channels, and to determine the mechanisms for the ionization and for some excitation processes of Ar resonance lines for the {{{K}}}+-Ar collision system. The excitation cross sections for the helium and for the sodium doublet lines for the Na{}+-He collision system both reveal some unexpected features. A mechanism to explain this observation is suggested.

High levels of the AR-V7 Splice Variant and Co-Amplification of the Golgi Protein Coding YIPF6 in AR Amplified Prostate Cancer Bone Metastases.

PubMed

Djusberg, Erik; Jernberg, Emma; Thysell, Elin; Golovleva, Irina; Lundberg, Pia; Crnalic, Sead; Widmark, Anders; Bergh, Anders; Brattsand, Maria; Wikström, Pernilla

2017-05-01

The relation between androgen receptor (AR) gene amplification and other mechanisms behind castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), such as expression of constitutively active AR variants and steroid-converting enzymes has been poorly examined. Specific aim was to examine AR amplification in PC bone metastases and to explore molecular and functional consequences of this, with the long-term goal of identifying novel molecular targets for treatment. Gene amplification was assessed by fluorescence in situ hybridization in cryo-sections of clinical PC bone metastases (n = 40) and by PCR-based copy number variation analysis. Whole genome mRNA expression was analyzed using H12 Illumina Beadchip arrays and specific transcript levels were quantified by qRT-PCR. Protein localization was analyzed using immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy. The YIPF6 mRNA expression was transiently knocked down and stably overexpressed in the 22Rv1 cell line as representative for CRPC, and effects on cell proliferation, colony formation, migration, and invasion were determined in vitro. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) were isolated from cell cultures using size-exclusion chromatography and enumerated by nanoparticle tracking analysis. Protein content was identified by LC-MS/MS analysis. Blood coagulation was measured as activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT). Functional enrichment analysis was performed using the MetaCore software. AR amplification was detected in 16 (53%) of the bone metastases examined from CRPC patients (n = 30), and in none from the untreated patients (n = 10). Metastases with AR amplification showed high AR and AR-V7 mRNA levels, increased nuclear AR immunostaining, and co-amplification of genes such as YIPF6 in the AR proximity at Xq12. The YIPF6 protein was localized to the Golgi apparatus. YIPF6 overexpression in 22Rv1 cells resulted in reduced cell proliferation and colony formation, and in enhanced EV secretion. EVs from YIPF6 overproducing 22Rv1 cells were enriched for proteins involved in blood coagulation and, accordingly, decreased the APTT in a dose-dependent fashion. AR amplified CRPC bone metastases show high AR-V7 expression that probably gives resistance to AR-targeting drugs. Co-amplification of the Golgi protein coding YIPF6 gene with the AR may enhance the secretion of pro-coagulative EVs from cancer cells and thereby stimulate tumor progression and increase the coagulopathy risk in CRPC patients. Prostate 77: 625-638, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Ar-39-Ar-40 Age Dating Of Two Angrites and Two Brachinites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garrison, Daniel; Bogard, Donald

2003-01-01

Angrites are a rare group (approximately 7 known) of igneous meteorites with basalt-like composition, which probably derive from a relatively small parent body that differs from those of other igneous meteorites. Angrites show evidence for extinct Mn-53, Sm-146, and Pu-244, and precise U-Pb, and Pb-Pb ages of 4.558 Gyr for two angrites define the time of early parent body differentiation. The Sm-147-Nd-143 ages of two angrites range between 4.53 +/- 0.04 and 4.56 +/- 0.04 Gyr, but no Ar-39-Ar-40 or Rb-Sr ages have been reported. Most angrites show no evidence for either shock brecciation or metamorphism. Brachinites are another very rare group' of differentiated meteorites consisting primarily of olivine, with minor augite, chromite, Fe-sulfides, and sometimes plagioclase and opx. Presence of excess Xe-129 and excess Cr53 from decay of Mn-53 in some brachinites indicate that they also formed very early. Brachinite petrogenesis is poorly defined. They may be igneous cumulates or metamorphic products of chondritic-like starting material. If after their formation, angrites and brachinites cooled quickly with minimal subsequent heating, then one might expect them to show uniquely old K-Ar ages, at least in comparison to other differentiated meteorites such as eucrites and mesosiderites. Most angrites and brachinites contain very little, if any K-feldspar, which has deterred measurements of their Ar-Ar ages. We made Ar-39-Ar-40 analyses on two angrites, LEW86010 (metamorphosed) and D'Orbigny, and on two brachinites, EET99402 and Brachina. All are finds. Any feldspar in angrites is highly calcic, with expected K concentrations of <100 ppm. We selected LEW86010 and D'Orbigny because they have been the objects of several other studies and because chemical analyses suggested [K] was approximately 70 ppm in both meteorites. Brachina contains approximately 9.9% plagioclase of higher K-content than angrites, and EET99402 is estimated to contain approximately 5% K-poor plagioclase. Other brachinites contain little to no feldspar. We have successfully measured Ar-Ar ages on a few meteorites and lunar anorthosites with [K] <100 ppm.

Volatile composition of microinclusions in diamonds from the Panda kimberlite, Canada: Implications for chemical and isotopic heterogeneity in the mantle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burgess, Ray; Cartigny, Pierre; Harrison, Darrell; Hobson, Emily; Harris, Jeff

2009-03-01

In order to better investigate the compositions and the origins of fluids associated with diamond growth, we have carried-out combined noble gas (He and Ar), C and N isotope, K, Ca and halogen (Cl, Br, I) determinations on fragments of individual microinclusion-bearing diamonds from the Panda kimberlite, North West Territories, Canada. The fluid concentrations of halogens and noble gases in Panda diamonds are enriched by several orders of magnitude over typical upper mantle abundances. However, noble gas, C and N isotopic ratios ( 3He/ 4He = 4-6 Ra, 40Ar/ 36Ar = 20,000-30,000, δ 13C = -4.5‰ to -6.9‰ and δ 15N = -1.2‰ to -8.8‰) are within the worldwide range determined for fibrous diamonds and similar to the mid ocean ridge basalt (MORB) source value. The high 36Ar content of the diamonds (>1 × 10 -9 cm 3/g) is at least an order of magnitude higher than any previously reported mantle sample and enables the 36Ar content of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle to be estimated at ˜0.6 × 10 -12 cm 3/g, again similar to estimates for the MORB source. Three fluid types distinguished on the basis of Ca-K-Cl compositions are consistent with carbonatitic, silicic and saline end-members identified in previous studies of diamonds from worldwide sources. These fluid end-members also have distinct halogen ratios (Br/Cl and I/Cl). The role of subducted seawater-derived halogens, originally invoked to explain some of the halogen ratio variations in diamonds, is not considered an essential component in the formation of the fluids. In contrast, it is considered that large halogen fractionation of a primitive mantle ratio occurs during fluid-melt partitioning in forming silicic fluids, and during separation of an immiscible saline fluid.

OH radical production in an atmospheric pressure surface micro-discharge array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, D.; Nikiforov, A.; Britun, N.; Snyders, R.; Kong, M. G.; Leys, C.

2016-11-01

The generation of OH radicals from an array of surface micro-discharges working in atmospheric pressure He/Ar/H2O mixtures is investigated. The absolute OH density and its temporal-and-spatial dynamics are detected by UV broadband absorption spectroscopy (UV-BAS) and laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) spectroscopy. The measured absolute density of OH(X) state is about 1021 m-3 in Ar/H2O mixture reaching a peak at 0.05% of H2O. In the case of He/H2O mixtures however, the peaking at ~1019 m-3 is approximately two orders of magnitude lower and decreases monotonously with increasing H2O content. From a control standpoint, the ratio of the Ar/He mixture may be adjusted to tune the OH density over two orders of magnitude and to modulate the H2O content dependence of the OH density. The capability of modulating the OH radical production over a large density range is of practical interest for many applications such as atmospheric chemistry and biochemistry. With the array of atmospheric micro-discharges sustained over a large electrode area, a uniform distribution of its OH density can be achieved in a plane parallel to the electrodes thus enabling spatially controlled surface treatment of large samples.

FAA Air Traffic Activity: Fiscal Year 1988

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-01-01

12390 5335 TOTAL OPERATIONS ......................................................................... 146585 31593 9014 97579 8399 TEXARKANA (TXK) N...14402 12385 2017 TOTAL OPERATIONS ....................................................................... 56240 403 9574 41417 4846...WV N 390 39876 TEXARKANA ........................................................ AR N 351 56414 SOUTH LAKE TAHOE

30Ar-40Ar Ages of Silicates from IIE Iron Meteorites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garrison, D. H.; Bogard, D. D.

1995-09-01

Several IIE iron meteorites contain small silicate inclusions, dispersed within metal, which suggest formation by a common process involving different degrees of heating and silicate fractionation from a chondrite-like parent (see discussion and references in McCoy [1]). The isotope chronology of IIE meteorites addresses two major questions concerning their origin. How many formation events are required, and do the isotopic ages also represent the times of silicate differentiation in some meteorites, or do they represent later impact heating events? We have determined ^39Ar-^40Ar ages of whole silicate samples of Watson, Techado, and Miles [1]. Although each meteorite gives a complex Ar age spectrum, each spectrum gives a well-defined age plateau over a significant (55-65%) portion of the total ^39Ar release. The ^39Ar-^40Ar degassing ages derived are 3.656 +/-0.005 Ga for Watson, 4.482 +/-0.025 Ga for Techado, and 4.408 +/-0.011 Ga for Miles (one-sigma errors). Absolute ages have an additional ^-0.5% uncertainty arising from the hornblende age monitor used. None of our Ar-Ar spectra show any significant evidence for an age older than those given, and only Miles shows modest evidence for recent diffusive loss of ^40Ar (affecting ^-10% of the ^39Ar release). Previous studies of Kodaikanal gave these ages: Rb-Sr = 3.7 +/-0.1 Ga [2], Pb-Pb = 3.676 +/-0.003 Ga [3], and K-^40Ar = 3.5 Ga [4]. Netschaevo gave a ^39Ar-^40Ar age of 3.74 Ga +/-0.03 Ga [5], and Watson gave a K-^40Ar age of 3.5 Ga [6]. (Some ages have been adjusted for changes in decay and irradiation constants.) All three meteorites suggest a common formation age of ^-3.70 +/-0.05 Ga. The ^39Ar-^40Ar age for Techado is identical to a ^39Ar-^40Ar age of 4.49 +/-0.03 Ga reported for Weekeroo Station [5] and to a Rb-Sr age of 4.51 Ga for Colomera [7]. These ages resemble ^39Ar-^40Ar ages of unshocked ordinary chondrites, and suggest that metal-silicate mixing and cooling to closure for Ar diffusion occurred early in parent body history. The ^39Ar-^40Ar age for Miles, however, appears slightly younger and is similar to Rb-Sr ages for Weekeroo Station of ^-4.28-4.39 Ga [8, 9]. Young isotopic ages do not obviously correlate with the degree of melting and silicate fractionation, except that three of four dated IIEs showing significant fractionation give older ages. Totally unrelated events may have melted and fractionated similar silicates to produce comparable mixtures with IIE metal at both ^-4.5 and ^-3.7 Ga ago. This requires at least the younger event to have been an impact, possibly related to impact chronometer resetting observed in lunar highland rocks and HED meteorites near this time. However, petrologic data suggest that IIE meteorites may also represent a suite of samples that responded in different degrees to a single, early mixing event [1]. This explanation suggests that isotopic ages of Watson, Netschaevo, and Kodaikanal were reset by strong impact heating, possibly involving melting of individual silicate clasts, in one or more events long after their initial formation. Impacts may also explain the apparent younger ages observed for Miles and Weekeroo Station. A problem for the origin of IIEs in a single, early event is the apparent requirement from initial ^87Sr/^86Sr of Kodaikanal that the Rb/Sr ratio was increased significantly at a time near 3.7 Ga [2]. Whether such fractionation could occur within or across shock-melted silicate inclusions [10] deserves further consideration. References: [1] McCoy, this volume. [2] Burnett and Wasserburg (1967) EPSL, 2, 397. [3] Gopel et al. (1985) Nature, 317, 341. [4] Bogard et al. (1969) EPSL, 5, 273. [5] Niemeyer (1980) GCA, 44, 33. [6] Olsen et al. (1994) Meteoritics, 29, 200. [7] Sanz et al. (1970) GCA, 34, 1227. [8] Burnett and Wasserburg (1967) EPSL, 2, 397. [9] Evensen et al. (1979) LPS X, 376. [10] Bence and Burnett (1969) GCA, 33, 387.

An in-situ K-Ar isochron dating method for planetary landers using a spot-by-spot laser-ablation technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cho, Yuichiro; Sugita, Seiji; Miura, Yayoi N.; Okazaki, Ryuji; Iwata, Naoyoshi; Morota, Tomokatsu; Kameda, Shingo

2016-09-01

Age is essential information for interpreting the geologic record on planetary surfaces. Although crater counting has been widely used to estimate the planetary surface ages, crater chronology in the inner solar system is largely built on radiometric age data from limited sites on the Moon. This has resulted in major uncertainty in planetary chronology. Because opportunities for sample-return missions are limited, in-situ geochronology measurements from one-way lander/rover missions are extremely valuable. Here we developed an in-situ isochron-based dating method using the K-Ar system, with K and Ar in a single rock sample extracted locally by laser ablation and measured using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS), respectively. We built an experimental system combining flight-equivalent instruments and measured K-Ar ages for mineral samples with known ages (~1.8 Ga) and K contents (1-8 wt%); we achieved precision of 20% except for a mineral with low mechanical strength. Furthermore, validation measurements with two natural rocks (gneiss slabs) obtained K-Ar isochron ages and initial 40Ar consistent with known values for both cases. This result supports that our LIBS-MS approach can derive both isochron ages and contributions of non-in situ radiogenic 40Ar from natural rocks. Error assessments suggest that the absolute ages of key geologic events including the Noachian/Hesperian- and the Hesperian/Amazonian-transition can be dated with 10-20% errors for a rock containing ~1 wt% K2O, greatly reducing the uncertainty of current crater chronology models on Mars.

The Ar-NO van der Waals complex studied by resonant multiphoton ionization spectroscopy involving photoion and photoelectron measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sato, Kenji; Achiba, Yohji; Kimura, Katsumi

1984-07-01

Using a 5% mixture of NO in Ar in a supersonic free jet, in the present work we have carried out measurements of the total ion current in the 380-385 nm laser wavelength region. We have also measured photoelectron kinetic energy spectra at individual ion current peaks. In the ion-current spectrum we have observed a new vibrational progression which consists of four peaks in the wavelength region longer than the peak of the two-photon transition of the free NO molecule NO(X, v″=0) →2hν NO(C,v'=0). It has been concluded that the new ion-current peaks are attributed to bound-to-bound transitions of the Ar-NO van der Waals complex from its ground state to the two-photon resonant state expressed by Ar-NO*(C 2Π, v'=0), in which the NO component is in the 3p Rydberg state. The whole resonant ionization process studied may be expressed by Ar-NO(X, v″=0) →2hνAr-NO*(C, v'=0) →hν Ar-NO+(X, v+=0). Each ion-current peak separation is about 50 cm-1, which may correspond to the frequency of the Ar-NO intermolecular stretching vibration, showing a strong anharmonicity. The dissociation energy (D0) of the Ar-NO*(C 2Π) state has been found to be 0.055±0.001 eV. From the photoelectron spectra, we also conclude that the adiabatic ionization energy of Ar-NO is Ia =9.148±0.005 eV and the dissociation energy of the Ar-NO+(X 1Σ) ion is D0=0.129±0.005 eV.

Acute Retroviral Syndrome Is Associated With High Viral Burden, CD4 Depletion, and Immune Activation in Systemic and Tissue Compartments.

PubMed

Crowell, Trevor A; Colby, Donn J; Pinyakorn, Suteeraporn; Fletcher, James L K; Kroon, Eugène; Schuetz, Alexandra; Krebs, Shelly J; Slike, Bonnie M; Leyre, Louise; Chomont, Nicolas; Jagodzinski, Linda L; Sereti, Irini; Utay, Netanya S; Dewar, Robin; Rerknimitr, Rungsun; Chomchey, Nitiya; Trichavaroj, Rapee; Valcour, Victor G; Spudich, Serena; Michael, Nelson L; Robb, Merlin L; Phanuphak, Nittaya; Ananworanich, Jintanat

2018-05-02

Many individuals with acute human immunodeficiency virus infection (AHI) experience acute retroviral syndrome (ARS), which is associated with adverse long-term clinical outcomes. Participants presenting for voluntary human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing were enrolled during AHI in Bangkok, Thailand. ARS was defined by ≥3 qualifying signs/symptoms. HIV burden, immunophenotypes, and biomarkers were stratified by ARS diagnosis at enrollment and after up to 96 weeks of antiretroviral therapy (ART). From 212382 samples screened, 430 participants were enrolled during AHI, including 335 (78%) with ARS. Median age was 26 years and 416 (97%) were men. Sixty (14%) underwent sigmoid biopsy and 105 (24%) underwent lumbar puncture during AHI. Common symptoms included fever (93%), fatigue (79%), pharyngitis (67%), and headache (64%). Compared to those without ARS, participants with ARS were in later Fiebig stages with higher HIV RNA in blood, colon, and cerebrospinal fluid; higher total HIV DNA in blood; CD4 depletion in blood and colon; and elevated plasma tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), C-reactive protein, and D-dimer (all P < .05). Subgroup analyses of Fiebig I/II participants (95 with ARS, 69 without) demonstrated similar findings. After 96 weeks of ART, TNF-α and interleukin 6 were elevated in the ARS group (P < .05) but other biomarkers equilibrated. ARS was associated with high viral burden, CD4 depletion, and immune activation across multiple body compartments during AHI and prior to ART. Persistent inflammation despite suppressive ART could contribute to increased morbidity in individuals who experience ARS.

Circulating androgen receptor combined with 18F-fluorocholine PET/CT metabolic activity and outcome to androgen receptor signalling-directed therapies in castration-resistant prostate cancer.

PubMed

Conteduca, V; Scarpi, E; Caroli, P; Salvi, S; Lolli, C; Burgio, S L; Menna, C; Schepisi, G; Testoni, S; Gurioli, G; Paganelli, G; Casadio, V; Matteucci, F; De Giorgi, U

2017-11-14

The association between choline uptake and androgen receptor (AR) expression is suggested by the upregulation of choline kinase-alpha in prostate cancer. Recently, detection of AR aberration in cell-free DNA as well as early 18F-fluorocholine positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FCH-PET/CT) were associated with outcome in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients treated with abiraterone and enzalutamide. We aimed to make a direct comparison between circulating AR copy number (CN) and choline uptake at FCH-PET/CT. We analysed 80 mCRPC patients progressing after docetaxel treated with abiraterone (n = 47) or enzalutamide (n = 33). We analysed AR CN from plasma samples using digital PCR and Taqman CN assays and total lesion activity (TLA) and metabolic tumor volume (MTV) on FCH-PET/CT at baseline. A meaningful correlation was showed among AR gain and TLA/MTV compared to AR non-gained cases (P = 0.001 and P = 0.004, respectively), independently from type of treatment. Multivariate analysis revealed that AR CN and only TLA were associated with both shorter PFS (P < 0.0009 and P = 0.026, respectively) and OS (P < 0.031 and P = 0.039, respectively). AR gain appeared significantly correlated with choline uptake represented mainly by TLA. Further prospective studies are warranted to better address this pathway of AR-signalling and to identify multiplex biomarker strategies including plasma AR and FCH-PET/CT in mCRPC patients.

Spatial and Temporal Distributions of Carbonate Saturation State on the Mississippi River Dominated Northern Gulf of Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, W. J.; Cai, W. J.; Wang, Y.; Hu, X.

2016-02-01

Carbonate saturation state (ΩAr) serves as an index of ocean acidification; however, its variation on river-dominated continental shelves remains unclear. Samples of total alkalinity (TA), dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), and nutrients were taken from nine cruises on the Mississippi and Atchafalaya River dominated continental shelf during 2006 to 2010. The distributions of TA and DIC on sea surface generally follow salinity distributions, i.e. low on the inner shelf and high on the outer shelf. The riverine calcium concentration was considered to calculate ΩAr and the result showed high ΩAr (4 to 6) along the axis of the river plume trajectory, moderate ( 4) on the surface open gulf, and low (< 3) in the deep gulf. Strong seasonal variation of ΩAr was observed in the river endmembers, high in spring and low in winter. The ΩAr variation was dominated by mixing when salinities < 18. In waters of higher salinities, deficits of DIC from the conservative mixing lines were positively correlated to deficits of NO3 and the slope of regression line was close to the Redfield ratio after removing data affected by unbalanced Si and N. The fact that ΩAr was highly correlated to ΔDIC suggests that ΩAr was dominated by biological activity. Finally, model simulations suggest that the effect of increasing riverine TA (increasing ΩAr in low salinities zone) and the effect of decreasing riverine nitrate flux (decreasing ΩAr in middle-to-high salinities zone) on ΩAr might compensate each other in this study area.

Allergic rhinitis: prevalence and possible risk factors in a Gulf Arab population.

PubMed

Alsowaidi, S; Abdulle, A; Shehab, A; Zuberbier, T; Bernsen, R

2010-02-01

Epidemiological studies mainly from Europe, the USA and Asia indicate a high prevalence of allergic rhinitis (AR) in modern societies. However, little is known about AR among the heterogeneous population of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). To estimate the prevalence of AR and its independent risk factors in Al-Ain City, UAE. We used a validated, self-administered questionnaire modified from the ISAAC study to collect data from a two stage randomly selected sample of 10 000 school children. Overall, 7550 subjects (aged 13 years and above, siblings, and their parents) responded. We assessed the prevalence of AR (both crude and standardized prevalence of previous 12 months) as well as the independent relationship of AR with age, gender, education, nationality and family history by means of logistic regression. The response rate was 76%. A total of 6543 subjects (median age 30 years) were included in the final analysis. Self-reported prevalence of AR (having symptoms in the past 12 months) was 36%, while adjusted values for sex/age yielded a prevalence of 32%. Regression analysis revealed that AR was independently associated with family history, Arab origin, younger age, female gender and higher education. The relatively high prevalence of AR found in this study may be attributable to modernization and genetic factors. Further studies on the impact of rapid environmental and cultural changes on AR in the Arab countries are needed and currently planned in conjunction with GA(2)LEN (Global Allergy and Asthma European Network).

Unmet Primary Physicians' Needs for Allergic Rhinitis Care in Korea.

PubMed

Yang, Hyeon Jong; Kim, Young Hyo; Lee, Bora; Kong, Do Youn; Kim, Dong Kyu; Kim, Mi Ae; Kim, Bong Seong; Kim, Won Young; Kim, Jeong Hee; Park, Yang; Park, So Yeon; Bae, Woo Yong; Song, Keejae; Yang, Min Suk; Lee, Sang Min; Lee, Young Mok; Lee, Hyun Jong; Cho, Jae Hong; Jee, Hye Mi; Choi, Jeong Hee; Yoo, Young; Koh, Young Il

2017-05-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is one of the most common chronic allergic respiratory diseases worldwide. Various practical guidelines for AR have been developed and updated to improve the care of AR patients; however, up to 40% patients remain symptomatic. The unmet need for AR care is one of the greatest public health problems in the world. The gaps between guideline and real-world practice, and differences according to the region, culture, and medical environments may be the causes of unmet needs for AR care. Because there is no evidence-based AR practical guideline reflecting the Korean particularity, various needs are increasing. The purpose of the study was to evaluate whether existing guidelines are sufficient for AR patient management in real practice and whether development of regional guidelines to reflect regional differences is needed in Korea. A total of 99 primary physicians comprising internists, pediatricians, and otolaryngologists (n=33 for each) were surveyed by a questionnaire relating to unmet needs for AR care between June 2 and June 16 of 2014. Among 39 question items, participants strongly agreed on 15 items that existing guidelines were highly insufficient and needed new guidelines. However, there was some disagreement according to specialties for another 24 items. In conclusion, the survey results demonstrated that many physicians did not agree with the current AR guideline, and a new guideline reflecting Korean particularity was needed. Copyright © 2017 The Korean Academy of Asthma, Allergy and Clinical Immunology · The Korean Academy of Pediatric Allergy and Respiratory Disease.

3D Assessment of Features Associated With Transvalvular Aortic Regurgitation After TAVR: A Real-Time 3D TEE Study.

PubMed

Shibayama, Kentaro; Mihara, Hirotsugu; Jilaihawi, Hasan; Berdejo, Javier; Harada, Kenji; Itabashi, Yuji; Siegel, Robert; Makkar, Raj R; Shiota, Takahiro

2016-02-01

This study of 3-dimensional (3D) transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) aimed to demonstrate features associated with transvalvular aortic regurgitation (AR) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and to confirm the fact that a gap between the native aortic annulus and prosthesis is associated with paravalvular AR. The mechanism of AR after TAVR, particularly that of transvalvular AR, has not been evaluated adequately. All patients with severe aortic stenosis who underwent TAVR with the Sapien device (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, California) had 3D TEE of the pre-procedural native aortic annulus and the post-procedural prosthetic valve. In the 201 patients studied, the total AR was mild in 67 patients (33%), moderate in 21 patients (10%), and severe in no patients. There were 20 patients with transvalvular AR and 82 patients with paravalvular AR. Fourteen patients had both transvalvular and paravalvular AR. Patients with transvalvular AR had larger prosthetic expansion (p <0.05), a more elliptical prosthetic shape at the prosthetic commissure level (p <0.01) and more anti-anatomical position (p <0.001), which was defined as malposition of the prosthetic commissures in relation to the native commissures, than the patients without transvalvular AR. Age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01 to 1.09; p < 0.05) and effective area oversizing (OR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.93 to 0.99, p <0.05) were associated with mild or greater paravalvular AR. 3D TEE successfully demonstrated the features associated with transvalvular AR, such as large prosthetic expansion, elliptical prosthetic shape, and anti-anatomical position of prosthesis. Additionally, effective area oversizing was associated with paravalvular AR. Copyright © 2016 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Atmospheric metal pollution records in the Kovářská Bog (Czech Republic) as an indicator of anthropogenic activities over the last three millennia.

PubMed

Bohdálková, Leona; Bohdálek, Petr; Břízová, Eva; Pacherová, Petra; Kuběna, Aleš Antonín

2018-08-15

Three peat cores were extracted from the Kovářská Bog in the central Ore Mountains to study anthropogenic pollution generated by mining and metallurgy. The core profiles were 14 C dated, and concentrations of selected elements were determined by ICP MS and HG-AAS. Principal component analysis indicated that Pb, Cu, As and Ag may be useful elements for the reconstruction of historical atmospheric pollution. Total and anthropogenic accumulation rates (ARs) of Pb, Cu and As estimated for the last ca. 3500years showed similar chronologies, and revealed twelve periods of elevated ARs of Pb, As and Cu related to possible mining and metallurgic activities. In total, four periods of elevated ARs of Pb, Cu and As were detected during the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, including a distinct Late Bronze Age pollution event between 1030BCE and 910BCE. The Iron Age included three episodes of increased ARs of Pb and As; the first and the most distinctive episode, recorded between 730 and 440BCE, was simultaneous with the Bylany culture during the Hallstatt Period. The Roman Age was characterized by one pollution event, two events were detected in the Middle Ages, and the last two during the modern period. Enhanced element ARs in the late 12th and 15th centuries clearly documented the onset of two periods of intense mining in the Ore Mountains. Metal ARs culminated in ca. 1600CE, and subsequently decreased after the beginning of the Thirty Years' War. The last boom of mining between 1700CE and 1830CE represented the last period of important metallurgical operations. Late Medieval and modern period metal ARs are in good agreement with written documents. Earlier pollution peaks suggest that local metal production could have a much longer tradition than commonly believed; however, archaeological or written evidence is scarce or lacking. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A codon-usage variant in the (GGN){sub n} trinucleotide polymorphism of the androgen receptor gene as an aid in the prenatal diagnosis of ambiguous genitalia due to partial androgen insensitivity

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

Lumbroso, R.; Vasiliou, M.; Beitel, L.K.

1994-09-01

Exon 1 at the X-linked androgen receptor (AR) locus encodes an N-terminal modulatory domain that contains two large homopolyamino acid tracts: (CAG;glutamine;Gln){sub 11-33} and (GGN;Glycine;Cly){sub 15-27}. Certain AR mutations cause partial androgen insensitivity (PAI) with frank genital ambiguity that may engender appreciable parental anxiety and patient morbidity. If the AR mutation in a PAI family is unknown, the AR`s intragenic trinucleotide repeat polymorphisms may be used for prenatal diagnosis. However, intergenerational instability of repeat-size may be worrisome, particularly when the information alleles differ by only a few repeats. Here, we report the discovery of a codon-usage (silent substitution) variant inmore » the GGN repeat, and describe its use as a source of complementary information for prenatal diagnosis. The standard sense sequence of the (GGN){sub n} tract is (GGT){sub 3} GGG(GGT){sub 2} (GGC){sub 9-21}. On 4 of 27 X chromosomes we noted that the internal GGT sequence was expanded to 3 or 4 repeats. We used an internal (GGT){sub 4} repeat in a total (GGN){sub 24} tract together with a (CAG){sub 20} tract to distinguish an X chromosome with a mutant AR allele from another X chromosome, bearing a normal allele, that had an internal (GGT){sub 2} repeat in a total (GGN){sub 23} tract together with a (CAG){sub 21} tract. Subsequently, we found the base change leading to a pathogenic amino acid substitution (M779I) in codon 6 of the mutant AR gene in an affected maternal aunt and the fetus at risk. This confirmed the prenatal diagnosis based on the intragenic trinucleotide repeat polymorphisms, and it strengthened the prediction of external genital ambiguity using our previous experience with M779I in another family.« less

Medium-Index Mixed-Oxide Layers for Use in AR-Coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ganner, Peter

1986-10-01

Ttedesign philosophy of MC-AR-Coatings can be divided into two categories: a) Restriction to two film materials, namely one high-index and one low-index material and b) Use of medium-index layers in addition to high- and low-index layers. Both philosophies have advan-tages and drawbacks. In case a) the total number of layers necessary to obtain a required reflectance curve has to be higher. Thus in case of production errors it can be a problem to find out which layer was responsible for a deviation of the measured reflectance from the nominal one. In case b) using more than two materials reduces the total number of layers and consequently, pinpointing the cause of even small production errors is made simpler. Unfortunately there are not many materials commercially available which can be used to make hard, durable and robust films in the medium-index range namely between n=1.65 and n=2.00. In this paper the results of homogeneous mixtures of Alumina (Al203) and Tantala (Ta205) used for EB-gun evaporated medium-index films in AR-coatings is presented. It is shown that by proper adjustment of the weight percentages of the oxide mixture one can get homogeneous films in this index range. A number of design examples show the favourable application of such layers in AR-coatings. Among the most important ones is the well known QHQ-design for BBAR-coatings as well as AR-designs of the multiple half wave type with extended bandwidth. Further applications of the mixed-oxide layers are AR-coatings for cemented optical elements and beam splitters.

The use of augmented reality glasses in central line simulation: “see one, simulate many, do one competently, and teach everyone”

PubMed Central

Huang, Cynthia Y; Thomas, Jonathan B; Alismail, Abdullah; Cohen, Avi; Almutairi, Waleed; Daher, Noha S; Terry, Michael H; Tan, Laren D

2018-01-01

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of using augmented reality (AR) glasses in central line simulation by novice operators and compare its efficacy to standard central line simulation/teaching. Design This was a prospective randomized controlled study enrolling 32 novice operators. Subjects were randomized on a 1:1 basis to either simulation using the augmented virtual reality glasses or simulation using conventional instruction. Setting The study was conducted in tertiary-care urban teaching hospital. Subjects A total of 32 adult novice central line operators with no visual or auditory impairments were enrolled. Medical doctors, respiratory therapists, and sleep technicians were recruited from the medical field. Measurements and main results The mean time for AR placement in the AR group was 71±43 s, and the time to internal jugular (IJ) cannulation was 316±112 s. There was no significant difference in median (minimum, maximum) time (seconds) to IJ cannulation for those who were in the AR group and those who were not (339 [130, 550] vs 287 [35, 475], p=0.09), respectively. There was also no significant difference between the two groups in median total procedure time (524 [329, 792] vs 469 [198, 781], p=0.29), respectively. There was a significant difference in the adherence level between the two groups favoring the AR group (p=0.003). Conclusion AR simulation of central venous catheters in manikins is feasible and efficacious in novice operators as an educational tool. Future studies are recommended in this area as it is a promising area of medical education. PMID:29785148

[The effect of 18β-sodium glycyrrhetinic acid on the nasal mucosa epithelial cilia in rat models of allergic rhinitis].

PubMed

Yang, Jing; Xi, Kehu; Gui, Yan; Wang, Youhu; Zhang, Fuhong; Ma, Chunxia; Hong, Hao; Liu, Xiangyi; Meng, Nannan; Zhang, Xiaobing

2015-12-01

To investigate 18β-sodium glycyrrhetinic acid impact on nasal mucosa epithelial cilia in rat models of allergic rhinitis (AR). AR models were established by ovalbumin-induction. Wister rats were randomly divided into groups as normal group, model group, budesonide (0.2 mg/kg) group and sodium glycyrrhetinic acid (20 mg/kg and 40 mg/kg) group after the success of AR models. At 2 weeks and 4 weeks after treatment, the behavioral changes of rats were observed and recorded, and nasal septum mucosae were collected after 2 week and 4 week intervention, and the morphological changes of nasal mucosae were observed by electron microscope. Model group developed typical AR symptoms, the total score in all animals was > 5. With budesonide and sodium glycyrrhetinic acid treatment, the AR symptoms were relieved, and the total scores were reduced significantly (P < 0.01). Compared with the model group: after 2 weeks' intervention, thick mucous secretions on the top of columnar epithelium cilia in rat nasal mucosa was significantly reduced, and cilia adhesion, lodging, shedding were relieved in budesonide group and sodium glycyrrhetinic acid group, the relieve in budesonide group was slightly better than that in sodium glycyrrhetinic acid group; after 4 week intervention, Cilia adhesion, lodging, shedding were completely vanished, and the cilia were ranged in regular direction in budesonide group and sodium glycyrrhetinic acid group. Cilia in sodium glycyrrhetinic acid (20 mg/kg) group was more orderly, smooth than that in budesonide group and sodium glycyrrhetinic acid group (40 mg/kg), and the condition of cilia in sodium glycyrrhetinic acid group (20 mg/kg) was similar to the normal group. 18β-sodium glycyrrhetinic acid is effective to restrain the pathological changes of nasal mucosa cilia in rat models of AR.

Adiponectin-resistin index and its strong association with acute coronary syndrome in South Indian men.

PubMed

Singh, Prerna; Sridhar, M G; Rajappa, Medha; Balachander, J; Kadhiravan, Tamilarasu

2014-11-01

India has the highest burden of acute coronary syndromes worldwide. Apart from certain lipid alterations that have been established to be definite risk factors, low level of adiponectin, high levels of resistin, and IL-6 have been shown to be risk factors for cardiovascular events. Insulin resistance is also a significant predictor of poor outcome in patients admitted with ACS. 69 male patients with ACS and 70 age-matched healthy males were recruited in the study. Insulin, total adiponectin, resistin, and IL-6 levels were assayed in all study subjects. Indices of insulin resistance and novel adipokine indices were calculated using standard formulae. Multiple logistic regression analysis was done to find out the best predictor of ACS. Resistin, IL-6, insulin resistance indices, AR index, and IRAR index were found to be significantly higher, while insulin sensitivity indices and total adiponectin were found to be lower in cases, as compared with controls (p < 0.001). Insulin resistance was found to be higher in the admission sample, when compared to the fasting sample in patients with ACS (p = 0.01). On multivariate logistic regression analysis, HOMA-IR and AR index were found to be significantly associated with ACS. AR index was the best independent predictor of ACS, with the highest odds ratio (AR index: adjusted OR 17.528, p < 0.0001 versus HOMA-IR: adjusted OR 1.146, p = 0.001). The present results implicate that adipokines are significantly associated with pathogenesis of ACS, warranting adequate and early appropriate treatment to reverse this metabolic dysregulation. In our study, AR index was the best predictor of ACS. Hence, the novel AR index might be useful in routine clinical practice for screening persons with increased risk of future development of ACS.

Bioremediation of petroleum-contaminated soil using aged refuse from landfills.

PubMed

Liu, Qingmei; Li, Qibin; Wang, Ning; Liu, Dan; Zan, Li; Chang, Le; Gou, Xuemei; Wang, Peijin

2018-05-10

This study explored the effects and mechanisms of petroleum-contaminated soil bioremediation using aged refuse (AR) from landfills. Three treatments of petroleum-contaminated soil (47.28 mg·g -1 ) amended with AR, sterilized aged refuse (SAR) and petroleum-contaminated soil only (as a control) were tested. During 98 days of incubation, changes in soil physicochemical properties, residual total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH), biodegradation kinetics, enzyme activities and the microbial community were investigated. The results demonstrated that AR was an effective soil conditioner and biostimulation agent that could comprehensively improve the quality of petroleum-contaminated soil and promote microbial growth, with an 74.64% TPH removal rate, 22.36 day half-life for SAR treatment, compared with the control (half-life: 138.63 days; TPH removal rate: 22.40%). In addition, the petroleum-degrading bacteria isolation results demonstrated that AR was also a petroleum-degrading microbial agent containing abundant microorganisms. AR addition significantly improved both the biotic and abiotic conditions of petroleum-contaminated soil without other additives. The cooperation of conditioner addition, biostimulation and bioaugmentation in AR treatment led to better bioremediation effects (half-life: 13.86 days; TPH removal rate: 89.83%). In conclusion, AR amendment is a cost-effective, easy-to-use method facilitating in situ large-scale application while simultaneously recycling huge amounts of AR from landfills. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mantle rare gas relative abundances in a steady-state mass transport model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Porcelli, D.; Wasserburg, G. J.

1994-01-01

A model for He and Xe was presented previously which incorporates mass transfer of rare gases from an undegassed lower mantle (P) and the atmosphere into a degassed upper mantle (D). We extend the model to include Ne and Ar. Model constraints on rare gas relative abundances within P are derived. Discussions of terrestrial volatile acquisition have focused on the rare gas abundance pattern of the atmosphere relative to meteoritic components, and the pattern of rare gases still trapped in the Ear,th is important in identifying volatile capture and loss processes operating during Earth formation. The assumptions and principles of the model are discussed in Wasserburg and Porcelli (this volume). For P, the concentrations in P of the decay/nuclear products 4 He, 21 Ne, 40 Ar, and 136 Xe can be calculated from the concentrations of the parent elements U, Th, K, and Pu. The total concentration of the daughter element in P is proportional to the isotopic shifts in P. For Ar, ((40)Ar/(36)Ar)p - ((40)Ar/(36)Ar)o =Delta (exp 40) p= 40 Cp/(exp 36)C where(i)C(sub j) the concentration of isotope i in j. In D, isotope compositions are the result of mixing rare gases from P, decay/nuclear products generated in the upper mantle, and subducted rare gases (for Ar and Xe).

In Situ Dating Experiments of Igneous Rocks Using the KArLE Instrument: A Case Study for Approximately 380 Ma Basaltic Rocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cho, Yuichiro; Cohen, Barbara A.

2018-01-01

We report new K-Ar isochron data for two approximately 380 Ma basaltic rocks, using an updated version of the Potassium-Argon Laser Experiment (KArLE). These basalts have K contents comparable to lunar KREEP basalts or igneous lithologies found by Mars rovers, whereas previous proof-of-concept studies focused primarily on more K-rich rocks. We continue to measure these analogue samples to show the advancing capability of in situ K-Ar geochronology. KArLE is applicable to other bodies including the Moon or asteroids.

A Mixed Method Study of the Effectiveness of the Accelerated Reader Program on Middle School Students' Reading Achievement and Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, SuHua

2012-01-01

The mixed-method explanatory research design was employed to investigate the effectiveness of the Accelerated Reader (AR) program on middle school students' reading achievement and motivation. A total of 211 sixth to eighth-grade students provided quantitative data by completing an AR Survey. Thirty of the 211 students were randomly selected to…

The impact of seawater saturation state and bicarbonate ion concentration on calcification by new recruits of two Atlantic corals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Putron, S. J.; McCorkle, D. C.; Cohen, A. L.; Dillon, A. B.

2011-06-01

Rising concentrations of atmospheric CO2 are changing the carbonate chemistry of the oceans, a process known as ocean acidification (OA). Absorption of this CO2 by the surface oceans is increasing the amount of total dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and bicarbonate ion (HCO3 -) available for marine calcification yet is simultaneously lowering the seawater pH and carbonate ion concentration ([CO3 2-]), and thus the saturation state of seawater with respect to aragonite (Ωar). We investigated the relative importance of [HCO3 -] versus [CO3 2-] for early calcification by new recruits (primary polyps settled from zooxanthellate larvae) of two tropical coral species, Favia fragum and Porites astreoides. The polyps were reared over a range of Ωar values, which were manipulated by both acid-addition at constant pCO2 (decreased total [HCO3 -] and [CO3 2-]) and by pCO2 elevation at constant alkalinity (increased [HCO3 -], decreased [CO3 2-]). Calcification after 2 weeks was quantified by weighing the complete skeleton (corallite) accreted by each polyp over the course of the experiment. Both species exhibited the same negative response to decreasing [CO3 2-] whether Ωar was lowered by acid-addition or by pCO2 elevation—calcification did not follow total DIC or [HCO3 -]. Nevertheless, the calcification response to decreasing [CO3 2-] was nonlinear. A statistically significant decrease in calcification was only detected between Ωar = <2.5 and Ωar = 1.1-1.5, where calcification of new recruits was reduced by 22-37% per 1.0 decrease in Ωar. Our results differ from many previous studies that report a linear coral calcification response to OA, and from those showing that calcification increases with increasing [HCO3 -]. Clearly, the coral calcification response to OA is variable and complex. A deeper understanding of the biomineralization mechanisms and environmental conditions underlying these variable responses is needed to support informed predictions about future OA impacts on corals and coral reefs.

Modulations of the surface magnetic field on the intra-cycle variability of total solar irradiance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, J. C.; Kong, D. F.; Li, F. Y.

2018-05-01

Solar photospheric magnetic field plays a dominant role in the variability of total solar irradiance (TSI). The modulation of magnetic flux at six specific ranges on TSI is characterized for the first time. The daily flux values of magnetic field at four ranges are extracted from MDI/ SOHO, together with daily flux of active regions (MF_{ar}) and quiet regions (MF_{qr}); the first four ranges (MF_{1-4}) are: 1.5-2.9, 2.9-32.0, 32.0-42.7, and 42.7-380.1 (× 10^{18} Mx per element), respectively. Cross-correlograms show that MF4, MF_{qr}, and MF_{ ar} are positively correlated with TSI, while MF2 is negatively correlated with TSI; the correlations between MF1, MF3 and TSI are insignificant. The bootstrapping tests confirm that the impact of MF4 on TSI is more significant than that of MF_{ar} and MF_{qr}, and MF_{ar} leads TSI by one rotational period. By extracting the rotational variations in the MFs and TSI, the modulations of the former on the latter at the solar rotational timescale are clearly illustrated and compared during solar maximum and minimum times, respectively. Comparison of the relative amplitudes of the long-term variation show that TSI is in good agreement with the variation of MF4 and MF_{ar}; besides, MF2 is in antiphase with TSI, and it lags the latter by about 1.5 years.

Validation of the Arabic version of the score for allergic rhinitis tool.

PubMed

Alharethy, Sami; Wedami, Mawaheb Al; Syouri, Falah; Alqabbani, Almaha A; Baqays, Abdulsalam; Mesallam, Tamer; Aldrees, Turki

2017-01-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a common inflammation of the nasal mucosa in response to allergen exposure. We translated and validated the Score for Allergic Rhinitis (SFAR) into an Arabic version so that the disease can be studied in an Arabic population. SFAR is a non-invasive self-administered tool that evaluates eight items related to AR. This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the SFAR questionnaire into Arabic, and assess the validity, consistency, and reliability of the translated version in an Arabic-speaking population of patients with suspected AR. Cross-sectional. Tertiary care hospital in Riyadh. The Arabic version of the SFAR was administered to patients with suspected AR and control participants. Comparison of the AR and control groups to determine the test-retest reliability and internal consistency of the instrument. The AR (n=173) and control (n=75) groups had significantly different Arabic SFAR scores (P < .0001). The instrument provided satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha value of 0.7). The test-retest reliability was excellent for the total Arabic SFAR score (r =0.836, P < .0001). These findings demonstrate that the Arabic version of the SFAR is a valid tool that can be used to screen Arabic speakers with suspected AR. The absence of objective allergy testing.

Unitarity in the Brout-Englert-Higgs Mechanism for Gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

't Hooft, G.

2010-12-01

DISCUSSION by CHAIRMAN: G. 't HOOFT, Scientific Secretaries: O. Lychkovskiy, P. Putrov Note from Publisher: The Contents of the Lecture: "Unitarity in the Brout-Englert-Higgs Mechanism for Gravity" can be found at arXiv:0708.3184 (hep-th). Unpublished.

Re-examining the surfaces of bone in boys and girls during adolescent growth: a 12-year mixed longitudinal pQCT study

PubMed Central

Gabel, Leigh; Nettlefold, Lindsay; Brasher, Penelope M.; Moore, Sarah; Ahamed, Yasmin; Macdonald, Heather M.; McKay, Heather A.

2016-01-01

We revisit Stanley Garn’s theory related to sex differences in endocortical and periosteal apposition during adolescence using a 12-year mixed longitudinal study design. We used peripheral quantitative computed tomography to examine bone parameters in 230 participants (110 boys, 120 girls; 11.0 yrs at baseline). We assessed total (Tt.Ar, mm2), cortical (Ct.Ar, mm2), and medullary canal area (Me.Ar, mm2), Ct.Ar/Tt.Ar, cortical bone mineral density (Ct.BMD, mg/cm3) and polar strength-strain index (SSIp, mm3) at the tibial midshaft (50% site). We used annual measures of height and chronological age to identify age at peak height velocity (APHV) for each participant. We compared annual accrual rates of bone parameters between boys and girls, aligned on APHV using a linear mixed effects model. At APHV, boys demonstrated greater Tt.Ar (Ratio: 1.27; 95% CI: [1.21, 1.32]), Ct.Ar (1.24; [1.18, 1.30]), Me.Ar (1.31; [1.22, 1.40]) and SSIp (1.36; [1.28, 1.45]), and less Ct.Ar/Tt.Ar (0.98; [0.96, 1.00]) and Ct.BMD (0.97; [0.96, 0.97]) compared with girls. Boys and girls demonstrated periosteal bone formation and net bone loss at the endocortical surface. Compared with girls, boys demonstrated greater annual accrual rates pre-APHV for Tt.Ar (1.18; [1.02, 1.34]) and Me.Ar (1.34; [1.11, 1.57]), lower annual accrual rates pre-APHV for Ct.Ar/Tt.Ar (0.56; [0.29, 0.83]) and Ct.BMD (−0.07; [−0.17, 0.04]) and similar annual accrual rates pre-APHV for Ct.Ar (1.10; [0.94, 1.26]) and SSIp (1.14; [0.98, 1.30]). Post-APHV, boys demonstrated similar annual accrual rates for Ct.Ar/Tt.Ar (1.01; [0.71, 1.31]) and greater annual accrual rates for all other bone parameters compared with girls (Ratio: 1.23 – 2.63; 95% CI: 1.11 to 3.45). Our findings support those of Garn and others of accelerated periosteal apposition during adolescence, more evident in boys than girls. However, our findings challenge the notion of greater endocortical apposition in girls, suggesting instead that girls experience diminished endocortical resorption compared with boys. PMID:26058373

Geology and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the medium- to high-K Tanaga volcanic cluster, western Aleutians

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jicha, Brian R.; Coombs, Michelle L.; Calvert, Andrew T.; Singer, Brad S.

2012-01-01

We used geologic mapping and geochemical data augmented by 40Ar/39Ar dating to establish an eruptive chronology for the Tanaga volcanic cluster in the western Aleutian arc. The Tanaga volcanic cluster is unique in comparison to other central and western Aleutian volcanoes in that it consists of three closely spaced, active, volumetrically significant edifices (Sajaka, Tanaga, and Takawangha), the eruptive products of which have unusually high K2O contents. Thirty-five new 40Ar/39Ar ages obtained in two different laboratories constrain the duration of Pleistocene–Holocene subaerial volcanism to younger than 295 ka. The eruptive activity has been mostly continuous for the last 150 k.y., unlike most other well-characterized arc volcanoes, which tend to grow in discrete pulses. More than half of the analyzed Tanaga volcanic cluster lavas are basalts that have erupted throughout the lifetime of the cluster, although a considerable amount of basaltic andesite and basaltic trachyandesite has also been produced since 200 ka. Major- and trace-element variations suggest that magmas from Sajaka and Tanaga volcanoes are likely to have crystallized pyroxene and/or amphibole at greater depths than the older Takawangha magmas, which experienced a larger percentage of plagioclase-dominated fractionation at shallower depths. Magma output from Takawangha has declined over the last 86 k.y. At ca. 19 ka, the focus of magma flux shifted to the west beneath Tanaga and Sajaka volcanoes, where hotter, more mafic magma erupted.

Nasal allergies in the Middle Eastern population: results from the "Allergies in Middle East Survey".

PubMed

Abdulrahman, Hussain; Hadi, Usamah; Tarraf, Hisham; Gharagozlou, Mohammad; Kamel, Mohamed; Soliman, Alaa; Hamad, Walid Abou; Hanna, Kamal Maurice; Mostafa, Badr Eldin; Omrani, Mohammádreza; Abdelmotal, Abdelfatah; Moukarzel, Nabil

2012-01-01

Chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and allergic rhinitis (AR) are a major public health problem in developing countries including those in the Middle East. However, to date, there is a paucity of information related to physician-diagnosed AR in this region. The Allergies in Middle East Survey was undertaken to help clarify and broaden the understanding of physician-diagnosed AR across Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The survey explores the frequency of physician-diagnosed AR, prevalence and types of associated symptoms, the impact on quality of life (QOL), current treatment practices, and therapy expectations. In total, 7411 households in five countries (Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates) were screened to identify individuals that were ≥4 years old with a physician diagnosis of AR and either symptoms and/or treatment in the past 12 months. A total of 501 respondents from the five countries completed the survey. Standardized questionnaires were used to make comparisons across the regions; however, the data collection procedures were tailored for each country. The sample was probability based to ensure valid statistical inference to the population. Ten percent of the Middle East population surveyed had a physician diagnosis of AR, with 65% of respondents stating that their allergies were intermittent in nature. An otolaryngologist or allergist diagnosed the majority of the individuals surveyed. Runny nose, nasal and throat itching, postnasal drip, and nasal congestion or stuffed up nose were the most common and bothersome symptoms of AR. The majority of survey participants (58% of the overall survey population) with AR reported that the condition had an impact on their daily private and professional life. Seventy-two percent of adults reported that their AR symptoms limited their work/school activities and 35% reported that their AR interfered with and caused them to miss work or school within the past 12 months. One factor, in addition to the outward AR symptoms, that could have contributed to these function impairments may have been sleep disturbances. Although a secondary symptom to AR, sleep disturbances (difficulty getting to sleep, waking up during the night or lack of a good night's sleep) were shown in this survey to be extremely troubling in ∼15% of AR sufferers. In the past year >90% of patients reported taking a medication of any type for their AR, with nearly a 4:1 ratio of patients taking a prescription medication versus an over-the-counter (OTC) medication in the past 4 weeks. Over 75% of survey respondents reported taking an intranasal corticosteroid (INCS) in the last 4 weeks and the satisfaction rate of INCS medications was similar to that reported for OTC medications. The most common reasons cited for dissatisfaction with INCS medications were inadequate effectiveness, bothersome side effects (e.g., unpleasant taste and retrograde drainage into the pharynx), decreased effectiveness with chronic use, and failure to provide 24-hour relief. These data show that AR is common in the Middle East region as elsewhere in the world. Many patients with AR in Middle East region suffer from their symptoms (e.g., runny nose, nasal itching, nasal congestion, postnasal drip, and other symptoms) on all or most days during the times of the year that their allergies are worst. These symptoms have been shown to reduce QOL and performance at work/school to a significant degree. Additionally, the survey data underscore a considerable treatment gap with current therapies for AR and that many AR patients still have not found adequate effectiveness with currently available medications. Thus, through identification of disease impact on the Middle East population and highlighting treatment gaps, clinicians in the Middle East may better understand and treat AR, leading to improvements in overall patient satisfaction and QOL.

Nasal allergies in the Middle Eastern population: Results from the "Allergies in Middle East Survey".

PubMed

Abdulrahman, Hussain; Hadi, Usamah; Tarraf, Hisham; Gharagozlou, Mohammad; Kamel, Mohamed; Soliman, Alaa; Hamad, Walid Abou; Hanna, Kamal Maurice; Mostafa, Badr Eldin; Omrani, Mohammádreza; Abdelmotal, Abdelfatah; Moukarzel, Nabil

2012-11-01

Chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and allergic rhinitis (AR) are a major public health problem in developing countries including those in the Middle East. However, to date, there is a paucity of information related to physician-diagnosed AR in this region. The Allergies in Middle East Survey was undertaken to help clarify and broaden the understanding of physician-diagnosed AR across Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The survey explores the frequency of physician-diagnosed AR, prevalence and types of associated symptoms, the impact on quality of life (QOL), current treatment practices, and therapy expectations. In total, 7411 households in five countries (Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates) were screened to identify individuals that were ≥4 years old with a physician diagnosis of AR and either symptoms and/or treatment in the past 12 months. A total of 501 respondents from the five countries completed the survey. Standardized questionnaires were used to make comparisons across the regions; however, the data collection procedures were tailored for each country. The sample was probability based to ensure valid statistical inference to the population. Ten percent of the Middle East population surveyed had a physician diagnosis of AR, with 65% of respondents stating that their allergies were intermittent in nature. An otolaryngologist or allergist diagnosed the majority of the individuals surveyed. Runny nose, nasal and throat itching, postnasal drip, and nasal congestion or stuffed up nose were the most common and bothersome symptoms of AR. The majority of survey participants (58% of the overall survey population) with AR reported that the condition had an impact on their daily private and professional life. Seventy-two percent of adults reported that their AR symptoms limited their work/school activities and 35% reported that their AR interfered with and caused them to miss work or school within the past 12 months. One factor, in addition to the outward AR symptoms, that could have contributed to these function impairments may have been sleep disturbances. Although a secondary symptom to AR, sleep disturbances (difficulty getting to sleep, waking up during the night or lack of a good night's sleep) were shown in this survey to be extremely troubling in ∼15% of AR sufferers. In the past year >90% of patients reported taking a medication of any type for their AR, with nearly a 4:1 ratio of patients taking a prescription medication versus an over-the-counter (OTC) medication in the past 4 weeks. Over 75% of survey respondents reported taking an intranasal corticosteroid (INCS) in the last 4 weeks and the satisfaction rate of INCS medications was similar to that reported for OTC medications. The most common reasons cited for dissatisfaction with INCS medications were inadequate effectiveness, bothersome side effects (e.g., unpleasant taste and retrograde drainage into the pharynx), decreased effectiveness with chronic use, and failure to provide 24-hour relief. These data show that AR is common in the Middle East region as elsewhere in the world. Many patients with AR in Middle East region suffer from their symptoms (e.g., runny nose, nasal itching, nasal congestion, postnasal drip, and other symptoms) on all or most days during the times of the year that their allergies are worst. These symptoms have been shown to reduce QOL and performance at work/school to a significant degree. Additionally, the survey data underscore a considerable treatment gap with current therapies for AR and that many AR patients still have not found adequate effectiveness with currently available medications. Thus, through identification of disease impact on the Middle East population and highlighting treatment gaps, clinicians in the Middle East may better understand and treat AR, leading to improvements in overall patient satisfaction and QOL.

K-Ar chronology of the Luohe iron district, Anhui Province, China

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKee, E.H.

1988-01-01

Twelve samples of rock from the four mapped units or cycles and one of the major intrusive bodies were collected and evaluated for K-Ar age determination. These include specimens from outcrop and from drill core. Biotite from two outcrop and two core samples and hornblende from one outcrop sample were separated from the sample and dated; a sixth sample was dated using crushed, sieved, and acid-treated whole rock. The ages and analytical data to support them are compatible with the observed relationships in the field or from the drill holes. The percent of K2O in all samples is typical of fresh unaltered mineral phases and the percent of radiogenetic 40Ar relative to total 40Ar is high (88.8 to 63.8%) yielding relatively low analytical errors. -from Authors

Effects of dietary habits and risk factors on allergic rhinitis prevalence among Turkish adolescents.

PubMed

Tamay, Zeynep; Akcay, Ahmet; Ergin, Ahmet; Guler, Nermin

2013-09-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a global health problem affecting many people from childhood to adulthood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of AR and related symptoms, and to assess the risk factors, dietary habits and the Mediterranean diet affecting AR. In a cross-sectional study design, 9991 children, aged 13-14 years in 61 primary schools in 32 districts of Istanbul were evaluated. The prevalence of AR symptoms among the children was evaluated using the ISAAC protocol. In our study, total of 10,984 questionnaires were distributed to 13-14yr-old schoolchildren to 61 schools in 32 district of Istanbul and 9991 questionnaires were suitable for analysis with an overall response of 91.7%. The rates of lifetime rhinitis, rhinitis in last 12 months and lifetime doctor diagnosed AR prevalence were 53.5%, 38.3% and 4.5%, respectively. The variation among districts in the prevalence of doctor diagnosed AR was very high. The highest prevalence was about 10 times higher than in the district with the lowest prevalence (range: 1.4-14.5) of Istanbul. A family history of atopy, mother with a university degree, presence of cat at home during last 12 months and adenoidectomy were significant for increased doctor diagnosed AR risk. Additionally, although fish and other sea foods, fermented drinks made from millets and various seeds, animal fats and butter were independent risk factors for doctor diagnosed AR, fish oil and hamburger were protective foods for doctor diagnosed AR. The MD was not associated with the prevalence of doctor diagnosed AR. This study shows that that there are wide variations for the prevalence of AR related symptoms in 13-14yr-old schoolchildren among districts of Istanbul in Turkey. Socio-economical, environmental factors, some dietary habits, but not Mediterranean diet may affect the prevalence of AR. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Augmented reality in a tumor resection model.

PubMed

Chauvet, Pauline; Collins, Toby; Debize, Clement; Novais-Gameiro, Lorraine; Pereira, Bruno; Bartoli, Adrien; Canis, Michel; Bourdel, Nicolas

2018-03-01

Augmented Reality (AR) guidance is a technology that allows a surgeon to see sub-surface structures, by overlaying pre-operative imaging data on a live laparoscopic video. Our objectives were to evaluate a state-of-the-art AR guidance system in a tumor surgical resection model, comparing the accuracy of the resection with and without the system. Our system has three phases. Phase 1: using the MRI images, the kidney's and pseudotumor's surfaces are segmented to construct a 3D model. Phase 2: the intra-operative 3D model of the kidney is computed. Phase 3: the pre-operative and intra-operative models are registered, and the laparoscopic view is augmented with the pre-operative data. We performed a prospective experimental study on ex vivo porcine kidneys. Alginate was injected into the parenchyma to create pseudotumors measuring 4-10 mm. The kidneys were then analyzed by MRI. Next, the kidneys were placed into pelvictrainers, and the pseudotumors were laparoscopically resected. The AR guidance system allows the surgeon to see tumors and margins using classical laparoscopic instruments, and a classical screen. The resection margins were measured microscopically to evaluate the accuracy of resection. Ninety tumors were segmented: 28 were used to optimize the AR software, and 62 were used to randomly compare surgical resection: 29 tumors were resected using AR and 33 without AR. The analysis of our pathological results showed 4 failures (tumor with positive margins) (13.8%) in the AR group, and 10 (30.3%) in the Non-AR group. There was no complete miss in the AR group, while there were 4 complete misses in the non-AR group. In total, 14 (42.4%) tumors were completely missed or had a positive margin in the non-AR group. Our AR system enhances the accuracy of surgical resection, particularly for small tumors. Crucial information such as resection margins and vascularization could also be displayed.

End-of-Century Projections of North American Atmospheric River Events in CMIP5 Climate Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warner, M.; Mass, C.; Salathe, E. P., Jr.

2014-12-01

Most extreme precipitation events that occur along the North American west coast are associated with narrow plumes of above-average water vapor concentration that stretch from the tropics or subtropics to the West Coast. These events generally occur during the wet season (October-March) and are referred to as atmospheric rivers (AR). ARs can cause major river management problems, damage from flooding or landslides, and loss of life. It is expected that anthropogenic global warming could lead to thermodynamic and dynamic changes in the atmosphere, such as increases in water vapor content and, thus, precipitation, and shifts in the climatological jet stream. Since AR events are associated with extreme values of integrated water vapor (IWV) near the West Coast, increases in IWV could impact the intensity of AR events intersecting the coast. Additionally, ARs are associated with cyclonic activity that originates near and propagates along the jet stream. The jet stream configuration influences the frequency and location of AR landfall along the North American west coast. It is probable that any changes in the general circulation of the atmosphere will result in changes in the frequency, orientation, and location of AR landfalls. Global climate models have sufficient resolution to simulate synoptic features associated with AR events, such as high values of vertically integrated vapor transport (IVT) approaching the coast. Ten Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) simulations are used to identify changes in ARs impacting the west coast of North America between historical (1970-1999) and end-of-century (2070-2099) runs, using representative concentration pathway (RCP) 8.5. The most extreme ARs are identified in both time periods by the 99th percentile of IVT days along a north-south transect offshore of the coast. Integrated water vapor (IWV) and IVT are predicted to increase, while lower-tropospheric winds change little. Winter-mean precipitation along the West Coast increases by 11-18% (4-6% C-1) while precipitation on extreme IVT days increases by 15-39% (5-19% C-1). The frequency of IVT days above the historical 99th percentile threshold increases as much as 290% by the end of this century.

Fluid simulation of species concentrations in capacitively coupled N2/Ar plasmas: Effect of gas proportion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Ying-Shuang; Liu, Gang-Hu; Xue, Chan; Liu, Yong-Xin; Wang, You-Nian

2017-05-01

A two-dimensional self-consistent fluid model and the experimental diagnostic are employed to investigate the dependencies of species concentrations on the gas proportion in the capacitive N2/Ar discharges operated at 60 MHz, 50 Pa, and 140 W. The results indicate that the N2/Ar proportion has a considerable impact on the species densities. As the N2 fraction increases, the electron density, as well as the Ar+ and Arm densities, decreases remarkably. On the contrary, the N2 + density is demonstrated to increase monotonically with the N2 fraction. Moreover, the N density is observed to increase significantly with the N2 fraction at the N2 fractions below 40%, beyond which it decreases slightly. The electrons are primarily generated via the electron impact ionization of the feed gases. The electron impact ionization of Ar essentially determines the Ar+ density. For the N2 + production, the charge transition process between the Ar+ ions and the feed gas N2 dominates at low N2 fraction, while the electron impact ionization of N2 plays the more important role at high N2 fraction. At any gas mixtures, more than 60% Arm atoms are generated through the radiative decay process from Ar(4p). The dissociation of the feed gas N2 by the excited Ar atoms and by the electrons is responsible for the N formation at low N2 fraction and high N2 fraction, respectively. To validate the simulation results, the floating double probe and the optical emission spectroscopy are employed to measure the total positive ion density and the emission intensity originating from Ar(4p) transitions, respectively. The results from the simulation show a qualitative agreement with that from the experiment, which indicates the reliable model.

A meta-analysis of Th2 pathway genetic variants and risk for allergic rhinitis.

PubMed

Bunyavanich, Supinda; Shargorodsky, Josef; Celedón, Juan C

2011-06-01

There is a significant genetic contribution to allergic rhinitis (AR). Genetic association studies for AR have been performed, but varying results make it challenging to decipher the overall potential effect of specific variants. The Th2 pathway plays an important role in the immunological development of AR. We performed meta-analyses of genetic association studies of variants in Th2 pathway genes and AR. PubMed and Phenopedia were searched by double extraction for original studies on Th2 pathway-related genetic polymorphisms and their associations with AR. A meta-analysis was conducted on each genetic polymorphism with data meeting our predetermined selection criteria. Analyses were performed using both fixed and random effects models, with stratification by age group, ethnicity, and AR definition where appropriate. Heterogeneity and publication bias were assessed. Six independent studies analyzing three candidate polymorphisms and involving a total of 1596 cases and 2892 controls met our inclusion criteria. Overall, the A allele of IL13 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs20541 was associated with increased odds of AR (estimated OR=1.2; 95% CI 1.1-1.3, p-value 0.004 in fixed effects model, 95% CI 1.0-1.5, p-value 0.056 in random effects model). The A allele of rs20541 was associated with increased odds of AR in mixed age groups using both fixed effects and random effects modeling. IL13 SNP rs1800925 and IL4R SNP 1801275 did not demonstrate overall associations with AR. We conclude that there is evidence for an overall association between IL13 SNP rs20541 and increased risk of AR, especially in mixed-age populations. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Single-crystal 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating reveals bimodal sanidine ages in the Bishop Tuff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andersen, N. L.; Jicha, B. R.; Singer, B. S.

2015-12-01

The 650 km3 Bishop Tuff (BT) is among the most studied volcanic deposits because it is an extensive marker bed deposited just after the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary. Reconstructions of the vast BT magma reservoir from which high-silica rhyolite erupted have long influenced thinking about how large silicic magma systems are assembled, crystallized, and mixed. Yet, the longevity of the high silica rhyolitic melt and exact timing of the eruption remain controversial due to recent conflicting 40Ar/39Ar sanidine vs. SIMS and ID-TIMS U-Pb zircon dates. We have undertaken 21 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating ages on 2 mm BT sanidine crystals from pumice in 3 widely separated outcrops of early-erupted fall and flow units. Plateau ages yield a bimodal distribution: a younger group has a mean of 766 ka and an older group gives a range between 772 and 782 ka. The younger population is concordant with the youngest ID-TIMS and SIMS U-Pb zircon ages recently published, as well as the astronomical age of BT in marine sediment. Of 21 crystals, 17 yield older, non-plateau, steps likely affected by excess Ar that would bias traditional 40Ar/39Ar total crystal fusion ages. The small spread in older sanidine ages, together with 25+ kyr of pre-eruptive zircon growth, suggest that the older sanidines are not partially outgassed xenocrysts. A bimodal 40Ar/39Ar age distribution implies that some fraction of rhyolitic melt cooled below the Ar closure temperature at least 10 ky prior to eruption. We propose that rapid "thawing" of a crystalline mush layer released older crystals into rhyolitic melt from which sanidine also nucleated and grew immediately prior to the eruption. High precision 40Ar/39Ar dating can thus provide essential information on thermo-physical processes at the millenial time scale that are critical to interpreting U-Pb zircon age distributions that are complicated by large uncertainties associated with zircon-melt U-Th systematics.

Identification of PSEN2 mutation p.N141I in Argentine pedigrees with early-onset familial Alzheimer's disease.

PubMed

Muchnik, Carolina; Olivar, Natividad; Dalmasso, María Carolina; Azurmendi, Pablo Javier; Liberczuk, Cynthia; Morelli, Laura; Brusco, Luis Ignacio

2015-10-01

Presenilin 2 gene (PSEN2) mutations account for <5% of all early-onset familial Alzheimer's disease (EOFAD) cases and only 13 have strong evidence for pathogenicity. We aimed to investigate the presence of PSEN2 mutation p.N141I and characterize the clinical phenotypes in 2 Argentine pedigrees (AR2 and AR3) with clinical symptoms of EOFAD. Detailed clinical assessments and genetic screening for PSEN2 and APOE genes were carried out in 19 individuals of AR2 and AR3 families. The p.N141I mutation was identified in all affected subjects and was associated with prominent early onset, rapidly progressive dementia, neurologic, and behavioral symptoms. AR2 and AR3 families share the same Volga German ancestry as all the families reported presenting this mutation. To our knowledge, this is the first report of PSEN2 mutation p.N141I in Argentina and even more, in South America. Our contribution increases the total number of described families carrying this mutation and help to improve the characterization of clinical phenotype in EOFAD associated to PSEN2 mutations. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A STATISTICAL STUDY OF FLARE PRODUCTIVITY ASSOCIATED WITH SUNSPOT PROPERTIES IN DIFFERENT MAGNETIC TYPES OF ACTIVE REGIONS

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

Yang, Ya-Hui; Hsieh, Min-Shiu; Yu, Hsiu-Shan

It is often believed that intense flares preferentially originate from the large-size active regions (ARs) with strong magnetic fields and complex magnetic configurations. This work investigates the dependence of flare activity on the AR properties and clarifies the influence of AR magnetic parameters on the flare productivity, based on two data sets of daily sunspot and flare information as well as the GOES soft X-ray measurements and HMI vector magnetograms. By considering the evolution of magnetic complexity, we find that flare behaviors are quite different in the short- and long-lived complex ARs and the ARs with more complex magnetic configurationsmore » are likely to host more impulsive and intense flares. Furthermore, we investigate several magnetic quantities and perform the two-sample Kolmogorov–Smirnov test to examine the similarity/difference between two populations in different types of ARs. Our results demonstrate that the total source field strength on the photosphere has a good correlation with the flare activity in complex ARs. It is noted that intense flares tend to occur at the regions of strong source field in combination with an intermediate field-weighted shear angle. This result implies that the magnetic free energy provided by a complex AR could be high enough to trigger a flare eruption even with a moderate magnetic shear on the photosphere. We thus suggest that the magnetic free energy represented by the source field rather than the photospheric magnetic complexity is a better quantity to characterize the flare productivity of an AR, especially for the occurrence of intense flares.« less

Outcome of ABCA4 disease-associated alleles in autosomal recessive retinal dystrophies: retrospective analysis in 420 Spanish families.

PubMed

Riveiro-Alvarez, Rosa; Lopez-Martinez, Miguel-Angel; Zernant, Jana; Aguirre-Lamban, Jana; Cantalapiedra, Diego; Avila-Fernandez, Almudena; Gimenez, Ascension; Lopez-Molina, Maria-Isabel; Garcia-Sandoval, Blanca; Blanco-Kelly, Fiona; Corton, Marta; Tatu, Sorina; Fernandez-San Jose, Patricia; Trujillo-Tiebas, Maria-Jose; Ramos, Carmen; Allikmets, Rando; Ayuso, Carmen

2013-11-01

To provide a comprehensive overview of all detected mutations in the ABCA4 gene in Spanish families with autosomal recessive retinal disorders, including Stargardt's disease (arSTGD), cone-rod dystrophy (arCRD), and retinitis pigmentosa (arRP), and to assess genotype-phenotype correlation and disease progression in 10 years by considering the type of variants and age at onset. Case series. A total of 420 unrelated Spanish families: 259 arSTGD, 86 arCRD, and 75 arRP. Spanish families were analyzed through a combination of ABCR400 genotyping microarray, denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography, and high-resolution melting scanning. Direct sequencing was used as a confirmation technique for the identified variants. Screening by multiple ligation probe analysis was used to detect possible large deletions or insertions in the ABCA4 gene. Selected families were analyzed further by next generation sequencing. DNA sequence variants, mutation detection rates, haplotypes, age at onset, central or peripheral vision loss, and night blindness. Overall, we detected 70.5% and 36.6% of all expected ABCA4 mutations in arSTGD and arCRD patient cohorts, respectively. In the fraction of the cohort where the ABCA4 gene was sequenced completely, the detection rates reached 73.6% for arSTGD and 66.7% for arCRD. However, the frequency of possibly pathogenic ABCA4 alleles in arRP families was only slightly higher than that in the general population. Moreover, in some families, mutations in other known arRP genes segregated with the disease phenotype. An increasing understanding of causal ABCA4 alleles in arSTGD and arCRD facilitates disease diagnosis and prognosis and also is paramount in selecting patients for emerging clinical trials of therapeutic interventions. Because ABCA4-associated diseases are evolving retinal dystrophies, assessment of age at onset, accurate clinical diagnosis, and genetic testing are crucial. We suggest that ABCA4 mutations may be associated with a retinitis pigmentosa-like phenotype often as a consequence of severe (null) mutations, in cases of long-term, advanced disease, or both. Patients with classical arRP phenotypes, especially from the onset of the disease, should be screened first for mutations in known arRP genes and not ABCA4. Copyright © 2013 American Academy of Ophthalmology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Phytase supplementation in diets rich in fiber from rapeseed enhances phosphorus and calcium digestibility but not retention in broiler chickens

PubMed Central

Lessire, M; Klein, S; Même, N; Peyronnet, C; Quinsac, A; Duclos, M J; Narcy, A

2018-01-01

Abstract Two experiments were conducted on broilers to assess the effect of dietary fiber from 00-rapeseed meal (RSM) on phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) apparent ileal digestibility (AID) and retention (AR) during the growing (Exp1: 10 to 21 d) or finishing period (Exp2: 21 to 31 d) in diets supplemented or not with microbial phytase. Each experiment involved 144 male Cobb 500 fed one of 8 diets. Fiber content was modulated by incorporating whole RSM, RSM from dehulled rapeseeds, either raw or supplemented with 2 levels of defatted rapeseed hulls. Diets were supplemented or not with 750 phytase units of microbial phytase per kg. Excreta were collected from d 14 to d 17 (Exp1) and from d 27 to d 30 (Exp2) to measure AR. At the end of experiments, digestive tracts were sampled and weighed. The distal ileum and tibias were collected to measure AID and bone mineralization, respectively. Age did not significantly alter the response of birds to the addition of dietary fiber. Inclusion of hulls decreased growth performance (P < 0.05). The weight of the proventriculus-gizzard (PG) increased with the dietary fiber content in Exp1: The decreased weight observed using dehulled RSM was reversed following the inclusion of hulls. In both trials, while the presence of phytase increased the AID of P (P < 0.001) but not Ca, the inclusion of hulls with phytase improved the AID of P and Ca [linear (Lin), P < 0.05]. This effect could depend on the effect of fiber on PG development and physiology. Hulls decreased the moisture content of excreta (P < 0.01), suggesting higher water retention or lower water consumption with fiber. The AR of P was lower than AID of P with hulls, contrary to Ca, suggesting a metabolic imbalance. The decrease of AR together with the decrease of bone characteristics indicates a lack of Ca in diets with hulls and suggests that P and Ca provision should be adapted to the level and the origin of fiber inclusion. PMID:29506047

Phytase supplementation in diets rich in fiber from rapeseed enhances phosphorus and calcium digestibility but not retention in broiler chickens.

PubMed

Bournazel, M; Lessire, M; Klein, S; Même, N; Peyronnet, C; Quinsac, A; Duclos, M J; Narcy, A

2018-05-01

Two experiments were conducted on broilers to assess the effect of dietary fiber from 00-rapeseed meal (RSM) on phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) apparent ileal digestibility (AID) and retention (AR) during the growing (Exp1: 10 to 21 d) or finishing period (Exp2: 21 to 31 d) in diets supplemented or not with microbial phytase. Each experiment involved 144 male Cobb 500 fed one of 8 diets. Fiber content was modulated by incorporating whole RSM, RSM from dehulled rapeseeds, either raw or supplemented with 2 levels of defatted rapeseed hulls. Diets were supplemented or not with 750 phytase units of microbial phytase per kg. Excreta were collected from d 14 to d 17 (Exp1) and from d 27 to d 30 (Exp2) to measure AR. At the end of experiments, digestive tracts were sampled and weighed. The distal ileum and tibias were collected to measure AID and bone mineralization, respectively. Age did not significantly alter the response of birds to the addition of dietary fiber. Inclusion of hulls decreased growth performance (P < 0.05). The weight of the proventriculus-gizzard (PG) increased with the dietary fiber content in Exp1: The decreased weight observed using dehulled RSM was reversed following the inclusion of hulls. In both trials, while the presence of phytase increased the AID of P (P < 0.001) but not Ca, the inclusion of hulls with phytase improved the AID of P and Ca [linear (Lin), P < 0.05]. This effect could depend on the effect of fiber on PG development and physiology. Hulls decreased the moisture content of excreta (P < 0.01), suggesting higher water retention or lower water consumption with fiber. The AR of P was lower than AID of P with hulls, contrary to Ca, suggesting a metabolic imbalance. The decrease of AR together with the decrease of bone characteristics indicates a lack of Ca in diets with hulls and suggests that P and Ca provision should be adapted to the level and the origin of fiber inclusion.

An augmented reality tool for learning spatial anatomy on mobile devices.

PubMed

Jain, Nishant; Youngblood, Patricia; Hasel, Matthew; Srivastava, Sakti

2017-09-01

Augmented Realty (AR) offers a novel method of blending virtual and real anatomy for intuitive spatial learning. Our first aim in the study was to create a prototype AR tool for mobile devices. Our second aim was to complete a technical evaluation of our prototype AR tool focused on measuring the system's ability to accurately render digital content in the real world. We imported Computed Tomography (CT) data derived virtual surface models into a 3D Unity engine environment and implemented an AR algorithm to display these on mobile devices. We investigated the accuracy of the virtual renderings by comparing a physical cube with an identical virtual cube for dimensional accuracy. Our comparative study confirms that our AR tool renders 3D virtual objects with a high level of accuracy as evidenced by the degree of similarity between measurements of the dimensions of a virtual object (a cube) and the corresponding physical object. We developed an inexpensive and user-friendly prototype AR tool for mobile devices that creates highly accurate renderings. This prototype demonstrates an intuitive, portable, and integrated interface for spatial interaction with virtual anatomical specimens. Integrating this AR tool with a library of CT derived surface models provides a platform for spatial learning in the anatomy curriculum. The segmentation methodology implemented to optimize human CT data for mobile viewing can be extended to include anatomical variations and pathologies. The ability of this inexpensive educational platform to deliver a library of interactive, 3D models to students worldwide demonstrates its utility as a supplemental teaching tool that could greatly benefit anatomical instruction. Clin. Anat. 30:736-741, 2017. © 2017Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effect of gamma irradiation on the thiamine, riboflavin and vitamin B 6 content in two varieties of Brazilian beans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villavicencio, A. L. C. H. A. L. C. H.; Mancini-Filho, J. J.; Delincée, H. H.; Bognár, A. A.

2000-03-01

The effect of 60Co gamma rays on the content of several B-vitamins in two varieties of Brazilian beans has been studied. Carioca ( Phaseolus vulgaris L. var. Carioca) and Macaçar beans ( Vigna unguiculata L. Walp, var. Macaçar) were irradiated at doses of 0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.5, 5.0 and 10 kGy, and subsequently stored at ambient temperature for 6 months. The content of vitamin B 1, B 2 and B 6 was analysed by HPLC. In addition, the optimum cooking time was established for each dose and bean variety. A taste panel evaluated sensory properties. Only slight changes were measured for thiamine and riboflavin, whereas a dose-dependent decrease was noted for pyridoxine, which, however, was significant only at the highest doses of 5 and 10 kGy. Cooking time was considerably reduced with increasing radiation dose, but accompanied by a loss of the sensory quality. However, at the disinfestation dose up to 1 kGy, acceptable ratings were obtained for the sensory evaluation. In conclusion, for insect disinfestation of Brazilian beans radiation processing is a promising technology.

[Experimental study of spirulina platensis in treating allergic rhinitis in rats].

PubMed

Chen, Li-lan; Zhang, Shi-fu; Huang, Di-nan; Tan, Ji-quan; He, Sheng-hua

2005-02-01

To determine the therapeutic effect of spirulina platensis in allergic rhinitis (AR). Ovalbumin sensitized white rats used as AR animals were treated with spirulina platensis (SPP). At the end of the treatment, the differences in the behavior science were observed; the changes in the nasal mucosa and mast cell degranulation were studied pathologically; and the levels of serum histamine and total immunoglobulin (Ig) E were determined by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay. The behavior science score of the SPP treatment group was lower than that of the negative control group (P < 0.01 ) ; inflammatory reaction of nasal mucosa in the SPP treatment group were remarkably relieved; the number of nasal mucosa mastocyte and mast cell degranulation in the SPP treatment group were lower than that of the negative control group (P <0.01 ). The levels of serum histamine and total IgE in the SPP treatment group were lower than that of the negative control group (P <0.01 ). It had no significant difference in the positive control group and the SPP treatment group and the blank control group (P > 0.05 ). Spirulina platensis can prevent and treat AR in rats, which implies the possibility of using spirulina platensis for AR patients in the future.

Knee loading inhibits osteoclast lineage in a mouse model of osteoarthritis

PubMed Central

Li, Xinle; Yang, Jing; Liu, Daquan; Li, Jie; Niu, Kaijun; Feng, Shiqing; Yokota, Hiroki; Zhang, Ping

2016-01-01

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a whole joint disorder that involves cartilage degradation and periarticular bone response. Changes of cartilage and subchondral bone are associated with development and activity of osteoclasts from subchondral bone. Knee loading promotes bone formation, but its effects on OA have not been well investigated. Here, we hypothesized that knee loading regulates subchondral bone remodeling by suppressing osteoclast development, and prevents degradation of cartilage through crosstalk of bone-cartilage in osteoarthritic mice. Surgery-induced mouse model of OA was used. Two weeks application of daily dynamic knee loading significantly reduced OARSI scores and CC/TAC (calcified cartilage to total articular cartilage), but increased SBP (subchondral bone plate) and B.Ar/T.Ar (trabecular bone area to total tissue area). Bone resorption of osteoclasts from subchondral bone and the differentiation of osteoclasts from bone marrow-derived cells were completely suppressed by knee loading. The osteoclast activity was positively correlated with OARSI scores and negatively correlated with SBP and B.Ar/T.Ar. Furthermore, knee loading exerted protective effects by suppressing osteoclastogenesis through Wnt signaling. Overall, osteoclast lineage is the hyper responsiveness of knee loading in osteoarthritic mice. Mechanical stimulation prevents OA-induced cartilage degeneration through crosstalk with subchondral bone. Knee loading might be a new potential therapy for osteoarthritis patients. PMID:27087498

The Role of the Level of Interleukin-33 in the Therapeutic Outcomes of Immunotherapy in Patients with Allergic Rhinitis

PubMed Central

Nasr, Wail Fayez; Sorour, Samir Sorour; El Bahrawy, Atef Taha; Boghdadi, Ghada Samir; El Shahaway, Alia A

2018-01-01

Introduction  Allergic rhinitis (AR) affects up to 40% of the population and results in nasal itching, congestion, sneezing, and clear rhinorrhea. Objectives  This study aimed to evaluate the changes in the clinical symptoms and in the level of serum interleukin (IL)-33 before and after pollen immunotherapy (IT) in patients with AR. Methods  The total symptom score and the levels of total immunoglobulin E (IgE) and IL-33 were determined in the serum of 10 non-allergic healthy controls and 45 patients with AR who were equally divided into 3 groups: GI (patients did not receive IT), GII (patients had received IT for 6 months) and GIII (patients had received IT for 2 years). Results  There was a significantly higher concentration of IgE and IL-33 in the serum of patients with AR than in that of non-allergic patients. Furthermore, serum level of IL-33 decreased significantly after pollen IT. But, there was no significant reduction in the serum level of IL-33 between GII and GIII patients. Conclusion  Our results show a clinical improvement associated with a decrease in serum level of IL-33 after pollen IT. PMID:29619104

Comparative bacterial community analysis in relatively pristine and anthropogenically influenced mangrove ecosystems on the Red Sea.

PubMed

Ullah, Riaz; Yasir, Muhammad; Khan, Imran; Bibi, Fehmida; Sohrab, Sayed Sartaj; Al-Ansari, Ahmed; Al-Abbasi, Fahad; Al-Sofyani, Abdulmohsin A; Daur, Ihsanullah; Lee, Seon-Woo; Azhar, Esam I

2017-08-01

Mangrove habitats are ecologically important ecosystems that are under severe pressure worldwide because of environmental changes and human activities. In this study, 16S rRNA gene amplicon deep-sequencing was used to compare bacterial communities in Red Sea mangrove ecosystems at anthropogenically influenced coastal sites with those at a relatively pristine island site. In total, 32 phyla were identified from the mangrove rhizospheres, with Proteobacteria predominating at each of the studied sites; however, the relative abundance was significantly decreased at the coastal sites (Mastorah, MG-MS; Ar-Rayis, MG-AR) compared with the pristine island site near Dhahban (MG-DBI). The phyla Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Acidobacteria, Chloroflexi, Spirochetes, and Planctomycetes were present at a relative abundance of >1% at the MG-MS and MG-AR sites, but their concentration was <1% at the MG-DBI site. A total of 1659 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified at the species level, and approximately 945 OTUs were shared across the different sampling sites. Multivariate principal coordinate data analysis separated the MG-DBI site from the MG-AR and MG-MS cluster. Specific bacterial taxa were enriched at each location, and in particular, the genera Pseudoalteromonas and Cobetia were predominantly identified in the MG-DBI site compared with the anthropogenically influenced coastal sites.

Land scale biogeography of arsenic biotransformation genes in estuarine wetland.

PubMed

Zhang, Si-Yu; Su, Jian-Qiang; Sun, Guo-Xin; Yang, Yunfeng; Zhao, Yi; Ding, Junjun; Chen, Yong-Shan; Shen, Yu; Zhu, Guibing; Rensing, Christopher; Zhu, Yong-Guan

2017-06-01

As an analogue of phosphorus, arsenic (As) has a biogeochemical cycle coupled closely with other key elements on the Earth, such as iron, sulfate and phosphate. It has been documented that microbial genes associated with As biotransformation are widely present in As-rich environments. Nonetheless, their presence in natural environment with low As levels remains unclear. To address this issue, we investigated the abundance levels and diversities of aioA, arrA, arsC and arsM genes in estuarine sediments at low As levels across Southeastern China to uncover biogeographic patterns at a large spatial scale. Unexpectedly, genes involved in As biotransformation were characterized by high abundance and diversity. The functional microbial communities showed a significant decrease in similarity along the geographic distance, with higher turnover rates than taxonomic microbial communities based on the similarities of 16S rRNA genes. Further investigation with niche-based models showed that deterministic processes played primary roles in shaping both functional and taxonomic microbial communities. Temperature, pH, total nitrogen concentration, carbon/nitrogen ratio and ferric iron concentration rather than As content in these sediments were significantly linked to functional microbial communities, while sediment temperature and pH were linked to taxonomic microbial communities. We proposed several possible mechanisms to explain these results. © 2017 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The diffusion of water in haploanesite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ni, H.; Zhang, Y.

2008-12-01

Diffusive transport of water in silicate melts is a key process in magma dynamics and volcanic eruptions, including bubble growth. Previous studies demonstrate that in additional to temperature, water content and pressure, melt composition also plays an important role in determining water diffusivity. We carried out high temperature (1311-1512°C) diffusion-couple experiments and intermediate temperature (470- 600°C) dehydration experiments to investigate H2O diffusion in a melt of haploandesitic composition. The diffusion couple is composed of an anhydrous (with <0.1 wt.% H2O) and a hydrous (with 2 wt.% H2O) haploandesitic glass. A platinum capsule is used to contain the couple and then it is welded shut. Diffusion runs are carried out in a 12.7-mm piston-cylinder apparatus at 1 GPa and superliquidus temperatures of 1584-1785 K. Infrared microscopy is applied on quenched glass to measure the profile of total H2O concentration (H2Ot). The profile shape is best fit by an error function, indicating an H2O diffusivity virtually independent of H2O concentration, consistent with the results of Behrens et al. (2004) on an Fe-bearing andesite. Dehydration experiments are performed at 743-873 K in a rapid-quench cold-seal vessel, with a heated hydrous glass losing water to 0.1 GPa Ar atmosphere. Measured diffusion profiles, however, show that water diffusivity is dependent on water content. Experimental data can be explained by H2Om being the dominating diffusant or a total H2O diffusivity proportional to total H2O content. The distinction between the high-temperature experiments where H2Ot diffusivity is apparently independent of H2Ot content, and the intermediate-temperature experiments where H2Ot diffusivity depends on H2Ot can be rationalized if OH diffusion has a higher activation energy than molecular H2O diffusion, and their comparable diffusivities at high T gradually diverge as temperature is lowered. At below 1 wt.% H2O, water diffusivity increases from rhyolite to dacite to andesite at >1300°C, and this sequence is reversed at <600°C.

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

Myllymaeki, S.A.; Karjalainen, M.; Haavisto, T.E.

Phenolic compounds, such as 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), have been shown to interfere with rat ovarian steroidogenesis. However, little is known about steroidogenic effects of infantile OP exposure on immature ovary. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of infantile OP exposure on plasma FSH, LH, estradiol, and progesterone levels in 14-day-old female rats. The effect on ovarian steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) and FSH receptor (FSHr) expression was analyzed by Western blotting. Ex vivo analysis was carried out for follicular estradiol, progesterone, testosterone, and cAMP production. Sprague-Dawley rats were given OP (0, 10, 50, or 100 mg/kg)more » subcutaneously on postnatal days 6, 8, 10, and 12. On postnatal day 14, plasma FSH was decreased and progesterone increased significantly at a dose of 100 mg OP/kg. In addition, the highest OP dose advanced the time of vaginal opening in puberty. OP had no effect on infantile LH and estradiol levels or ovarian FSHr content. Ovarian StAR protein content and ex vivo hormone and cAMP production were decreased at all OP doses compared to controls. However, hormone levels recovered independent on FSH and even increased above the control level during a prolonged culture. On postnatal day 35, no statistically significant differences were seen between control and OP-exposed animals in plasma FSH, LH, estradiol, and progesterone levels, or in ovarian StAR protein content. The results indicate that the effect of OP on the infantile ovary is reversible, while more permanent effects in the hypothalamus and pituitary, as described earlier, are involved in the reduction of circulating FSH levels and premature vaginal opening.« less

α₂-Adrenoceptors activate noradrenaline-mediated glycogen turnover in chick astrocytes.

PubMed

Hutchinson, Dana S; Catus, Stephanie L; Merlin, Jon; Summers, Roger J; Gibbs, Marie E

2011-06-01

In the brain, glycogen is primarily stored in astrocytes where it is regulated by several hormones/neurotransmitters, including noradrenaline that controls glycogen breakdown (in the short term) and synthesis. Here, we have examined the adrenoceptor (AR) subtype that mediates the glycogenic effect of noradrenaline in chick primary astrocytes by the measurement of glycogen turnover (total (14) C incorporation of glucose into glycogen) following noradrenergic activation. Noradrenaline and insulin increased glycogen turnover in a concentration-dependent manner. The effect of noradrenaline was mimicked by stimulation of α(2) -ARs (and to a lesser degree by β(3) -ARs), but not by stimulation of α(1) -, β(1) -, or β(2) -ARs, and occurred only in astrocytes and not neurons. In chick astrocytes, studies using RT-PCR and radioligand binding showed that α(2A) - and α(2C) -AR mRNA and protein were present. α(2) -AR- or insulin-mediated glycogen turnover was inhibited by phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase inhibitors, and both insulin and clonidine caused phosphorylation of Akt and glycogen synthase kinase-3 in chick astrocytes. α(2) -AR but not insulin-mediated glycogen turnover was inhibited by pertussis toxin pre-treatment indicating involvement of Gi/o proteins. These results show that the increase in glycogen turnover caused by noradrenaline is because of activation of α(2) -ARs that increase glycogen turnover in astrocytes utilizing a Gi/o-PI3K pathway. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Neurochemistry © 2011 International Society for Neurochemistry.

Multi-model global assessment of subseasonal prediction skill of atmospheric rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deflorio, M. J.

2017-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are global phenomena that are characterized by long, narrow plumes of water vapor transport. They are most often observed in the midlatitudes near climatologically active storm track regions. Because of their frequent association with floods, landslides, and other hydrological impacts on society, there is significant incentive at the intersection of academic research, water management, and policymaking to understand the skill with which state-of-the-art operational weather models can predict ARs weeks-to-months in advance. We use the newly assembled Subseasonal-to-Seasonal (S2S) database, which includes extensive hindcast records of eleven operational weather models, to assess global prediction skill of atmospheric rivers on S2S timescales. We develop a metric to assess AR skill that is suitable for S2S timescales by counting the total number of AR days which occur over each model and observational grid cell during a 2-week time window. This "2-week AR occurrence" metric is suitable for S2S prediction skill assessment because it does not consider discrete hourly or daily AR objects, but rather a smoothed representation of AR occurrence over a longer period of time. Our results indicate that several of the S2S models, especially the ECMWF model, show useful prediction skill in the 2-week forecast window, with significant interannual variation in some regions. We also present results from an experimental forecast of S2S AR prediction skill using the ECMWF and NCEP models.

Diet, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors as risk factors for overweight in adolescence.

PubMed

Patrick, Kevin; Norman, Gregory J; Calfas, Karen J; Sallis, James F; Zabinski, Marion F; Rupp, Joan; Cella, John

2004-04-01

The proportion of overweight adolescents has increased, but the behavioral risk factors for overweight youth are not well understood. To examine how diet, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors relate to overweight status in adolescents. Baseline data from the Patient-Centered Assessment and Counseling for Exercise Plus Nutrition Project, a randomized controlled trial of adolescents to determine the effects of a clinic-based intervention on physical activity and dietary behaviors. A total of 878 adolescents aged 11 to 15 years, 42% of whom were from minority backgrounds. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index-for-age percentiles divided into 2 categories: normal weight (<85th percentile) and at risk for overweight plus overweight (AR + O) (>or=85th percentile). Overall, 45.7% of the sample was classified as AR + O with a body mass index for age at the 85th percentile or higher. More girls from minority backgrounds (54.8%) were AR + O compared with non-Hispanic white girls (42%) (chi(2)(1) = 7.6; P =.006). Bivariate analyses indicated that girls and boys in the AR + O group did fewer minutes per day of vigorous physical activity, consumed fewer total kilojoules per day, and had fewer total grams of fiber per day than those in the normal-weight group. Boys in the AR + O group also did fewer minutes per day of moderate physical activity and watched more minutes per day of television on nonschool days than normal-weight boys. Final multivariate models indicated that independent of socioeconomic status (as assessed by household education level), girls had a greater risk of being AR + O if they were Hispanic or from another minority background (odds ratio [OR] = 1.65; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09-2.49) and a reduced risk of being AR + O as minutes per day of vigorous physical activity increased (OR = 0.93; 95% CI, 0.89-0.97). A low level of vigorous physical activity was the only significant risk factor for boys being AR + O (OR = 0.92; 95% CI, 0.89-0.95). Analyses based on meeting behavioral guidelines supported these findings and showed that failing to meet the 60 min/d moderate to vigorous physical activity guideline was associated with overweight status for both girls and boys. In addition, boys who failed to meet sedentary behavior and dietary fiber guidelines were more likely to be overweight. Of the 7 dietary and physical activity variables examined in this cross-sectional study, insufficient vigorous physical activity was the only risk factor for higher body mass index for adolescent boys and girls. Prospective studies are needed to clarify the relative importance of dietary and physical activity behaviors on overweight in adolescence.

GPM Satellite Radar Measurements of Precipitation and Freezing Level in Atmospheric Rivers: Comparison With Ground-Based Radars and Reanalyses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cannon, Forest; Ralph, F. Martin; Wilson, Anna M.; Lettenmaier, Dennis P.

2017-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) account for more than 90% of the total meridional water vapor flux in midlatitudes, and 25-50% of the annual precipitation in the coastal western United States. In this study, reflectivity profiles from the Global Precipitation Measurement Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (GPM-DPR) are used to evaluate precipitation and temperature characteristics of ARs over the western coast of North America and the eastern North Pacific Ocean. Evaluation of GPM-DPR bright-band height using a network of ground-based vertically pointing radars along the West Coast demonstrated exceptional agreement, and comparison with freezing level height from reanalyses over the eastern North Pacific Ocean also consistently agreed, indicating that GPM-DPR can be used to independently validate freezing level in models. However, precipitation comparison with gridded observations across the western United States indicated deficiencies in GPM-DPR's ability to reproduce the spatial distribution of winter precipitation, likely related to sampling frequency. Over the geographically homogeneous oceanic portion of the domain, sampling frequency was not problematic, and significant differences in the frequency and intensity of precipitation between GPM-DPR and reanalyses highlighted biases in both satellite-observed and modeled AR precipitation. Reanalyses precipitation rates below the minimum sensitivity of GPM-DPR accounted for a 20% increase in total precipitation, and 25% of radar-derived precipitation rates were greater than the 99th percentile precipitation rate in reanalyses. Due to differences in the proportions of precipitation in convective, stratiform bright-band, and non-bright-band conditions, AR conditions contributed nearly 10% more to total precipitation in GPM-DPR than reanalyses.

Diffusion in the Muscovite 40K Decay System (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harrison, T. M.

2010-12-01

The considerable potential of muscovite for thermochronological applications is beginning to be fully exploited following the belated publication of Ar kinetic data. Muscovite’s high potassium content, low solubility for excess 40Ar*, and ubiquitous presence in regionally metamorphosed terranes make it an important phase for 40Ar/39Ar thermochronometry, particularly in light of recognition that both age spectra and vacuum-step-heating-derived 39Ar Arrhenius plots reflect Ar release via the same volume diffusion mechanism. Thus instead of assuming a nominal closure temperature to estimate a single T-t datum, continuous and accurate thermal histories can be inferred in a similar fashion to that well-documented for K-feldspar using the multi-diffusion domain (MDD) model. The Arrhenius parameters for Ar diffusion in muscovite (E=64 kcal/mol, Do=4 cm2/s) correspond to an effective intragrain closure temperature range of ~500 to 300oC for ca. 100 μm grains cooling at ~10oC/Ma at 5 kbar. However, even greater exploitation of the 40K decay system remains possible as only one of every ten 40K atoms decay to 40Ar. The other 90% decay to 40Ca giving the 40K-40Ca branch, in principle, greater sensitivity for dating high K/Ca minerals such as muscovite. The advent of the ‘double-plus’ SIMS 40K++-40Ca++ dating method, which permits analysis of Ca isotopes at an MRP of ~4k rather than the ~25k required for full separation of 40K+ from 40Ca+, opens up the prospect of directly revealing 40K-40Ca closure profiles in muscovite (as opposed to their indirect inference from inversion of 40Ar/39Ar data through the MDD model) at a gain of enhanced precision and accuracy in thermal history reconstruction. We have used SIMS to observe K-Ca age variations in natural muscovites pressed into In. Translating this data into thermal history information, however, requires knowledge of the Arrhenius parameters for Ca tracer diffusion in muscovite. We are undertaking hydrothermal piston-cylinder experiments of natural muscovites to induce radiogenic 40Ca* diffusion gradients that can be measured with SIMS using a ~5 μm spot. Preliminary indications suggest that Ca diffusion is not substantially slower than Ar in muscovite suggesting a similar to somewhat elevated closure temperature range.

Increased shedding of microvesicles from intimal smooth muscle cells in athero-prone areas of the human aorta: implications for understanding of the predisease stage.

PubMed

Bobryshev, Yuri V; Killingsworth, Murray C; Orekhov, Alexander N

2013-01-01

This study evaluated whether a change in the content of matrix microvesicles might occur at the preatherosclerotic stage. Applying quantitative electron microscopic and immunohistochemical analyses, two areas of grossly normal segments of the thoracic aorta were compared: atherosclerosis-prone (AP) areas, situated at the dorsal aspect of the aorta along the rows of intercostal branch origins, and atherosclerosis-resistant (AR) areas, situated at the corresponding sites of the ventral aspect of the aorta. The electron microscopic analysis showed that there were 1.4 times more microvesicles in AP areas than AR areas (p = 0.019). It was found that matrix microvesicles originated as a result of blebbing and shedding of surface membranes of smooth muscle cells. A quantitative analysis of the expression of ADP-ribosylation factor 6 (ARF6), which is known to be involved in membrane trafficking and microvesicle formation, showed that ARF6 expression was 1.3 times higher in AP areas than that in AR areas (p = 0.006). There was a positive correlation between the content of matrix microparticles and the expression of ARF6 by intimal smooth muscle cells (r = 0.61; p < 0.0001). The present study supports the concept that alterations of the arterial intima occur at the predisease stage. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Muricauda antarctica sp. nov., a marine member of the Flavobacteriaceae isolated from Antarctic seawater.

PubMed

Wu, Yue-Hong; Yu, Pei-Song; Zhou, Ya-Dong; Xu, Lin; Wang, Chun-Sheng; Wu, Min; Oren, Aharon; Xu, Xue-Wei

2013-09-01

A Gram-stain-negative, rod-shaped bacterium with appendages, designated Ar-22(T), was isolated from a seawater sample collected from the western part of Prydz Bay, near Cape Darnley, Antarctica. Strain Ar-22(T) grew optimally at 35 °C, at pH 7.5 and in the presence of 1-3% (w/v) NaCl. The isolate was positive for casein, gelatin and Tween 20 decomposition and negative for H2S production and indole formation. Chemotaxonomic analysis showed that MK-6 was the major isoprenoid quinone and phosphatidylethanolamine was the major polar lipid. The major fatty acids were iso-C(17:0) 3-OH, iso-C(15:1) G, iso-C(15:0) and C(16:1)ω7c/iso-C(15:0) 2OH. The genomic DNA G+C content was 44.8 mol%. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that strain Ar-22(T) is closely related to members of the genus Muricauda, sharing 94.2-97.3% sequence similarity with the type strains of species of the genus Muricauda and being most closely related to the Muricauda aquimarina. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence comparison confirmed that strain Ar-22(T) formed a deep lineage with Muricauda flavescens. Sequence similarity between strain Ar-22(T) and Muricauda ruestringensis DSM 13258(T), the type species of the genus Muricauda, was 96.9%. Strain Ar-22(T) exhibited mean DNA-DNA relatedness values of 40.1%, 49.4% and 25.7% to M. aquimarina JCM 11811(T), M. flavescens JCM 11812(T) and Muricauda lutimaris KCTC 22173(T), respectively. On the basis of phenotypic and genotypic data, strain Ar-22(T) represents a novel species of the genus Muricauda, for which the name Muricauda antarctica sp. nov. (type strain Ar-22(T) =CGMCC 1.12174(T) = JCM 18450(T)) is proposed.

Photosynthetic activity buffers ocean acidification in seagrass meadows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendriks, I. E.; Olsen, Y. S.; Ramajo, L.; Basso, L.; Steckbauer, A.; Moore, T. S.; Howard, J.; Duarte, C. M.

2013-07-01

Macrophytes growing in shallow coastal zones characterized by intense metabolic activity have the capacity to modify pH within their canopy and beyond. We observed diel pH ranges is in shallow (5-12 m) seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) meadows from 0.06 pH units in September to 0.24 units in June. The carbonate system (pH, DIC, and aragonite saturation state (ΩAr) and O2 within the meadows displayed strong diel variability driven by primary productivity, and changes in chemistry were related to structural parameters of the meadow, in particular, the leaf surface area available for photosynthesis (LAI). LAI was positively correlated to mean and max pHNBS and max ΩAr. Oxygen production positively influenced the range and maximum pHNBS and the range of ΩAr. In June, vertical mixing (as Turbulent Kinetic Energy) influenced ΩAr, while in September there was no effect of hydrodynamics on the carbonate system within the canopy. ΩAr was positively correlated with the calcium carbonate load of the leaves, demonstrating a direct link between structural parameters, ΩAr and carbonate deposition. There was a direct relationship between ΩAr, influenced directly by meadow LAI, and CaCO3 content of the leaves. Therefore, calcifying organisms, e.g. epiphytes with carbonate skeletons, might benefit from the modification of the carbonate system by the meadow. The meadow might be capable of providing refugia for calcifiers by increasing pH and ΩAr through metabolic activity. There is, however, concern for the ability of seagrasses to provide this refugia function in the future. The predicted decline of seagrass meadows may alter the scope for alteration of pH within a seagrass meadow and in the water column above the meadow, particularly if shoot density and biomass decline, both strongly linked to LAI. Organisms associated with seagrass communities may therefore suffer from the loss of pH buffering capacity in degraded meadows.

Noble gases in diamonds - Occurrences of solarlike helium and neon

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Honda, M.; Reynolds, J. H.; Roedder, E.; Epstein, S.

1987-01-01

Seventeen diamond samples from diverse locations were analyzed for the contents of He, Ar, Kr, and Xe, and of their isotopes, using a Reynolds (1956) type glass mass spectrometer. The results disclosed a large spread in the He-3/He-4 ratios, ranging from values below atmospheric to close to the solar ratio. In particular, solarlike He-3/He-4 ratios were seen for an Australian colorless diamond composite and an Arkansas diamond, which also displayed solarlike neon isotopic ratios. Wide variation was also observed in the He-4/Ar-40 ratios, suggesting a complex history for the source regions and the diamond crystallization processes.

Temporal and Periodic Variations of Sunspot Counts in Flaring and Non-Flaring Active Regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kilcik, A.; Yurchyshyn, V.; Donmez, B.; Obridko, V. N.; Ozguc, A.; Rozelot, J. P.

2018-04-01

We analyzed temporal and periodic variations of sunspot counts (SSCs) in flaring (C-, M-, or X-class flares), and non-flaring active regions (ARs) for nearly three solar cycles (1986 through 2016). Our main findings are as follows: i) temporal variations of monthly means of the daily total SSCs in flaring and non-flaring ARs behave differently during a solar cycle and the behavior varies from one cycle to another; during Solar Cycle 23 temporal SSC profiles of non-flaring ARs are wider than those of flaring ARs, while they are almost the same during Solar Cycle 22 and the current Cycle 24. The SSC profiles show a multi-peak structure and the second peak of flaring ARs dominates the current Cycle 24, while the difference between peaks is less pronounced during Solar Cycles 22 and 23. The first and second SSC peaks of non-flaring ARs have comparable magnitude in the current solar cycle, while the first peak is nearly absent in the case of the flaring ARs of the same cycle. ii) Periodic variations observed in the SSCs profiles of flaring and non-flaring ARs derived from the multi-taper method (MTM) spectrum and wavelet scalograms are quite different as well, and they vary from one solar cycle to another. The largest detected period in flaring ARs is 113± 1.6 days while we detected much longer periodicities (327± 13, 312 ± 11, and 256± 8 days) in the non-flaring AR profiles. No meaningful periodicities were detected in the MTM spectrum of flaring ARs exceeding 55± 0.7 days during Solar Cycles 22 and 24, while a 113± 1.3 days period was detected in flaring ARs of Solar Cycle 23. For the non-flaring ARs the largest detected period was only 31± 0.2 days for Cycle 22 and 72± 1.3 days for the current Cycle 24, while the largest measured period was 327± 13 days during Solar Cycle 23.

Screening and Characterization of Polygalacturonase as Potential Enzyme for Keprok Garut Orange (Citrus nobilis var. chrysocarpa) Juice Clarification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Widowati, E.; Utami, R.; Kalistyatika, K.

2017-11-01

Use of thermostable enzyme from bacilli for industrial application is significant. This research aimed to isolate thermophilic pectinolytic bacteria from orange peel and vegetable waste which produced thermostable polygalacturonase, to investigate the polygalacturonase ability in clarifying keprok Garut orange juice, and to characterize polygalacturonase based on pH optimum, temperature optimum, enzyme stability, enzyme kinetics KM, and Vmax. Obtained, 14 isolates that further selected to 4 best isolates based on highest polygalacturonase activity and keprok Garut orange juice clarification ability. Four selected enzyme isolates were AR 2, AR 4, KK 4, and KK 5 had ability to increase juice transmittance, decrease juice viscosity and also reduce total soluble solid. Furthermore 4 selected isolates were partially purified by ammonium sulphate precipitation and dialysis method. Four partially purified enzymes were known that enzyme character of AR 2 optimum at pH 6; AR 4 optimum at pH 5.5; KK 4 optimum at pH 6; and KK 5 optimum at pH 4.5. Four enzymes were optimum at temperature 60°C thus stable at temperature 50-60°C, this characteristic indicate that enzymes were thermostable. AR 2 showed active activity stable at pH 4-7; AR 4 showed active activity stable at pH 6-7; KK 4 showed active activity stable at pH 4-6; however KK 5 stable at pH 4-5. Enzyme AR 2 and KK 4 was getting inactive at pH 11, thus AR 4 and KK 5 inactive at pH 12. KM value of AR 2, AR 4, KK 4, and KK 5 was 0.0959; 0.0974; 0.0966; and 0.178 mg/ml respectively. Vmax of AR 2, AR 4, KK 4, and KK 5 was 0.0203; 0.0202; 0.0185; and 0.0229 U/ml respectively. Enzyme AR 2 was the most compatible enzyme to be applied in keprok Garut orange juice clarification for it had the lowest KM value.

Demonstration of a CW diode-pumped Ar metastable laser operating at 4  W.

PubMed

Han, J; Heaven, M C; Moran, P J; Pitz, G A; Guild, E M; Sanderson, C R; Hokr, B

2017-11-15

Optically pumped rare gas lasers are being investigated as potential high-energy, high beam quality systems. The lasing medium consists of rare gas atoms (Rg=Ne, Ar, Kr, or Xe) that have been electric discharge excited to the metastable np 5 (n+1)s P3 2 state. Following optical excitation, helium (He) at pressures of 200-1000 Torr is used as the energy transfer agent to create a population inversion. The primary technical difficulty for this scheme is the discharge production of sufficient Rg* metastables in the presence of >200  Torr of He. In this Letter, we describe a pulsed discharge that yields >10 13   cm -3 Ar* in the presence of He at total pressures up to 750 Torr. Using this discharge, a diode-pumped Ar* laser providing 4.1 W has been demonstrated.

β2-Adrenergic receptors and G-protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 in rabbit pleural mesothelium.

PubMed

Sironi, Chiara; Bodega, Francesca; Armilli, Marta; Porta, Cristina; Zocchi, Luciano; Agostoni, Emilio

2010-09-30

Former studies on net rate of liquid absorption from small Ringer or 1% albumin-Ringer hydrothoraces in rabbits indicated that Na+ transport and solute-coupled liquid absorption by mesothelium is increased by pleural liquid dilution, and stimulation of β2-adrenoreceptors (β2AR). In this research we tried to provide molecular evidence for β2AR in visceral and parietal mesothelium of rabbit pleura. Moreover, because prolonged stimulation of β2AR may lead to desensitization mediated by G-protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 (GRK2), we also checked whether GRK2 is expressed in pleural mesothelium. To this end we performed immunoblot assays on total protein extracts from scraped visceral and parietal mesothelium, and from cultured pleural mesothelial cells of rabbits. All three samples showed β2AR and GRK2 specific bands. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Atmospheric river impacts on Greenland Ice Sheet surface melt and mass balance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mattingly, K.; Mote, T. L.

2017-12-01

Mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) has accelerated during the early part of the 21st Century. Several episodes of widespread GrIS melt in recent years have coincided with intense poleward moisture transport by atmospheric rivers (ARs), suggesting that variability in the frequency and intensity of these events may be an important driver of the surface mass balance (SMB) of the GrIS. ARs may contribute to GrIS surface melt through the greenhouse effect of water vapor, the radiative effects of clouds, condensational latent heating within poleward-advected air masses, and the energy provided by liquid precipitation. However, ARs may also provide significant positive contributions to GrIS SMB through enhanced snow accumulation. Prior research on the role of ARs in Arctic climate has consisted of case studies of ARs associated with major GrIS melt events or examined the effects of poleward moisture flux on Arctic sea ice. In this study, a long-term (1979-2016) record of intense moisture transport events affecting Greenland is compiled using a conventional AR identification algorithm as well as a self-organizing map (SOM) classification applied to integrated water vapor transport (IVT) data from several atmospheric reanalysis datasets. An analysis of AR effects on GrIS melt and SMB is then performed with GrIS surface melt data from passive microwave satellite observations and the Modèle Atmosphérique Régional (MAR) regional climate model. Results show that meltwater production is above normal during and after AR impact days throughout the GrIS during all seasons, with surface melt enhanced most by strong (> 85th percentile IVT) and extreme (> 95th percentile IVT) ARs. This relationship holds at the seasonal scale, as the total amount of water vapor transported to the GrIS by ARs is significantly greater during above-normal melt seasons. ARs exert a more complex influence on SMB. Normal (< 85th percentile IVT) ARs generally do not have a substantial impact on SMB, while strong and extreme ARs result in reduced SMB in the ablation zone for several days following the event during summer. Conversely, strong and extreme ARs increased SMB in the ablation zone during spring, autumn, and winter, and AR impacts on SMB are positive in the accumulation zone during all seasons.

Allergic rhinitis and dental caries in preschool children

PubMed Central

Bakhshaee, Mehdi; Ashtiani, Sara Jafari; Hossainzadeh, Mana; Sehatbakhsh, Samineh; Najafi, Mona Najaf; Salehi, Maryam

2017-01-01

Background: Allergic rhinitis (AR) may be overdocumented in cases of dental caries because of controversies in the literature This study was conducted to investigate the potential relationship between AR and dental caries in children. Materials and Methods: A total of 296 children were included in this cross-sectional study. Participants were evaluated using the decay-missing-filled (DMF) index, and their AR status was evaluated by physical examination and through a standard questionnaire. Baseline demographics and clinical characteristics were compared among groups using Student's t-test or the Mann–Whitney U-test, the Chi-square test, and/or Fisher's exact test as appropriate. A level of P < 0.05 was regarded as statistically significant. Results: Evidence of AR was found in 77 (35.1%) participants. There was no significant difference in the rate of tooth decay or DMF between participants with or without AR (P = 0.07), but a significant difference was observed in the number of missing and filled teeth between those with and without AR (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in educational level, family income, milk intake, use of pacifier, use of a toothbrush, saliva secretion, or body mass index (P > 0.05 in all cases) between AR-positive and AR-negative patients. Fluoride therapy and oral breathing were identified as confounding factors and controlled using log-linear analysis. The mean rate of DMF in patients who also had AR was 20% greater than in the AR-negative group (odds ratio [OR] = 1.21, confidence interval [CI]: 1.05–1.35) and 15% greater in among children who breathed orally than those who did not (OR = 1.15 CI: 1.02–1.31). Conclusion: AR and oral breathing may have an effect on oral health and dental condition, leading to an increased rate of tooth loss, oral fillings, and development of dental caries. PMID:29238375

DIVERGENT HORIZONTAL SUB-SURFACE FLOWS WITHIN ACTIVE REGION 11158

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

Jain, Kiran; Tripathy, S. C.; Hill, F., E-mail: kjain@nso.edu, E-mail: stripathy@nso.edu, E-mail: fhill@nso.edu

We measure the horizontal subsurface flow in a fast emerging active region (AR; NOAA 11158) using the ring-diagram technique and the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager high spatial resolution Dopplergrams. This AR had a complex magnetic structure and displayed significant changes in morphology during its disk passage. Over a period of six days from 2011 February 11 to 16, the temporal variation in the magnitude of the total velocity is found to follow the trend of magnetic field strength. We further analyze regions of individual magnetic polarity within AR 11158 and find that the horizontal velocity components in these sub-regions havemore » significant variation with time and depth. The leading and trailing polarity regions move faster than the mixed-polarity region. Furthermore, both zonal and meridional components have opposite signs for trailing and leading polarity regions at all depths showing divergent flows within the AR. We also find a sharp decrease in the magnitude of total horizontal velocity in deeper layers around major flares. It is suggested that the re-organization of magnetic fields during flares, combined with the sunspot rotation, decreases the magnitude of horizontal flows or that the flow kinetic energy has been converted into the energy released by flares. After the decline in flare activity and sunspot rotation, the flows tend to follow the pattern of magnetic activity. We also observe less variation in the velocity components near the surface but these tend to increase with depth, further demonstrating that the deeper layers are more affected by the topology of ARs.« less

Individual differences in the cortisol and salivary α-amylase awakening responses in early childhood: relations to age, sex, and sleep.

PubMed

Bright, Melissa A; Frick, Janet E; Out, Dorothee; Granger, Douglas A

2014-09-01

Recent studies have examined post-waking changes in cortisol as a marker of HPA functioning, but questions remain about the stability of this response, as well as its relation to sleep and other ANS markers. The purposes of this study were to a) examine the presence and developmental changes in the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and salivary α-amylase awakening (sAA-AR) in a toddler sample and b) determine whether and how sleep relates to these responses in this age group. We measured cortisol and sAA upon awakening (and 30 min post-waking) and sleep characteristics using actigraphy (e.g., total sleep time, sleep efficiency, number of awakenings) in toddlers (N = 47; 36% female, ages 12-24 months). Forty-six percent of toddlers demonstrated a CAR and 52% demonstrated a sAA-AR. Strength of either response did not change linearly with age. Additionally, likelihood of demonstrating the CAR and sAA-AR was unrelated to age, sex, awakening time, time between samples, and time since feeding. Higher waking cortisol levels were associated with a shorter total sleep time and an earlier awakening. No associations were observed between sleep characteristics and the sAA-AR, ps > .05. Our findings suggest that these awakening responses function independently of sleep in toddlers. Additionally, the lack of change in percentage of children showing a CAR or sAA-AR across these ages suggests that these responses are stable and not emerging reliably across the second year of life. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Adiposity rebound and the development of metabolic syndrome.

PubMed

Koyama, Satomi; Ichikawa, Go; Kojima, Megumi; Shimura, Naoto; Sairenchi, Toshimi; Arisaka, Osamu

2014-01-01

The age of adiposity rebound (AR) is defined as the time at which BMI starts to rise after infancy and is thought to be a marker of later obesity. To determine whether this age is related to future occurrence of metabolic syndrome, we investigated the relationship of the timing of AR with metabolic consequences at 12 years of age. A total of 271 children (147 boys and 124 girls) born in 1995 and 1996 were enrolled in the study. Serial measurements of BMI were conducted at the ages of 4 and 8 months and 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 years, based on which age of AR was calculated. Plasma lipids and blood pressure were measured at 12 years of age. An earlier AR (<4 years of age) was associated with a higher BMI (≥ 20) and a lipoprotein phenotype representative of insulin resistance. This phenotype consists of elevated triglycerides, apolipoprotein B, and atherogenic index and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in boys and elevated apolipoprotein B in girls at 12 years of age. The earlier AR was also related to elevated blood pressure in boys. This longitudinal population-based study indicates that children who exhibit AR at a younger age are predisposed to future development of metabolic syndrome. Therefore, monitoring of AR may be an effective method for the early identification of children at risk for metabolic syndrome.

Disparate rates of acute rejection and donor-specific antibodies among high-immunologic risk renal transplant subgroups receiving antithymocyte globulin induction.

PubMed

Patel, Samir J; Suki, Wadi N; Loucks-DeVos, Jennifer; Graviss, Edward A; Nguyen, Duc T; Knight, Richard J; Kuten, Samantha A; Moore, Linda W; Teeter, Larry D; Gaber, Lillian W; Gaber, A Osama

2016-08-01

Lymphocyte-depleting induction lowers acute rejection (AR) rates among high-immunologic risk (HIR) renal transplant recipients, including African Americans (AAs), retransplants, and the sensitized. It is unclear whether different HIR subgroups experience similarly low rates of AR. We aimed to describe the incidence of AR and de novo donor-specific antibody (dnDSA) among HIR recipients categorized by age, race, or donor type. All received antithymocyte globulin (ATG) induction and triple maintenance immunosuppression. A total of 464 HIR recipients from 2007 to 2014 were reviewed. AR and dnDSA rates at 1 year for the entire population were 14% and 27%, respectively. AR ranged from 6.7% among living donor (LD) recipients to 30% in younger AA deceased donor (DD) recipients. De novo donor-specific antibody at 1 year ranged from 7% in older non-AA LD recipients to 32% in AAs. AA race remained as an independent risk factor for AR among DD recipients and for dnDSA among all HIR recipients. Development of both AR and dnDSA within the first year was associated with a 54% graft survival at 5 years and was an independent risk factor for graft loss. Despite utilization of recommended immunosuppression for HIR recipients, substantial disparities exist among subgroups, warranting further consideration of individualized immunosuppression in certain HIR subgroups. © 2016 Steunstichting ESOT.

Differential microRNA expression is associated with androgen receptor expression in breast cancer.

PubMed

Shi, Yaqin; Yang, Fang; Sun, Zijia; Zhang, Wenwen; Gu, Jun; Guan, Xiaoxiang

2017-01-01

The androgen receptor (AR) is frequently expressed in breast cancer; however, its prognostic value remains unclear. AR expression in breast cancer has been associated with improved outcomes in estrogen receptor (ER)‑positive breast cancer compared with ER‑negative disease. Eliminating AR function in breast cancer is critically important for breast cancer progression. However, the mechanism underlying AR regulation remains poorly understood. The study of microRNAs (miRNAs) has provided important insights into the pathogenesis of hormone‑dependent cancer. To determine whether miRNAs function in the AR regulation of breast cancer, the present study performed miRNA expression profiling in AR‑positive and ‑negative breast cancer cell lines. A total of 153 miRNAs were differentially expressed in AR‑positive compared with AR‑negative breast cancer cells; 52 were upregulated and 101 were downregulated. A number of these have been extensively associated with breast cancer cell functions, including proliferation, invasion and drug‑resistance. Furthermore, through pathway enrichment analysis, signaling pathways associated with the prediction targets of the miRNAs were characterized, including the vascular endothelial growth factor and mammalian target of rapamycin signaling pathways. In conclusion, the results of the present study indicated that the expression of miRNAs may be involved in the mechanism underlying AR regulation of breast cancer, and may improve understanding of the role of AR in breast cancer.

Validity of Arabic version of the two-question Quick Inventory of Depression (QID-2-Ar): Screening for multiple sclerosis in an Arab environment and during the Syrian war.

PubMed

Kubitary, A; Alsaleh, M A

2018-03-01

This study aimed to validate the Arabic version of the two-question Quick Inventory of Depression (QID-2-Ar) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients living in Syria during the war. A total of 100 Syrian MS patients, aged 18-60 years, were recruited at Damascus Hospital and Ibn Al-Nafees Hospital to validate the QID-2-Ar, including analyses of its screening test parameters and its construct validity. The QID-2-Ar screening parameters for depression tested very positively, and its construct validity was also favorable (P<0.01). The QID-2-Ar is a good screening test for detecting depression. Using a threshold score of ≥1 rather than 2 resulted in more depressed patients being correctly identified. The Arabic version of the QID-2-Ar also has highly favorable psychometric properties. It is valid for assessing depression, especially the two main depressive symptoms (depressive mood and anhedonia) listed in DSM-V. This is a useful tool for researchers and practitioners, and a threshold score of 2 on the QID-2-Ar is recommended to be more certain that all those with depression are detected without having to use a complete depression questionnaire such as the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)-II. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

K-Ar constraints on fluid-rock interaction and dissolution-precipitation events within the actively creeping shear zones from SAFOD cores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, S.; Hemming, S. R.; Torgersen, T.; Fleisher, M. Q.; Cox, S. E.; Stute, M.

2009-12-01

The San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) was drilled to study the physical and chemical processes responsible for faulting and earthquake generation along an active, plate-bounding fault at depth. SAFOD drill cores show multiple zones of alteration and deformation due to fluid-rock interaction in the fault rocks(Schleicher et al. 2008). In context of fluid studies in the SAFZ, noble gas and potassium measurements were performed on solid samples of sedimentary rocks obtained from drill cores across the fault (3050-4000m-MD). We used a combination of 40Ar/39Ar and K-Ar methods on crushed samples of mudrock with variable amounts of visible slickensides to constrain the degree of resetting of the K-Ar system across the San Andreas Fault zone. 40Ar/39Ar was analyzed from small fragments (sand sized grains) while K-Ar was measured in crushed bulk rock samples (100-250 mg for Ar, and 5-10 mg for K analyses). The apparent 40Ar/39Ar ages based on single step laser fusion of small fragments corresponding to the detrital component in the coarse fraction, show varying ages ranging from the provenance age to <13Ma. Although more data are needed to make detailed comparisons, the apparent K-Ar ages of bulk samples in the fault zone are biased toward authigenic materials contained in the fine fraction, similar to the 40Ar/39Ar ages reported for mineralogical separates from very fine size fractions of samples obtained from 3065.98m-MD and 3294.89m-MD (Schleicher et al., submitted to Geology). The small samples measured for 40Ar/39Ar show scatter in the apparent ages, generally bracketing the bulk ages. However they are picked from sieved portions of the samples, and it is likely that there may be a loss of the younger (finer) material. Detrital provenance ages appear to be 50-60Ma in the Pacific Plate, and 100Ma in the North American Plate. 40Ar/39Ar ages within the SAFZ, as defined by geophysical logs (3200-3400m MD), are dominated by apparent detrital ages of ˜100Ma. More work is needed to test whether this is a real provenance age, or if there could be some systematic process that could lead to age bias towards older values. We observe nearly complete resetting of K-Ar ages, indicating that the K content is dominated by newly formed authigenic minerals as a result of fluid rock interaction in the SAFZ. Because the authigenic minerals are subject to successive dissolution-precipitation events over a range of time (3 to 0 Ma) and because the detrital component may not be fully reset, the K-Ar apparent ages (<300,000 years) in the SAFZ provide a maximum age on the resetting event. Similar trends of relatively young ages across the SAFZ compared to the surrounding country rock in the Pacific and North American Plates are also observed in the apparent fluid ‘ages’, corresponding to the fluid event responsible for the fluid-rock interaction in the fault (Ali et al. this session).

Measurement system to determine the total and angle-resolved light scattering of optical components in the deep-ultraviolet and vacuum-ultraviolet spectral regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schröder, Sven; Gliech, Stefan; Duparré, Angela

2005-10-01

An instrumentation for total and angle-resolved scattering (ARS) at 193 and 157 nm has been developed at the Fraunhofer Institute in Jena to meet the severe requirements for scattering analysis of deep- and vacuum-ultraviolet optical components. Extremely low backscattering levels of 10^-6 for the total scattering measurements and more than 9 orders of magnitude dynamic range for ARS have been accomplished. Examples of application extend from the control of at-wavelength scattering losses of superpolished substrates with rms roughness as small as 0.1 nm to the detection of volume material scattering and the study into the scattering of multilayer coatings. In addition, software programs were developed to model the roughness-induced light scattering of substrates and thin-film coatings.

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

Shahrukh, Hassan; Oyedun, Adetoyese Olajire; Kumar, Amit

Here, a process model was developed to determine the net energy ratio (NER) for production of pellets from steam pretreated agricultural residue (AR) and energy crop (i.e. switchgrass in this case). The NER is a ratio of the net energy output to the total net energy input from non-renewable energy sources into a system. Scenarios were developed to measure the effects of temperature and level of steam pretreatment on the NER of steam pretreated AR- and switch grass-based pellets. The NER for the base case at 6 kg h -1 is 1.76 and 1.37 for steam-pretreated AR- and switchgrass-based pellets,more » respectively. The reason behind the difference is that more energy is required to dry switchgrass pellets than AR pellets. The sensitivity analysis for the model shows that the optimum temperature for steam pretreatment is 160 C with 50% pretreatment (half the feedstock is pretreated, while the rest is undergoes regular pelletization). The uncertainty results for NER for steam pretreated AR and switch grass pellets are 1.62 ± 0.10 and 1.42 ± 0.11, respectively.« less

WHY IS THE GREAT SOLAR ACTIVE REGION 12192 FLARE-RICH BUT CME-POOR?

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

Sun, Xudong; Bobra, Monica G.; Hoeksema, J. Todd

Solar active region (AR) 12192 of 2014 October hosts the largest sunspot group in 24 years. It is the most prolific flaring site of Cycle 24 so far, but surprisingly produced no coronal mass ejection (CME) from the core region during its disk passage. Here, we study the magnetic conditions that prevented eruption and the consequences that ensued. We find AR 12192 to be “big but mild”; its core region exhibits weaker non-potentiality, stronger overlying field, and smaller flare-related field changes compared to two other major flare-CME-productive ARs (11429 and 11158). These differences are present in the intensive-type indices (e.g.,more » means) but generally not the extensive ones (e.g., totals). AR 12192's large amount of magnetic free energy does not translate into CME productivity. The unexpected behavior suggests that AR eruptiveness is limited by some relative measure of magnetic non-potentiality over the restriction of background field, and that confined flares may leave weaker photospheric and coronal imprints compared to their eruptive counterparts.« less

Anorthite sputtering by H + and Ar q+ (q = 1-9) at solar wind velocities

DOE PAGES

Hijazi, Hussein Dib; Bannister, Mark E.; Meyer, III, Harry M.; ...

2014-10-16

Here, we report sputtering measurements of anorthite-like material, taken to be representative of soils found in the lunar highlands, impacted by singly and multicharged ions representative of the solar wind. The ions investigated include protons, as well as singly and multicharged Ar ions (as proxies for the nonreactive heavy solar wind constituents), in the charge state range +1 to +9, at fixed solar wind-relevant impact velocities of 165 and 310 km/s (0.25 keV/amu and 0.5 keV/amu). A quartz microbalance approach (QCM) for determination of total sputtering yields was used. The goal of the measurements was to determine the sputtering contributionmore » of the heavy, multicharged minority solar wind constituents in comparison to that due to the dominant H + fraction. The QCM results show a yield increase of a factor of about 80 for Ar + versus H + sputtering and an enhancement by a factor of 1.67 between Ar 9+ and Ar +, which is a clear indication of a potential sputtering effect.« less

Clustering Heart Rate Dynamics Is Associated with β-Adrenergic Receptor Polymorphisms: Analysis by Information-Based Similarity Index

PubMed Central

Yang, Albert C.; Tsai, Shih-Jen; Hong, Chen-Jee; Wang, Cynthia; Chen, Tai-Jui; Liou, Ying-Jay; Peng, Chung-Kang

2011-01-01

Background Genetic polymorphisms in the gene encoding the β-adrenergic receptors (β-AR) have a pivotal role in the functions of the autonomic nervous system. Using heart rate variability (HRV) as an indicator of autonomic function, we present a bottom-up genotype–phenotype analysis to investigate the association between β-AR gene polymorphisms and heart rate dynamics. Methods A total of 221 healthy Han Chinese adults (59 males and 162 females, aged 33.6±10.8 years, range 19 to 63 years) were recruited and genotyped for three common β-AR polymorphisms: β1-AR Ser49Gly, β2-AR Arg16Gly and β2-AR Gln27Glu. Each subject underwent two hours of electrocardiogram monitoring at rest. We applied an information-based similarity (IBS) index to measure the pairwise dissimilarity of heart rate dynamics among study subjects. Results With the aid of agglomerative hierarchical cluster analysis, we categorized subjects into major clusters, which were found to have significantly different distributions of β2-AR Arg16Gly genotype. Furthermore, the non-randomness index, a nonlinear HRV measure derived from the IBS method, was significantly lower in Arg16 homozygotes than in Gly16 carriers. The non-randomness index was negatively correlated with parasympathetic-related HRV variables and positively correlated with those HRV indices reflecting a sympathovagal shift toward sympathetic activity. Conclusions We demonstrate a bottom-up categorization approach combining the IBS method and hierarchical cluster analysis to detect subgroups of subjects with HRV phenotypes associated with β-AR polymorphisms. Our results provide evidence that β2-AR polymorphisms are significantly associated with the acceleration/deceleration pattern of heart rate oscillation, reflecting the underlying mode of autonomic nervous system control. PMID:21573230

Age at adiposity rebound: determinants and association with nutritional status and the metabolic syndrome at adulthood.

PubMed

Péneau, S; González-Carrascosa, R; Gusto, G; Goxe, D; Lantieri, O; Fezeu, L; Hercberg, S; Rolland-Cachera, M F

2016-07-01

Early-life growth characteristics and in particular age at adiposity rebound (AR), have been shown to impact nutritional status later in life but studies investigating the association with long-term health remain scarce. Our aims were to identify determinants of age at AR and its relationship with nutritional status and cardiometabolic risk factors at adulthood. A total of 1465 subjects aged 20-60 years participated in this retrospective cohort study. Height, weight, waist circumference, blood glucose, lipids and blood pressure were measured at adulthood. Childhood weight, height, gestational age, birth weight and early nutrition were collected retrospectively from health booklets and age at AR was assessed. Participants self-reported parental silhouettes. Associations were assessed using multiple linear and logistic regression. An earlier AR was associated with higher body mass index and waist circumference at adulthood in both men and women (P<0.0001). In addition, women with an earlier occurrence of AR had higher triglyceride (P=0.001), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (P=0.001), systolic (P=0.02) and diastolic blood pressure (P=0.04) at adulthood. Both men (odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval (CI)): 0.82 (0.70-0.95)) and women (OR (95% CI): 0.84 (0.73-0.96) with an AR occurring earlier were more likely to develop a metabolic syndrome. Larger parental silhouette was associated with an earlier AR. This long-term study showed that age at AR was associated with nutritional status and metabolic syndrome at adulthood. These results highlight the importance of monitoring childhood growth so as to help identify children at risk of developing an adverse cardiometabolic profile in adulthood. AR determinants for use in overweight surveillance were identified.

The Impacts of Atmospheric Rivers on California's Extreme Precipitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asgari Lamjiri, M.; Dettinger, M. D.; Ralph, M.

2017-12-01

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are long, narrow corridors of enhanced water vapor transport that are typically associated with extratropical cyclones. ARs can be beneficial and replenish water resources, be hazardous and cause damaging floods, or have a combination of hazardous and beneficial impacts. Thus, understanding hydrologic impacts of ARs can help to improve water reservoir management and enhance flood risk mitigation, especially in California where there is extremely large year-to-year variability in annual precipitation accumulations. At the continental scale, gridded hourly precipitation observations are used in this study to identify unique characteristics of precipitation events impacting the US west coast compared to other regions in the US; precipitation events are defined here as continuous periods of precipitation with at least 5 mm of accumulated precipitation. It is shown that on average, the US west coast receives the largest precipitation totals across the US; these extreme precipitation events are largely associated with the most persistent ARs. Within California, hourly precipitation observations from 200 sites are being analyzed to better understand distinct categories of ARs that dictate extreme precipitation in different regions of California. It is found that, on average, the north coast, northern Sierra, and the Transverse Ranges experience the largest precipitation events; north coast and northern Sierra precipitation events tend to be longer, whereas the Transverse Ranges generally experience higher maximum and event-averaged intensities. ARs contribute significantly to extreme precipitation events in all regions of California, particularly the north coast, northern Sierra, and the Transverse Ranges. ARs associated with extreme precipitation events across California are significantly more persistent and have higher integrated vapor transport intensities than those associated with non-extreme events. Composites of characteristics of ARs which yield extreme precipitation events in different regions of California are studied to categorize the most impactful ARs in each region.

Impact of Rhinitis on Work Productivity: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Vandenplas, Olivier; Vinnikov, Denis; Blanc, Paul D; Agache, Ioana; Bachert, Claus; Bewick, Michael; Cardell, Lars-Olaf; Cullinan, Paul; Demoly, Pascal; Descatha, Alexis; Fonseca, Joao; Haahtela, Tari; Hellings, Peter W; Jamart, Jacques; Jantunen, Juha; Kalayci, Ömer; Price, David; Samolinski, Boleslaw; Sastre, Joaquin; Tian, Longxiu; Valero, Antonio L; Zhang, Xinyi; Bousquet, Jean

2017-10-07

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is increasingly acknowledged as having a substantial socioeconomic impact associated with impaired work productivity, although available information remains fragmented. This systematic review summarizes recently available information to provide a quantitative estimate of the burden of AR on work productivity including lost work time (ie, absenteeism) and reduced performance while working (ie, presenteeism). A Medline search retrieved original studies from 2005 to 2015 pertaining to the impact of AR on work productivity. A pooled analysis of results was carried out with studies reporting data collected through the validated Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. The search identified 19 observational surveys and 9 interventional studies. Six studies reported economic evaluations. Pooled analysis of WPAI-based studies found an estimated 3.6% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.4; 4.8%) missed work time and 35.9% (95% CI, 29.7; 42.1%) had impairment in at-work performance due to AR. Economic evaluations indicated that indirect costs associated with lost work productivity are the principal contributor to the total AR costs and result mainly from impaired presenteeism. The severity of AR symptoms was the most consistent disease-related factor associated with a greater impact of AR on work productivity, although ocular symptoms and sleep disturbances may independently affect work productivity. Overall, the pharmacologic treatment of AR showed a beneficial effect on work productivity. This systematic review provides summary estimates of the magnitude of work productivity impairment due to AR and identifies its main determinant factors. This information may help guide both clinicians and health policy makers. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

MO-DE-207A-07: Filtered Iterative Reconstruction (FIR) Via Proximal Forward-Backward Splitting: A Synergy of Analytical and Iterative Reconstruction Method for CT

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

Gao, H

Purpose: This work is to develop a general framework, namely filtered iterative reconstruction (FIR) method, to incorporate analytical reconstruction (AR) method into iterative reconstruction (IR) method, for enhanced CT image quality. Methods: FIR is formulated as a combination of filtered data fidelity and sparsity regularization, and then solved by proximal forward-backward splitting (PFBS) algorithm. As a result, the image reconstruction decouples data fidelity and image regularization with a two-step iterative scheme, during which an AR-projection step updates the filtered data fidelity term, while a denoising solver updates the sparsity regularization term. During the AR-projection step, the image is projected tomore » the data domain to form the data residual, and then reconstructed by certain AR to a residual image which is in turn weighted together with previous image iterate to form next image iterate. Since the eigenvalues of AR-projection operator are close to the unity, PFBS based FIR has a fast convergence. Results: The proposed FIR method is validated in the setting of circular cone-beam CT with AR being FDK and total-variation sparsity regularization, and has improved image quality from both AR and IR. For example, AIR has improved visual assessment and quantitative measurement in terms of both contrast and resolution, and reduced axial and half-fan artifacts. Conclusion: FIR is proposed to incorporate AR into IR, with an efficient image reconstruction algorithm based on PFBS. The CBCT results suggest that FIR synergizes AR and IR with improved image quality and reduced axial and half-fan artifacts. The authors was partially supported by the NSFC (#11405105), the 973 Program (#2015CB856000), and the Shanghai Pujiang Talent Program (#14PJ1404500).« less

β1-Blockers Lower Norepinephrine Release by Inhibiting Presynaptic, Facilitating β1-Adrenoceptors in Normotensive and Hypertensive Rats

PubMed Central

Berg, Torill

2014-01-01

Peripheral norepinephrine release is facilitated by presynaptic β-adrenoceptors, believed to involve the β2-subtype exclusively. However, β1-selective blockers are the most commonly used β-blockers in hypertension. Here the author tested the hypothesis that β1AR may function as presynaptic, release-facilitating auto-receptors. Since β1AR-blockers are injected during myocardial infarction, their influence on the cardiovascular response to acute norepinephrine release was also studied. By a newly established method, using tyramine-stimulated release through the norepinephrine transporter (NET), presynaptic control of catecholamine release was studied in normotensive and spontaneously hypertensive rats. β1AR-selective antagonists (CGP20712A, atenolol, metoprolol) reduced norepinephrine overflow to plasma equally efficient as β2AR-selective (ICI-118551) and β1+2AR (nadolol) antagonists in both strains. Neither antagonist lowered epinephrine secretion. Atenolol, which does not cross the blood–brain barrier, reduced norepinephrine overflow after adrenalectomy (AdrX), AdrX + ganglion blockade, losartan, or nephrectomy. Atenolol and metoprolol reduced resting cardiac work load. During tyramine-stimulated norepinephrine release, they had little effect on work load, and increased the transient rise in total peripheral vascular resistance, particularly atenolol when combined with losartan. In conclusion, β1AR, like β2AR, stimulated norepinephrine but not epinephrine release, independent of adrenal catecholamines, ganglion transmission, or renal renin release/angiotensin AT1 receptor activation. β1AR therefore functioned as a peripheral, presynaptic, facilitating auto-receptor. Like tyramine, hypoxia may induce NET-mediated release. Augmented tyramine-induced vasoconstriction, as observed after injection of β1AR-blocker, particularly atenolol combined with losartan, may hamper organ perfusion, and may have clinical relevance in hypoxic conditions such as myocardial infarction. PMID:24795691

Comparing Vertical Distributions of Water Vapor Flux within Two Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rutz, J. J.; Lavers, D. A.

2015-12-01

The West Coast of North America is frequently impacted by atmospheric rivers (ARs), regions of intense horizontal water vapor transport that often produce heavy rain, flooding, and landslides when they interact with near-coastal mountains. Recently, studies have shown that ARs penetrate farther inland on many occasions, with indications that the vertical distribution of vapor transport within the ARs may play a key role in this penetration (Alexander et al. 2015; Rutz et al. 2015). We hypothesize that the amount of near-coastal precipitation and the likelihood of AR penetration farther inland may be inversely linked by vertical distributions of vapor fluxes before, during, and after landfall. To explore whether differing vertical distributions of transport explain differing precipitation and penetration outcomes, we compare two landfalling ARs that had very similar spatial extents and rates of vertically integrated (total) vapor transport, but which nonetheless produced very different amounts of precipitation over northern California. The vertical distribution of water vapor flux, specific humidity, and wind speed during these two ARs are examined along several transects using cross-sectional analyses of the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis with a horizontal resolution of ~0.5° (~63 km) and a sigma-pressure hybrid coordinate at 64 vertical levels. In addition, we pursue similar analyses of forecasts from the NCEP Global Ensemble Forecast System GEFS to assess whether numerical weather prediction models accurately represent these distributions. Finally, we calculate backward trajectories from within each AR to examine whether or not the origins of their respective air parcels play a role in the resulting vertical distribution of water vapor flux. The results have major implications for two problems in weather prediction: (1) the near-coastal precipitation associated with landfalling ARs and (2) the likelihood of AR penetration farther inland.

Altered prostate epithelial development in mice lacking the androgen receptor in stromal fibroblasts.

PubMed

Yu, Shengqiang; Yeh, Chiuan-Ren; Niu, Yuanjie; Chang, Hong-Chiang; Tsai, Yu-Chieh; Moses, Harold L; Shyr, Chih-Rong; Chang, Chawnshang; Yeh, Shuyuan

2012-03-01

Androgens and the androgen receptor (AR) play important roles in the development of male urogenital organs. We previously found that mice with total AR knockout (ARKO) and epithelial ARKO failed to develop normal prostate with loss of differentiation. We have recently knocked out AR gene in smooth muscle cells and found the reduced luminal infolding and IGF-1 production in the mouse prostate. However, AR roles of stromal fibroblasts in prostate development remain unclear. To further probe the stromal fibroblast AR roles in prostate development, we generated tissue-selective knockout mice with the AR gene deleted in stromal fibroblasts (FSP-ARKO). We also used primary culture stromal cells to confirm the in vivo data and investigate mechanisms related to prostate development. The results showed cellular alterations in the FSP-ARKO mouse prostate with decreased epithelial proliferation, increased apoptosis, and decreased collagen composition. Further mechanistic studies demonstrated that FSP-ARKO mice have defects in the expression of prostate stromal growth factors. To further confirm these in vivo findings, we prepared primary cultured mouse prostate stromal cells and found knocking down the stromal AR could result in growth retardation of prostate stromal cells and co-cultured prostate epithelial cells, as well as decrease of some stromal growth factors. Our FSP-ARKO mice not only provide the first in vivo evidence in Cre-loxP knockout system for the requirement of stromal fibroblast AR to maintain the normal development of the prostate, but may also suggest the selective knockdown of stromal AR might become a potential therapeutic approach to battle prostate hyperplasia and cancer. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Evaluation of adverse reactions to contrast media in the hospital

PubMed Central

Ryu, J-H; Kim, E-Y

2013-01-01

Objective: To determine and analyse the characteristics of contrast media adverse reactions (CM-ARs) reported in a hospital. Methods: A retrospective review of CM-ARs from the electronic spontaneous adverse drug reaction (ADR) report system between January 2011 and August 2012 was conducted. CM-ARs were evaluated in terms of causality, severity, preventability and affected organs. Also, agreement and correlation among the tools used to evaluate CM-ARs were analysed. Results: The overall reaction rate was 1.5% (n = 286). In total, 269 CM-ARs were identified. For ADR causality, 96.7% (n = 260) and 98.5% (n = 265) were evaluated as “probable” ADR using the Naranjo probability scale and the World Health Organization–Uppsala Monitoring Centre causality categories, whereas 98.1% (n = 264) were evaluated as “certain” with Korean algorithm v. II. Of these, 91.4% (n = 246) were mild in severity and 96.7% (n = 260) were unpreventable. Most patients (n = 233, 86.7%) could be managed with observation and/or simple treatment. The most frequent reaction (n = 383, 79.5%) was dermatological. Spearman's correlation coefficient was 0.667 (p < 0.01), and the agreement was 98.1% between the Naranjo scale and the World Health Organization–Uppsala Monitoring Centre categories. No relationship was seen between CM-AR severity and gender or between in- and outpatients. Conclusion: In our study, most CM-ARs were mild and managed with simple treatment. However, as the number of patients undergoing CT procedures continues to increase, it is essential to identify and observe patients at risk for CM-ARs to prevent severe ADRs. Advances in knowledge: Continuous careful review of reporting and treatment protocols of CM-ARs is needed to prevent morbidity and mortality. PMID:24191123

The role of androgen receptor CAG repeat polymorphism and other factors which affect the clinical response to testosterone replacement in metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes: TIMES2 sub-study.

PubMed

Stanworth, R D; Akhtar, S; Channer, K S; Jones, T H

2014-02-01

The TIMES2 (testosterone replacement in hypogonadal men with either metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes) study reported beneficial effects of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) on insulin resistance and other variables in men with diabetes or metabolic syndrome. The androgen receptor CAG repeat polymorphism (AR CAG) is known to affect stimulated AR activity and has been linked to various clinically relevant variables. To assess the role of AR CAG in the alteration of clinical response to TRT in the TIMES2 study. Subgroup analysis from a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled and parallel group study. Outpatient study recruiting from secondary and primary care. A total of 139 men with hypogonadism and type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome, of which 73 received testosterone during the TIMES2 study. Testosterone 2% transdermal gel vs placebo. Regression coefficient of AR CAG from linear regression models for each variable. AR CAG was independently positively associated with change in fasting insulin, triglycerides and diastolic blood pressure during TRT with a trend to association with HOMA-IR - the primary outcome variable. There was a trend to negative association between AR CAG and change in PSA. There was no association of AR CAG with change in other glycaemic variables, other lipid variables or obesity. AR CAG affected the response of some variables to TRT in the TIMES2 study, although the association with HOMA-IR did not reach significance. Various factors may have limited the power of our study to detect the significant associations between AR CAG, testosterone levels and change in variables with testosterone treatment. Analysis of similar data sets from other clinical trials is warranted.

40Ar/39Ar geochronology of submarine Mauna Loa volcano, Hawaii

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jicha, Brian R.; Rhodes, J. Michael; Singer, Brad S.; Garcia, Michael O.

2012-09-01

New geochronologic constraints refine the growth history of Mauna Loa volcano and enhance interpretations of the petrologic, geochemical, and isotopic evolution of Hawaiian magmatism. We report results of 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating experiments on low-K, tholeiitic lavas from the 1.6 km high Kahuku landslide scarp cutting Mauna Loa's submarine southwest rift zone, and from lavas in a deeper section of the rift. Obtaining precise40Ar/39Ar ages from young, tholeiitic lavas containing only 0.2-0.3 wt.% K2O is challenging due to their extremely low radiogenic 40Ar contents. Analyses of groundmass from 45 lavas yield 14 new age determinations (31% success rate) with plateau and isochron ages that agree with stratigraphic constraints. Lavas collected from a 1250 m thick section in the landslide scarp headwall were all erupted around 470 ± 10 ka, implying an extraordinary period of accumulation of ˜25 mm/yr, possibly correlating with the peak of the shield-building stage. This rate is three times higher than the estimated vertical lava accumulation rate for shield-building at Mauna Kea (8.6 ± 3.1 mm/yr) based on results from the Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project. Between ˜470 and 273 ka, the lava accumulation rate along the southwest rift zone decreased dramatically to ˜1 mm/yr. We propose that the marked reduction in lava accumulation rate does not mark the onset of post-shield volcanism as previously suggested, but rather indicates the upward migration of the magma system as Mauna Loa evolved from a submarine stage of growth to one that is predominantly subaerial, thereby cutting off supply to the distal rift zone. Prior to ˜250 ka, lavas with Loihi-like isotopic signatures were erupted along with lavas having typical Mauna Loa values, implying greater heterogeneity in the plume source earlier in Mauna Loa's growth. In addition to refining accumulation rates and the isotopic evolution of the lavas erupted along the southwest rift zone, our new40Ar/39Ar results constrain the eruption of the Ninole Basalts from 227 to 108 ka and provide maximum estimates on the timing of the Ka Lae and South Kona landslides.

[Correlation between the visiting rate of patients with allergic rhinitis and airborne pollen concentrations in Beijing in recent 3 years].

PubMed

Hu, W N; Zhu, L; Xie, L F; Zhang, F Z; Bai, M Y; Wang, N; Sun, Z W

2017-01-07

Objective: To evaluate the daily airborne pollen concentrations and visiting rate of patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) and their correlation during 2012-2014 in Beijing. Methods: Daily airborne pollen concentrations (55 998 numbers in total and 549 numbers in average) and its constitution from April to September each year (2012 to 2014) were compared. The number of patients with AR (44 203 in total) who visited the outpatient department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Peking University Third Hospital between January 2012 and December 2014 was analyzed by month. Using SPSS 22.0 software, Kruskal - Wallis test was done for the comparison of visiting rate of patients with AR and airborne pollen concentrations. Correlation analysis between them was made as well. Results: χ(2) value of airborne pollen concentrations between different months in 2012 to 2014 was 110.7, 108.4 and 121.4, respectively; all P <0.01. The airborne pollen concentrations had two peaks per year, respectively: April to May, August to September. χ(2) value of visiting rate of patients with AR between different months in 2012 to 2014 was 175.0, 185.1 and 134.5, respectively; all P <0.01. Visiting rate of patients with AR showed two scattering peaks each year, respectively: April to May, August to September. The highest pollen concentration of spring (April to May) was in early and middle April. Tree pollen was the major portion in spring, which were poplar pollen, pine tree pollen, ash tree pollen, cypress tree pollen and birch trees pollen. The highest pollen concentration of autumn (August to September) was in late August and early September. Weed pollen was the major portion in summer and autumn, which were artemisia pollen, chenopodiaceae pollen and humulus japonicas pollen. The visiting rate of patients with AR showed significant correlation with airborne pollen concentrations ( r value was 0.537, 0.484 and 0.566, respectively; all P <0.01). Conclusion: The visiting rate of patients with AR showed positive correlation with airborne pollen concentrations in recent three years.

Veterinary Pest Genomics Center | National Agricultural Library

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A Comparison of Health Care Resource Utilization and Costs for Patients with Allergic Rhinitis on Single-Product or Free-Combination Therapy of Intranasal Steroids and Intranasal Antihistamines.

PubMed

Harrow, Brooke; Sedaghat, Ahmad R; Caldwell-Tarr, Amanda; Dufour, Robert

2016-12-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a common condition that can be treated with a number of different therapies. Treatments such as intranasal antihistamines (INAs) and intranasal steroids (INSs) are widely used by AR patients. For some allergy sufferers, a combination of therapies, specifically an INA and an INS, is required to address their symptoms. A new treatment, the formulation of azelastine hydrochloride and fluticasone pro-pionate used as a single spray (MP-AzeFlu), has become available for AR patients who need both types of treatment. In this regard, the comparison with the alternative concomitant use of INAs and INSs is of interest. The current study examines the health care resource utilization and costs for each cohort. To examine the resource utilization and costs associated with AR for patients treated with MP-AzeFlu or concurrent therapy with single-ingredient INA and INS sprays (free-combination therapy). A retrospective administrative claims study for commercially insured patients from a large U.S. health plan was performed. Patients with an AR diagnosis and a prescription claim for MP-AzeFlu or free-combination therapy between September 1, 2012, and September 30, 2013, were identified. Patients were aged at least 12 years at index date (first prescription fill for intranasal therapy) and were required to have 12 months pre-index and 6 months post-index of continuous enrollment. Health care resource utilization and costs were assessed for the post-index period. The cohorts were adjusted on baseline demographic and clinical characteristics using inverse propensity treatment weights. Other covariates, prescriber specialty, product switching during the post-index period, and pre-index total costs were included in the regression models measuring outcomes. One clinical characteristic of interest was the presence of asthma as comorbidity. A subset analysis of AR patients with asthma was also performed. All-cause-related pharmacy fills as well as pharmacy, medical, and total costs were significantly reduced by using MP-AzeFlu (N = 810) instead of the free combination of drugs (N = 726). For AR-related health care resource utilization, the MP-AzeFlu cohort had significantly fewer pharmacy fills than the free-combination cohort (1.01 and 1.17, respectively; P < 0.001) with no significant difference in outpatient services and specialist visits (P = 0.139 and P = 0.117, respectively). Six-month AR-related pharmacy and total costs were significantly lower (P < 0.001 and P = 0.001) for the MP-AzeFlu cohort ($128 and $334, respectively) than the free-combination cohort ($268 and $458, respectively). There was no statistically significant difference in AR-related medical costs between the 2 cohorts (P = 0.454). For the subcohort of AR patients with asthma, the MP-AzeFlu cohort had lower 6-month asthma resource utilization and costs than the free-combination cohort. These findings suggest that, for AR patients needing INAs and INSs, the single-spray formulation MP-AzeFlu had better economic outcomes than for patients who rely on the free combination of these agents. MP-AzeFlu also appears to keep asthma-related utilization and costs down for those AR patients who also suffer from asthma. Potential explanations for these findings are explored. This study was funded by Meda Pharmaceuticals. Authors were either employed by Meda Pharmaceuticals or received consulting fees from Meda Pharmaceuticals. Comprehensive Health Insights and Sedaghat received funding from Meda Pharmaceuticals as a consultant to participate in this study. Dufour and Caldwell-Tarr are employees of Comprehensive Health Insights. Harrow is currently employed by TESARO. This study was conceived by Harrow, Dufour, and Caldwell-Tarr. All authors contributed to the design of the study. Dufour took the lead in data collection, along with Caldwell-Tarr, and data interpretion was performed by Harrow, along with the other authors. Analyses were performed by Dufour. The manuscript was written and revised by all authors.

Is there excess argon in the Fish Canyon magmatic system?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkinson, C. M.; Sherlock, S.; Kelley, S. P.; Charlier, B. L.

2010-12-01

Some phenocrysts from the Fish Canyon Tuff (San Juan volcanic field, south-western Colorado, USA) have yielded anomalously old 40Ar/39Ar apparent ages and yet the sanidine ages are sufficiently reproducible to allow its use as an international standard. The eruption age of the Fish Canyon tuff has recently been determined by high precision analysis and recalibration of the decay constants based on the sanidine standard at 28.305 ± 0.036 Ma [1], slightly younger than the generally accepted U-Pb age. Previously, minerals from the tuff have been used in various geochronological studies e.g., fission-track; U-Pb; Rb-Sr; K-Ar and 40Ar/39Ar, but U-Pb zircon ages which range 28.37 - 28.61 Ma appear to be older than the sanidine and other minerals, including biotite, yield older ages (27.41 - 28.25 Ma for biotite) [2]. In the Fish Canyon volcanic system, the erupted products are thought to exist in the magma chamber for significant periods prior to eruption [3] and then pass rapidly from a high temperature magmatic environment (where Ar is free to re-equilibrate among the minerals), to effectively being quenched upon eruption (where Ar becomes immobile). Artificially elevated ages, older than eruption age, have been identified in some 40Ar/39Ar geochronological studies (e.g. [4]). These older ages may either reflect; 1) argon accumulation in pheno- or xenocrysts (by radioactive decay of parent 40K), 2) excess argon (40ArE) incorporated into a mineral during crystallisation (via diffusion into the mineral lattice or hosted within fluid or melt inclusions) or 3) inherited radiogenic argon (the dated material contains a component older than the age of eruption) [5]. To better understand the effects of 40ArE on 40Ar/39Ar apparent ages we have conducted a detailed study of intra-grain grain age variations by UV-LAMP Ar-analysis. Analysis of polished thick sections has been performed in-situ using a 213nm laser and Nu Instruments Noblesse which is able to discriminate against interfering peaks at mass 36 allowing us to correct for the atmospheric 40Ar content. By using this method to analyse potassium-rich minerals (sanidine and biotite) and potassium-poor minerals (quartz and plagioclase), it has been possible to study the distribution of argon within these mineral phases and its incorporation into melt, fluid and solid inclusions. Here we report new 40Ar/39Ar intra-grain age data of minerals from the Fish Canyon Tuff, which despite being well characterised and extensively researched has not yet been a subject for this particular technique. [1] Renne P. R. et al., (2010) Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 74, 5349-5367. [2] Bachmann, O. et al., (2007) Chemical Geology, 236, 134-166.[3] Charlier, B.L.A. et al., (2007) Journal of Petrology, 48, 1875-1894. [4] Esser, R. P. et al., (1997) Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 61, 3789-3801. [5] Kelley, S. (2002) Chemical Geology, 188, 1-22. Corresponding Author: c.m.wilkinson@open.ac.uk

Can we model observed soil carbon changes from a dense inventory? A case study over England and Wales using three versions of the ORCHIDEE ecosystem model (AR5, AR5-PRIM and O-CN)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guenet, B.; Moyano, F. E.; Vuichard, N.; Kirk, G. J. D.; Bellamy, P. H.; Zaehle, S.; Ciais, P.

2013-12-01

A widespread decrease of the topsoil carbon content was observed over England and Wales during the period 1978-2003 in the National Soil Inventory (NSI), amounting to a carbon loss of 4.44 Tg yr-1 over 141 550 km2. Subsequent modelling studies have shown that changes in temperature and precipitation could only account for a small part of the observed decrease, and therefore that changes in land use and management and resulting changes in heterotrophic respiration or net primary productivity were the main causes. So far, all the models used to reproduce the NSI data have not accounted for plant-soil interactions and have only been soil carbon models with carbon inputs forced by data. Here, we use three different versions of a process-based coupled soil-vegetation model called ORCHIDEE (Organizing Carbon and Hydrology in Dynamic Ecosystems), in order to separate the effect of trends in soil carbon input from soil carbon mineralization induced by climate trends over 1978-2003. The first version of the model (ORCHIDEE-AR5), used for IPCC-AR5 CMIP5 Earth System simulations, is based on three soil carbon pools defined with first-order decomposition kinetics, as in the CENTURY model. The second version (ORCHIDEE-AR5-PRIM) built for this study includes a relationship between litter carbon and decomposition rates, to reproduce a priming effect on decomposition. The last version (O-CN) takes into account N-related processes. Soil carbon decomposition in O-CN is based on CENTURY, but adds N limitations on litter decomposition. We performed regional gridded simulations with these three versions of the ORCHIDEE model over England and Wales. None of the three model versions was able to reproduce the observed NSI soil carbon trend. This suggests either that climate change is not the main driver for observed soil carbon losses or that the ORCHIDEE model even with priming or N effects on decomposition lacks the basic mechanisms to explain soil carbon change in response to climate, which would raise a caution flag about the ability of this type of model to project soil carbon changes in response to future warming. A third possible explanation could be that the NSI measurements made on the topsoil are not representative of the total soil carbon losses integrated over the entire soil depth, and thus cannot be compared with the model output.

Can we model observed soil carbon changes from a dense inventory? A case study over england and wales using three version of orchidee ecosystem model (AR5, AR5-PRIM and O-CN)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guenet, B.; Moyano, F. E.; Vuichard, N.; Kirk, G. J. D.; Bellamy, P. H.; Zaehle, S.; Ciais, P.

2013-07-01

A widespread decrease of the top soil carbon content was observed over England and Wales during the period 1978-2003 in the National Soil Inventory (NSI), amounting to a carbon loss of 4.44 Tg yr-1 over 141 550 km2. Subsequent modelling studies have shown that changes in temperature and precipitation could only account for a small part of the observed decrease, and therefore that changes in land use and management and resulting changes in soil respiration or primary production were the main causes. So far, all the models used to reproduce the NSI data did not account for plant-soil interactions and were only soil carbon models with carbon inputs forced by data. Here, we use three different versions of a process-based coupled soil-vegetation model called ORCHIDEE, in order to separate the effect of trends in soil carbon input, and soil carbon mineralisation induced by climate trends over 1978-2003. The first version of the model (ORCHIDEE-AR5) used for IPCC-AR5 CMIP5 Earth System simulations, is based on three soil carbon pools defined with first order decomposition kinetics, as in the CENTURY model. The second version (ORCHIDEE-AR5-PRIM) built for this study includes a relationship between litter carbon and decomposition rates, to reproduce a priming effect on decomposition. The last version (O-CN) takes into account N-related processes. Soil carbon decomposition in O-CN is based on CENTURY, but adds N limitations on litter decomposition. We performed regional gridded simulations with these three versions of the ORCHIDEE model over England and Wales. None of the three model versions was able to reproduce the observed NSI soil carbon trend. This suggests that either climate change is not the main driver for observed soil carbon losses, or that the ORCHIDEE model even with priming or N-effects on decomposition lacks the basic mechanisms to explain soil carbon change in response to climate, which would raise a caution flag about the ability of this type of model to project soil carbon changes in response to future warming. A third possible explanation could be that the NSI measurements made on the topsoil are not representative of the total soil carbon losses integrated over the entire soil depth, and thus cannot be compared with the model output.

Evaluation of the appropriate use of a CIWA-Ar alcohol withdrawal protocol in the general hospital setting.

PubMed

Eloma, Amanda S; Tucciarone, Jason M; Hayes, Edmund M; Bronson, Brian D

2018-01-01

The Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment-Alcohol, Revised (CIWA-Ar) is an assessment tool used to quantify alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) severity and inform benzodiazepine treatment for alcohol withdrawal. To evaluate the prescribing patterns and appropriate use of the CIWA-Ar protocol in a general hospital setting, as determined by the presence or absence of documented AWS risk factors, patients' ability to communicate, and provider awareness of the CIWA-Ar order. This retrospective chart review included 118 encounters of hospitalized patients placed on a CIWA-Ar protocol during one year. The following data were collected for each encounter: patient demographics, admitting diagnosis, ability to communicate, and admission blood alcohol level; and medical specialty of the clinician ordering CIWA-Ar, documentation of the presence or absence of established AWS risk factors, specific parameters of the protocol ordered, service admitted to, provider documentation of awareness of the active protocol within 48 h of initial order, total benzodiazepine dose equivalents administered and associated adverse events. 57% of patients who started on a CIWA-Ar protocol had either zero or one documented risk factor for AWS (19% and 38% respectively). 20% had no documentation of recent alcohol use. 14% were unable to communicate. 19% of medical records lacked documentation of provider awareness of the ordered protocol. Benzodiazepine associated adverse events were documented in 15% of encounters. The judicious use of CIWA-Ar protocols in general hospitals requires mechanisms to ensure assessment of validated alcohol withdrawal risk factors, exclusion of patients who cannot communicate, and continuity of care during transitions.

The effect on turkey meat shelf life of modified-atmosphere packaging with an argon mixture.

PubMed

Fraqueza, M J; Barreto, A S

2009-09-01

There is a lack of knowledge related to the action of Ar on microbial development and prevention of oxidation when applied to raw meat under modified-atmosphere package (MAP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an anaerobic gas mixture with Ar on spoilage flora growth, color, and lipid oxidation stability of turkey meat under MAP stored at 0 degrees C. Breast muscles samples were collected on different working days from turkey carcasses (BUT9 and BIG6), fast-cooled in a tunnel (-2 degrees C, 2 m.s(-1), 90% RH) for 2 h and selected to be deboned according current practices in industrial slaughterhouses. The breasts were cut into slices that were individually packaged under aerobiosis (P0) and in 4 different modified atmospheres containing different gas mixtures as (P1) 100% N2, (P2) 50% Ar-50% N2, (P3) 50% Ar-50% CO2, and (P4) 50% N2-50% CO2. All samples were stored at 0+/-1 degrees C in the dark for between 12 and 25 d. Meat samples packaged in P0 were analyzed for their microbial and physicochemical characteristics on d 0, 5, and 12 of storage and then extended to 19 and 25 d when samples were under MAP. The microbial shelf life period extension of MAP sliced turkey meat compared with aerobic packaging (5-d shelf life) is 1 wk more for P1 and P2 mixtures, 2 wk for P4, and 3 wk for P3. The Ar-CO2 mixture was more efficient in delaying flora development than CO2-N2 with 1 log difference on the 25th day of storage, for total psychrotrophic counts, total anaerobic counts, and Brochothrix thermosphacta. The presence of Ar on gas mixtures did not seem to have any additional protective effect on lipid turkey meat oxidation.

Modulation of Androgen Receptor Signaling in Hormonal Therapy-Resistant Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

PubMed Central

Marques, Rute B.; Dits, Natasja F.; Erkens-Schulze, Sigrun; van IJcken, Wilfred F. J.; van Weerden, Wytske M.; Jenster, Guido

2011-01-01

Background Prostate epithelial cells depend on androgens for survival and function. In (early) prostate cancer (PCa) androgens also regulate tumor growth, which is exploited by hormonal therapies in metastatic disease. The aim of the present study was to characterize the androgen receptor (AR) response in hormonal therapy-resistant PC346 cells and identify potential disease markers. Methodology/Principal Findings Human 19K oligoarrays were used to establish the androgen-regulated expression profile of androgen-responsive PC346C cells and its derivative therapy-resistant sublines: PC346DCC (vestigial AR levels), PC346Flu1 (AR overexpression) and PC346Flu2 (T877A AR mutation). In total, 107 transcripts were differentially-expressed in PC346C and derivatives after R1881 or hydroxyflutamide stimulations. The AR-regulated expression profiles reflected the AR modifications of respective therapy-resistant sublines: AR overexpression resulted in stronger and broader transcriptional response to R1881 stimulation, AR down-regulation correlated with deficient response of AR-target genes and the T877A mutation resulted in transcriptional response to both R1881 and hydroxyflutamide. This AR-target signature was linked to multiple publicly available cell line and tumor derived PCa databases, revealing that distinct functional clusters were differentially modulated during PCa progression. Differentiation and secretory functions were up-regulated in primary PCa but repressed in metastasis, whereas proliferation, cytoskeletal remodeling and adhesion were overexpressed in metastasis. Finally, the androgen-regulated genes ENDOD1, MCCC2 and ACSL3 were selected as potential disease markers for RT-PCR quantification in a distinct set of human prostate specimens. ENDOD1 and ACSL3 showed down-regulation in high-grade and metastatic PCa, while MCCC2 was overexpressed in low-grade PCa. Conclusions/Significance AR modifications altered the transcriptional response to (anti)androgens in therapy-resistant cells. Furthermore, selective down-regulation of genes involved in differentiation and up-regulation of genes promoting proliferation and invasion suggest a disturbed balance between the growth and differentiation functions of the AR pathway during PCa progression. These findings may have implications in the current treatment and development of novel therapeutical approaches for metastatic PCa. PMID:21829708

The Diversity ECCM Performance of Frequency-Hopping CPFSK in Partial- Band Noise Jamming

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-05-25

TELEPHONE (Inc€ude Art Code) 22c. OFFICE SYMBOL 1 ar .anoer (919) 549-0641 ARO: EL-S D FORM 1473.6 4 MAR 83 APR edition may be used until exhausted...ASSOCIATES, INC. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1.0 INTRODUCTION ...... .... ......................... 1 1.1 BACKGROUND ...... ......................... I 1.2...andJ/or Dit Special t -. V 1 atI J. S. LEE ASSOCIATES, INC. -S TABLE OF CONTENTS (Cont.) . - Page 2.2 ERROR PROBA3ILITY FORMULATION .5

Numerical and experimental investigations for the evaluation of the wear coefficient of reverse total shoulder prostheses.

PubMed

Mattei, Lorenza; Di Puccio, Francesca; Joyce, Thomas J; Ciulli, Enrico

2015-03-01

In the present study, numerical and experimental wear investigations on reverse total shoulder arthroplasties (RTSAs) were combined in order to estimate specific wear coefficients, currently not available in the literature. A wear model previously developed by the authors for metal-on-plastic hip implants was adapted to RTSAs and applied in a double direction: firstly, to evaluate specific wear coefficients for RTSAs from experimental results and secondly, to predict wear distribution. In both cases, the Archard wear law (AR) and the wear law of UHMWPE (PE) were considered, assuming four different k functions. The results indicated that both the wear laws predict higher wear coefficients for RTSA with respect to hip implants, particularly the AR law, with k values higher than twofold the hip ones. Such differences can significantly affect predictive wear model results for RTSA, when non-specific wear coefficients are used. Moreover, the wear maps simulated with the two laws are markedly different, although providing the same wear volume. A higher wear depth (+51%) is obtained with the AR law, located at the dome of the cup, while with the PE law the most worn region is close to the edge. Taking advantage of the linear trend of experimental volume losses, the wear coefficients obtained with the AR law should be valid despite having neglected the geometry update in the model. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[sup 40]Ar/[sup 39]Ar mineral ages from southwestern Penobscot Bay, Maine: Evidence for Silurian metamorphism

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

West, D.P. Jr.; Guidotti, C.V.; Lux, D.R.

1992-01-01

The nature and timing of metamorphic events in the Coastal Lithotectonic Block of Maine remain poorly understood. Immediately west and southwest of Penobscot Bay the rocks are polymetamorphic showing evidence for at least two episodes of amphibolite facies metamorphism and later, perhaps regionally extensive, retrograde events. Hornblende mineral separates from two amphibolites din the Port Clyde area have identical Ar-40/Ar-39 plateau ages of 414.0 [+-] 3.3 and 414.0 [+-] 3.9 Ma. These ages are interpreted to reflect the time of cooling following the last significant thermal event in this area. Biotite from an amphibolite in the Port Clyde area givesmore » a total gas age of 346.5 [+-] 3.2 Ma. Hornblende from an amphibolite 7 km to the west near Friendship gives a nearly concordant release spectrum with a plateau age of 369.0 [+-] 3.7 Ma. Coexisting biotite from this amphibolite gives a total gas age of 289.2 [+-] 2.7 Ma. Muscovite from the Waldoboro pluton has a nearly concordant release spectrum with a plateau age of 306.3 [+-] 2.2 Ma. Biotite from this sample gives a total gas age of 288.9 [+-] 2.2 Ma. The 414.0 Ma hornblende cooling ages from the Port Clyde area reflect cooling following a significant high grade Silurian thermal event. This Silurian metamorphism is the same age as tectonothermal events in the Nashoba Terrane in eastern Massachusetts, the Kingston Complex in southern New Brunswick, the Aspy Terrane in Cape Breton island, Nova Scotia, and the Hermitage Flexure in southern Newfoundland.d Thus a distinctive Silurian tectonothermal province located along the western edge of the Avalon Zone appears to extend discontinuously from Massachusetts to Newfoundland.« less

Does the duration and time of sleep increase the risk of allergic rhinitis? Results of the 6-year nationwide Korea youth risk behavior web-based survey.

PubMed

Kwon, Jeoung A; Lee, Minjee; Yoo, Ki-Bong; Park, Eun-Cheol

2013-01-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is the most common chronic disorder in the pediatric population. Although several studies have investigated the correlation between AR and sleep-related issues, the association between the duration and time of sleep and AR has not been analyzed in long-term national data. This study investigated the relationship between sleep time and duration and AR risk in middle- and high-school students (adolescents aged 12-18). We analyzed national data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2007-2012. The sample size was 274,480, with an average response rate of 96.2%. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the relationship between sleep and AR risk. Furthermore, to determine the best-fitted model among independent variables such as sleep duration, sleep time, and the combination of sleep duration and sleep time, we used Akaike Information Criteria (AIC) to compare models. A total of 43,337 boys and 41,665 girls reported a diagnosis of AR at baseline. The odds ratio increased with age and with higher education and economic status of the parents. Further, students in mid-sized and large cities had stronger relationships to AR than those in small cities. In both genders, AR was associated with depression and suicidal ideation. In the analysis of sleep duration and sleep time, the odds ratio increased in both genders when sleep duration was <7 hours, and when the time of sleep was later than 24:00 hours. Our results indicate an association between sleep time and duration and AR. This study is the first to focus on the relationship between sleep duration and time and AR in national survey data collected over 6 years.

Precipitation, irrigation and crop growth signals in COSMOS data

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Soil water sensors are used to characterize water content in the root zone and below for water management and environmental monitoring, but only a few are capable of sensing soil volumes larger than a few hundred liters. Scientists with the USDA-ARS Conservation & Production Research Laboratory, Bus...

Publications - USBM Publications Series | Alaska Division of Geological &

Science.gov Websites

Publications Geologic Materials Center General Information Inventory Monthly Report Hours and Location Policy content USBM Publications Series Descriptions Series List AR - Agency Report B - Bulletin CR - Contract Report FR - Field Report IC - Information Circular MLA - Mineral Land Assessment MRS - Mineral Resource

COSMOS soil water sensing affected by crop biomass and water status

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Soil water sensing methods are widely used to characterize water content in the root zone and below, but only a few are capable of sensing soil volumes larger than a few hundred liters. Scientists with the USDA-ARS Conservation & Production Research Laboratory, Bushland, Texas, evaluated: a) the Cos...

The Contribution of Agriculture, Forestry and other Land Use activities to Global Warming, 1990-2012.

PubMed

Tubiello, Francesco N; Salvatore, Mirella; Ferrara, Alessandro F; House, Jo; Federici, Sandro; Rossi, Simone; Biancalani, Riccardo; Condor Golec, Rocio D; Jacobs, Heather; Flammini, Alessandro; Prosperi, Paolo; Cardenas-Galindo, Paola; Schmidhuber, Josef; Sanz Sanchez, Maria J; Srivastava, Nalin; Smith, Pete

2015-01-10

We refine the information available through the IPCC AR5 with regard to recent trends in global GHG emissions from agriculture, forestry and other land uses (AFOLU), including global emission updates to 2012. Using all three available AFOLU datasets employed for analysis in the IPCC AR5, rather than just one as done in the IPCC AR5 WGIII Summary for Policy Makers, our analyses point to a down-revision of global AFOLU shares of total anthropogenic emissions, while providing important additional information on subsectoral trends. Our findings confirm that the share of AFOLU emissions to the anthropogenic total declined over time. They indicate a decadal average of 28.7 ± 1.5% in the 1990s and 23.6 ± 2.1% in the 2000s and an annual value of 21.2 ± 1.5% in 2010. The IPCC AR5 had indicated a 24% share in 2010. In contrast to previous decades, when emissions from land use (land use, land use change and forestry, including deforestation) were significantly larger than those from agriculture (crop and livestock production), in 2010 agriculture was the larger component, contributing 11.2 ± 0.4% of total GHG emissions, compared to 10.0 ± 1.2% of the land use sector. Deforestation was responsible for only 8% of total anthropogenic emissions in 2010, compared to 12% in the 1990s. Since 2010, the last year assessed by the IPCC AR5, new FAO estimates indicate that land use emissions have remained stable, at about 4.8 Gt CO 2 eq yr -1 in 2012. Emissions minus removals have also remained stable, at 3.2 Gt CO 2 eq yr -1 in 2012. By contrast, agriculture emissions have continued to grow, at roughly 1% annually, and remained larger than the land use sector, reaching 5.4 Gt CO 2 eq yr -1 in 2012. These results are useful to further inform the current climate policy debate on land use, suggesting that more efforts and resources should be directed to further explore options for mitigation in agriculture, much in line with the large efforts devoted to REDD+ in the past decade. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Association of Supergranule Mean Scales with Solar Cycle Strengths and Total Solar Irradiance

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

Mandal, Sudip; Chatterjee, Subhamoy; Banerjee, Dipankar, E-mail: sudip@iiap.res.in

We analyze the long-term behavior of the supergranule scale parameter, in active regions (ARs) and quiet regions (QRs), using the Kodaikanal digitized data archive. This database provides century-long daily full disk observations of the Sun in Ca ii K wavelengths. In this paper, we study the distributions of the supergranular scales, over the whole data duration, which show identical shape in these two regimes. We found that the AR mean scale values are always higher than that of the QR for every solar cycle. The mean scale values are highly correlated with the sunspot number cycle amplitude and also withmore » total solar irradiance (TSI) variations. Such a correlation establishes the cycle-wise mean scale as a potential calibrator for the historical data reconstructions. We also see an upward trend in the mean scales, as has already been reported in TSI. This may provide new input for climate forcing models. These results also give us insight into the different evolutionary scenarios of the supergranules in the presence of strong (AR) and weak (QR) magnetic fields.« less

Association of Supergranule Mean Scales with Solar Cycle Strengths and Total Solar Irradiance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mandal, Sudip; Chatterjee, Subhamoy; Banerjee, Dipankar

2017-07-01

We analyze the long-term behavior of the supergranule scale parameter, in active regions (ARs) and quiet regions (QRs), using the Kodaikanal digitized data archive. This database provides century-long daily full disk observations of the Sun in Ca II K wavelengths. In this paper, we study the distributions of the supergranular scales, over the whole data duration, which show identical shape in these two regimes. We found that the AR mean scale values are always higher than that of the QR for every solar cycle. The mean scale values are highly correlated with the sunspot number cycle amplitude and also with total solar irradiance (TSI) variations. Such a correlation establishes the cycle-wise mean scale as a potential calibrator for the historical data reconstructions. We also see an upward trend in the mean scales, as has already been reported in TSI. This may provide new input for climate forcing models. These results also give us insight into the different evolutionary scenarios of the supergranules in the presence of strong (AR) and weak (QR) magnetic fields.

Comprehensive characterization of humic-like substances in smoke PM2.5 emitted from the combustion of biomass materials and fossil fuels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fan, Xingjun; Wei, Siye; Zhu, Mengbo; Song, Jianzhong; Peng, Ping'an

2016-10-01

Humic-like substances (HULIS) in smoke fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emitted from the combustion of biomass materials (rice straw, corn straw, and pine branch) and fossil fuels (lignite coal and diesel fuel) were comprehensively studied in this work. The HULIS fractions were first isolated with a one-step solid-phase extraction method, and were then investigated with a series of analytical techniques: elemental analysis, total organic carbon analysis, UV-vis (ultraviolet-visible) spectroscopy, excitation-emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The results show that HULIS account for 11.2-23.4 and 5.3 % of PM2.5 emitted from biomass burning (BB) and coal combustion, respectively. In addition, contributions of HULIS-C to total carbon and water-soluble carbon in smoke PM2.5 emitted from BB are 8.0-21.7 and 56.9-66.1 %, respectively. The corresponding contributions in smoke PM2.5 from coal combustion are 5.2 and 45.5 %, respectively. These results suggest that BB and coal combustion are both important sources of HULIS in atmospheric aerosols. However, HULIS in diesel soot only accounted for ˜ 0.8 % of the soot particles, suggesting that vehicular exhaust may not be a significant primary source of HULIS. Primary HULIS and atmospheric HULIS display many similar chemical characteristics, as indicated by the instrumental analytical characterization, while some distinct features were also apparent. A high spectral absorbance in the UV-vis spectra, a distinct band at λex/λem ≈ 280/350 nm in EEM spectra, lower H / C and O / C molar ratios, and a high content of [Ar-H] were observed for primary HULIS. These results suggest that primary HULIS contain more aromatic structures, and have a lower content of aliphatic and oxygen-containing groups than atmospheric HULIS. Among the four primary sources of HULIS, HULIS from BB had the highest O / C molar ratios (0.43-0.54) and [H-C-O] content (10-19 %), indicating that HULIS from this source mainly consisted of carbohydrate- and phenolic-like structures. HULIS from coal combustion had a lower O / C molar ratio (0.27) and a higher content of [Ar-H] (31 %), suggesting that aromatic compounds were extremely abundant in HULIS from this source. Moreover, the absorption Ångström exponents of primary HULIS from BB and coal combustion were 6.7-8.2 and 13.6, respectively. The mass absorption efficiencies of primary HULIS from BB and coal combustion at 365 nm (MAE365) were 0.97-2.09 and 0.63 m2 gC-1, respectively. Noticeably higher MAE365 values for primary HULIS from BB than coal combustion indicate that the former has a stronger contribution to the light-absorbing properties of aerosols in the atmospheric environment.

[The effects of renin-angiotensin system blockade on the liver steatosis in rats on long-term high-fat diet].

PubMed

Chen, Ying-Hua; Yuan, Li; Chen, Yuan-Yuan; Qi, Cui-Juan

2008-03-01

To observe the relationship between liver steatosis in rats with long-term high-caloric and high-fat diet and the expression of angiotensinogen (AGT), uncoupling protein 2 (UCP-2) and transforming growth factor beta1 (TGFbeta1). Then angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) and angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) drugs were given to investigate whether rennin-angiotensin system (RAS) blockade can mitigate the liver steatosis and to probe its mechanisms. Forty male Wistar rats were divided into normal control group (NC group, n = 10), high-calorie and high-fat fed group (HF group, n = 10), ARB treated group (AR group, n = 10) and ACEI treated group (AE group, n = 10). Rats were fed with high-calorie and high-fat diet and given RAS inhibitor drugs (valsartan 40 mg/kg to the AR group and perindopril 4 mg/kg to the AE group) for eight weeks. Serum TG, free fatty acids (FFAs) lever and the fat content in liver were then measured with biochemical tests; insulin resistance was evaluated with euglycemic hyperinsulinemia clamp technique, the expression of UCP-2 and TGFbeta1 in liver tissue were examined with immunohistochemical staining and AGT mRNA, UCP-2 mRNA and TGFbeta1 mRNA were tested with RT-PCR. With the administration of RAS inhibitor drugs, following changes were observed. The levels of TG and FFAs and the fat content in liver decreased (P < 0.01 or P < 0.05), insulin resistance in high-fat fed rats was improved (P < 0.05), liver steatosis, inflammation and fibrosis were mitigated. The levels of UCP-2 decreased by 36.5% (P < 0.05) in AE group and 42.5% (P < 0.05) in AR group and TGFbeta1 decreased by 37% (P < 0.05) in AE group and 41.6% (P < 0.05) in AR group as compared with the HF group with immunohistochemical staining. The expression of AGTmRNA decreased by 14.9% (P < 0.05) in AE group and 21% (P < 0 .05) in AR group, UCP-2 mRNA decreased by 9% (P < 0.05) in AE group and 11% (P < 0.05) in AR group and TGFbeta1 mRNA decreased by 17% (P < 0.05) in AE group and 19% (P < 0.05) in AR group as compared with the HF group with RT-PCR. RAS blockade could improve insulin resistance, mitigate the liver injury of long term high-fat fed rats and have a protective effect on liver. The mechanism may be associated with the effects of improved insulin resistance, the interaction within RAS and the down-regulation of UCP-2 and TGFbeta1 in liver tissue.

Beam-induced back-streaming electron suppression analysis for an accelerator type neutron generator designed for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology.

PubMed

Waltz, Cory; Ayllon, Mauricio; Becker, Tim; Bernstein, Lee; Leung, Ka-Ngo; Kirsch, Leo; Renne, Paul; Bibber, Karl Van

2017-07-01

A facility based on a next-generation, high-flux D-D neutron generator has been commissioned and it is now operational at the University of California, Berkeley. The current generator designed for 40 Ar/ 39 Ar dating of geological materials produces nearly monoenergetic 2.45MeV neutrons at outputs of 10 8 n/s. The narrow energy range is advantageous relative to the 235 U fission spectrum neutrons due to (i) reduced 39 Ar recoil energy, (ii) minimized production of interfering argon isotopes from K, Ca, and Cl, and (iii) reduced total activity for radiological safety and waste generation. Calculations provided show that future conditioning at higher currents and voltages will allow for a neutron output of over 10 10 n/s, which is a necessary requirement for production of measurable quantities of 39 Ar through the reaction 39 K(n,p) 39 Ar. A significant problem encountered with increasing deuteron current was beam-induced electron backstreaming. Two methods of suppressing secondary electrons resulting from the deuterium beam striking the target were tested: the application of static electric and magnetic fields. Computational simulations of both techniques were done using a finite element analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics ® . Experimental tests verified these simulations. The most reliable suppression was achieved via the implementation of an electrostatic shroud with a voltage offset of -800V relative to the target. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Non-cancer effects in acute radiation syndrome survivors in Ukraine.

PubMed

Belyi, David; Kovalenko, Aleksander; Bazyka, Dmitrij; Bebeshko, Vladimir

2010-06-01

The 1986 Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident that occurred is known as the most severe nuclear disaster in the history of humankind. Acute radiation syndrome (ARS) was diagnosed in 237 persons but only 134 of those were confirmed, including 28 patients who died due to lethal total-body gamma-irradiation and severe skin injuries caused by beta/gamma-emitting radionuclides. A small group of ARS survivors offers an interesting observational insight pertinent to the on-going discussions about long-term non-cancer effects of ionizing radiation. This descriptive study summarizes more than 20 y of follow-up, makes attempts to offer a prognosis for the Chernobyl ARS survivors' health, and explores the link between the outcomes of interest and radiation exposure.

A brief review of augmented reality science learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Valarmathie; Bakar, Juliana Aida Abu; Zulkifli, Abdul Nasir

2017-10-01

This paper reviews several literatures concerning the theories and model that could be applied for science motivation for upper secondary school learners (16-17 years old) in order to make the learning experience more amazing and useful. The embedment of AR in science could bring an awe-inspiring transformation on learners' viewpoint towards the respective subject matters. Augmented Reality is able to present the real and virtual learning experience with the addition of multiple media without replacing the real environment. Due to the unique feature of AR, it attracts the mass attention of researchers to implement AR in science learning. This impressive technology offers learners with the ultimate visualization and provides an astonishing and transparent learning experience by bringing to light the unseen perspective of the learning content. This paper will attract the attention of researchers in the related field as well as academicians in the related discipline. This paper aims to propose several related theoretical guidance that could be applied in science motivation to transform the learning in an effective way.

Corrosion studies using potentiodynamic and EIS electrochemical techniques of welded lean duplex stainless steel UNS S82441

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brytan, Z.; Niagaj, J.; Reiman, Ł.

2016-12-01

The corrosion characterisation of lean duplex stainless steel (1.4662) UNS S82441 welded joints using the potentiodynamic test and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in 1 M NaCl solution are discussed. The influence of autogenous TIG welding parameters (amount of heat input and composition of shielding gases like Ar and Ar-N2 and an Ar-He mixture), as well as A-TIG welding was studied. The influence of welding parameters on phase balance, microstructural changes and the protective properties of passive oxide films formed at the open circuit potential or during the anodic polarisation were studied. From the results of the potentiodynamic test and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of TIG and A-TiG, welded joints show a lower corrosion resistance compared to non-welded parent metal, but introducing heat input properly during welding and applying shielding gases rich in nitrogen or helium can increase austenitic phase content, which is beneficial for corrosion resistance, and improves surface oxide layer resistance in 1 M NaCl solution.

Shielding Gas and Heat Input Effects on the Mechanical and Metallurgical Characterization of Gas Metal Arc Welding of Super Martensitic Stainless Steel (12Cr5Ni2Mo) Joints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prabakaran, T.; Prabhakar, M.; Sathiya, P.

This paper deals with the effects of shielding gas mixtures (100% CO2, 100% Ar and 80 % Ar + 20% CO2) and heat input (3.00, 3.65 and 4.33kJ/mm) on the mechanical and metallurgical characteristics of AISI 410S (American Iron and Steel Institute) super martensitic stainless steel (SMSS) by gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process. AISI 410S SMSS with 1.2mm diameter of a 410 filler wire was used in this study. A detailed microstructural analysis of the weld region as well as the mechanical properties (impact, microhardness and tensile tests at room temperature and 800∘C) was carried out. The tensile and impact fracture surfaces were further analyzed through scanning electron microscope (SEM). 100% Ar shielded welds have a higher amount of δ ferrite content and due to this fact the tensile strength of the joints is superior to the other two shielded welds.

A prospective birth cohort study of different risk factors for development of allergic diseases in offspring of non-atopic parents

PubMed Central

Lee, Ming-Tsung; Wu, Chih-Chiang; Ou, Chia-Yu; Chang, Jen-Chieh; Liu, Chieh-An; Wang, Chih-Lu; Chuang, Hau; Kuo, Ho-Chang; Hsu, Te-Yao; Chen, Chie-Pein; Yang, Kuender D.

2017-01-01

Background: Allergic diseases are thought to be inherited. Prevalence of allergic diseases has, however, increased dramatically in last decades, suggesting environmental causes for the development of allergic diseases. Objective: We studied risk factors associated with the development of atopic dermatitis (AD), allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma (AS) in children of non-atopic parents in a subtropical country. Methods: In a birth cohort of 1,497 newborns, parents were prenatally enrolled and validated for allergic diseases by questionnaire, physician-verified and total or specific Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels; 1,236 and 756 children, respectively, completed their 3-year and 6-year follow-up. Clinical examination, questionnaire, and blood samples for total and specific IgE of the children were collected at each follow-up visit. Results: Prevalence of AD, AR and AS was, respectively, 8.2%, 30.8% and 12.4% in children of non-atopic parents. Prevalence of AR (p<.001) and AS (p=.018) was significantly higher in children of parents who were both atopic. A combination of Cesarean section (C/S) and breastfeeding for more than 1 month showed the highest risk for AD (OR=3.111, p=.006). Infants living in homes with curtains and no air filters had the highest risk for AR (OR=2.647, p<.001), and male infants of non-atopic parents living in homes without air filters had the highest risk for AS (OR=1.930, p=.039). Conclusions: Breastfeeding and C/S affect development of AD. Gender, use of curtains and/or air filters affect AR and AS, suggesting that control of the perinatal environment is necessary for the prevention of atopic diseases in children of non-atopic parents. PMID:28086237

A prospective birth cohort study of different risk factors for development of allergic diseases in offspring of non-atopic parents.

PubMed

Lee, Ming-Tsung; Wu, Chih-Chiang; Ou, Chia-Yu; Chang, Jen-Chieh; Liu, Chieh-An; Wang, Chih-Lu; Chuang, Hau; Kuo, Ho-Chang; Hsu, Te-Yao; Chen, Chie-Pein; Yang, Kuender D

2017-02-14

Allergic diseases are thought to be inherited. Prevalence of allergic diseases has, however, increased dramatically in last decades, suggesting environmental causes for the development of allergic diseases. We studied risk factors associated with the development of atopic dermatitis (AD), allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma (AS) in children of non-atopic parents in a subtropical country. In a birth cohort of 1,497 newborns, parents were prenatally enrolled and validated for allergic diseases by questionnaire, physician-verified and total or specific Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels; 1,236 and 756 children, respectively, completed their 3-year and 6-year follow-up. Clinical examination, questionnaire, and blood samples for total and specific IgE of the children were collected at each follow-up visit. Prevalence of AD, AR and AS was, respectively, 8.2%, 30.8% and 12.4% in children of non-atopic parents. Prevalence of AR (p<.001) and AS (p=.018) was significantly higher in children of parents who were both atopic. A combination of Cesarean section (C/S) and breastfeeding for more than 1 month showed the highest risk for AD (OR=3.111, p=.006). Infants living in homes with curtains and no air filters had the highest risk for AR (OR=2.647, p<.001), and male infants of non-atopic parents living in homes without air filters had the highest risk for AS (OR=1.930, p=.039). Breastfeeding and C/S affect development of AD. Gender, use of curtains and/or air filters affect AR and AS, suggesting that control of the perinatal environment is necessary for the prevention of atopic diseases in children of non-atopic parents.

Seasonal and high-frequency measurements of pH, oxygen and aragonite saturation state in a coral reef: Cabo Pulmo, Mexico.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norzagaray, O.; Martin Hernandez-Ayon, J. M.; Calderon Aguilera, L. E.; Reyes-Bonilla, H.; Castro, R.; Trasviña, A.

2016-02-01

Cabo Pulmo reef is located in the coastal area within the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ), which has been reported as shallow as 70m, and characterized by CO2-rich waters (>2200 μmolkg-1) and low pH (<7.7). To date it is unknown whether the OMZ waters influence these coral reef at any point of the year, or during certain oceanographic episodes, therefore, it is important to know the temporal variability of these parameters. This study presents high frequency data series from November 2013 to June 2014 from a SeapHOX sensor deployed at 15 m depth and 1.5 km from shore. The pH series was calibrated with discrete samples (total carbon and alkalinity measurements). A high-resolution aragonite saturation state (< Ωar) series was calculated from pH series and total alkalinity. Discrete and continuous measurements showed the seasonal influence of two water masses, the Gulf of California water during winter (GCW), and the surface Tropical water (TSW) during spring-summer. From December to April the conditions with the lowest pH were found (<Ωar), related to GCW, and two months with TSW; the highest pH values (> Ωar) were from May to June. During winter-spring (mostly-TSW) were present the most optimal conditions for coral calcification (>Ωar). Dissolved oxygen (OD) was always up to 3.4 mlL-1. However, two events (5-10 days length) arose in winter (February/TSW) and summer (June/GCW) with low pH (<7.9), low Ωar (<2.6), low temperature (<22oC), and low DO (<4 mlL-1), threshold values reported to cause negative effects on coral calcification and with exposure times on the order of days.

Polymorphism at the avpr1a locus in male prairie voles correlated with genetic but not social monogamy in field populations.

PubMed

Solomon, N G; Richmond, A R; Harding, P A; Fries, A; Jacquemin, S; Schaefer, R L; Lucia, K E; Keane, B

2009-11-01

Integrative studies of genetics, neurobiology and behaviour indicate that polymorphism in specific genes contributes to variation observed in some complex social behaviours. The neuropeptide arginine vasopressin plays an important role in the regulation of a variety of social behaviours, including social attachment of males to females, through its action on the vasopressin 1a receptor (V1aR). In socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), polymorphism in the length of microsatellite DNA within the regulatory region of the gene (avpr1a) encoding the V1aR predicts differences among males in neural expression of V1aRs and partner preference under laboratory conditions. However, understanding the extent to which V1aR mediates variation in prairie vole social and reproductive behaviour observed in nature requires investigating the consequences of avpr1a polymorphism and environmental influences under ecologically relevant conditions. We examined the relationship between avpr1a length polymorphism and monogamy among male prairie voles living in 0.1 ha enclosures during a time similar to their natural lifespan. We found no evidence that avpr1a genotype of males predicts variation in social monogamy measured in the field but some indices of social monogamy were affected by population density. Parentage data indicated that a male's avpr1a genotype significantly influenced the number of females with which he sired offspring and the total number of offspring sired. Total brain concentrations of V1aR mRNA were not associated with either male behaviour or avpr1a genotype. These data show that melding ecological field studies with neurogenetics can substantially augment our understanding of the effects of genes and environment on social behaviours.

[Hematopoiesis during remote period after acute radiation syndrome].

PubMed

Kotenko, K V; Bushmanov, A Iu; Suvorova, L A; Galstian, I A; Nadezhina, N M; Nugis, V Iu

2011-01-01

Based on the long (19.7 +/- 1.8 year) hemopoiesis follow-up study in 152 patients after acute radiation syndrome (ARS) as a result of exposure to gamma-, gamma-beta and gamma-eta radiation in a wide dose range (1.2-9.8 Gy) it was detected that cytopenia appears in the late consequences period: thrombocytopenia was found in 26.9% cases, leukocytopenia, neutropenia and lymphocytopenia--in 13.1% patients. A higher ARS degree causes the increase of various disorders (cytopenia and cytosis) in the late period. It reflects a tight interrelation between blood cell contents and radiation dose. Frequency of cytopenias increases if such somatic disorders: persistent hepatitis, hepatic cirrhosis and late radiation ulcers as appear.

Modeling the transport properties of epitaxially grown thermoelectric oxide thin films using spectroscopic ellipsometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarath Kumar, S. R.; Abutaha, Anas I.; Hedhili, M. N.; Alshareef, H. N.

2012-01-01

The influence of oxygen vacancies on the transport properties of epitaxial thermoelectric (Sr,La)TiO3 thin films is determined using electrical and spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) measurements. Oxygen vacancy concentration was varied by ex-situ annealing in Ar and Ar/H2. All films exhibited degenerate semiconducting behavior, and electrical conductivity decreased (258-133 S cm-1) with increasing oxygen content. Similar decrease in the Seebeck coefficient is observed and attributed to a decrease in effective mass (7.8-3.2 me), as determined by SE. Excellent agreement between transport properties deduced from SE and direct electrical measurements suggests that SE is an effective tool for studying oxide thin film thermoelectrics.

Pathological changes seen in horses in New Zealand grazing Mediterranean tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum) infected with selected endophytes (Epichloë coenophiala) causing equine fescue oedema.

PubMed

Munday, J S; Finch, S C; Vlaming, J B; Sutherland, B L; Fletcher, L R

2017-05-01

To investigate whether Mediterranean tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbysh. (syn Festuca arundinacea)) infected with selected fungal endophytes (Epichloë coenophiala (formerly Neotyphodium coenophialum)) caused equine fescue oedema when grown in New Zealand, and to examine the pathological changes associated with this intoxication. Horses were grazed on Mediterranean tall fescue that was infected with the endophytes AR542 (n=2), or AR584 (n=3), or Mediterranean tall fescue that was endophyte-free (n=2). Blood samples were taken up to 7 days after the start of feeding to detect changes in concentrations of total protein in serum and packed cell volume. Any horse showing clinical evidence of disease was subject to euthanasia and necropsy. Within 6 days, both horses grazing fescue infected with AR542 became depressed and lethargic. One horse grazing fescue infected with endophyte AR584 became depressed within a 5-day feeding period while another horse in this group died shortly after being removed from the AR584 pasture. The third horse in this group did not develop clinical signs within the 5-day feeding period. However, haemoconcentration and hypoproteinaemia was detected in all horses grazing Mediterranean tall fescue that was infected by AR542 or AR584 endophyte. No abnormalities were observed in horses grazing fescue that was endophyte-free. Necropsy examination was performed on two horses grazing fescue infected with AR542 and one horse grazing fescue infected with AR584. All three horses had marked oedema of the gastrointestinal tract. Histologically, the oedema was accompanied by large numbers of eosinophils, but no necrosis. Horses grazing Mediterranean tall fescue that was infected by AR542 or AR584 developed hypoproteinaemia and haemoconcentration, most likely due to leakage of plasma proteins into the gastrointestinal tract. This suggests that these selected endophytes produce a compound that is toxic to horses, although the toxic principle is currently unknown. Mediterranean tall fescue that is infected by AR542 or AR584 should not be fed to horses in New Zealand. This intoxication should be considered in horses in which a rapid onset of hypoproteinaemia and haemoconcentration is detected. This intoxication should also be considered if marked gastrointestinal oedema is observed.

On the relationship between atmospheric rivers (ARs) and heavy precipitation over Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yatagai, A. I.; Takayabu, Y. N.

2016-12-01

Atmospheric Rivers (ARs) are known as the water-vapor rich part of the broader warm conveyor belt. Recently, several AR detection algorithms are proposed, and structures and that of statistical features are studied globally. Since Japan is a humid country located in the north of the warm pool, ARs, middle tropospheric fast moisture transport, might be an important moisture source for heavy precipitation events in Japan. The purpose of this study is to develop an algorithm of detection of ARs over Japan, and to investigate the possible relationship between them and Japanese heavy precipitation events. Since high spatial correlations were obtained between ERA-Interim reanalysis PW and that of SSM/I (microwave images), we used daily PW (0.75 degree grid) for detection of the ARs. Using 36 years (1979-2014) ERA-Interim, we defined daily smoothed PW climatology. Then, we detected AR area with daily anomaly of PW exceeding 10 mm. However, we exclude round-shaped (caused by Typhoon etc) area and the case of moisture transport not exceeding 30N/30S. The daily AR events over Japan (123-146E, 24-46N) are; 1013 cases for winter (DJF), 1722 for spring (MAM), 2229 for summer (JJA) and 1870 for autumn (SON) during the 36 years. They successfully include Hiroshima disaster event (19 August 2014, Hirota et al., 2015) and Amami heavy precipitation event (20 October 2010). The summer with large AR appearance (1998 and 2010) had negative SOI (La Nina), and lowest appearance year (1992) was the year of El Nino (positively significant SOI). Totally, more ARs come over Japan area in La Nina years, however, the seasonal statistics between SOI and the number of AR is not straightforward, indicating that it is difficult to explain ARs over Japan with only tropical inter-annual variability. We use APHRO-JP (Kamiguchi et al., 2010) daily gridded (0.05 degree) precipitation (1979-2011) over Japanese land areas for comparison. Among the 32 years (1979-2011), we had 82 cases of heavy precipitation of exceeding 500 mm/2days, and 184 cases of exceeding 400 mm/2days. Excepting typhoon events, ARs appeared over Japan area. Detailed comparison (location, vertical profile, dynamical linkage, etc) will be reported at the meeting.

K/T age for the popigai impact event

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deino, A. L.; Garvin, J. B.; Montanari, S.

1991-01-01

The multi-ringed POPIGAI structure, with an outer ring diameter of over 100 km, is the largest impact feature currently recognized on Earth with an Phanerozoic age. The target rocks in this relatively unglaciated region consist of upper Proterozoic through Mesozoic platform sediments and igneous rocks overlying Precambrian crystalline basement. The reported absolute age of the Popigai impact event ranges from 30.5 to 39 Ma. With the intent of refining this age estimate, a melt-breccia (suevite) sample from the inner regions of the Popigai structure was prepared for total fusion and step-wise heating Ar-40/Ar-39 analysis. Although the total fusion and step-heating experiments suggest some degree of age heterogeneity, the recurring theme is an age of around 64 to 66 Ma.

Molecular Analysis of Arthrobacter Myovirus vB_ArtM-ArV1: We Blame It on the Tail

PubMed Central

Šimoliūnas, Eugenijus; Truncaitė, Lidija; Zajančkauskaitė, Aurelija; Nainys, Juozas; Kaupinis, Algirdas; Valius, Mindaugas; Meškys, Rolandas

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT This is the first report on a myophage that infects Arthrobacter. A novel virus, vB_ArtM-ArV1 (ArV1), was isolated from soil using Arthrobacter sp. strain 68b for phage propagation. Transmission electron microscopy showed its resemblance to members of the family Myoviridae: ArV1 has an isometric head (∼74 nm in diameter) and a contractile, nonflexible tail (∼192 nm). Phylogenetic and comparative sequence analyses, however, revealed that ArV1 has more genes in common with phages from the family Siphoviridae than it does with any myovirus characterized to date. The genome of ArV1 is a linear, circularly permuted, double-stranded DNA molecule (71,200 bp) with a GC content of 61.6%. The genome includes 101 open reading frames (ORFs) yet contains no tRNA genes. More than 50% of ArV1 genes encode unique proteins that either have no reliable identity to database entries or have homologues only in Arthrobacter phages, both sipho- and myoviruses. Using bioinformatics approaches, 13 ArV1 structural genes were identified, including those coding for head, tail, tail fiber, and baseplate proteins. A further 6 ArV1 ORFs were annotated as encoding putative structural proteins based on the results of proteomic analysis. Phylogenetic analysis based on the alignment of four conserved virion proteins revealed that Arthrobacter myophages form a discrete clade that seems to occupy a position somewhat intermediate between myo- and siphoviruses. Thus, the data presented here will help to advance our understanding of genetic diversity and evolution of phages that constitute the order Caudovirales. IMPORTANCE Bacteriophages, which likely originated in the early Precambrian Era, represent the most numerous population on the planet. Approximately 95% of known phages are tailed viruses that comprise three families: Podoviridae (with short tails), Siphoviridae (with long noncontractile tails), and Myoviridae (with contractile tails). Based on the current hypothesis, myophages, which may have evolved from siphophages, are thought to have first emerged among Gram-negative bacteria, whereas they emerged only later among Gram-positive bacteria. The results of the molecular characterization of myophage vB_ArtM-ArV1 presented here conform to the aforementioned hypothesis, since, at a glance, bacteriophage vB_ArtM-ArV1 appears to be a siphovirus that possesses a seemingly functional contractile tail. Our work demonstrates that such “chimeric” myophages are of cosmopolitan nature and are likely characteristic of the ecologically important soil bacterial genus Arthrobacter. PMID:28122988

Hybrid simulation of electron energy distributions and plasma characteristics in pulsed RF CCP sustained in Ar and SiH4/Ar discharges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xi-Feng; Jia, Wen-Zhu; Song, Yuan-Hong; Zhang, Ying-Ying; Dai, Zhong-Ling; Wang, You-Nian

2017-11-01

Pulsed-discharge plasmas offer great advantages in deposition of silicon-based films due to the fact that they can suppress cluster agglomeration, moderate the energy of bombarding ions, and prolong the species' diffusion time on the substrate. In this work, a one-dimensional fluid/Monte-Carlo hybrid model is applied to study pulse modulated radio-frequency (RF) plasmas sustained in capacitively coupled Ar and SiH4/Ar discharges. First, the electron energy distributions in pulsed Ar and SiH4/Ar plasmas have been investigated and compared under identical discharge-circuit conditions. The electron energy distribution function (EEDF) in Ar discharge exhibits a familiar bi-Maxwellian shape during the power-on phase of the pulse, while a more complex (resembling a multi-Maxwellian) distribution with extra inflection points at lower energies is observed in the case of the SiH4/Ar mixture. These features become more prominent with the increasing fraction of SiH4 in the gas mixture. The difference in the shape of the EEDF (which is pronounced inside the plasma but not in the RF sheath where electron heating occurs) is mainly attributed to the electron-impact excitations of SiH4. During the power-off phase of the pulse, the EEDFs in both Ar and SiH4/Ar discharges evolve into bi-Maxwellian shapes, with shrinking high energy tails. Furthermore, the parameter of ion species in the case of SiH4/Ar discharge is strongly modulated by pulsing. For positive ions, such as SiH3+ and Si2H4+ , the particle fluxes overshoot at the beginning of the power-on interval. Meanwhile, for negative ions such as SiH2- and SiH3- , density profiles observed between the electrodes are saddle-shaped due to the repulsion by the self-bias electric field as it builds up. During the power-off phase, the wall fluxes of SiH2- and SiH3- gradually increase, leading to a significant decrease in the net surface charge density on the driven electrode. Compared with ions, the density of SiH3 is poorly modulated by pulsed power and is nearly constant over the entire modulation period, but the density of SiH2 shows a detectable decline in the afterglow. However, because of a much smaller content of SiH2, the deposition rate hardly shows any variation under the selected waveform of the pulse.

Total body calcium analysis using the Ca-12(n, alpha) Ar-37 reaction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewellen, T. K.; Nelp, W. B.

1977-01-01

A low dose neutron activation technique was developed to measure total body calcium in vivo. The effort had included development of irradiation and processing facilities and conduction of human studies to determine the accuracy and precision of measurement attainable with the systems.

Backward Registration Based Aspect Ratio Similarity (ARS) for Image Retargeting Quality Assessment.

PubMed

Zhang, Yabin; Fang, Yuming; Lin, Weisi; Zhang, Xinfeng; Li, Leida

2016-06-28

During the past few years, there have been various kinds of content-aware image retargeting operators proposed for image resizing. However, the lack of effective objective retargeting quality assessment metrics limits the further development of image retargeting techniques. Different from traditional Image Quality Assessment (IQA) metrics, the quality degradation during image retargeting is caused by artificial retargeting modifications, and the difficulty for Image Retargeting Quality Assessment (IRQA) lies in the alternation of the image resolution and content, which makes it impossible to directly evaluate the quality degradation like traditional IQA. In this paper, we interpret the image retargeting in a unified framework of resampling grid generation and forward resampling. We show that the geometric change estimation is an efficient way to clarify the relationship between the images. We formulate the geometric change estimation as a Backward Registration problem with Markov Random Field (MRF) and provide an effective solution. The geometric change aims to provide the evidence about how the original image is resized into the target image. Under the guidance of the geometric change, we develop a novel Aspect Ratio Similarity metric (ARS) to evaluate the visual quality of retargeted images by exploiting the local block changes with a visual importance pooling strategy. Experimental results on the publicly available MIT RetargetMe and CUHK datasets demonstrate that the proposed ARS can predict more accurate visual quality of retargeted images compared with state-of-the-art IRQA metrics.

Performance of rapid test kits to assess household coverage of iodized salt.

PubMed

Gorstein, Jonathan; van der Haar, Frits; Codling, Karen; Houston, Robin; Knowles, Jacky; Timmer, Arnold

2016-10-01

The main indicator adopted to track universal salt iodization has been the coverage of adequately iodized salt in households. Rapid test kits (RTK) have been included in household surveys to test the iodine content in salt. However, laboratory studies of their performance have concluded that RTK are reliable only to distinguish between the presence and absence of iodine in salt, but not to determine whether salt is adequately iodized. The aim of the current paper was to examine the performance of RTK under field conditions and to recommend their most appropriate use in household surveys. Standard performance characteristics of the ability of RTK to detect the iodine content in salt at 0 mg/kg (salt with no iodine), 5 mg/kg (salt with any added iodine) and 15 mg/kg ('adequately' iodized salt) were calculated. Our analysis employed the agreement rate (AR) as a preferred metric of RTK performance. Setting/Subjects Twenty-five data sets from eighteen population surveys which assessed household iodized salt by both the RTK and a quantitative method (i.e. titration or WYD Checker) were obtained from Asian (nineteen data sets), African (five) and European (one) countries. In detecting iodine in salt at 0 mg/kg, the RTK had an AR>90 % in eight of twenty-three surveys, while eight surveys had an AR90 %. The RTK is not suited for assessment of adequately iodized salt coverage. Quantitative assessment, such as by titration or WYD Checker, is necessary for estimates of adequately iodized salt coverage.

Genotypic-dependent effects of N fertilizer, glutathione, silicon, zinc, and selenium on proteomic profiles, amino acid contents, and quality of rice genotypes with contrasting grain Cd accumulation.

PubMed

Cao, Fangbin; Fu, Manman; Wang, Runfeng; Cheng, Wangda; Zhang, Guoping; Wu, Feibo

2017-07-01

Soil heavy metal (HM) contamination has posed a serious problem for safe food production. For restricting the translocation of HM into grain, many proteins were regulated to involve in the process. To identify these proteins, 2D-based proteomic analysis was carried out using different rice genotypes with distinct Cd accumulation in grains and as affected by an alleviating regulator (AR) in field experiments. AR application improved grain quality, with increased contents in Glu, Cys, His, Pro, and protein. Twenty-six low-grain HM accumulation-associated protein species were identified and categorized as physiological functions via two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE) and mass spectrometry. Among these proteins, 8, 9, and 9 proteins exhibited higher accumulation, lower accumulation, and unchanged accumulation, respectively, in Xiushui817 (low accumulator) vs R8097 (high accumulator) under control conditions but showed differential accumulation patterns after AR application. These proteins included sucrose synthase 3, alanine aminotransferase, glutelin, cupin family protein, and zinc finger CCCH domain-containing protein 32. The differential expression of these protein species might contribute to decreased HM accumulation in grain via decreasing the protein accumulation which had high affinity to HM or regulating energy metabolism and signal transduction. Our findings provide valuable insights into the mechanisms of low-grain HM accumulation in rice and possible utilization of candidate protein species in developing low-grain HM accumulation genotypes.

Estimation and Uncertainty of Recent Carbon Accumulation and Vertical Accretion in Drained and Undrained Forested Peatlands of the Southeastern USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drexler, Judith Z.; Fuller, Christopher C.; Orlando, James; Salas, Antonia; Wurster, Frederic C.; Duberstein, Jamie A.

2017-10-01

The purpose of this study was to determine how drainage impacts carbon densities and recent rates (past 50 years) of vertical accretion and carbon accumulation in southeastern forested peatlands. We compared these parameters in drained maple-gum (MAPL), Atlantic white cedar (CDR), and pocosin (POC) communities in the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge (GDS) of Virginia/North Carolina and in an intact (undrained) CDR swamp in the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge (AR) of North Carolina. Peat cores were analyzed for bulk density, percent organic carbon, and 137Cs and 210Pb. An uncertainty analysis of both 137Cs and 210Pb approaches was used to constrain error at least partially related to mobility of both radioisotopes. GDS peats had lower porosities (89.6% (SD = 1.71) versus 95.3% (0.18)) and higher carbon densities (0.082 (0.021) versus 0.037 (0.009) g C cm-3) than AR. Vertical accretion rates (0.10-0.56 cm yr-1) were used to estimate a time period of 84-362 years for reestablishment of peat lost during the 2011 Lateral West fire at the GDS. Carbon accumulation rates ranged from 51 to 389 g C m-2 yr-1 for all sites. In the drained (GDS) versus intact (AR) CDR sites, carbon accumulation rates were similar with 137Cs (87GDS versus 92AR g C m-2 yr-1) and somewhat less at the GDS than AR as determined with 210Pb (111GDS versus 159AR g C m-2 yr-1). Heightened productivity and high polyphenol content of peat may be responsible for similar rates of carbon accumulation in both drained and intact CDR peatlands.

Standardization of allergen products: 2. Detailed characterization of GMP-produced recombinant Phl p 5.0109 as European Pharmacopoeia reference standard.

PubMed

Himly, M; Nandy, A; Kahlert, H; Thilker, M; Steiner, M; Briza, P; Neubauer, A; Klysner, S; van Ree, R; Buchheit, K-H; Vieths, S; Ferreira, F

2016-04-01

The Biological Standardization Programme of the European Directorate for Quality of Medicines and Healthcare (EDQM) aims at the establishment of well-characterized reference standards based on recombinant allergens and validated assays for the quantification of major allergen content. The objective of this study was to examine the detailed physicochemical and immunological characterization of recombinant Phl p 5.0109, the second available allergen reference standard. Recombinant Phl p 5.0109 PP5ar06007 was produced under GMP conditions and analyzed by an array of physicochemical and immunological methods for identity, quantity, homogeneity, and folding stability in bulk solution, as well as thermal denaturation, aggregation state, and biological activity when formulated for long-time storage. PP5ar06007 revealed as a highly homogeneous, monomeric, well-folded preparation of rPhl p 5.0109, as documented by mass spectrometry, SDS-PAGE, isoelectric focusing, size-exclusion chromatography with light scattering, circular dichroism, and infrared spectroscopy. Upon storage at +4°C, PP5ar06007 retained the monomeric state for at least 2 months. A protein quantity of 1.56 ± 0.03 mg/ml was determined by amino acid analysis in PP5ar06007, and its biological activity was shown to be comparable to natural Phl p 5 in terms of basophil activation and T-cell reactivity. Recombinant Phl p 5.0109 PP5ar06007 was characterized extensively at the physicochemical and immunological level. It revealed to be a highly stable, monomeric, and immunologically equivalent of its natural counterpart. PP5ar06007 is now available as European Pharmacopoeia allergen reference standard for grass pollen products. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Predicting stability limits for pure and doped dicationic noble gas clusters undergoing coulomb explosion: A parallel tempering based study.

PubMed

Ghorai, Sankar; Chaudhury, Pinaki

2018-05-30

We have used a replica exchange Monte-Carlo procedure, popularly known as Parallel Tempering, to study the problem of Coulomb explosion in homogeneous Ar and Xe dicationic clusters as well as mixed Ar-Xe dicationic clusters of varying sizes with different degrees of relative composition. All the clusters studied have two units of positive charges. The simulations reveal that in all the cases there is a cutoff size below which the clusters fragment. It is seen that for the case of pure Ar, the value is around 95 while that for Xe it is 55. For the mixed clusters with increasing Xe content, the cutoff limit for suppression of Coulomb explosion gradually decreases from 95 for a pure Ar to 55 for a pure Xe cluster. The hallmark of this study is this smooth progression. All the clusters are simulated using the reliable potential energy surface developed by Gay and Berne (Gay and Berne, Phys. Rev. Lett. 1982, 49, 194). For the hetero clusters, we have also discussed two different ways of charge distribution, that is one in which both positive charges are on two Xe atoms and the other where the two charges are at a Xe atom and at an Ar atom. The fragmentation patterns observed by us are such that single ionic ejections are the favored dissociating pattern. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Investigation of Collision-Induced Fluorescence in D2:Ar and D2:HD:Ar Mixtures at 200 k,

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-07-01

a total density of 730 amagat. (One amagat is the density at STP.) Due to various practical difficulties associated with the design of a potential...any laser design . The pulse duration is required to be short compared with the vibrational lifetime, but not short enough to give problems with...laser action of the gas media investigated. 2. M EPERIMENTAL ARRANGEMENT The experimental arrangement is shown in Fig. 1. The output of the hydrogen

Extreme daily precipitation in the Northern Sierra Precipitation 8-Station index: The combined impact of landfalling atmospheric rivers and the Sierra barrier jet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cordeira, J. M.; Ralph, F. M.; Neiman, P. J.; Hughes, M.

2014-12-01

The Upper Sacramento River area is vital to California's water supply, and is susceptible to major floods. Recent studies indicate that orographic precipitation in this complex terrain involves both inland penetrating atmospheric rivers (ARs) and the Sierra barrier jet (SBJ). The southerly SBJ induces orographic precipitation along south-facing slopes in the Shasta region, whereas landfalling ARs ascend up and over the statically stable SBJ and induce orographic precipitation along west-facing upper slopes in the Northern Sierra Nevada. This paper explores the hypothesis that extreme daily precipitation here is controlled by the presence of both a landfalling AR and a SBJ. Three 10-year-long (2000-2011) observational datasets are used. ARs are identified from the Neiman et al. (2008) AR catalog that uses an SSM/I satellite-based AR-detection method from Ralph et al. (2004), whereas SBJ conditions are determined from Chico, CA wind profiler data using the method from Neiman et al. (2010). Extreme daily precipitation is identified from the average of 8 rain gauges spanning the region known as the "Northern Sierra 8-Station Index." The "index" is used by water managers to assess water supply. Extreme events are defined as the 50 largest daily precipitation totals in the index for the 10-year period (the top ~1.37%). These dates in the 8-station index are compared with the catalogs of landfalling ARs and SBJs. In summary, 46 of 50 (92%) extreme daily precipitation events are associated with landfalling ARs on either the day before or the day of precipitation, whereas 45 of 50 (90%) extreme daily precipitation events are associated with SBJ conditions. 38 of 50 (76%) extreme daily precipitation events are associated with both a landfalling AR and an SBJ. The 10 days with the largest daily precipitation in the index were all associated with both a landfalling AR and an SBJ. Thus, extreme daily precipitation in Northern California is strongly controlled by the presence of both a landfalling AR and a SBJ.

Diminished androgen and estrogen receptors and aromatase levels in hypogonadal diabetic men: reversal with testosterone.

PubMed

Ghanim, Husam; Dhindsa, Sandeep; Abuaysheh, Sanaa; Batra, Manav; Kuhadiya, Nitesh D; Makdissi, Antoine; Chaudhuri, Ajay; Dandona, Paresh

2018-03-01

One-third of males with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) have hypogonadism, characterized by low total and free testosterone concentrations. We hypothesized that this condition is associated with a compensatory increase in the expression of androgen receptors (AR) and that testosterone replacement reverses these changes. We also measured estrogen receptor and aromatase expression. This is a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Thirty-two hypogonadal and 32 eugonadal men with T2DM were recruited. Hypogonadal men were randomized to receive intramuscular testosterone or saline every 2 weeks for 22 weeks. We measured AR, ERα and aromatase expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (MNC), adipose tissue and skeletal muscle in hypogonadal and eugonadal males with T2DM at baseline and after 22 weeks of treatment in those with hypogonadism. The mRNA expression of AR, ERα (ESR1) and aromatase in adipose tissue from hypogonadal men was significantly lower as compared to eugonadal men, and it increased significantly to levels comparable to those in eugonadal patients with T2DM following testosterone treatment. AR mRNA expression was also significantly lower in MNC from hypogonadal patients compared to eugonadal T2DM patients. Testosterone administration in hypogonadal patients also restored AR mRNA and nuclear extract protein levels from MNC to that in eugonadal patients. In the skeletal muscle, AR mRNA and protein expression are lower in men with hypogonadism. Testosterone treatment restored AR expression levels to that comparable to levels in eugonadal men. We conclude that, contrary to our hypothesis, the expression of AR, ERα and aromatase is significantly diminished in hypogonadal men as compared to eugonadal men with type 2 diabetes. Following testosterone replacement, there is a reversal of these deficits. © 2018 European Society of Endocrinology.

Modeling study of radiation characteristics with different impurity species seeding in EAST

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, X. J.; Deng, G. Z.; Wang, L.; Liu, S. C.; Zhang, L.; Li, G. Q.; Gao, X.

2017-12-01

A critical issue for EAST and future tokamak machines such as ITER and China Fusion Engineering Testing Reactor is the handling of excessive heat load on the divertor target plates. As an effective means of actively reducing and controlling the power fluxes to the target plates, localized impurity (N, Ne, and Ar) gas puffing from the lower dome is investigated by using SOLPS5.0 for an L-mode discharge on EAST with double null configuration. The radiative efficiency and distribution of different impurities are compared. The effect of N, Ne, and Ar seeding on target power load, the power entering into scrape-off layer (SOL), Psep, and their concentration in SOL along the poloidal length and edge effective ion charge number (Zeff) which are closely related to core plasma performance are presented. The simulation results indicate that N, Ne, and Ar seeding can effectively reduce the peak heat load and electron temperature at divertor targets similarly. N seeding can reach the highest radiative loss fraction and both N and Ar strongly radiate power in the divertor region, while the radiative power inside the separatrix for Ar seeding is also significant. Ne radiates power mainly around the separatrix and X-point. Ne and Ar impurities' puffing results in a faster decrease of Psep than N seeding case; the reduction of Psep can eventually degrade the core performance of fusion plasma. Additionally, seeding with Ne has a totally larger concentration at the outer midplane and edge Zeff than those in N and Ar seeding cases; it suggests that N and Ar impurities are more acceptable than Ne in terms of fuel dilution for this discharge.

Simultaneous inhibition of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and Src abolishes androgen receptor signaling.

PubMed

Ghotbaddini, Maryam; Cisse, Keyana; Carey, Alexis; Powell, Joann B

2017-01-01

Altered c-Src activity has been strongly implicated in the development, growth, progression, and metastasis of human cancers including prostate cancer. Src is known to regulate several biological functions of tumor cells, including proliferation. There are several Src inhibitors under evaluation for clinical effectiveness but have shown little activity in monotherapy trials of solid tumors. Combination studies are being explored by in vitro analysis and in clinical trials. Here we investigate the effect of simultaneous inhibition of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and Src on androgen receptor (AR) signaling in prostate cancer cells. AhR has also been reported to interact with the Src signaling pathway during prostate development. c-Src protein kinase is associated with the AhR complex in the cytosol and upon ligand binding to AhR, c-Src is activated and released from the complex. AhR has also been shown to regulate AR signaling which remains functionally important in the development and progression of prostate cancer. We provide evidence that co-inhibition of AhR and Src abolish AR activity. Evaluation of total protein and cellular fractions revealed decreased pAR expression and AR nuclear localization. Assays utilizing an androgen responsive element (ARE) and qRT-PCR analysis of AR genes revealed decreased AR promoter activity and transcriptional activity in the presence of both AhR and Src inhibitors. Furthermore, co-inhibition of AhR and Src reduced the growth of prostate cancer cells compared to individual treatments. Several studies have revealed that AhR and Src individually inhibit cellular proliferation. However, this study is the first to suggest simultaneous inhibition of AhR and Src to inhibit AR signaling and prostate cancer cell growth.

Identification of GPCR-Interacting Cytosolic Proteins Using HDL Particles and Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomic Approach

PubMed Central

Chung, Ka Young; Day, Peter W.; Vélez-Ruiz, Gisselle; Sunahara, Roger K.; Kobilka, Brian K.

2013-01-01

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) have critical roles in various physiological and pathophysiological processes, and more than 40% of marketed drugs target GPCRs. Although the canonical downstream target of an agonist-activated GPCR is a G protein heterotrimer; there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that other signaling molecules interact, directly or indirectly, with GPCRs. However, due to the low abundance in the intact cell system and poor solubility of GPCRs, identification of these GPCR-interacting molecules remains challenging. Here, we establish a strategy to overcome these difficulties by using high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles. We used the β2-adrenergic receptor (β2AR), a GPCR involved in regulating cardiovascular physiology, as a model system. We reconstituted purified β2AR in HDL particles, to mimic the plasma membrane environment, and used the reconstituted receptor as bait to pull-down binding partners from rat heart cytosol. A total of 293 proteins were identified in the full agonist-activated β2AR pull-down, 242 proteins in the inverse agonist-activated β2AR pull-down, and 210 proteins were commonly identified in both pull-downs. A small subset of the β2AR-interacting proteins isolated was confirmed by Western blot; three known β2AR-interacting proteins (Gsα, NHERF-2, and Grb2) and 3 newly identified known β2AR-interacting proteins (AMPKα, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and UBC-13). Profiling of the identified proteins showed a clear bias toward intracellular signal transduction pathways, which is consistent with the role of β2AR as a cell signaling molecule. This study suggests that HDL particle-reconstituted GPCRs can provide an effective platform method for the identification of GPCR binding partners coupled with a mass spectrometry-based proteomic analysis. PMID:23372797

PRODUCTIVITY OF SOLAR FLARES AND MAGNETIC HELICITY INJECTION IN ACTIVE REGIONS

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

Park, Sung-hong; Wang Haimin; Chae, Jongchul, E-mail: sp295@njit.ed

The main objective of this study is to better understand how magnetic helicity injection in an active region (AR) is related to the occurrence and intensity of solar flares. We therefore investigate the magnetic helicity injection rate and unsigned magnetic flux, as a reference. In total, 378 ARs are analyzed using SOHO/MDI magnetograms. The 24 hr averaged helicity injection rate and unsigned magnetic flux are compared with the flare index and the flare-productive probability in the next 24 hr following a measurement. In addition, we study the variation of helicity over a span of several days around the times ofmore » the 19 flares above M5.0 which occurred in selected strong flare-productive ARs. The major findings of this study are as follows: (1) for a sub-sample of 91 large ARs with unsigned magnetic fluxes in the range from (3-5) x 10{sup 22} Mx, there is a difference in the magnetic helicity injection rate between flaring ARs and non-flaring ARs by a factor of 2; (2) the GOES C-flare-productive probability as a function of helicity injection displays a sharp boundary between flare-productive ARs and flare-quiet ones; (3) the history of helicity injection before all the 19 major flares displayed a common characteristic: a significant helicity accumulation of (3-45) x 10{sup 42} Mx{sup 2} during a phase of monotonically increasing helicity over 0.5-2 days. Our results support the notion that helicity injection is important in flares, but it is not effective to use it alone for the purpose of flare forecast. It is necessary to find a way to better characterize the time history of helicity injection as well as its spatial distribution inside ARs.« less

HMI Data Driven Magnetohydrodynamic Model Predicted Active Region Photospheric Heating Rates: Their Scale Invariant, Flare Like Power Law Distributions, and Their Possible Association With Flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Michael L.; Kwan, Chiman; Ayhan, Bulent; Shang, Eric L.

2017-01-01

A data driven, near photospheric, 3 D, non-force free magnetohydrodynamic model pre- dicts time series of the complete current density, and the resistive heating rate Q at the photosphere in neutral line regions (NLRs) of 14 active regions (ARs). The model is driven by time series of the magnetic field B observed by the Helioseismic & Magnetic Imager on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) satellite. Spurious Doppler periods due to SDO orbital motion are filtered out of the time series for B in every AR pixel. Errors in B due to these periods can be significant. The number of occurrences N(q) of values of Q > or = q for each AR time series is found to be a scale invariant power law distribution, N(Q) / Q-s, above an AR dependent threshold value of Q, where 0.3952 < or = s < or = 0.5298 with mean and standard deviation of 0.4678 and 0.0454, indicating little variation between ARs. Observations show that the number of occurrences N(E) of coronal flares with a total energy released > or = E obeys the same type of distribution, N(E) / E-S, above an AR dependent threshold value of E, with 0.38 < or approx. S < or approx. 0.60, also with little variation among ARs. Within error margins the ranges of s and S are nearly identical. This strong similarity between N(Q) and N(E) suggests a fundamental connection between the process that drives coronal flares and the process that drives photospheric NLR heating rates in ARs. In addition, results suggest it is plausible that spikes in Q, several orders of magnitude above background values, are correlated with times of the subsequent occurrence of M or X flares.

HMI Data Driven Magnetohydrodynamic Model Predicted Active Region Photospheric Heating Rates: Their Scale Invariant, Flare Like Power Law Distributions, and Their Possible Association With Flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Michael L.; Kwan, Chiman; Ayhan, Bulent; Shang, Eric L.

2017-01-01

A data driven, near photospheric, 3 D, non-force free magnetohydrodynamic model predicts time series of the complete current density, and the resistive heating rate Q at the photosphere in neutral line regions (NLRs) of 14 active regions (ARs). The model is driven by time series of the magnetic field B observed by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) satellite. Spurious Doppler periods due to SDO orbital motion are filtered out of the time series for B in every AR pixel. Errors in B due to these periods can be significant. The number of occurrences N(q) of values of Q > or = q for each AR time series is found to be a scale invariant power law distribution, N(Q) / Q-s, above an AR dependent threshold value of Q, where 0.3952 < or = s < or = 0.5298 with mean and standard deviation of 0.4678 and 0.0454, indicating little variation between ARs. Observations show that the number of occurrences N(E) of coronal flares with a total energy released > or = E obeys the same type of distribution, N(E) / E-S, above an AR dependent threshold value of E, with 0.38 < or approx. S < or approx. 0.60, also with little variation among ARs. Within error margins the ranges of s and S are nearly identical. This strong similarity between N(Q) and N(E) suggests a fundamental connection between the process that drives coronal flares and the process that drives photospheric NLR heating rates in ARs. In addition, results suggest it is plausible that spikes in Q, several orders of magnitude above background values, are correlated with times of the subsequent occurrence of M or X flares.

Reduction of high-affinity beta2-adrenergic receptor binding by hyperforin and hyperoside on rat C6 glioblastoma cells measured by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy.

PubMed

Prenner, Lars; Sieben, Anne; Zeller, Karin; Weiser, Dieter; Häberlein, Hanns

2007-05-01

Beta-adrenergic receptors (beta-AR) are potential targets for antidepressants. Desensitization and downregulation of beta-AR are discussed as possible modes of action for antidepressants. We have investigated the effects of hyperforin and hyperoside, compounds with potentially antidepressant activity from St. John's Wort, on the binding behavior and dynamics of beta2-AR in living rat C6 glioblastoma cells, compared to desipramine (desmethylimipramine; DMI) by means of fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) and fluorescence microscopy. FCS-binding studies with the fluorescently labeled ligand Alexa532-noradrenaline (Alexa532-NA) binding to beta2-AR of C6 cells showed a significant reduction in total beta2-AR binding after preincubation with hyperforin and hyperoside for 3 days, respectively, which was also found for DMI. This was mainly observed in high-affinity receptor-ligand complexes with hindered lateral mobility (D2 = 1.1 (+/-0.4) microm2/s) in the biomembrane. However, internalization of beta2-AR was found neither in z-scans of these C6 cells nor in HEK 293 cells stably transfected with GFP-tagged beta2-adrenergic receptors (beta2AR-GFP) after incubation up to 6 days with either DMI, hyperforin, or hyperoside. Thus, under these conditions reduction of beta2-AR binding was not mediated by receptor internalization. Additionally, preincubation of C6 cells with DMI, hyperforin, and hyperoside led to a loss of second messenger cAMP after beta2-adrenergic stimulating conditions with terbutaline. Our current results indicate that hyperforin and hyperoside from St. John's Wort, as well as DMI, reduce beta2-adrenergic sensitivity in C6 cells, emphasizing the potential usefulness of St. John's Wort dry extracts in clinical treatment of depressive symptoms.

Productivity of Solar Flares and Magnetic Helicity Injection in Active Regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Sung-hong; Chae, Jongchul; Wang, Haimin

2010-07-01

The main objective of this study is to better understand how magnetic helicity injection in an active region (AR) is related to the occurrence and intensity of solar flares. We therefore investigate the magnetic helicity injection rate and unsigned magnetic flux, as a reference. In total, 378 ARs are analyzed using SOHO/MDI magnetograms. The 24 hr averaged helicity injection rate and unsigned magnetic flux are compared with the flare index and the flare-productive probability in the next 24 hr following a measurement. In addition, we study the variation of helicity over a span of several days around the times of the 19 flares above M5.0 which occurred in selected strong flare-productive ARs. The major findings of this study are as follows: (1) for a sub-sample of 91 large ARs with unsigned magnetic fluxes in the range from (3-5) × 1022 Mx, there is a difference in the magnetic helicity injection rate between flaring ARs and non-flaring ARs by a factor of 2; (2) the GOES C-flare-productive probability as a function of helicity injection displays a sharp boundary between flare-productive ARs and flare-quiet ones; (3) the history of helicity injection before all the 19 major flares displayed a common characteristic: a significant helicity accumulation of (3-45) × 1042 Mx2 during a phase of monotonically increasing helicity over 0.5-2 days. Our results support the notion that helicity injection is important in flares, but it is not effective to use it alone for the purpose of flare forecast. It is necessary to find a way to better characterize the time history of helicity injection as well as its spatial distribution inside ARs.

An experimental study on amelioration of dyslipidemia-induced atherosclesis by Clematichinenoside through regulating Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α mediated apolipoprotein A-I, A-II and C-III.

PubMed

Liu, Chao; Guo, Qianqian; Lu, Mengchen; Li, Yunman

2015-08-15

Prevention or amelioration the prevalence of atherosclerosis has been an effective strategy in the management of cardiovascular diseases. The aim of the study was to scrutinize the effect of Clematichinenoside (AR) on dyslipidemia-induced atherosclerosis and explore its capability on expression of Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPAR-alpha), apolipoprotein A-I (APOA1) and A-II (APOA2), and suppression of apolipoprotein C-III (APOC3) genes and proteins. In the present study, we investigated atherosclerosis effect of AR using a combination of high-fat diet and balloon injury model in rabbits. The levels of biochemical indicators were evaluated in plasma, liver and HepG2 cells using immunoassay technology. In order to expose the underlying mechanism, we evaluated the regulation of PPAR-alpha, APOA1, APOA2 and APOC3 expressions by AR, and we further evaluated the interactions between them after transfection with shRNA (shPPAR-alpha) and, the action of PPAR-alpha in HepG2 cells. We could find that AR markedly promoted the PPAR-alpha transfer from cytoplasm to nucleus which resulted in the alteration of APOA1, APOA2 and APOC3 expressions in HepG2 cells. Moreover, AR significantly reduced total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, and elevated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level, which play an important role in dyslipidemia-induced atherosclerosis. In conclusion, AR ameliorated atherosclerosis via the regulation of hepatic lipid metabolism, and AR also contributed to the activation of PPAR-alpha, APOA1, APOA2 and APOC3. Therefore, AR could be a potential therapeutic agent in the treatment of atherosclerosis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Trends in sinusitis research: a systematic review of extramural funding.

PubMed

Levy, Joshua M; Smith, Stephanie Shintani; Varshney, Rickul; Chang, Eugene H; Ramakrishnan, Vijay R; Ting, Jonathan Y; Bleier, Benjamin S

2017-11-01

Innovation represents a core value of the American Rhinologic Society (ARS), with multiple efforts to promote research in the advancement rhinologic care. We therefore sought to identify trends in extramural sinusitis funding and underutilized sources of support to facilitate future efforts. A systematic review of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Portfolio Online Tools (RePORTER) database (fiscal year 1993 to 2017) was completed with the search strategy: ("chronic sinusitis" OR rhinosinusitis). All identified studies were accepted for review, with comparison to ARS membership rolls to identify studies supported by ARS investigators. Foundation awards were surveyed to identify and characterize additional sources of support. The systematic review identified 958 projects receiving NIH funding, of which 120 remain active. The percentage of sinusitis-related awards and total funding relative to all NIH awards increased over the past 10 years (2006 to 2016) from 0.06% (8 / 9128) and 0.09% ($2,151,152 / $3,358,338,602) to 0.87% (86 / 9540) and 0.90% ($37,201,095 / $4,300,145,614). Among active studies, 9 investigators maintain membership in the ARS and serve as principal investigator or project leader in 12 (10%) studies. ARS investigators received the greatest number of awards from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disrders (n = 8,66.7%), while only receiving 2.2% of awarded funding from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ($607,500/$26,873,022), the largest source of awards for sinusitis research. Support for sinusitis research is significantly growing, with the largest source of active funding not being fully utilized by members of the ARS. Further efforts to promote funding priorities among extramural sources is necessary to facilitate increased funding for ARS member initiatives. © 2017 ARS-AAOA, LLC.

Comparative net energy ratio analysis of pellet produced from steam pretreated biomass from agricultural residues and energy crops

DOE PAGES

Shahrukh, Hassan; Oyedun, Adetoyese Olajire; Kumar, Amit; ...

2016-04-05

Here, a process model was developed to determine the net energy ratio (NER) for production of pellets from steam pretreated agricultural residue (AR) and energy crop (i.e. switchgrass in this case). The NER is a ratio of the net energy output to the total net energy input from non-renewable energy sources into a system. Scenarios were developed to measure the effects of temperature and level of steam pretreatment on the NER of steam pretreated AR- and switch grass-based pellets. The NER for the base case at 6 kg h -1 is 1.76 and 1.37 for steam-pretreated AR- and switchgrass-based pellets,more » respectively. The reason behind the difference is that more energy is required to dry switchgrass pellets than AR pellets. The sensitivity analysis for the model shows that the optimum temperature for steam pretreatment is 160 C with 50% pretreatment (half the feedstock is pretreated, while the rest is undergoes regular pelletization). The uncertainty results for NER for steam pretreated AR and switch grass pellets are 1.62 ± 0.10 and 1.42 ± 0.11, respectively.« less

Narrow band vacuum ultraviolet radiation, produced by fast conical discharge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antsiferov, P. S.; Dorokhin, L. A.; Koshelev, K. N.

2018-04-01

The article presents the experimental study of discharges in a conical cavity, filled with Ar at pressure 80 Pa. The electrical current driver (inductive storage with plasma erosion opening switch) supplies to the load electrical current pulse with growth rate about 1012 A s‑1 and maximal value 30–40 kA. The convergent conical shock wave starts from the inner surface of the discharge cavity and collapses in ‘zippering’ mode. The pin hole camera imaging with MCP detector (time resolution 5 ns) have demonstrated the appearance of effectively fast moving compact plasma with visible velocity v  =  (1.5  ±  0.14)  ×  107 cm s‑1. Plasma emits narrow band radiation in the spectral range of Rydberg series transitions of Ar VII, Ar VIII with quantum number up to n  =  9 (wavelength about 11 nm). The intensity of radiation is comparable with the total plasma emission in the range 10–50 nm. Charge exchange between multiply charged Ar ions and cold Ar atoms of working gas is proposed as the possible mechanism of the origin of the radiation.

Characterisation of male breast cancer: a descriptive biomarker study from a large patient series.

PubMed

Humphries, Matthew P; Sundara Rajan, Sreekumar; Honarpisheh, Hedieh; Cserni, Gabor; Dent, Jo; Fulford, Laura; Jordan, Lee B; Jones, J Louise; Kanthan, Rani; Litwiniuk, Maria; Di Benedetto, Anna; Mottolese, Marcella; Provenzano, Elena; Shousha, Sami; Stephens, Mark; Kulka, Janina; Ellis, Ian O; Titloye, Akinwale N; Hanby, Andrew M; Shaaban, Abeer M; Speirs, Valerie

2017-03-28

Male breast cancer (MBC) is rare. We assembled 446 MBCs on tissue microarrays and assessed clinicopathological information, together with data from 15 published studies, totalling 1984 cases. By immunohistochemistry we investigated 14 biomarkers (ERα, ERβ1, ERβ2, ERβ5, PR, AR, Bcl-2, HER2, p53, E-cadherin, Ki67, survivin, prolactin, FOXA1) for survival impact. The main histological subtype in our cohort and combined analyses was ductal (81%, 83%), grade 2; (40%, 44%), respectively. Cases were predominantly ERα (84%, 82%) and PR positive (74%, 71%), respectively, with HER2 expression being infrequent (2%, 10%), respectively. In our cohort, advanced age (>67) was the strongest predictor of overall (OS) and disease free survival (DFS) (p = 0.00001; p = 0.01, respectively). Node positivity negatively impacted DFS (p = 0.04). FOXA1 p = 0.005) and AR p = 0.009) were both positively prognostic for DFS, remaining upon multivariate analysis. Network analysis showed ERα, AR and FOXA1 significantly correlated. In summary, the principle phenotype of MBC was luminal A, ductal, grade 2. In ERα+ MBC, only AR had prognostic significance, suggesting AR blockade could be employed therapeutically.

Statistical study of free magnetic energy and flare productivity of solar active regions

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

Su, J. T.; Jing, J.; Wang, S.

Photospheric vector magnetograms from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory are utilized as the boundary conditions to extrapolate both nonlinear force-free and potential magnetic fields in solar corona. Based on the extrapolations, we are able to determine the free magnetic energy (FME) stored in active regions (ARs). Over 3000 vector magnetograms in 61 ARs were analyzed. We compare FME with the ARs' flare index (FI) and find that there is a weak correlation (<60%) between FME and FI. FME shows slightly improved flare predictability relative to the total unsigned magnetic flux of ARs in themore » following two aspects: (1) the flare productivity predicted by FME is higher than that predicted by magnetic flux and (2) the correlation between FI and FME is higher than that between FI and magnetic flux. However, this improvement is not significant enough to make a substantial difference in time-accumulated FI, rather than individual flare, predictions.« less

Improved volatile fatty acid and biomethane production from lipid removed microalgal residue (LRμAR) through pretreatment.

PubMed

Suresh, Arumuganainar; Seo, Charles; Chang, Ho Nam; Kim, Yeu-Chun

2013-12-01

Renewable energy from lipid removed microalgal residues (LRμARs) serves as a promising tool for sustainable development of the microalgal biodiesel industry. Hence, in this study, LRμAR from Ettlia sp. was characterized for its physico-biochemical parameters, and applied to various pretreatment to increase the biodegradability and used in batch experiments for the production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and biomethane. After various pretreatments, the soluble organic matters were increased at a maximum of 82% in total organic matters in alkali-autoclaved sample. In addition, VFA and methane production was enhanced by 30% and 40% in alkali-sonicated and alkali-autoclaved samples, respectively. Methane heating value was recovered at maximum of 6.6 MJ kg(-1)VS in alkali-autoclaved conditions with comparison to non-pretreated samples. The pretreatment remarkably improved LRμAR solubilization and enhanced VFA and biomethane production, which holds immense potential to eventually reduce the cost of algal biodiesel. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fluoropolymer Films Deposited by Argon Ion-Beam Sputtering of Polytetrafluoroethylene

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Golub, Morton A.; Banks, Bruce A.; Kliss, Mark (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

The FT-IR, XPS and UV spectra of fluoropolymer films (SPTFE-I) deposited by argon ion-beam sputtering of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) were obtained and compared with prior corresponding spectra of fluoropolymer films (SPTFE-P) deposited by argon rf plasma sputtering of PTFE. Although the F/C ratios for SPTFE-I and -P (1.63 and 1.51) were similar, their structures were quite different in that there was a much higher concentration of CF2 groups in SPTFE-I than in SPTFE-P, ca. 61 and 33% of the total carbon contents, respectively. The FT-IR spectra reflect that difference, that for SPTFE-I showing a distinct doublet at 1210 and 1150 per centimeter while that for SPTFE-P presents a broad, featureless band at ca. 1250 per centimeter. The absorbance of the 1210-per centimeter band in SPTFE-I was proportional to the thickness of the film, in the range of 50-400 nanometers. The SPTFE-I was more transparent in the UV than SPTFE-P at comparable thickness. The mechanism for SPTFE-I formation likely involves "chopping off" of oligomeric segments of PTFE as an accompaniment to "plasma" polymerization of TFE monomer or other fluorocarbon fragments generated in situ from PTFE on impact with energetic Ar ions. Data are presented for SPTFE-I deposits and the associated Ar(+) bombarded PTFE targets where a fresh target was used for each run or a single target was used for a sequence of runs.

Variation of illite/muscovite 40Ar/39Ar age spectra during progressive low-grade metamorphism: an example from the US Cordillera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verdel, Charles; van der Pluijm, Ben A.; Niemi, Nathan

2012-09-01

40Ar/39Ar step-heating data were collected from micron to submicron grain-sizes of correlative illite- and muscovite-rich Cambrian pelitic rocks from the western United States that range in metamorphic grade from the shallow diagenetic zone (zeolite facies) to the epizone (greenschist facies). With increasing metamorphic grade, maximum ages from 40Ar/39Ar release spectra decrease, as do total gas ages and retention ages. Previous studies have explained similar results as arising dominantly or entirely from the dissolution of detrital muscovite and precipitation/recrystallization of neo-formed illite. While recognizing the importance of these processes in evaluating our results, we suggest that the inverse correlation between apparent age and metamorphic grade is controlled, primarily, by thermally activated volume diffusion, analogous to the decrease in apparent ages with depth observed for many thermochronometers in borehole experiments. Our results suggest that complete resetting of the illite/muscovite Ar thermochronometer occurs between the high anchizone and epizone, or at roughly 300 °C. This empirical result is in agreement with previous calculations based on muscovite diffusion parameters, which indicate that muscovite grains with radii of 0.05-2 μm should have closure temperatures between 250 and 350 °C. At high anchizone conditions, we observe a reversal in the age/grain-size relationship (the finest grain-size produces the oldest apparent age), which may mark the stage in prograde subgreenschist facies metamorphism of pelitic rocks at which neo-formed illite/muscovite crystallites typically surpass the size of detrital muscovite grains. It is also approximately the stage at which neo-formed illite/muscovite crystallites develop sufficient Ar retentivity to produce geologically meaningful 40Ar/39Ar ages. Results from our sampling transect of Cambrian strata establish a framework for interpreting illite/muscovite 40Ar/39Ar age spectra at different stages of low-grade metamorphism and also illuminate the transformation of illite to muscovite. At Frenchman Mtn., NV, where the Cambrian Bright Angel Formation is at zeolite facies conditions, illite/muscovite 40Ar/39Ar data suggest a detrital muscovite component with an apparent age ≥967 Ma. The correlative Carrara Fm. is at anchizone conditions in the Panamint and Resting Spring Ranges of eastern California, and in these locations, illite/muscovite 40Ar/39Ar data suggest an early Permian episode of subgreenschist facies metamorphism. The same type of data from equivalent strata at epizone conditions (greenschist facies) in the footwall of the Bullfrog/Fluorspar Canyon detachment in southern Nevada reveals a period of slow-to-moderate Late Cretaceous cooling.

SPATIO-TEMPORAL ANALYSIS OF TOTAL NITRATE CONCENTRATIONS USING DYNAMIC STATISTICAL MODELS

EPA Science Inventory

Atmospheric concentrations of total nitrate (TNO₃), defined here as gas-phase nitric acid plus particle-phase nitrate, are difficult to simulate in numerical air quality models due to the presence of a variety of formation pathways and loss mechanisms, some of which ar...

Nuclear-specific AR-V7 Protein Localization is Necessary to Guide Treatment Selection in Metastatic Castration-resistant Prostate Cancer.

PubMed

Scher, Howard I; Graf, Ryon P; Schreiber, Nicole A; McLaughlin, Brigit; Lu, David; Louw, Jessica; Danila, Daniel C; Dugan, Lyndsey; Johnson, Ann; Heller, Glenn; Fleisher, Martin; Dittamore, Ryan

2017-06-01

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) expressing AR-V7 protein localized to the nucleus (nuclear-specific) identify metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients with improved overall survival (OS) on taxane therapy relative to the androgen receptor signaling inhibitors (ARSi) abiraterone acetate, enzalutamide, and apalutamide. To evaluate if expanding the positivity criteria to include both nuclear and cytoplasmic AR-V7 localization ("nuclear-agnostic") identifies more patients who would benefit from a taxane over an ARSi. The study used a cross-sectional cohort. Between December 2012 and March 2015, 193 pretherapy blood samples, 191 of which were evaluable, were collected and processed from 161 unique mCRPC patients before starting a new line of systemic therapy for disease progression at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. The association between two AR-V7 scoring criteria, post-therapy prostate-specific antigen (PSA) change (PTPC) and OS following ARSi or taxane treatment, was explored. One criterion required nuclear-specific AR-V7 localization, and the other required an AR-V7 signal but was agnostic to protein localization in CTCs. Correlation of AR-V7 status to PTPC and OS was investigated. Relationships with survival were analyzed using multivariable Cox regression and log-rank analyses. A total of 34 (18%) samples were AR-V7-positive using nuclear-specific criteria, and 56 (29%) were AR-V7-positive using nuclear-agnostic criteria. Following ARSi treatment, none of the 16 nuclear-specific AR-V7-positive samples and six of the 32 (19%) nuclear-agnostic AR-V7-positive samples had ≥50% PTPC at 12 weeks. The strongest baseline factor influencing OS was the interaction between the presence of nuclear-specific AR-V7-positive CTCs and treatment with a taxane (hazard ratio 0.24, 95% confidence interval 0.078-0.79; p=0.019). This interaction was not significant when nuclear-agnostic criteria were used. To reliably inform treatment selection using an AR-V7 protein biomarker in CTCs, nuclear-specific localization is required. We analyzed outcomes for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer on androgen receptor signaling inhibitors and standard chemotherapy. Patients with circulating tumor cells that had AR-V7 protein in the cellular nuclei were very likely to survive longer on taxane-based chemotherapy, and tests unable to distinguish where the protein is located in the cell are not as predictive of benefit. Copyright © 2016 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Eotaxin, but not IL-8, is increased in upper and lower airways of allergic rhinitis subjects after nasal allergen challenge.

PubMed

Semik-Orzech, Aleksandra; Barczyk, Adam; Wiaderkiewicz, Ryszard; Pierzchała, Władysław

2011-01-01

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a single nasal allergen challenge (NAC) on levels of eotaxin and IL-8 and the inflammatory cells in upper and lower airways of allergic rhinitis (AR) patients. Twenty-four AR patients and 12 control subjects entered a sequential nasal placebo challenge and NAC study, out of the pollen season. Nasal lavage fluid (NLF) was obtained at baseline, 15 minutes, and 1, 5, and 24 hours postchallenge. Before and 24 hours after placebo/allergen challenge induced sputum was performed. NLF and induced sputum were evaluated for total cell count (TCC) and differential cell count and analyzed for concentrations of eotaxin and IL-8 using ELISA method. NAC in AR subjects was associated with significantly increased sputum (p = 0.008) and NLF (p < 0.001) eotaxin levels. Post-NAC IL-8 levels were significantly increased in NLF (p < 00001) but not in sputum (p = 0.080) of AR subjects. Increased eotaxin levels in NLF positively correlated with the increased TCC and eosinophils. Positive correlations were also found between NLF increased eotaxin level and sputum TCC, eosinophils, and macrophages. NAC is associated with the increased levels of eotaxin in lower airways of AR subjects. Allergen-induced secretion of eotaxin in nasal mucosa of AR subjects is involved in determining the cellular character of both upper and lower airway inflammation.

Magnetic Properties of Solar Active Regions that Govern Large Solar Flares and Eruptions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toriumi, Shin; Schrijver, Carolus J.; Harra, Louise; Hudson, Hugh S.; Nagashima, Kaori

2017-08-01

Strong flares and CMEs are often produced from active regions (ARs). In order to better understand the magnetic properties and evolutions of such ARs, we conducted statistical investigations on the SDO/HMI and AIA data of all flare events with GOES levels >M5.0 within 45 deg from the disk center for 6 years from May 2010 (from the beginning to the declining phase of solar cycle 24). Out of the total of 51 flares from 29 ARs, more than 80% have delta-sunspots and about 15% violate Hale’s polarity rule. We obtained several key findings including (1) the flare duration is linearly proportional to the separation of the flare ribbons (i.e., scale of reconnecting magnetic fields) and (2) CME-eruptive events have smaller sunspot areas. Depending on the magnetic properties, flaring ARs can be categorized into several groups, such as spot-spot, in which a highly-sheared polarity inversion line is formed between two large sunspots, and spot-satellite, where a newly-emerging flux next to a mature sunspot triggers a compact flare event. These results point to the possibility that magnetic structures of the ARs determine the characteristics of flares and CMEs. In the presentation, we will also show new results from the systematic flux emergence simulations of delta-sunspot formation and discuss the evolution processes of flaring ARs.

Dose-response characteristics of Clematis triterpenoid saponins and clematichinenoside AR in rheumatoid arthritis rats by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry-based serum and urine metabolomics.

PubMed

Li, Rui; Guo, Lin-Xiu; Li, Yi; Chang, Wen-Qi; Liu, Jian-Qun; Liu, Li-Fang; Xin, Gui-Zhong

2017-03-20

Clematidis Radix et Rhizoma is a traditional Chinese medicine widely used for treating arthritic disease. Clematis triterpenoid saponins (TS) and clematichinenoside AR (C-AR) have been considered to be responsible for its antiarthritic effects. However, the underling mechanism is still unclear because of their low bioavailability. To address of this issue, metabolomics tools were performed to determine metabolic variations associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and responses to Clematis TS, C-AR and positive drug (Triptolide, TP) treatments. This metabolomics investigation of RA was conducted in collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rats. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and multivariate statistical tools were used to identify the alteration of serum and urine metabolites associated with RA and responses to drug treatment. As a result, 45 potential metabolites associated with RA were identified. After treatment, a total of 24 biomarkers were regulated to normal like levels. Among these, PC(18:0/20:4), 9,11-octadecadienoic acid, arachidonic acid, 1-methyladenosine, valine, hippuric acid and pantothenic acid etc, were reversed in Clematis TS and C-AR groups. Tetrahydrocortisol was regulated to normal levels in Clematis TS and TP groups, while 3,7,12-trihydroxycholan-24-oic acid was regulated in C-AR and TP groups. Biomarkers like citric acid, p-cresol glucuronide, creatinine, cortolone were reversed in TP group. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Characterization of 41Ar production in air at a PET cyclotron facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cicoria, Gianfranco; Cesarini, Francesco; Infantino, Angelo; Vichi, Sara; Zagni, Federico; Marengo, Mario

2017-06-01

In the production of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) nuclides at a medical cyclotron facility 41Ar (T1/2 = 109.34 m) is produced by the activation of air due to the neutron flux, according to the 40Ar(n, γ)41Ar reaction. In this work, we describe a relatively inexpensive and readily reproducible methodology of air sampling that can be used for quantification of 41Ar during the routine production of PET nuclides. We report the results of an extensive measurement campaign in the cyclotron bunker and in the ducts of the ventilation system, before and after final filtering of the extracted air. Air Samples were analyzed using a gamma-ray spectrometry system equipped with HPGe detector, with proper correction of the efficiency calibration to account for the samples density. The results of measurement were then used to evaluate the Total Effective Dose (TED) to the population living in the surrounding areas, due to routine emissions in the operation of the cyclotron. The average 41Ar saturation yield per one liter of air emitted in the environment resulted to be (0.044 ± 0.007) Bq/(μA ṡ dm3). The maximum value of TED for the critical group of the population, even considering an overestimated workload, was less than 0.19 μSv/year, well below the level of radiological relevance.

Advanced Exploration Systems Atmosphere Resource Recovery and Environmental Monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perry, J.; Abney, M.; Conrad, R.; Garber, A.; Howard, D.; Kayatin, M.; Knox, J.; Newton, R.; Parrish, K.; Roman, M.;

40Ar/39Ar geochronology and geochemical reconnaissance of the Eocene Lowland Creek volcanic field, west-central Montana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dudas, F.O.; Ispolatov, V.O.; Harlan, S.S.; Snee, L.W.

2010-01-01

We report geochronological and geochemical data for the calc-alkalic Lowland Creek volcanic field (LCVF) in westcentral Montana. 40Ar/ 39Ar age determinations show that the LCVF was active from 52.9 to 48.6 Ma, with tuff-forming eruptions at 52.9 ?? 0.14 and 51.8 ?? 0.14 Ma. These dates span the age range of vigorous Eocene igneous activity in the Kamloops-Absaroka-Challis belt. The LCVF evolved upward from basal rhyolites (SiO 2>71 wt%) to dacites and andesites (SiO 2 > 62 wt%). Compositional change parallels a transition from early explosive volcanism to late effusive activity. Four geochemical components can be detected in the rocks. A component with 206Pb/204Pb < 16.5 and epsilon;Nd near-15 is predominant in anhydrous, two-pyroxene dacites; hydrous rhyolites, rhyodacites, and dacites with epsilon;Nd below-10 are dominated by a second component; hydrous rocks with 206Pb/ 204Pb > 18.3 and epsilon;Nd>-9 contain a third component; and an andesite with low Nd content and epsilon;Nd near-9 probably contains a fourth component. The first three components probably derive from the lower and middle crust, whereas the fourth is probably from the lithospheric mantle. ?? 2010 by The University of Chicago.

Appetitive and Dietary Effects of Consuming an Energy-Dense Food (Peanuts) with or between Meals by Snackers and Nonsnackers.

PubMed

Devitt, A A; Kuevi, A; Coelho, S B; Lartey, A; Lokko, P; Costa, N; Bressan, J; Mattes, R D

2011-01-01

Background. Energy-dense foods are inconsistently implicated in elevated energy intake (EI). This may stem from other food properties and/or differences in dietary incorporation, that is, as snacks or with meals. Objective. Assess intake pattern and food properties on acute appetitive ratings (AR) and EI. Design. 201 normal and overweight adults consuming a standard lunch. Test loads of 1255.2 kJ (300 kcal) were added to the lunch or provided as snack. Loads (peanuts, snack mix, and snack mix with peanuts) were energy, macronutrient, and volumetrically matched with a lunch portion as control. Participants completed meal and snack sessions of their randomly assigned load. Results. No differences were observed in daily EI or AR for meal versus snack or treatment versus control. Consumption of peanuts as a snack tended to strengthen dietary compensation compared to peanuts or other loads with a meal. Conclusions. Inclusion of an energy-dense food as a snack or meal component had comparable influence on AR and EI. Peanuts tended to elicit stronger dietary compensation when consumed as a snack versus with a meal. If substantiated, this latter observation suggests that properties other than those controlled here (energy, macronutrient content, and volume) modify AR and EI.

Rare gases, water, and carbon in kaersutites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poreda, Robert J.; Basu, Asish R.

1984-07-01

Kaersutites from Kakanui, New Zealand and from three localities in the southwestern United States have been analyzed for rare gases, water and carbon to investigate the volatile signature of the sub-continental mantle. This study does not confirm the high 3He/ 4He and 21Ne/ 22Ne ratios reported by Saito et al. [1] for the Kakanui kaersutite. Instead, a 3He/ 4He ratio of 6 RA and atmospheric 21Ne/ 22Ne ratios were measured which are consistent with our current knowledge of the earth's mantle. A low 40Ar/ 36Ar of 320 and more than 10 -8 cm 3/g of 36Ar confirms the argon results of Saito et al. and indicates that significant quantities of 36Ar reside in this portion of the mantle. Kaersutites from the southwestern United States (Arizona) have a heterogeneous helium isotope signature, ranging from 8.8 RA at San Carlos to 0.46 at Hoover Dam. All D/H ratios for the water in kaersutites (-56‰ to -78‰) represent typical mantle values with no apparent correlation with 3He/ 4He. The correlation of increasing carbon content (140-400 ppm) with increasing δ 13C (-24.5‰ to -16.7‰) may reflect differences in the proportions of oxidized and reduced carbon in these samples.

Cholesterol and vitamin D content of eggs in the U.S. retail market

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Nationwide sampling in the U.S. of whole large eggs, to update values in the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference (SR) (http://www.ars.usda.gov/nutrientdata), was conducted in 2000-2001 and again in 2010. Retail cartons of large eggs were obtained from 12 supermarket locations usi...

Soil water sensing for climate change studies; Applicability of COSMOS and local sensor networks

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Soil water sensors are used to characterize water content in the near-surface, the root zone and below for agricultural and ecosystem management, but only a few are capable of sensing soil volumes larger than a few hundred liters. Scientists with the USDA-ARS Conservation & Production Research Labor...

Towards Improving Content and Instruction of the "TESOL/TEFL for Special Needs" Course: An Action Research Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abdallah, Mahmoud M. S.

2017-01-01

Action research (AR)--as a participatory, problem-oriented methodology--has been employed recently in Egypt to resolve complicated classroom and learning problems, and provide context-based solutions. Simultaneously, new "special education" courses have been included recently in the university bylaws of Egyptian colleges of education.…

Nitrogen cycling under alternate wetting and drying cycles in Arkansas rice

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Alternate wetting and drying (AWD) cycles offer potential savings in water use for paddy rice production while reducing both greenhouse gas emissions and lowering grain arsenic content. In a three-year (2011-2013) field study near Stuttgart, AR, one-third of a field previously grown to soybean was b...

K-Ar age constrains on chemically weathered granitic basement rocks (saprolites) in Scandinavia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Margreth, Annina; Fredin, Ola; Viola, Giulio; Knies, Jochen; Sørlie, Ronald; Lie, Jan-Erik; Margrethe Grandal, Else; Zwingmann, Horst; Vogt, Christoph

2017-04-01

Remnants of in-situ weathered bedrock, saprolite, are found in several locations in Scandinavia. Saprolites contain important information about past climate conditions and landscape evolution, although their age and genesis are commonly difficult to constrain. It is generally thought that clay-poor, coarse-grained (arêne) saprolites, mostly occurring as thin regolith blankets or in larger outcrops, formed in temperate climate during the Cenozoic, whereas clay-rich (argillic) saprolites, commonly restricted to small, fracture-bounded outcrops, formed in (sub-)tropical climate during the Mesozoic. Recent methodological and conceptual advances in K-Ar dating of illite-bearing fault rocks have been applied to date clay-rich saprolites. To test the K-Ar dating technique for saprolites, we first selected an offshore site in the Viking Graben of the North Sea, where weathered and fractured granitic basement highs have been drilled during petroleum exploration, and an abandoned kaolin mine in Southern Sweden. Both targets provide independent age control through the presence of overlying Mesozoic sedimentary rocks. Clay-rich saprolites occurring in fractured basement rocks were additionally sampled in a joint valley landscape on the southwestern coast of Norway, which can be regarded as the possible onland correlative to the offshore basement high. In order to offer a sound interpretation of the obtained K-Ar ages, the mineralogical and chemical composition of the saprolites requires a thorough characterization. Scanning electron microscopy of thin sections, integrated by XRD and XRF analysis, reveals the progressive transformation of primary granitic rock minerals into secondary clay minerals. The authigenesis of illite is particularly important to understand, since it is the only K-bearing clay mineral that can be dated by the K-Ar method. K-feldspars and mica are the common primary K-bearing minerals, from which illite can be formed. While progressive leaching of interlayer potassium is observed in micas without significant modification of the mineral structure, K-feldspars are gradually dissolved with concomitant precipitation of illite, smectite and kaolinite. Individual illite minerals are difficult to identify, but low-K contents in smectite point to small amounts of illite-interlayers. This finding is supported by XRD patterns (powder analyses on clay size fractions) that lack a clear 10 Å peak indicating the presence of illite/mica, but show a prominent and slight asymmetric 14 Å peak representing smectite with potential low (<10 %) illite-interlayer content. In agreement with previous models of diminishing contamination of protolithic K-bearing phases in the finest grain size fractions, K-Ar ages invariably decrease with grain size suggesting that the finest grain-size is predominantly composed of authigenic, syn-weathering illite, whose age can thus be used to constrain the timing of saprolitization. The obtained Late Permian to Late Triassic ages i) are in accordance with independent age constraints supporting previous hypotheses of intense chemical weathering during the Mesozoic and ii) correlate with similar K-Ar ages obtained from nearby brittle faults suggesting a genetic relationship between weathering and brittle deformation. The combined investigation and K-Ar dating of illite-bearing fractured and weathered bedrock provides new insights into the tectonic and climatic evolution of the Scandinavian landscape prior to the major, and often obliterating, Quaternary glaciations.

The Gottingen minipig is a model of the hematopoietic acute radiation syndrome: G-CSF stimulates hematopoiesis and enhances survival from lethal total-body gamma-irradiation

PubMed Central

Moroni, Maria; Ngudiankama, Barbara F.; Christensen, Christine; Olsen, Cara H.; Owens, Rossitsa; Lombardini, Eric D.; Holt, Rebecca K.; Whitnall, Mark H.

2013-01-01

Purpose We are characterizing the Gottingen minipig as an additional large animal model for advanced drug testing for the Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS), to enhance discovery and development of novel radiation countermeasures. Among the advantages provided by this model, the similarities to human hematological parameters and dynamics of cell loss/recovery following irradiation provide a convenient means to compare efficacy of drugs known to affect bone marrow cellularity and hematopoiesis. Methods and Materials Male Gottingen minipigs, 4–5 months old and weighing 9–11 kg were used for this study. We tested the standard off-label treatment for ARS, rhG-CSF (Neupogen®, 10 μg/kg/day for 17 days), at the estimated LD70/30 total-body gamma-irradiation (TBI) radiation dose for the hematopoietic syndrome, starting 24 hours after irradiation. Results Results indicate G-CSF enhanced survival, stimulated recovery from neutropenia, and induced mobilization of hematopoietic progenitor cells. In addition, administration of G-CSF resulted in maturation of monocytes/macrophages. Conclusion These results support continuing efforts toward validation of the minipig as a large animal model for advanced testing of radiation countermeasures and characterization of the pathophysiology of ARS, and suggest that the efficacy of G-CSF in improving survival after total body irradiation may involve mechanisms other than increasing numbers of circulating granulocytes. PMID:23845847

A natural laboratory for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology: ICDP cores from Lake Van, Turkey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelhardt, Jonathan; Sudo, Masafumi; Oberhänsli, Roland

2015-04-01

Pore water samples from ICDP Paleovan cores indicate a limited pore water exchange within Quaternary lake sediments. The core's volcaniclastic sections bear unaltered K-rich ternary feldspar and fresh to altered glass shards of predominantly rhyolitic composition. Whereas applying the 40Ar/39Ar method on feldspars resulted in ages timing a late-stage crystallization, glass shards had the potential to date the eruption. Volcanic glass is prone to modifications such as hydrous alteration (palagonitization) and devitrification (Cerling et al., 1985). These modifications affect the glass' chemistry and challenge the application of the 40Ar/39Ar method. Gaining precise radiometric ages from two phases has the potential to strengthen a climate-stratigraphic age-model (Stockhecke et al., 2014), and to significantly increase the temporal resolution on the deposition of the lake sediments. Vice versa the core's previous age model has the ability to question the reliability of 40Ar/39Ar eruption ages derived from ternary feldspars and glass shards. Multi- and single-grain total fusion on alkali feldspars from six volcaniclastic deposits resulted in Pleistocene ages that are in good agreement with the predicted age model. Feldspar phenocrysts from three ashes in the core's youngest section yielded consistent isochron ages that are significantly older than the model's prediction. Several distinct stratigraphic and paleomagnetic time markers of similar stratigraphic positions contradict to the older radiometric dates (Stockhecke et al., 2014). Partial resorption features of inherited feldspar domains and the involvement of excess 40Ar indicate incomplete degassing of older domains. To evaluate the magmatic history of the different domains EMPA mappings of trace elements that could be interpreted as Ar diffusion couples are currently conducted. Geochronology on Paleovan cores offers unique opportunities to monitor the effect of alteration on the Ar-systematics of volcanic glass shards and identifies a period of incorporation and incomplete degassing of inherited feldspar domains. References: Cerling, T.E., Brown, F.H., Bowman, J.R., 1985. Low-Temperature Alteration of Volcanic Glass - Hydration, Na, K, O-18 and Ar Mobility. Chemical Geology, 52 (3-4), 281-293. Stockhecke, M., Kwiecien, O., Vigliotti, L., Anselmetti, F., Beer, J., Çağatay, N. M., Channell, J. E. T., Kipfel, R., Lachner, J., Litt, T., Pickarski, N., Sturm, M., 2014. Chronostratigraphy of the 600,000 year old continental record of Lake Van (Turkey). Quarternary Science Reviews 104, 8-17

Comparisons of low-intensity versus moderate-intensity combined aerobic and resistance training on body composition, muscle strength, and functional performance in older women.

PubMed

Shiotsu, Yoko; Yanagita, Masahiko

2018-06-01

This study aimed to examine the effects of exercise order of combined aerobic and low- or moderate-intensity resistance training into the same session on body composition, functional performance, and muscle strength in healthy older women. Furthermore, this study compared the effects of different (low- vs moderate-) intensity combined training. A total of 60 healthy older women (age 61-81 y) were randomly assigned to five groups that performed aerobic exercise before low-intensity resistance training (AR-L, n = 12) or after resistance training (RA-L, n = 12), performed aerobic exercise before moderate-intensity resistance training (AR-M, n = 12) or after resistance training (RA-M, n = 12), or nonintervention control conditions (CON, n = 12). Body composition, functional performance, and muscle strength were evaluated before and after the 10-week training. No effects of exercise order of combined aerobic and low- or moderate-intensity resistance training (AR-L vs RA-L, AR-M vs RA-M) were observed in body composition, functional performance, or muscle strength, whereas the effects of training intensity of combined training (AR-L vs AR-M, RA-L vs RA-M) were observed on functional performance. All combined trainings significantly increased muscle strength and gait ability (P < 0.01, respectively). Functional reach test significantly increased in the AR-M and RA-M groups (P < 0.01, respectively), and there were significant group differences between AR-L and AR-M (P = 0.002), RA-L and RA-M (P = 0.014). Preliminary findings suggest that combined aerobic and low- or moderate-intensity resistance training increases muscle strength and improves gait ability, regardless of the exercise order. Also, greater improvement in dynamic balance capacity, a risk factor associated with falling, is observed in moderate-intensity combined training.

Are [O-methyl-11C]derivatives of ICI 89,406 beta1-adrenoceptor selective radioligands suitable for PET?

PubMed

Law, Marilyn P; Wagner, Stefan; Kopka, Klaus; Pike, Victor W; Schober, Otmar; Schäfers, Michael

2008-01-01

Radioligand binding studies show that beta(1)-adrenoceptor (beta(1)-AR) density may be reduced in heart disease without down regulation of beta(2)-ARs. Radioligands are available for measuring total beta-AR density non-invasively with clinical positron emission tomography (PET) but none are selective for beta(1)- or beta(2)-ARs. The aim was to evaluate ICI 89,406, a beta(1)-AR-selective antagonist amenable to labelling with positron emitters, for PET. The S-enantiomer of an [O-methyl-(11)C] derivative of ICI 89,406 ((S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe) was synthesised. Tissue radioactivity after i.v. injection of (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe (< 2 nmol x kg(-1)) into adult Wistar rats was assessed by small animal PET and post mortem dissection. Metabolism was assessed by HPLC of extracts prepared from plasma and tissues and by measuring [(11)C]CO(2) in exhaled air. The heart was visualised by PET after injection of (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe but neither unlabelled (S)-ICI-OMe nor propranolol (non-selective beta-AR antagonist) injected 15 min after (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe affected myocardial radioactivity. Ex vivo dissection showed that injecting unlabelled (S)-ICI-OMe, propranolol or CGP 20712A (beta(1)-selective AR antagonist) at high dose (> 2 mumol x kg(-1)) before (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe had a small effect on myocardial radioactivity. HPLC demonstrated that radioactivity in myocardium was due to unmetabolised (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe although (11)C-labelled metabolites rapidly appeared in plasma and liver and [(11)C]CO(2) was detected in exhaled air. Myocardial uptake of (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe after i.v. injection was low, possibly due to rapid metabolism in other tissues. Injection of unlabelled ligand or beta-AR antagonists had little effect indicating that binding was mainly to non-specific myocardial sites, thus precluding the use of (S)-[(11)C]ICI-OMe to assess beta(1)-ARs with PET.

Osteopontin-c mediates the upregulation of androgen responsive genes in LNCaP cells through PI3K/Akt and androgen receptor signaling.

PubMed

Tilli, Tatiana Martins; Ferreira, Luciana Bueno; Gimba, Etel Rodrigues Pereira

2015-04-01

Androgen receptor (AR) signaling is a key pathway modulating prostate cancer (PCa) progression. Several steps in this pathway have been investigated in order to propose novel treatment strategies for advanced PCa. Total osteopontin (OPN) has been described as a biomarker for PCa, in addition to its role in activating the progression of this tumor. Based on the known effects of the OPNc splice variant on PCa progression, the present study investigated whether this isoform can also modulate AR signaling. In order to test this, an in vitro model was used in which LNCaP cells were cultured in the presence of conditioned medium (CM) secreted by PCa cells overexpressing OPNc (OPNc-CM). The activation of AR signaling was evaluated by measuring the expression levels of AR-responsive genes (ARGs) using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and specific oligonucleotides. The data demonstrated that all nine tested ARGs ( Fgf8 , TMPRSS2 , Greb1 , Cdk2 , Ndrg1 , Cdk1 , Pmepa1 , Psa and Ar ) are significantly upregulated in response to OPNc-CM compared with LNCaP cells cultured in CM secreted by control cells transfected with empty expression vector. The specific involvement of OPNc was demonstrated by depleting OPNc from OPNc-CM using an anti-OPNc neutralizing antibody. In addition, by using a phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-specific inhibitor and AR antagonists, such as flutamide and bicalutamide, it was also observed that upregulation of ARGs in response to OPNc-CM involves PI3K signaling and depends on the AR. In conclusion, these data indicated that OPNc is able to activate AR signaling through the PI3K pathway and the AR. These data further corroborate our previous data, revealing the OPNc splice variant to be a key molecule that is able to modulate key signaling pathways involved in PCa progression.

Osteopontin-c mediates the upregulation of androgen responsive genes in LNCaP cells through PI3K/Akt and androgen receptor signaling

PubMed Central

TILLI, TATIANA MARTINS; FERREIRA, LUCIANA BUENO; GIMBA, ETEL RODRIGUES PEREIRA

2015-01-01

Androgen receptor (AR) signaling is a key pathway modulating prostate cancer (PCa) progression. Several steps in this pathway have been investigated in order to propose novel treatment strategies for advanced PCa. Total osteopontin (OPN) has been described as a biomarker for PCa, in addition to its role in activating the progression of this tumor. Based on the known effects of the OPNc splice variant on PCa progression, the present study investigated whether this isoform can also modulate AR signaling. In order to test this, an in vitro model was used in which LNCaP cells were cultured in the presence of conditioned medium (CM) secreted by PCa cells overexpressing OPNc (OPNc-CM). The activation of AR signaling was evaluated by measuring the expression levels of AR-responsive genes (ARGs) using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and specific oligonucleotides. The data demonstrated that all nine tested ARGs (Fgf8, TMPRSS2, Greb1, Cdk2, Ndrg1, Cdk1, Pmepa1, Psa and Ar) are significantly upregulated in response to OPNc-CM compared with LNCaP cells cultured in CM secreted by control cells transfected with empty expression vector. The specific involvement of OPNc was demonstrated by depleting OPNc from OPNc-CM using an anti-OPNc neutralizing antibody. In addition, by using a phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-specific inhibitor and AR antagonists, such as flutamide and bicalutamide, it was also observed that upregulation of ARGs in response to OPNc-CM involves PI3K signaling and depends on the AR. In conclusion, these data indicated that OPNc is able to activate AR signaling through the PI3K pathway and the AR. These data further corroborate our previous data, revealing the OPNc splice variant to be a key molecule that is able to modulate key signaling pathways involved in PCa progression. PMID:25789054

Energy loss in the left ventricle obtained by vector flow mapping as a new quantitative measure of severity of aortic regurgitation: a combined experimental and clinical study.

PubMed

Stugaard, Marie; Koriyama, Hikaru; Katsuki, Keiko; Masuda, Kasumi; Asanuma, Toshihiko; Takeda, Yasuharu; Sakata, Yasushi; Itatani, Keiichi; Nakatani, Satoshi

2015-07-01

In aortic regurgitation (AR), energy loss (EL) produced by inefficient turbulent flow may be a burden to the heart predicting decompensation. We attempted to quantify EL in AR induced in an acute dog model and in patients with chronic AR using novel echocardiographic method vector flow mapping (VFM). In 11 anaesthetized open-chest dogs, AR was induced by distorting the aortic valve with a pigtail catheter, in totally 20 cases. Regurgitant fraction was determined using pulsed Doppler echocardiography, <30% considered mild to moderate (Group 1, n = 11) and ≥30% moderate to severe (Group 2, n = 9). The clinical study consisted of 22 patients with various degrees of AR; 11 mild to moderate (Group 1) and 11 moderate to severe (Group 2), and compared with 12 normals. VFM is based on continuity equation applied to colour Doppler and speckle tracking velocities, acquired from apical long-axis image. EL was calculated frame by frame, averaged from three beats. In the dog study, diastolic EL increased significantly with severity of AR (baseline vs. Group 1 vs. Group 2: 3.8 ± 1.6 vs. 13.0 ± 5.0 vs. 22.4 ± 14.0 [J/(m s)], ANOVA P = 0.0001). Similar to dogs, diastolic EL also increased in humans by the severity of AR (control vs. Group 1 vs. Group 2: 2.8 ± 1.5 vs. 14.3 ± 11.5 vs. 18.6 ± 2.3 [J/(m s)], ANOVA P = 0.001). VFM provides a promising method to quantify diastolic EL in AR. Diastolic EL increases in AR proportional to its severity. EL may be useful to determine the severity of disease from the aspect of cardiac load. Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author 2015. For permissions please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Modified Ni-Cu catalysts for ethanol steam reforming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dan, M.; Mihet, M.; Almasan, V.; Borodi, G.; Katona, G.; Muresan, L.; Lazar, M. D.

2013-11-01

Three Ni-Cu catalysts, having different Cu content, supported on γ-alumina were synthesized by wet co-impregnation method, characterized and tested in the ethanol steam reforming (ESR) reaction. The catalysts were characterized for determination of: total surface area and porosity (N2 adsorption - desorption using BET and Dollimer Heal methods), Ni surface area (hydrogen chemisorption), crystallinity and Ni crystallites size (X-Ray Diffraction), type of catalytic active centers (Hydrogen Temperature Programmed Reduction). Total surface area and Ni crystallites size are not significantly influenced by the addition of Cu, while Ni surface area is drastically diminished by increasing of Cu concentration. Steam reforming experiments were performed at atmospheric pressure, temperature range 150-350°C, and ethanol - water molar ration of 1 at 30, using Ar as carrier gas. Ethanol conversion and hydrogen production increase by the addition of Cu. At 350°C there is a direct connection between hydrogen production and Cu concentration. Catalysts deactivation in 24h time on stream was studied by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) on used catalysts. Coke deposition was observed at all studied temperatures; at 150°C amorphous carbon was evidenced, while at 350°C crystalline, filamentous carbon is formed.

Systematic Review of Anastomotic Leakage Rate According to an International Grading System Following Anterior Resection for Rectal Cancer

PubMed Central

Ye, Guang-Yao; Yu, Min-Hao; Gao, Yun-He; Li, Zhao-Shen; Yu, En-Da; Zhong, Ming

2013-01-01

Background A generally acceptable definition and a severity grading system for anastomotic leakages (ALs) following rectal resection were not available until 2010, when the International Study Group of Rectal Cancer (ISGRC) proposed a definition and a grading system for AL. Methods A search for published data was performed using the MEDLINE database (2000 to December 5, 2012) to perform a systematic review of the studies that described AL, grade AL according to the grading system, pool data, and determine the average rate of AL for each grade after anterior resection (AR) for rectal cancer. Results A total of 930 abstracts were retrieved; 40 articles on AR, 25 articles on low AR (LAR), and 5 articles on ultralow AR (ULAR) were included in the review and analysis. The pooled overall AL rate of AR was 8.58% (2,085/24,288); the rate of the asymptomatic leakage (Grade A) was 2.57%, that of AL that required active intervention without relaparotomy (Grade B) was 2.37%, and that of AL that required relaparotomy (Grade C) was 5.40%. The pooled rate of AL that required relaparotomy was higher in AR (5.40%) than in LAR (4.70%) and in ULAR (1.81%), which could be attributed to the higher rate of protective defunctioning stoma in LAR (40.72%) and ULAR (63.44%) compared with that in AR (30.11%). Conclusions The new grading system is simple that the ALs of each grade can be easily extracted from past publications, therefore likely to be accepted and applied in future studies. PMID:24086552

Use of the cumulative sum method (CUSUM) to assess the learning curves of ultrasound-guided continuous femoral nerve block.

PubMed

Kollmann-Camaiora, A; Brogly, N; Alsina, E; Gilsanz, F

2017-10-01

Although ultrasound is a basic competence for anaesthesia residents (AR) there is few data available on the learning process. This prospective observational study aims to assess the learning process of ultrasound-guided continuous femoral nerve block and to determine the number of procedures that a resident would need to perform in order to reach proficiency using the cumulative sum (CUSUM) method. We recruited 19 AR without previous experience. Learning curves were constructed using the CUSUM method for ultrasound-guided continuous femoral nerve block considering 2 success criteria: a decrease of pain score>2 in a [0-10] scale after 15minutes, and time required to perform it. We analyse data from 17 AR for a total of 237 ultrasound-guided continuous femoral nerve blocks. 8/17 AR became proficient for pain relief, however all the AR who did more than 12 blocks (8/8) became proficient. As for time of performance 5/17 of AR achieved the objective of 12minutes, however all the AR who did more than 20 blocks (4/4) achieved it. The number of procedures needed to achieve proficiency seems to be 12, however it takes more procedures to reduce performance time. The CUSUM methodology could be useful in training programs to allow early interventions in case of repeated failures, and develop competence-based curriculum. Copyright © 2017 Sociedad Española de Anestesiología, Reanimación y Terapéutica del Dolor. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Time trends in BMI, body fatness, and adiposity rebound among boys from Kraków (Poland) from 1983 to 2010.

PubMed

Kowal, Małgorzata; Kryst, Łukasz; Woronkowicz, Agnieszka; Brudecki, Janusz; Sobiecki, Jan

2015-01-01

The prevalence of childhood obesity has been increasing during the last decades in many countries, but less is known about secular trends in growth curves covering the whole childhood span. The main purpose of this study was to explore changes in body weight, height, BMI, percent body fat (%BF), adiposity rebound (AR), and pubertal timing in boys from Kraków between 1983 and 2010. Totally, 4,986 boys (3-18 years) were measured during cross-sectional studies. Using the results of height, weight, and skinfold measurements, BMI and %BF were calculated. The LMS method was used to construct BMI and %BF percentiles. Three cut-off points were distinguished in individual age groups of the subjects-below the 15th percentile, 50th percentile, and above the 85th percentile. The mean age at pubarche was calculated by the probit method. The boys from 2010 were taller and heavier than the boys from 1983. Before the time of AR, boys from 2010 had lower BMI, but after AR had higher BMI than boys from 1983. An earlier AR appeared in all BMI 2010 percentile curves as compared to 1983. The boys from 2010 also showed an acceleration of sexual maturation and earlier Tanner Stage II, equaling 11.80 years. In boys from 2010, AR occurs earlier than in boys from 1983. Changes in timing of AR cannot be explained only by changes in degree of body adiposity. Early AR could be a marker of the acceleration of development. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cross-cultural adaptation, reliability and validity of the Arabic version of the reduced Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis index in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

PubMed

Alghadir, Ahmad; Anwer, Shahnawaz; Iqbal, Zaheen Ahmed; Alsanawi, Hisham Abdulaziz

2016-01-01

We adapted the reduced Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) index for the Arabic language and tested its metric properties in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). One hundred and twenty-one consecutive patients who were referred for physiotherapy to the outpatient department were asked to answer the Arabic version of the reduced WOMAC index (ArWOMAC). After the completion of the ArWOMAC, the intensity of knee pain and general health status were assessed using the visual analog scale (VAS) and the 12-item short form health survey (SF-12), respectively. A second assessment was performed at least 48 h after the first session to assess test-retest reliability. The test-retest reliability was quantified using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), and Cronbach's alpha was calculated to assess the internal consistency of the Arabic questionnaire. The construct validity was assessed using Spearman rank correlation coefficients. The total ArWOMAC scale and pain and function subscales were internally consistent with Cronbach's coefficient alpha of 0.91, 0.89 and 0.90, respectively. Test-retest reliability was good to excellent with ICC of 0.91, 0.89 and 0.90, respectively. SF-12 and VAS score significantly correlated with ArWOMAC index (p < 0.01), which support the construct validity. The standard error of measurement (SEM) of the total scale was 2.94, based on repeated measurements for test-retest. The minimum detectable change based on the SEM for test-retest was 8.15. The ArWOMAC index is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating the severity of knee OA, with metric properties in agreement with the original version. Although, the reduced WOMAC index has been clinically utilized within the Saudi population, the Arabic version of this instrument is not validated for an Arab population to measure lower limb functional disability caused by OA. The Arabic version of reduced WOMAC (ArWOMAC) index is a reliable and valid scale to measure lower limb functional disability in patients with knee OA. The ArWOMAC index could be suitable in Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries where the language, culture and the life style are similar.

Preparation of water and ice samples for 39Ar dating by atom trap trace analysis (ATTA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwefel, R.; Reichel, T.; Aeschbach-Hertig, W.; Wagenbach, D.

2012-04-01

Atom trap trace analysis (ATTA) is a new and promising method to measure very rare noble gas radioisotopes in the environment. The applicability of this method for the dating of very old groundwater with 81Kr has already been demonstrated [1]. Recent developments now show its feasibility also for the analysis of 39Ar [2,3], which is an ideal dating tracer for the age range between 50 and 1000 years. This range is of interest in the fields of hydro(geo)logy, oceanography, and glaciology. We present preparation (gas extraction and Ar separation) methods for groundwater and ice samples for later analysis by the ATTA technique. For groundwater, the sample size is less of a limitation than for applications in oceanography or glaciology. Large samples are furthermore needed to enable a comparison with the classical method of 39Ar detection by low-level counting. Therefore, a system was built that enables gas extraction from several thousand liters of water using membrane contactors. This system provides degassing efficiencies greater than 80 % and has successfully been tested in the field. Gas samples are further processed to separate a pure Ar fraction by a gas-chromatographic method based on Li-LSX zeolite as selective adsorber material at very low temperatures. The gas separation achieved by this system is controlled by a quadrupole mass spectrometer. It has successfully been tested and used on real samples. The separation efficiency was found to be strongly temperature dependent in the range of -118 to -130 °C. Since ATTA should enable the analysis of 39Ar on samples of less than 1 ccSTP of Ar (corresponding to about 100 ml of air, 2.5 l of water or 1 kg of ice), a method to separate Ar from small amounts of gas was developed. Titanium sponge was found to absorb 60 ccSTP of reactive gases per g of the getter material with reasonably high absorption rates at high operating temperatures (~ 800 ° C). Good separation (higher than 92 % Ar content in residual gas) was achieved by this gettering process. The other main remaining component is H2, which can be further reduced by operating the Ti getter at lower temperature. Furthermore, a system was designed to degas ice samples, followed by Ar separation by gettering. Ice from an alpine glacier was successfully processed on this system.

Examination of the Entry to Burn and Burn Control for the ITER 15 MA Baseline and Other Scenarios

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

Kesse, Charles E.; Kim, S-H.; Koechl, F.

2014-09-01

The entry to burn and flattop burn control in ITER will be a critical need from the first DT experiments. Simulations are used to address time-dependent behavior under a range of possible conditions that include injected power level, impurity content (W, Ar, Be), density evolution, H-mode regimes, controlled parameter (Wth, Pnet, Pfusion), and actuator (Paux, fueling, fAr), with a range of transport models. A number of physics issues at the L-H transition require better understanding to project to ITER, however, simulations indicate viable control with sufficient auxiliary power (up to 73 MW), while lower powers become marginal (as low asmore » 43 MW).« less

Testosterone enables growth and hypertrophy in fusion impaired myoblasts that display myotube atrophy: deciphering the role of androgen and IGF-I receptors.

PubMed

Hughes, David C; Stewart, Claire E; Sculthorpe, Nicholas; Dugdale, Hannah F; Yousefian, Farzad; Lewis, Mark P; Sharples, Adam P

2016-06-01

We have previously highlighted the ability of testosterone (T) to improve differentiation and myotube hypertrophy in fusion impaired myoblasts that display reduced myotube hypertrophy via multiple population doublings (PD) versus their parental controls (CON); an observation which is abrogated via PI3K/Akt inhibition (Deane et al. 2013). However, whether the most predominant molecular mechanism responsible for T induced hypertrophy occurs directly via androgen receptor or indirectly via IGF-IR/PI3K/Akt pathway is currently debated. PD and CON C2C12 muscle cells were exposed to low serum conditions in the presence or absence of T (100 nM) ± inhibitors of AR (flutamide/F, 40 μm) and IGF-IR (picropodophyllin/PPP, 150 nM) for 72 h and 7 days (early/late muscle differentiation respectively). T increased AR and Akt abundance, myogenin gene expression, and myotube hypertrophy, but not ERK1/2 activity in both CON and PD cell types. Akt activity was not increased significantly in either cell type with T. Testosterone was also unable to promote early differentiation in the presence of IGF-IR inhibitor (PPP) yet still able to promote appropriate later increases in myotube hypertrophy and AR abundance despite IGF-IR inhibition. The addition of the AR inhibitor powerfully attenuated all T induced increases in differentiation and myotube hypertrophy with corresponding reductions in AR abundance, phosphorylated Akt, ERK1/2 and gene expression of IGF-IR, myoD and myogenin with increases in myostatin mRNA in both cell types. Interestingly, despite basally reduced differentiation and myotube hypertrophy, PD cells showed larger T induced increases in AR abundance vs. CON cells, a response abrogated in the presence of AR but not IGF-IR inhibitors. Furthermore, T induced increases in Akt abundance were sustained despite the presence of IGF-IR inhibition in PD cells only. Importantly, flutamide alone reduced IGF-IR mRNA in both cell types across time points, with an observed reduction in activity of ERK and Akt, suggesting that IGF-IR was transcriptionally regulated by AR. However, where testosterone increased AR protein content there was no increases observed in IGF-IR gene expression. This suggested that sufficient AR was important to enable normal IGF-IR expression and downstream signalling, yet elevated levels of AR due to testosterone had no further effect on IGF-IR mRNA, despite testosterone increasing Akt abundance in the presence of IGF-IR inhibitor. In conclusion, testosterones ability to improve differentiation and myotube hypertrophy occurred predominately via increases in AR and Akt abundance in both CON and PD cells, with fusion impaired cells (PD) showing an increased responsiveness to T induced AR levels. Finally, T induced increases in myotube hypertrophy (but not early differentiation) occurred independently of upstream IGF-IR input, however it was apparent  that normal AR function in basal conditions was required for adequate IGF-IR gene expression and downstream ERK/Akt activity.

EARLY IMPACT MELTING AND SPACE EXPOSURE HISTORY OF THE PAT91501 LCHONDRITE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bogard, Donald D.; Garrison, D. H.; Herzog, G. F.; Xue, S.; Klein, J.; Middleton, R.

2004-01-01

Collisions probably occurred frequently in the early history of the asteroid belt. Their effects, which should be recorded in meteorites, must have included heating and melting along with shock alteration of mineral textures. Some non-chondritic meteorite types e.g., eucrites and IIE and IAB irons - do indeed give evidence of extensive impact heating more than 3.4 Gyr ago. The ordinary chondrites, in contrast, show little evidence of early impact heating. The Ar-Ar and Rb-Sr ages of ordinary chondrites that experienced intense shock are for the most part relatively young, many less than 1.5 Gyr. The numerous L-chondrites with Ar- Ar ages clustering near 0.5 Gy are a well-known example. One of them, the 105-kg Chico Lchondrite, shows the effects of unusually intense heating. It is approximately 60% impact melt and likely formed as a dyke beneath a large crater when the L-chondrite parent body underwent a very large impact approximately 0.5 Gyr ago. In rare instances, older shock dates are indicated for ordinary chondrites. Dixon et al show early impact resetting of Ar-Ar ages of a few LL-chondrites including MIL 99301 at 4.23 0.03 Gyr, but in none of these stones did shock lead to extensive melting. As of 2003, searches for chondritic melts attributable to early shock had turned up only the Shaw L-chondrite, which has an Ar-Ar age of approximately 4.42 Gyr. PAT91501 is an 8.55-kg L-chondrite containing vesicles and metal-troilite nodules. It is a unique, near-total impact melt, unshocked, depleted in siderophile and chalcophile elements, and contains only approximately 10% relic chondritic material. The authors conclude that PAT91501 crystallized rapidly and from a much more homogeneous melt than did Shaw. They suggest that PAT resembles Chico and likely formed as an impact melt vein within an impact crater. To define the history of PAT, we have determined its Ar-39-Ar-40 age and measured several radioactive and stable nuclides produced during its space exposure to cosmic rays.

VizieR Online Data Catalog: BVR photometry of IZ Mon and AR Dra (Yang+, 2016)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Y.-G.; Dai, H.-F.; Zhou, Z.; Li, Q.

2016-07-01

CCD Photometry for IZ Mon and AR Dra, was acquired using the 60cm telescope and the 85cm telescope at the Xinglong station (XLs) of National Astronomical Observatories of China (NAOC). Two telescopes are equipped with the standard Johnson-Cousins UBVRcIc. filters. We then obtained the individual observations as heliocentric Julian dates and differential magnitude, which are listed in Table1. The complete light curves for IZ Mon were obtained on 2009 January 20, 22, 24, 25, and 26, and March 1, using the 85cm telescope. The exposure times are fixed to be 20, 15, and 15s for BVR bands, respectively. A total of 961, 960, and 959 effective images in BVR bands are obtained. Another primary eclipse for IZ Mon was monitored on 2011 January 17. AR Dra was observed on 2009 February 20, 25, 26, and 27, with the 65cm telescope. The typical exposure times are 50, 40 and 40s for BVR bands, which depend on the condition of weather. In total, we obtained 733, 728 and 356 images in B, V and R bands, respectively. (6 data files).

Insulin Resistance and the IGF-I-Cortical Bone Relationship in Children Ages 9 to 13 Years.

PubMed

Kindler, Joseph M; Pollock, Norman K; Laing, Emma M; Oshri, Assaf; Jenkins, Nathan T; Isales, Carlos M; Hamrick, Mark W; Ding, Ke-Hong; Hausman, Dorothy B; McCabe, George P; Martin, Berdine R; Hill Gallant, Kathleen M; Warden, Stuart J; Weaver, Connie M; Peacock, Munro; Lewis, Richard D

2017-07-01

IGF-I is a pivotal hormone in pediatric musculoskeletal development. Although recent data suggest that the role of IGF-I in total body lean mass and total body bone mass accrual may be compromised in children with insulin resistance, cortical bone geometric outcomes have not been studied in this context. Therefore, we explored the influence of insulin resistance on the relationship between IGF-I and cortical bone in children. A secondary aim was to examine the influence of insulin resistance on the lean mass-dependent relationship between IGF-I and cortical bone. Children were otherwise healthy, early adolescent black and white boys and girls (ages 9 to 13 years) and were classified as having high (n = 147) or normal (n = 168) insulin resistance based on the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Cortical bone at the tibia diaphysis (66% site) and total body fat-free soft tissue mass (FFST) were measured by peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), respectively. IGF-I, insulin, and glucose were measured in fasting sera and HOMA-IR was calculated. Children with high HOMA-IR had greater unadjusted IGF-I (p < 0.001). HOMA-IR was a negative predictor of cortical bone mineral content, cortical bone area (Ct.Ar), and polar strength strain index (pSSI; all p ≤ 0.01) after adjusting for race, sex, age, maturation, fat mass, and FFST. IGF-I was a positive predictor of most musculoskeletal endpoints (all p < 0.05) after adjusting for race, sex, age, and maturation. However, these relationships were moderated by HOMA-IR (p Interaction  < 0.05). FFST positively correlated with most cortical bone outcomes (all p < 0.05). Path analyses demonstrated a positive relationship between IGF-I and Ct.Ar via FFST in the total cohort (β Indirect Effect  = 0.321, p < 0.001). However, this relationship was moderated in the children with high (β Indirect Effect  = 0.200, p < 0.001) versus normal (β Indirect Effect  = 0.408, p < 0.001) HOMA-IR. These data implicate insulin resistance as a potential suppressor of IGF-I-dependent cortical bone development, though prospective studies are needed. © 2017 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. © 2017 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Gemas: issues from the comparison of aqua regia and X-ray fluorescence results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dinelli, Enrico; Birke, Manfred; Reimann, Clemens; Demetriades, Alecos; DeVivo, Benedetto; Flight, Dee; Ladenberger, Anna; Albanese, Stefano; Cicchella, Domenico; Lima, Annamaria

2014-05-01

The comparison of analytical results from aqua regia (AR) and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) can provide information on soil processes controlling the element distribution. The GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soils) agricultural soil database is used for this comparison. Analyses for the same suite of elements and parameters were carried out in the same laboratory under strict quality control procedures. Sample preparation has been conducted at the laboratory of the The comparison of analytical results from aqua regia (AR) and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) can provide information on soil processes controlling the element distribution in soil. The GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soils) agricultural soil database, consisting of 2 x ca. 2100 samples spread evenly over 33 European countries, is used for this comparison. Analyses for the same suite of elements and parameters were carried out in the same laboratory under strict quality control procedures. Sample preparation has been conducted at the laboratory of the Geological Survey of the Slovak Republic, AR analyses were carried out at ACME Labs, and XRF analyses at the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, Germany Element recovery by AR is very different, ranging from <1% (e.g. Na, Zr) to > 80% (e.g. Mn, P, Co). Recovery is controlled by mineralogy of the parent material, but geographic and climatic factors and the weathering history of the soils are also important. Nonetheless, even the very low recovery elements show wide ranges of variation and spatial patterns that are affected by other factors than soil parent material. For many elements soil pH have a clear influence on AR extractability: under acidic soil conditions almost all elements tend to be leached and their extractability is generally low. It progressively increases with increasing pH and is highest in the pH range 7-8. Critical is the clay content of the soil that almost for all elements correspond to higher extractability with increasing clay abundance. Also other factors such as organic matter content of soil, Fe and Mn occurrence are important for certain elements or in selected areas. This work illustrates that there are significant differences in the extractability of elements from soils and addresses important influencing factors related to soil properties, geology, climate.

Inhibition of α-glucosidase, α-amylase, and aldose reductase by potato polyphenolic compounds

PubMed Central

Kalita, Diganta; Holm, David G.; LaBarbera, Daniel V.; Petrash, J. Mark

2018-01-01

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that is becoming a serious global health problem. Diabetes has been considered to be one of the major risks of cataract and retinopathy. Synthetic and natural product inhibitors of carbohydrate degrading enzymes are able to reduce type 2 diabetes and its complications. For a long time, potatoes have been portrayed as unhealthy for diabetic patients by some nutritionist due to their high starch content. However, purple and red potato cultivars have received considerable attention from consumers because they have high levels of polyphenolic compounds that have potent antioxidant activities. In this study, we screened the total phenolics (TP) and total anthocyanins (TA) and analyzed the phenolic and anthocyanin compounds in selected potato cultivars and advanced selections with distinct flesh colors (purple, red, yellow and white). Purple and red potato cultivars had higher levels of TP and TA than tubers with other flesh colors. Chlorogenic acid is the predominant phenolic acid, and major anthocyanin is composed of the derivatives of petunidin, peonidin, malvidin and pelargonidin. We tested the potential inhibitory effect of potato extracts on the activities of α-amylase and α-glucosidase, which were targeted to develop antidiabetic therapeutic agents. We also measured inhibitory effect of potato extracts on aldose reductase (AR) which is a key enzyme that has been a major drug target for the development of therapies to treat diabetic complications. Purple flesh tubers extract showed the most effective inhibition of α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and aldose reductase with IC50 values 25, 42, and 32 μg/ml, respectively. Kinetic studies showed that anthocyanins are noncompetitive inhibitors of these enzymes, whereas phenolic acids behaved as mixed inhibitors for α-amylase and α-glucosidase and noncompetitive inhibitors for AR. This study supports the development of a positive and healthful image of potatoes, which is an important issue for consumers. PMID:29370193

Inhibition of α-glucosidase, α-amylase, and aldose reductase by potato polyphenolic compounds.

PubMed

Kalita, Diganta; Holm, David G; LaBarbera, Daniel V; Petrash, J Mark; Jayanty, Sastry S

2018-01-01

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that is becoming a serious global health problem. Diabetes has been considered to be one of the major risks of cataract and retinopathy. Synthetic and natural product inhibitors of carbohydrate degrading enzymes are able to reduce type 2 diabetes and its complications. For a long time, potatoes have been portrayed as unhealthy for diabetic patients by some nutritionist due to their high starch content. However, purple and red potato cultivars have received considerable attention from consumers because they have high levels of polyphenolic compounds that have potent antioxidant activities. In this study, we screened the total phenolics (TP) and total anthocyanins (TA) and analyzed the phenolic and anthocyanin compounds in selected potato cultivars and advanced selections with distinct flesh colors (purple, red, yellow and white). Purple and red potato cultivars had higher levels of TP and TA than tubers with other flesh colors. Chlorogenic acid is the predominant phenolic acid, and major anthocyanin is composed of the derivatives of petunidin, peonidin, malvidin and pelargonidin. We tested the potential inhibitory effect of potato extracts on the activities of α-amylase and α-glucosidase, which were targeted to develop antidiabetic therapeutic agents. We also measured inhibitory effect of potato extracts on aldose reductase (AR) which is a key enzyme that has been a major drug target for the development of therapies to treat diabetic complications. Purple flesh tubers extract showed the most effective inhibition of α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and aldose reductase with IC50 values 25, 42, and 32 μg/ml, respectively. Kinetic studies showed that anthocyanins are noncompetitive inhibitors of these enzymes, whereas phenolic acids behaved as mixed inhibitors for α-amylase and α-glucosidase and noncompetitive inhibitors for AR. This study supports the development of a positive and healthful image of potatoes, which is an important issue for consumers.

Changes in in vitro gas and methane production from rumen fluid from dairy cows during adaptation to feed additives in vivo.

PubMed

Klop, G; van Laar-van Schuppen, S; Pellikaan, W F; Hendriks, W H; Bannink, A; Dijkstra, J

2017-04-01

The adaptation of dairy cows to methane (CH4)-mitigating feed additives was evaluated using the in vitro gas production (GP) technique. Nine rumen-fistulated lactating Holstein cows were grouped into three blocks and within blocks randomly assigned to one of three experimental diets: Control (CON; no feed additive), Agolin Ruminant® (AR; 0.05 g/kg dry matter (DM)) or lauric acid (LA; 30 g/kg DM). Total mixed rations composed of maize silage, grass silage and concentrate were fed in a 40 : 30 : 30 ratio on DM basis. Rumen fluid was collected from each cow at days -4, 1, 4, 8, 15 and 22 relative to the introduction of the additives in the diets. On each of these days, a 48-h GP experiment was performed in which rumen fluid from each individual donor cow was incubated with each of the three substrates that reflected the treatment diets offered to the cows. DM intake was on average 19.8, 20.1 and 16.2 kg/day with an average fat- and protein-corrected milk production of 30.7, 31.7 and 26.2 kg/day with diet CON, AR and LA, respectively. In general, feed additives in the donor cow diet had a larger effect on gas and CH4 production than the same additives in the incubation substrate. Incubation substrate affected asymptotic GP, half-time of asymptotic CH4 production, total volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentration, molar proportions of propionate and butyrate and degradation of organic matter (OMD), but did not affect CH4 production. No substrate×day interactions were observed. A significant diet×day interaction was observed for in vitro gas and CH4 production, total VFA concentration, molar proportions of VFA and OMD. From day 4 onwards, the LA diet persistently reduced gas and CH4 production, total VFA concentration, acetate molar proportion and OMD, and increased propionate molar proportion. In vitro CH4 production was reduced by the AR diet on day 8, but not on days 15 and 22. In line with these findings, the molar proportion of propionate in fermentation fluid was greater, and that of acetate smaller, for the AR diet than for the CON diet on day 8, but not on days 15 and 22. Overall, the data indicate a short-term effect of AR on CH4 production, whereas the CH4-mitigating effect of LA persisted.

Tectono-metamorphic evolution of high-P/T and low-P/T metamorphic rocks in the Tia Complex, southern New England Fold Belt, eastern Australia: Insights from K-Ar chronology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fukui, Shiro; Tsujimori, Tatsuki; Watanabe, Teruo; Itaya, Tetsumaru

2012-10-01

The Tia Complex in the southern New England Fold Belt is a poly-metamorphosed Late Paleozoic accretionary complex. It consists mainly of high-P/low-T type pumpellyite-actinolite facies (rare blueschist facies) schists, phyllite and serpentinite (T = 300 °C and P = 5 kbar), and low-P/high-T type amphibolite facies schist and gneiss (T = 600 °C and P < 5 kbar) associated with granodioritic plutons (Tia granodiorite). White mica and biotite K-Ar ages distinguish Carboniferous subduction zone metamorphism and Permian granitic intrusions, respectively. The systematic K-Ar age mapping along a N-S traverse of the Tia Complex exhibits a gradual change. The white mica ages become younger from the lowest-grade zone (339 Ma) to the highest-grade zone (259 Ma). In contrast, Si content of muscovite changes drastically only in the highest-grade zone. The regional changes of white mica K-Ar ages and chemical compositions of micas indicate argon depletion from precursor high-P/low-T type phengitic white mica during the thermal overprinting and recrystallization by granitoids intrusions. Our new K-Ar ages and available geological data postulate a model of the eastward rollback of a subduction zone in Early Permian. The eastward shift of a subduction zone system and subsequent magmatic activities of high-Mg andesite and adakite might explain formation of S-type granitoids (Hillgrove suite) and coeval low-P/high-T type metamorphism in the Tia Complex.

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

Dhaka, R. S.; Biswas, C.; Shukla, A. K.

We have studied xenon and argon bubbles formed in the subsurface region of Al(111) by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. As a consequence of the nanometer size of the bubbles, the photohole formed by Xe 3d or Ar 2p photoemission is screened by the Al conduction electrons, which substantially lowers the binding energy (BE) as compared to the gas phase. As the bubble size increases, the Al conduction electron screening decreases and the BE increases. On the basis of density functional theory, we show that the change in the bubble pressure with size is not responsible for the BE shift of innermore » shell core levels, such as Xe 3d or Ar 2p. On the other hand, an increase in BE with bubble size for outer shell core levels, such as Ar 3p, could be due to a decrease in both pressure and Al conduction electron screening. The core level line shape also changes with bubble size. For example, the spectra are broadened due to the distribution of the bubble radius around its mean value, and an asymmetry for small bubbles is observed that decreases for larger bubbles. An annealing of Xe and Ar bubbles after an implantation up to 640 K shows that the BE increases with annealing temperature. Since it is well known that bubble size increases with annealing temperature, this further supports our contention of BE shift with bubble size. A defect induced partial disorder of the Al(111) surface by Xe and Ar bombardment is observed by low energy electron diffraction, but this does not affect the Al 2p BE and line shape.« less

Sulfate reduction controlled by organic matter availability in deep sediment cores from the saline, alkaline Lake Van (Eastern Anatolia, Turkey)

PubMed Central

Glombitza, Clemens; Stockhecke, Mona; Schubert, Carsten J.; Vetter, Alexandra; Kallmeyer, Jens

2013-01-01

As part of the International Continental Drilling Program deep lake drilling project PaleoVan, we investigated sulfate reduction (SR) in deep sediment cores of the saline, alkaline (salinity 21.4‰, alkalinity 155 m mEq-1, pH 9.81) Lake Van, Turkey. The cores were retrieved in the Northern Basin (NB) and at Ahlat Ridge (AR) and reached a maximum depth of 220 m. Additionally, 65–75 cm long gravity cores were taken at both sites. SR rates (SRR) were low (≤22 nmol cm-3 day-1) compared to lakes with higher salinity and alkalinity, indicating that salinity and alkalinity are not limiting SR in Lake Van. Both sites differ significantly in rates and depth distribution of SR. In NB, SRR are up to 10 times higher than at AR. SR could be detected down to 19 mblf (meters below lake floor) at NB and down to 13 mblf at AR. Although SRR were lower at AR than at NB, organic matter (OM) concentrations were higher. In contrast, dissolved OM in the pore water at AR contained more macromolecular OM and less low molecular weight OM. We thus suggest, that OM content alone cannot be used to infer microbial activity at Lake Van but that quality of OM has an important impact as well. These differences suggest that biogeochemical processes in lacustrine sediments are reacting very sensitively to small variations in geological, physical, or chemical parameters over relatively short distances. PMID:23908647

The WC-130 Meteorological System and Its Utilization in Operational Weather Reconnaissance.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-08-01

wather reconnais)arc, Jiiesir)n!. Tt,-’ ql i t! \\.: t ,,h, wilt. it’ mphasis: on operator manual rrouction ot primary ’idta (usiri; l.nAr ii ’u" f.x-r...variou.: customer: . ,ome of the, assessments have providrd the basin for planned systen improvement.’ or ptox.:,,l, for totally ne%. wather reconnaissance...1Ua:"n ,- ar1, taken. Also, the, numl)er )f oixrational squadron!- anmi the nulber f wather r ,,cici airriaft iav,, hbeen rejuc’r ii; tru, :,cil ie, t

Photosensitivity enhancement of PLZT ceramics by positive ion implantation

DOEpatents

Peercy, P.S.; Land, C.E.

1980-06-13

The photosensitivity of lead lanthanum zirconate titanate (PLZT) ceramic material used in high resolution, high contrast, and non-volatile photoferroelectric image storage and display devices is enhanced significantly by positive ion implantation of the PLZT near its surface. Ions that are implanted include H/sup +/, He/sup +/, Ar/sup +/, and a preferred co-implant of Ar/sup +/ and Ne/sup +/. The positive ion implantation advantageously serves to shift the band gap energy threshold of the PLZT material from near-uv light to visible blue light. As a result, photosensitivity enhancement is such that the positive ion implanted PLZT plate is sensitive even to sunlight and conventional room lighting, such as fluorescent and incandescent light sources. The method disclosed includes exposing the PLZT plate to these positive ions of sufficient density and with sufficient energy to provide an image. The PLZT material may have a lanthanum content ranging from 5 to 10%; a lead zirconate content ranging from 62 to 70 mole %; and a lead titanate content ranging from 38 to 30%. The region of ion implantation is in a range from 0.1 to 2 microns below the surface of the PLZT plate. Density of ions is in the range from 1 x 10/sup 12/ to 1 x 10/sup 17/ ions/cm/sup 2/ and having an energy in the range from 100 to 500 keV.

'Snowstorm' a new forage kochia cultivar with improved stature, productivity, and nutritional content for enhanced fall and winter grazing

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

'Snowstorm' forage kochia (Bassia prostrata [L.] A.J. Scott) (synonym=Kochia prostrata [L.] Schrad.) (Reg. No. CV-_____, PI _____) was released on March 22, 2012, by the USDA-ARS and the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station. Snowstorm was evaluated as OTVSEL and Otavny-select, and was developed as ...

A Mobile Augmented Reality System for the Learning of Dental Morphology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Juan, M.-Carmen; Alexandrescu, Lucian; Folguera, Fernando; García-García, Inmaculada

2016-01-01

Three-dimensional models are important when the learning content is difficult to acquire from 2D images or other traditional methods. This is the case for learning dental morphology. In this paper, we present a mobile augmented reality (AR) system for learning dental morphology. A study with students was carried out to determine whether learning…

Applying Augmented Reality to Enhance Learning: A Study of Different Teaching Materials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hung, Y.-H.; Chen, C.-H.; Huang, S.-W.

2017-01-01

The objective of this study was to determine the usefulness of augmented reality (AR) in teaching. An experiment was conducted to examine children's learning performances, which included the number of errors they made, their ability to remember the content of what they had read and their satisfaction with the three types of teaching materials,…

Concurrent estimates of carbon export reveal physical biases in ΔO2/Ar-based net community production estimates in the Southern California Bight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haskell, William Z.; Fleming, John C.

2018-07-01

Net community production (NCP) represents the amount of biologically-produced organic carbon that is available to be exported out of the surface ocean and is typically estimated using measurements of the O2/Ar ratio in the surface mixed layer under the assumption of negligible vertical transport. However, physical processes can significantly bias NCP estimates based on this in-situ tracer. It is actively debated whether discrepancies between O2/Ar-based NCP and carbon export estimates are due to differences in the location of biological production and export, or the result of physical biases. In this study, we calculate export production across the euphotic depth during two months of upwelling in Southern California in 2014, based on an estimate of the consumption rate of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and the dissolved: total organic carbon consumption ratio below the euphotic depth. This estimate equals the concurrent O2/Ar-based NCP estimates over the same period that are corrected for physical biases, but is significantly different than NCP estimated without a correction for vertical transport. This comparison demonstrates that concurrent physical transport estimates would significantly improve O2/Ar-based estimates of NCP, particularly in settings with vertical advection. Potential approaches to mitigate this bias are discussed.

Variability in Beta-Adrenergic Receptor Population in Cultured Chicken Muscle Cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, Ronald B; Bridge, Kristin Y.; Vaughn, Jeffrey R.

1998-01-01

Investigations into expression of the beta-adrenergic receptor (bAR) in chicken skeletal muscle cells in culture were initiated because several beta-adrenergic receptor agonists are known to increase skeletal muscle protein deposition in avian and mammalian species. During initial attempts to study the bAR population on the surface of chicken skeletal muscle cells, we observed a high degree of variability that was later found to be the result of using different batches of horse serum in the cell culture media. The separation between total binding and nonspecific binding in cells grown in two serum samples was approximately two-fold The number of nuclei within multinucleated myotubes was not significantly different in cells grown in the two serum samples. To investigate whether these two sera had an effect on coupling efficiency between bAR population and cAMP production, the ability of these cells to synthesize cAMP was also assessed. Despite the two-fold difference in receptor population, the ability of these cells to synthesize cAMP was not significantly different. Because of the possible link between bAR population and muscle protein, we also determined if the quantity of the major skeletal muscle protein, myosin, was affected by conditions that so drastically affected the bAR population. The quantity of myosin heavy chain was not significantly different.

Effects of high-pressure argon and nitrogen treatments on respiration, browning and antioxidant potential of minimally processed pineapples during shelf life.

PubMed

Wu, Zhi-shuang; Zhang, Min; Wang, Shao-jin

2012-08-30

High-pressure (HP) inert gas processing causes inert gas and water molecules to form clathrate hydrates that restrict intracellular water activity and enzymatic reactions. This technique can be used to preserve fruits and vegetables. In this study, minimally processed (MP) pineapples were treated with HP (∼10 MPa) argon (Ar) and nitrogen (N) for 20 min. The effects of these treatments on respiration, browning and antioxidant potential of MP pineapples were investigated after cutting and during 20 days of storage at 4 °C. Lower respiration rate and ethylene production were found in HP Ar- and HP N-treated samples compared with control samples. HP Ar and HP N treatments effectively reduced browning and loss of total phenols and ascorbic acid and maintained antioxidant capacity of MP pineapples. They did not cause a significant decline in tissue firmness or increase in juice leakage. HP Ar treatments had greater effects than HP N treatments on reduction of respiration rate and ethylene production and maintenance of phenolic compounds and DPPH(•) and ABTS(•+) radical-scavenging activities. Both HP Ar and HP N processing had beneficial effects on MP pineapples throughout 20 days of storage at 4 °C. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

A Tale of Two Earths: Reconciling the Lunar and Terrestrial Hadean Records

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boehnke, Patrick

Studying early Earth history is complicated by the fact that the rock record doesn't extend past 4 Ga and our only record for the Hadean (>4 Ga) comes to us from detrital zircons from the Jack Hills in Western Australia. The Hadean zircon record extends back to almost 4.4 Ga and has revealed that the early Earth may have had liquid water, a felsic crust, plate boundary interactions, and possibly a biosphere. On the other hand, analyses of lunar and meteoritic samples are used to argue for a hellish Hadean Earth where frequent, large impactors repeatedly destroyed the crust. Indeed, these two models stand in direct contradiction. The focus of this thesis is to examine the evidence for these two models and ultimately propose a reconciliation based on a new interpretation of the chronology of the lunar samples used to constrain the impact history into the early Earth-Moon system. In order to improve the understanding of zircon crystallization in igneous settings, we undertook experimental studies of zircon saturation which were analyzed using a novel ion imaging approach by a secondary ion mass spectrometer. This study confirmed the original model for zircon saturation, that it is a function of only temperature, melt composition, and Zr content. Indeed, the primary implication for the early Earth from this work is that zircons are much more likely to crystallize in a felsic rather than mafic magma and therefore simply the existence of Hadean zircons suggests a high likelihood for felsic Hadean magmatism. The majority of the thesis focuses on the interpretation of 40 Ar/39Ar ages of lunar and meteorite samples, specifically with regards to impact histories derived from compilations of such ages. The primary complication with lunar and meteorite 40Ar/ 39Ar ages is that the vast majority show evidence for later disturbances due to diffusive loss of 40Ar. To try and extract meaningful thermal histories from these samples, we undertook investigations of samples from Apollo 16 and the Jilin chondrite. We then used an extension of the multi-domain diffusion model that can model samples containing multiple activation energies (i.e., whole rock samples with multiple K bearing minerals) to propose that the 40Ar/39Ar system can be used to recover shock heating temperatures and durations. Having shown the effects of diffusive 40Ar loss on the accuracy of 40Ar/39Ar dating, we then explored the question as to whether or not compilations of disturbed 40Ar/ 39Ar ages simply misestimate the timing of bombardment episodes or are fundamentally inaccurate. For this we created a simple numerical model that simulates a chosen impact history on a surface and then creates a histogram of 40Ar/39Ar plateau ages. Our results show that rather than simply misestimate timing, compilations of 40Ar/ 39Ar ages can lead to inferences of illusory bombardment episodes. Finally, we examine the 40Ar/39Ar ages of suite of geochemically related Apollo 16 rocks to examine the effects of mixing and brecciation on the accuracy of inferred ages. By analyzing multiple rocks from each soil sample, we show that three out of six samples are not compatible with a single thermal history. That is to say, despite their close proximity during sampling and geochemical similarities, analyzed rocks in the soil sample have unique chronologies. Based on these findings, we developed a simple numerical model which shows that internal isochrons of mixed samples can yield erroneous ages while retaining a statistically acceptable mean squared weighted deviation (MSWD).

Ion Transport in Confined Geometries below the Nanoscale: Access Resistance Dominates Protein Channel Conductance in Diluted Solutions.

PubMed

Alcaraz, Antonio; López, M Lidón; Queralt-Martín, María; Aguilella, Vicente M

2017-10-24

Synthetic nanopores and mesoscopic protein channels have common traits like the importance of electrostatic interactions between the permeating ions and the nanochannel. Ion transport at the nanoscale occurs under confinement conditions so that the usual assumptions made in microfluidics are challenged, among others, by interfacial effects such as access resistance (AR). Here, we show that a sound interpretation of electrophysiological measurements in terms of channel ion selective properties requires the consideration of interfacial effects, up to the point that they dominate protein channel conductance in diluted solutions. We measure AR in a large ion channel, the bacterial porin OmpF, by means of single-channel conductance measurements in electrolyte solutions containing varying concentrations of high molecular weight PEG, sterically excluded from the pore. Comparison of experiments performed in charged and neutral planar membranes shows that lipid surface charges modify the ion distribution and determine the value of AR, indicating that lipid molecules are more than passive scaffolds even in the case of large transmembrane proteins. We also found that AR may reach up to 80% of the total channel conductance in diluted solutions, where electrophysiological recordings register essentially the AR of the system and depend marginally on the pore characteristics. These findings may have implications for several low aspect ratio biological channels that perform their physiological function in a low ionic strength and macromolecule crowded environment, just the two conditions enhancing the AR contribution.

Cargo-mediated regulation of a rapid Rab4-dependent recycling pathway.

PubMed

Yudowski, Guillermo A; Puthenveedu, Manojkumar A; Henry, Anastasia G; von Zastrow, Mark

2009-06-01

Membrane trafficking is well known to regulate receptor-mediated signaling processes, but less is known about whether signaling receptors conversely regulate the membrane trafficking machinery. We investigated this question by focusing on the beta-2 adrenergic receptor (B2AR), a G protein-coupled receptor whose cellular signaling activity is controlled by ligand-induced endocytosis followed by recycling. We used total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIR-FM) and tagging with a pH-sensitive GFP variant to image discrete membrane trafficking events mediating B2AR endo- and exocytosis. Within several minutes after initiating rapid endocytosis of B2ARs by the adrenergic agonist isoproterenol, we observed bright "puffs" of locally increased surface fluorescence intensity representing discrete Rab4-dependent recycling events. These events reached a constant frequency in the continuous presence of isoproterenol, and agonist removal produced a rapid (observed within 1 min) and pronounced (approximately twofold) increase in recycling event frequency. This regulation required receptor signaling via the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) and a specific PKA consensus site located in the carboxyl-terminal cytoplasmic tail of the B2AR itself. B2AR-mediated regulation was not restricted to this membrane cargo, however, as transferrin receptors packaged in the same population of recycling vesicles were similarly affected. In contrast, net recycling measured over a longer time interval (10 to 30 min) was not detectably regulated by B2AR signaling. These results identify rapid regulation of a specific recycling pathway by a signaling receptor cargo.

Reduced work/academic performance and quality of life in patients with allergic rhinitis and impact of allergen immunotherapy.

PubMed

Roger, A; Arcalá Campillo, E; Torres, M C; Millan, C; Jáuregui, I; Mohedano, E; Liñan, S; Verdu, P; Rubira, N; Santaolalla, M; González, P; Orovitg, A; Villarrubia, E

2016-01-01

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is characterised by burdensome nasal and/or ocular symptoms. This inflammatory disease can be debilitating and thus result in considerable health-related and economic consequences. In a cross-sectional study, adult subjects with AR (N = 683) completed three allergy-specific questionnaires that assessed the impact of AR on the work/academic performance, daily activities, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and satisfaction with allergen immunotherapy (AIT). Regression analyses were used to examine the associations between several clinical variables and the patient-reported outcomes. Total loss of productivity was 21.0 and 21.2 % for employed and student patients, respectively, whereas the impairment of daily activities was 22.0 %. The mean overall HRQOL score was 1.94 ± 1.29 (on the scale of 0-6 points). Global score for satisfaction with AIT was 65.5 ± 24.8 (on a 0-100 scale). Simple regression analysis found statistically significant associations between loss of work and academic productivity, impairment of daily activities and the type and severity of AR. AIT was a protective factor. The persistent and more severe types of AR and lack of AIT contributed to the worsening of HRQOL. AR (the persistent and more severe form of the disease) has an impact on functional characteristics of adult patients in Spain. AIT might reduce the effect of this disease on the work/academic performance and HRQOL. Trial registration Retrospectively registered.

Uncovering the role of the East Asian jet stream and heterogeneities in atmospheric rivers affecting the western United States.

PubMed

Zhang, Wei; Villarini, Gabriele

2018-01-30

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) exert major socioeconomic repercussions along the US West Coast by inducing heavy rainfall, flooding, strong winds, and storm surge. Despite the significant societal and economic repercussions of these storms, our understanding of the physical drivers responsible for their interannual variability is limited, with different climate modes identified as possible mechanisms. Here we show that the Pacific-Japan (PJ) teleconnections/patterns and the East Asian subtropical jet (EASJ) exhibit a strong linkage with the total frequency of ARs making landfall over the western United States, much stronger than the other potential climate modes previously considered. While our findings indicate that the PJ pattern and EASJ are the most relevant climate modes driving the overall AR activity, we also uncover heterogeneities in AR tracks. Specifically, we show that not all ARs making landfall along the West Coast come from a single population, but rather that it is possible to stratify these storms into three clusters. While the PJ pattern and EASJ are major drivers of AR activity for two clusters, the cluster that primarily affects the US Southwest is largely driven by other climate modes [El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the Atlantic meridional mode (AMM), the Pacific-North America (PNA) teleconnection pattern, and the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO)]. Therefore, important regional differences exist and this information can substantially enhance our ability to predict and prepare for these storms and their impacts.

40Ar/39Ar age of the Manson impact structure, Iowa, and correlative impact ejecta in the Crow Creek member of the Pierre Shale (Upper Cretaceous), South Dakota and Nebraska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Izett, G.A.; Cobban, W.A.; Dalrymple, G.B.; Obradovich, J.D.

1998-01-01

A set of 34 laser total-fusion 40Ar/39Ar analyses of sanidine from a melt layer in crater-fill deposits of the Manson impact structure in Iowa has a weighted-mean age of 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma. This age is about 9.0 m.y. older than 40Ar/39Ar ages of shocked microcline from the Manson impact structure reported previously by others. The 74.1 Ma age of the sanidine, which is a melt product of Precambrian microcline clasts, indicates that the Manson impact structure played no part in the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) mass extinction at 64.5 Ma. Moreover, incremental-heating 40Ar/39Ar ages of the sanidine show that it is essentially free of excess 40Ar and has not been influenced by postcrystallization heating or alteration. An age spectrum of the matrix of the melt layer shows effects of 39Ar recoil, including older ages in the low-temperature increments and younger ages in the high-temperature increments. At 17 places in eastern South Dakota and Nebraska, shocked quartz and feldspar grains are concentrated in the lower part of the Crow Creek Member of the Pierre Shale (Upper Cretaceous). The grains are largest (3.2 mm) in southeastern South Dakota and decrease in size (0.45 mm) to the northwest, consistent with the idea that the Manson impact structure was their source. The ubiquitous presence of shocked grains concentrated in a thin calcarenite at the base of the Crow Creek Member suggests it is an event bed recording an instant of geologic time. Ammonites below and above the Crow Creek Member limit its age to the zone of Didymoceras nebrascense of earliest late Campanian age. Plagioclase from a bentonite bed in this zone in Colorado has a 40Ar/39Ar age of 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma commensurate with our sanidine age of 74.1 Ma for the Manson impact structure. 40Ar/39Ar ages of bentonite beds below and above the Crow Creek are consistent with our 74.1 ?? 0.1 Ma age for the Manson impact structure and limit its age to the interval ?? 74.5 0.1 to 73.8 ?? 0.1 Ma. Recently, two origins for the Crow Creek have been proposed - eastward transgression of the Late Cretaceous sea and a Manson impact-triggered tsunami. We conclude that most data are in accord with an impact origin for the Crow Creek Member and are at odds with the marine transgression hypothesis.

Interpretation of K-Ar dates of illitic clays from sedimentary rocks aided by modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Srodon, J.; Clauer, Norbert; Eberl, D.D.D.

2002-01-01

K-Ar dates of illitic clays from sedimentary rocks may contain "mixed ages," i.e., may have ages that are intermediate between the ages of end-member events. Two phenomena that may cause mixed ages are: (1) long-lasting reaction during the burial illitization of smectite: and (2) physical mixing of detrital and diagenetic components. The first phenomenon was investigated by simulation of illitization reactions using a nucleation and growth mechanism. These calculations indicate that values for mixed ages are related to burial history: for an equivalent length of reaction time, fast burial followed by slow burial produces much older mixed ages than slow burial followed by fast. The type of reaction that occured in a rock can be determined from the distribution of ages with respect to the thickness of illite crystals. Dating of artificial mixtures confirms a non-linear relation between mixed ages and the proportions of the components. Vertical variation of K-Ar age dates from Gulf Coast shales can be modeled by assuming diagenetic illitization that overprints a subtle vertical trend (presumably of sedimentary origin) in detrital mineral content.