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AbstractThe Junggar Basin in north Xinjiang Province is regarded as one of the important dust sources in China. There is, however, a lack of information on long-term dust emissions originating from the basin. In these largely agricultural communities, wind erosion is a major concern that results in a threat to sustainable agriculture and environmental quality. This study assesses dust emissions from the agricultural community of the Junggar Basin in north Xinjiang based on soil and land use types extracted from remote sensing data in response to weather and climate over the past six decades. The Wind Erosion Prediction System (WEPS) was used to simulate annual soil loss and PM10 (particulate matter ≤10 μm in aerodynamic diameter) emissions at 11 meteorological stations across the Junggar Basin. From 1958 to 2018, annual soil loss and PM10 emissions significantly decreased 3.65 and 0.2 kg m–2y–1, respectively. This decrease was likely due to decreasing wind speed, but also associated with increased precipitation and temperature, and decreased solar radiation. Wind erosion occurred most frequently during April and May, accounting for 39% of the annual soil loss and 40% of the annual PM10 emission. In contrast, no erosion occurred in January, February, and December as a result of low temperature (<–8.6°C), frozen soil conditions, and snow cover. Wind erosion risk appeared to decrease during the past six decades in response to observed climate change across the basin; however the southeast part of the basin experienced increasing wind erosion risk over the six decades. Projects to control wind erosion risk and combat dust emission should be given priority in the southeast part of the basin. Frequency of dust events was compared to simulated erosion; a strong linkage was found between simulated soil loss and frequency of dust storms based on regression analysis. This demonstrated that the modelling was acceptable in the conditions of this study and the results were prone to be reliable.

P J Branger, J C van der Wouden, B R Schudel, E Verboog, J S Duisterhout, J van der Lei J H van Bemmel Abstract Objective--To study the effects of [...]

Advances in protein tagging and mass spectrometry have enabled generation of large quantitative proteome and phosphoproteome data sets, for identifying differentially expressed targets in case–control studies. The power study of statistical tests is critical for designing strategies for effective target identification and control of experimental cost. Here, we develop a simulation framework to generate realistic phospho-peptide data with known changes between cases and controls. Using this framework, we quantify the performance of traditional t-tests, Bayesian tests, and the ranking-by-fold-change test. Bayesian tests, which share variance information among peptides, outperform the traditional t-tests. Although ranking-by-fold-change has similar power as the Bayesian tests, its type I error rate cannot be properly controlled without proper permutation analysis; therefore, simply relying on the ranking likely brings false positives. Two-sample Bayesian tests considering dependencies between intensity and variance are superior for data sets with complex variance. While increasing the sample size enhances the statistical tests’ performance, balanced controls and cases are recommended over a one-side weighted group. Further, higher peptide standard deviations require higher fold changes to achieve the same statistical power. Together, these results highlight the importance of model-informed experimental design and principled statistical analyses when working with large-scale proteomics and phosphoproteomics data.

Lymph node metastasis (LNM) is a vital prognosis factor in patients with papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC). The study tried to identify clinicopathological factors for LNM of PTMC. The clinicopathological data of 1031 patients with PTMC were extracted and analyzed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify risk factors associated with cervical lymph node metastasis. ROC analysis was used to determine the ideal critical points of the sum of the maximum diameter of multifocal in a unilateral lobe. The probability of LNM, central lymph node metastasis (CLNM) and lateral lymph node metastasis(LLNM)of PTMC patients were 35.6, 33.7 and 5.6%, respectively. In addition, 1.9% PTMC had LLNM only. Male, age ≤ 40 years, tumor largest diameter ≥ 5 mm, multifocal, non-uniform echoic distribution, the sum of the maximum diameter of multifocal in a unilateral lobe ≥ 8.5 mm, tumors in the lower pole location were prone to CLNM. Ultrasound mix-echo, the sum of the maximum diameter of the multifocal ≥ 10.75 mm, tumors in the upper pole location were extremely prone to LLNM. T3 were prone to LLNM or skip LLNM. According to the clinicopathological characteristics of PTMC, the cervical lymph nodes should be correctly evaluated to guide the surgical treatment.

LTCBDE combined with or without modified techniques is safe and efficacious for the management of gallstones and concomitant, even large, common bile duct (CBD) stones. To describe the surgical indications and procedure strategies of laparoscopic transcystic common bile duct exploration (LTCBDE), a retrospective analysis of 205 patients with concomitant gallstones and CBD stones treated using LTCBDE between June 2008 and June 2015 was performed. Clinical data on disease characteristics, methods for cystic duct incision and CBD stone extraction (with or without laser lithotripsy), and surgical outcomes were collected and reviewed. CBD stones were successfully cleared in all patients. No patient was converted to choledochotomy or laparotomy. The cystic duct diameter ranged 3–8 mm, and 85 patients with cystic duct diameter ≥ 5 mm. The mean time for CBD stone extraction was 25.3 min, with the operative time ranged from 63 to 170 min. Lithotripsy was used in 74 (36.1%) patients among which 26 patients with cystic duct diameter ≥ 5 mm. Estimated blood loss during surgery was 10–120 ml per patient, and no intra-operative blood transfusions were needed. The mean postoperative hospital stay was 5.1 (range 3–7) days, and postoperative complications developed in seven patients. No bile duct injury, stricture, remnant, recurrent stones, or other adverse events were observed during the mean follow-up of 8 months. Based on preoperative MRCP and intra-operative IOC findings about cystic duct diameter, the diameter of CBD, CBD stone size, we summarized and proposed the surgical indications and suitable techniques and strategies during LTCBDE.

ABSTRACTThe isopentytransperase (IPT) gene, coupled to the SAG12promoter, was successfully transferred into the eggplant (Solanum melongenaL.) mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Four PSAG12IPT overexpressing transgenic plants were identified by Southern blotting. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction revealed that IPTwas expressed in senescent leaves under the control of SAG12promoter. Compared with wild type eggplants, the leaf senescence was significantly delayed and tolerance to drought and cold stress was enhanced in the T1generation of PSAG12-IPT transgenic eggplants. The contents of chlorophyll, indoleacetic acid, zeatin riboside, and gibberellic acid in the transgenic eggplants were higher than those in the wild type eggplants. The activities of reactive oxygen species-scavenging enzymes in the transgenic eggplants were also higher than those in the wild type eggplants. Abscisic acid and malondialdehyde levels were lower in the transgenic plants than in the wild type plants. Also the vegetative growth rate and yield of the transgenic plants were higher than those of the wild type eggplant. Our study suggests that the PSAG12-IPT expression cassette may be suitable for the genetic improvement of eggplant.

Immunologic tolerance to solid organ and islet cell grafts has been achieved in various rodent models by using antibodies directed at CD45RBand Tim‐1. We have shown that this form of tolerance depends on regulatory B cells (Bregs). To elucidate further the mechanism by which Bregs induce tolerance, we investigated the requirement of natural killer (NK) and NKTcells in this model. To do so, hyperglycemic B6, μMT, Beige, or CD1d−/−mice received BALB/c islet grafts and treatment with the tolerance‐inducing regimen consisting of anti‐CD45RBand anti‐TIM1. B6 mice depleted of both NKand NKTcells by anti‐NK1.1 antibody and mice deficient in NKactivity (Beige) did not develop tolerance after dual‐antibody treatment. In contrast, transplant tolerance induction was successful in CD1d−/−recipients (deficient in NKTcells), indicating that NK, but not NKT, cells are essential in B cell–dependent tolerance. In addition, reconstitution of Beige host with NKcells restored the ability to induce transplant tolerance with dual‐antibody treatment. Transfer of tolerance by B cells from tolerant mice was also dependent on host Nk1.1+cells. In conclusion, these results show that regulatory function of B cells is dependent on NKcells in this model of transplantation tolerance. In a model of islet allograft transplant tolerance that depends on Bregs and Tregs for graft survival, the authors determine that tolerance also requires NK cells, suggesting a collaborative interaction of these cell types.

Retroviral vectors including lentiviral vectors are commonly used tools to stably express transgenes or RNA molecules in mammalian cells. Their utilities are roughly divided into two categories, stable overexpression of transgenes and RNA molecules, which requires maximal transduction efficiency, or functional selection with retrovirus (RV)-based libraries, which takes advantage of retroviral superinfection resistance. However, the dynamic features of RV-mediated transduction are not well characterized. Here, we engineered two murine stem cell virus-based retroviral vectors expressing dual fluorescence proteins and antibiotic markers, and analyzed virion production efficiency and virion stability, dynamic infectivity and superinfection resistance in different cell types, and strategies to improve transduction efficiency. We found that the highest virion production occurred between 60 and 72 h after transfection. The stability of the collected virion supernatant decreased by >60% after 3 days in storage. We found that RV infectivity varied drastically in the tested human cancer lines, while low transduction efficiency was partially overcome with increased virus titer, prolonged infection duration and/or repeated infections. Furthermore, we demonstrated that RV receptors PIT1 and PIT2 were lowly expressed in the analyzed cells, and that PIT1 and/or PIT2 overexpression significantly improved transduction efficiency in certain cell lines. Thus, our findings provide resourceful information for the optimal conditions of retroviral-mediated gene delivery.

The lack of a reliable immunosuppressive regimen that effectively suppresses both renal and islet allograft rejection without islet toxicity hampers a wider clinical application of simultaneous islet–kidney transplantation (SIK). Seven MHC-mismatched SIKs were performed in diabetic cynomolgus monkeys. Two recipients received rabbit antithymocyte globulin (ATG) induction followed by daily tacrolimus and rapamycin (ATG/Tac/Rapa), and five recipients were treated with anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody (mAb) and rapamycin (aCD40/Rapa). Anti-inflammatory therapy, including anti–interleukin-6 receptor mAb and anti–tumor necrosis factor-α mAb, was given in both groups. The ATG/Tac/Rapa recipients failed to achieve long-term islet allograft survival (19 and 26 days) due to poor islet engraftment and cytomegalovirus pneumonia. In contrast, the aCD40/Rapa regimen provided long-term islet and kidney allograft survival (90, 94, >120, >120, and >120 days), with only one recipient developing evidence of allograft rejection. The aCD40/Rapa regimen was also tested in four kidney-alone transplant recipients. All four recipients achieved long-term renal allograft survival (100% at day 120), which was superior to renal allograft survival (62.9% at day 120) with triple immunosuppressive regimen (tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, and steroids). The combination of anti-CD40 mAb and rapamycin is an effective and nontoxic immunosuppressive regimen that uses only clinically available agents for kidney and islet recipients.

Following the surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), we shall investigate the possibility of observing surface‐enhanced sum‐frequency generation (SESFG), which refers to the transformation of ordinary vibrational SFG (i.e. singly resonant) into SESFG. Two mechanisms of SESFG will be studied; one is due to the transformation of singly‐resonant vibrational SFG into doubly resonant vibrational SFG (that is, both vibrationally resonant and Raman‐scattering resonant) and the other is due to the enhancement of the polarizability in addition to the original vibrational resonance in vibrational SFG. This paper presents the theoretical treatments for two types of surface‐enhanced SFG with numerical demonstrations. We investigate the possibility of observing surface‐enhanced sum‐frequency generation (SESFG), which refers to the transformation of ordinary vibrational SFG (i.e. singly resonant) into SESFG. Two mechanisms of SESFG will be studied; one is due to the transformation of singly‐resonant vibrational SFG into doubly resonant vibrational SFG (that is, both vibrationally resonant and Raman‐scattering resonant) and the other is due to the enhancement of the polarizability in addition to the original vibrational resonance in vibrational SFG.

The full potential of islet transplantation will only be realized through the development of tolerogenic regimens that obviate the need for maintenance immunosuppression. Here, we report an immunotherapy regimen that combines 1‐ethyl‐3‐(3′‐dimethylaminopropyl)‐carbodiimide (ECDI)‐treated donor lymphoid cell infusion (ECDI‐DLI) with thymoglobulin, anti‐interleukin‐6 receptor antibody and rapamycin to achieve prolonged allogeneic islet graft survival in a nonhuman primate (NHP) model. Prolonged graft survival is associated with Treg expansion, donor‐specific T cell hyporesponsiveness and a transient absence of donor‐specific alloantibody production during the period of graft survival. This regimen shows promise for clinical translation. The authors report an immunomodulatory regimen promoting islet allograft survival in nonhuman primates based on delivery of nonimmunogenic donor cells with adjunctive therapy designed to foster in vivodonorspecific Tregs.

The efficiencies of pathways of thermospheric heating via soft electron precipitation in the dayside cusp region are investigated using the coupled magnetosphere‐ionosphere‐thermosphere model (CMIT). Event‐based data‐model comparisons show that the CMIT model is capable of reproducing the thermospheric mass density variations measured by the CHAMP satellite during both quite and active periods. During the 24 August 2005 storm event (Kp= 6−) while intense Joule heating rate occurs in the polar cusp region, including soft electron precipitation is important for accurately modeling the Fregion thermospheric mass density distribution near the cusp region. During the 27 July 2007 event (Kp= 2−) while little Joule heating rate occurs in the polar cusp region, the controlled CMIT simulations suggest that the direct pathway through the energy exchange between soft electrons and thermospheric neutrals is the dominant process during this event, which only has a small effect on the neutral temperature and mass density at 400 km altitude. Comparisons between the two case studies show that the indirect pathway via increasing the Fregion Joule heating rate is a dominant process during the 24 August 2005 storm event, which is much more efficient than the direct heating process. Soft electrons affect Fregion thermospheric mass densityThe indirect heating pathway is efficient during active periodsThe direct heating pathway is relatively inefficient

An alginate microencapsulant incorporating CXCL12 acts as a T cell chemorepellent and an islet prosurvival factor that supports long‐term allo‐ and xenoislet transplantation without systemic immune suppression in mouse models of diabetes.

The roles of CeO2additive during preparation of in situTiB2/Al composite, alleviating particle settlement in composite melt and significantly improving particle dispersion in final microstructure, are studied in this paper. It is evidenced that the CeO2additive reacts with Al melts to release Ce solute into the melts, and the released surface active Ce is absorbed in the Al/TiB2interfaces without any other reaction products. First principles calculations show that the interfacial energy of Al/TiB2interfaces is reduced owing to the presence of Ce in Al/TiB2interfacial area. Therefore, the wettability of molten Al on TiB2surface is increased and the dispersion of TiB2particles in Al matrix is eventually improved.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapies have the potential to treat many pathologies, however, controlling cell fate after implantation remains challenging. We have used a multilayer technology to graft a range of 5 μg mL−1–5 mg mL−1heparin onto the surface of MSC aggregates. Heparin coating does not affect cell viability (seen through LIVE/DEAD staining) and cell anti-inflammatory properties (seen through co-culture with activated monocytes) and facilitates sequestration by coated cells of a growth factor (TGF-β1) that remains bioactive. This system can maximize the therapeutic potential of MSC-based treatments because the cell surface-loaded protein could both signal the cells to influence transplanted cell fate and be released into the surrounding environment to help repair injured tissue.

Plant-plant interaction plays a key role in regulating the composition and structure of communities and ecosystems. Studies of plant-plant interactions in forest ecosystems have mainly concentrated on growth effects of neighboring plants on target trees. Physiological effects of neighboring plants on target trees, in particular understorey effects on physiology of overstorey trees, have received less attention. It is still unclear what is the physiological mechanisms underlying positive growth effects of understorey removal, although understorey removal has been applied to improve the wood production for hundreds of years worldwide. Only 17.5% of published works dealt with understorey-overstorey interactions and only a few of those researched the understorey effects on the physiology of overstorey trees. Case studies indicated that overstorey Abies faxonianatrees grown with different understorey shrubs showed significantly different levels of tissue nitrogen and mobile carbohydrates. Removal experiment showed that nitrogen and mobile carbohydrates concentrations in Cunninghamia lanceolatatrees grown in the absence of understorey shrubs differed significantly (pure stand > mixture) with those in trees grown in the presence of understorey shrubs, in particular during the dry season. This review highlighted that the neighboring woody plants affect Cand N-physiology in overstorey trees. These effects may be mainly resulted from underground competition for soil water rather than for other resources as the effects were more pronounced during the dry season. The present review suggests that positive effects of neighboring removal (e.g., understorey removal, thinning) on overstorey trees can be expected more rapidly and strongly in stressful area (e.g., low rainfall, nutrient-poor site) than in areas with optimal growth conditions. Hence, ecophysiology-based management strategies for dealing with neighboring plants in forest ecosystems should take into account: 1) site conditions, 2) timing, duration and frequency of management practices, and 3) species-specific properties and other aspects such as biodiversity conservation and soil erosion.

Monoclonal antibody against the CD45RB protein induces stable transplantation tolerance to multiple types of allograft. We have previously established that this tolerance protocol relies on the regulatory function of B lymphocytes for its effect. B lymphocytes have also been reported to participate in immune regulation in several other settings. In most of these systems, the regulatory function of B lymphocytes depends on the production of IL-10. Therefore, we investigated the role of IL-10 in the anti-CD45RB model of B-cell-mediated transplantation tolerance. Surprisingly, using antibody-mediated neutralization of IL-10, IL-10-deficient recipients and adoptive transfer of IL-10-deficient B lymphocytes, we found that IL-10 actually counter-regulates tolerance induced by anti-CD45RB. Furthermore, neutralization of IL-10 reduced the development of chronic allograft vasculopathy compared to anti-CD45RB alone and reduced the production of graft reactive alloantibodies. These data suggest that the participation of regulatory B lymphocytes in transplantation tolerance may be distinct from how they operate in other systems. Identifying the specific B lymphocytes that mediate transplantation tolerance and defining their mechanism of action may yield new insights into the complex cellular network through which antigen-specific tolerance is established and maintained.

A newly designed molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) material was developed and successfully used as recognition element to fabricate a capacitive sensor for enantioselective recognition of glutamic acid (Glu). The MIP with a well‐defined structure was synthesized on a gold electrode in one step by electrochemical copolymerization of o‐phenylenediamine (o‐PD) and dopamine (DA) in the presence of template molecule Glu. The resulting MIP material was characterized with a potentiostatic frequency scan method, cyclic voltammetry, capacitance measurements, atomic force microscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The structure and recognition behaviour of the copolymer film to template molecule depended on its composition. The optimal composition was at the o‐PD to DA molar ratio of 3:2. With a potentiostatic time scan method the copolymer displayed high enantioselectivity and sensitivity to the stereoselective rebinding of L‐ or D‐Glu to their corresponding artificial receptor due to the exact definition of the imprint cavity. The capacitance response of the sensor for L‐Glu or D‐Glu was proportional to their concentration in the range of 16.7 to 250 μM. The enantiometric selectivity coefficients for L‐Glu and D‐Glu imprinted films against their respective enantiomers are 24 and 15, respectively. The resulting MIP capacitive sensors showed good reproducibility, stability and repeatability. This strategy opened a convenient way for preparation of enantioselective MIPs and recognition of enantiotropic molecules.

By employing commercial poly(ethylene oxide)–poly(propylene oxide)–poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO–PPO–PEO) block copolymers as templates in near‐neutral aqueous solutions in the absence of organic cosolvents, unilamellar siliceous vesicles and nanofoams with ultrahigh pore volumes (> 3 cm3g–1) are successfully synthesized. At controlled pH, a tubular micelle → unilamellar vesicle → nanofoam structural transformation is observed by increasing the reaction temperature. It is proposed that the siliceous vesicles are synthesized via a co‐operative block‐copolymer vesicle templating approach, while the siliceous nanofoams are obtained by the fusion of vesicles at increased ionic strength. Compared to literature methods to synthesize siliceous vesicles and foams, our method is convenient, cheap, and produces a high yield. Siliceous nanofoams synthesized by using our approach show superior bioimmobilization capacity over other porous materials for biomolecules with large molecular weight.

In this paper we find a class of new degenerate central configurations and bifurcations in the Newtonian n-body problem. In particular we analyze the Rosette central configurations, namely a coplanar configuration where nparticles of mass m1lie at the vertices of a regular n-gon, nparticles of mass m2lie at the vertices of another n-gon concentric with the first, but rotated of an angle π /n, and an additional particle of mass m0lies at the center of mass of the system. This system admits two mass parameters μ  =  m0/m1and ε  =  m2/m1. We show that, as μ varies, if n>  3, there is a degenerate central configuration and a bifurcation for every ε  >  0, while if n= 3 there is a bifurcation only for some values of ε.In this paper we find a class of new degenerate central configurations and bifurcations in the Newtonian n-body problem. In particular we analyze the Rosette central configurations, namely a coplanar configuration where nparticles of mass m1lie at the vertices of a regular n-gon, nparticles of mass m2lie at the vertices of another n-gon concentric with the first, but rotated of an angle π /n, and an additional particle of mass m0lies at the center of mass of the system. This system admits two mass parameters μ  =  m0/m1and ε  =  m2/m1. We show that, as μ varies, if n>  3, there is a degenerate central configuration and a bifurcation for every ε  >  0, while if n= 3 there is a bifurcation only for some values of ε.

A 2-hydroxyl pendant group was anchored on the N-alkyl chain of imidazolium ionic liquid crystals. This hydroxyl group enhanced the hydrogen bonding interactions between neighboring compounds and, therefore, widened the temperature range of the mesophase, as compared to those without the hydroxyl group. Many room temperature ionic liquid crystals were formed. Polarized optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy were used to study the properties of these materials. The molecular structure of one of the compounds was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction, in order to have a better understanding of the structure relation between the solid and liquid crystal.

Internal tandem duplications (ITDs) of the FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) receptor tyrosine kinase are found in approximately 30% of patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and are associated with a poor prognosis. FLT3 ITD mutations result in constitutive kinase activation and are thought to be pathogenetically relevant, implicating FLT3 as a plausible therapeutic target. MLN518 (formerly CT53518) is a small molecule inhibitor of the FLT3, KIT, and platelet-derived growth-factor receptor (PDGFR) tyrosine kinases with significant activity in murine models of FLT3 ITD-positive leukemia. Given the importance of FLT3 and KIT for normal hematopoietic progenitor cells, we analyzed the effect of MLN518 on murine hematopoiesis under steady-state conditions, after chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression, and during bone marrow transplantation. In these assays, we show that MLN518 has mild toxicity toward normal hematopoiesis at concentrations that are effective in treating FLT3 ITD-positive leukemia in mice. We also demonstrate that MLN518 preferentially inhibits the growth of blast colonies from FLT3 ITD-positive compared with ITD-negative patients with AML, at concentrations that do not significantly affect colony formation by normal human progenitor cells. In analogy to imatinib mesylate in BCR-ABL–positive acute leukemia, MLN518-induced remissions may not be durable. Our studies provide the basis for integrating this compound into chemotherapy and transplantation protocols.

Summary Transient response of a sub-interface crack in a bi-material is studied with emphasis on the dynamic interaction between the crack and the interface, by combining the traditional time-domain displacement boundary element method (BEM) and the non-hypersingular traction BEM. Computations are performed for an unbounded bi-material with a crack subjected to impact tensile loading on its faces or incident impact waves and a bounded rectangular bi-material plate under remote impact tensile loading. Numerical results of the dynamic stress intensity factors (DSIFs) and dynamic interface tractions are presented for various material combinations and crack locations. It is shown that pronounced increases in DSIFs and the interface tractions may be caused in some cases because of the dynamic interaction between the crack and the interface.

Large sets of disjoint group-divisible designs with block size three and type 2ⁿ4¹ were first studied by Schellenberg and Stinson because of their connection with perfect threshold schemes. It is known that such large sets can exist only for n ≡0 (mod 3) and do exist for all odd n ≡ (mod 3) and for even n=24m, where m odd ≥ 1. In this paper, we show that such large sets exist also for n=2^k(3m), where m odd≥ 1 and k≥ 5. To accomplish this, we present two quadrupling constructions and two tripling constructions for a special large set called ^*LS(2ⁿ). © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Combin Designs 11: 24–35, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/jcd.10032

Abstract. The dielectric properties of chitosan microsphere beds in aqueous electrolyte solutions were investigated in a frequency range of 1-500 MHz. Distinct dielectric relaxation was observed around 10 MHz in weakly acidic solutions (pH 4-6), and the relaxation intensity depended on electrolyte concentration. The dielectric relaxation was analyzed on the basis of interface polarization, and the relative permittivity and conductivity of the microsphere interior were estimated from the relaxation parameters using Hanai's mixture equation. The internal conductivity of the microspheres was much higher than the conductivity of the external medium, and was attributed to counterions accumulated around fixed charges of chitosan and unknown ion conduction mechanisms, for example, protonic transport through the ionized sites. The adsorption abilities of the microspheres were also examined for Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cu²⁺, and La³⁺ ions, which showed that Cu²⁺ ions are more tightly bind to chitosan than the other ions.

Primary objective : STEPPS (STructured Evaluated Personalized Patient Support) proposes a strategy for integration of electronic patient records with Internet health-related content and its consequent use in personalized information retrieval for patient education. The application domain is the post-discharge support of burn patients in the Netherlands. Materials and methods : We developed an electronic patient record interface for structured data collection in burn care. The system's thesaurus was projected to UMLS terms and the corresponding codes were incorporated in our software. A list of topics central to burn patient education was identified and a collection of related Web pages was compiled using meta-search software (Copernic2001Pro ® ). The HTML pages were filed into catalogues by the Collexis ® indexing-matching software, using the UMLS Metathesaurus as indexing vocabulary. Results : The bilingual (English and Dutch) structured data interface is currently used to create a database of retrospective patient data. Each patient's profile, i.e. set of characteristics employed to personalize information retrieval, can be automatically extracted. We have assembled a collection of more than 2500 Internet pages containing relevant information for burn patients. When patient data is available, the Collexis ® matching engine will accept the patient's profile as input and retrieve the most relevant HTML documents available in the catalogues. Discussion : We have addressed some basic issues around the technical feasibility of linking electronic patient record data to online content. Although the functionality of STEPPS is not yet optimal, it contributes to the efforts towards improved relevance of information retrieval. Electronic patient record applications in conjunction with Internet resources can give a significant boost to the availability of tailored health education material. In this context, quality assurance of online health information is an indispensable element.

A solubilized form of the CD200 molecule, CD200Fc, has been shown to suppress allograft rejection and development of collagen-induced arthritis in mice. We investigated whether the same molecule could prolong survival of rat islet xenografts.

A database of marine natural products has been developed. The database contains approximately 6000 chemical compounds derived from over 10 000 marine-derived materials. For each compound, the structure, physical and chemical properties, marine source, and biological activities are given. A computer program for searching this database has also been developed and is described.

When a patient is admitted to a hospital, the need for information about the medications prescribed is an important issue.

The laser fluorescence excitation spectrum of the jet-cooled PO2 radical has been recorded in the wavelength range 325−284 nm. This work extends previous flash photolysis and laser fluorescence studies of the UV electronic transition in PO2. Resolved emission spectra were recorded for excitation of a number of bands. The previous vibrational analyses of both the absorption and emission spectra were extended. The rotational structure of the bands was investigated and found to be very complicated, defying an analysis. The radiative decays of the excited vibronic levels were found to be nonexponential but could be fitted to a double exponential form. The lifetimes were found to be much shorter than those observed in a discharge-flow system by Hamilton [J. Chem. Phys. 1987, 86, 33]. The inferred dependence of the lifetime upon the degree of rotational excitation and the complicated rotational structure of the bands suggest that there is significant electronic state mixing, as in the isovalent NO2 molecule.

Large sets of disjoint group-divisible designs with block size three and type 2ⁿ4¹ have been studied by Schellenberg, Chen, Lindner and Stinson. These large sets have applications in cryptography in the construction of perfect threshold schemes. It is known that such large sets can exist only for n ≡ 0 (mod 3) and do exist for n = 6 and for all n = 3^k, k ≥ 1. In this paper, we present new recursive constructions and use them to show that such large sets exist for all odd n ≡ 0 (mod 3) and for even n = 24m, where m odd ≥ 1. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Combin Designs 9: 285–296, 2001

Following portal vein (pv) pretransplant immunization of C3H mice, there is an early (within 2 days) increase in expression of the molecule OX2 seen on host dendritic cells (DC), along with increased survival of C57BL/6 renal allografts transplanted within 24 h of pv immunization. In addition, there is a marked polarization in cytokine production from lymphocytes harvested from the transplanted animals, with preferential production of IL-4, IL-10, and TGFβ on donor-specific restimulation in vitro,and decreased production of IL-2, IFN-γ, and TNFα compared with non-pv-immunized control transplanted mice. Both the increased renal allograft survival and the altered cytokine production are abolished by infusion of anti-mouse OX2 monoclonal antibody (3B6), even when antibody infusion is begun as late as 10 days following transplantation. Quantitative PCR analysis independently shows that OX2 expression is increased in the spleen and liver of transplanted mice as late as 21 days following pv immunization. In vitrostudies with an OX2:Fc immunoadhesion had suggested that immunosuppression induced by this soluble form of the OX2 molecule was dependent primarily upon an early (OX2-dependent) signal. This discrepancy between in vivoand in vitrodata possibly reflects a role for OX2 in the in vivorecruitment of other (immunregulatory) cells. Consistent with this hypothesis, regardless of the time (posttransplantation) of in vivoinfusion of anti-OX2 antibody, within 2 days we observed a decline in the functional activity of a previously characterized immunoregulatory γδTCR+cell population, which can be monitored by its ability to regulate cytokine production in vitro.

Background:Non‐collagenous proteins of mineralized tissues play important roles in bone induction during mineralization and in regulating the activity of many types of mesenchymal cells. This study was conducted to determine the effects of acetic acid extracts of bone and cementum on alkaline phosphatase (ALPase) activity and in vitro mineralization of cultured human periodontal fibroblasts (hPF). Methods:Alveolar bone and cementum obtained from clinically healthy subjects were extracted by a solution containing 0.5 M acetic acid and enzyme inhibitors. Osteoblastic phenotypes of hPF were assayed by ALPase activity, gene expression of bone marker proteins, and the ability to produce in vitro mineralization in culture media containing 50 µg/ml ascorbic acid, 10 mM sodium β‐glycerophosphate, and 10‐7M dexamethasone. The effects of cementum and bone extracts on the expression of osteoblastic phenotypes in hPF were also determined. Results:Many protein components, varying in molecular weight from 10 to 14 to 120 kDa, were detectable in 10% SDS‐PAGE of both cementum and alveolar bone extracts. The hPF cells were found to exhibit a moderate ALPase activity when compared with rat osteosarcoma (ROS) 17/2.8 cells under the same experimental conditions. Gene expression for ALPase, osteocalcin bone sialoprotein, osteopontin, and BMP‐7 at mRNA message was detected by RT‐PCR in hPF and ROS 17/2.8 cells. The confluent hPF and ROS 17/2.8 cells showed evidence of calcium deposition in the extracellular milieu at 30 and 15 to 30 days' cultures, respectively, under a mineralization medium. The hPF appeared to form mineralized foci with morphological characteristics different from the mineralized nodules produced by ROS 17/2.8 cells. The addition of low concentrations (5 µg/ml) of either cementum or bone extract produced an increase in the size and number of mineralization spots, as well as greater ALPase activity in both hPF and ROS 17/2.8 cultures during the observation periods. Conclusions:These results suggest that hPF possess certain mineralizing phenotypes, and that acetic acid extracts of bone and cementum contain components capable of stimulating osteogenic differentiation of hPF. J Periodontol 2000;71:1100‐1109.

Dendritic cells (DC), generated from C57BL/6 mouse bone marrow cells cultured with GM-CSF and IL-4 for 9 days, were engineered to express constitutively the cytokines TGFβ, IL-10, and IL-12, using adenovirus vectors constructed using an E1-deleted replication-deficient recombinant adenovirus carrying the appropriate cDNA for the relevant cytokines (Ad-TGFβ, Ad-IL-12, or Ad-IL-10). C3H mice receiving nontransduced DC or pretransplant infusion of DC-Ad-LacZ showed increased survival of C57BL/6 renal grafts relative to that of control nonimmunized mice. Transfusion of Ad-IL-12-transduced DC abolished this increased survival, leading to a graft survival equivalent to that of controls with no DC. Optimal graft survival was seen in the group receiving a mixture of DC transduced with constructs for both IL-10 and TGFβ. There was a correlation between increased graft survival and both inhibition of the induction of CTL and enhancement of a polarization to produce type-2 cytokines (IL-4, IL-10, and TGFβ) on antigen-specific restimulation in vitro.These effects were more pronounced following concomitant infusion of CHO cells transfected with a full-length cDNA for murine OX-2.

Thermospheric mass density perturbations are commonly observed during geomagnetic storms and fundamental to upper atmosphere dynamics, but the sources of these perturbations are not well understood. Large neutral density perturbations during storms greatly affect the drag experienced by low Earth orbit. We investigated the thermospheric density perturbations at all latitudes observed along the CHAMP and GRACE satellite trajectories during the August 24–25, 2005 geomagnetic storm. Observations show that large neutral density enhancements occurred not only at high latitudes, but also globally. Large density perturbations were seen in the equatorial regions away from the high‐latitude, magnetospheric energy sources. We used the high‐resolution Multiscale Atmosphere Geospace Environment (MAGE) model to simulate consecutive neutral density changes observed by satellites during the storm. The MAGE simulation, which resolved mesoscale high‐latitude convection electric fields and field‐aligned currents, and included physics‐based specification of auroral precipitation, was contrasted with a standalone ionosphere‐thermosphere simulation driven by a high‐latitude electrodynamics empirical model. The comparison demonstrates that first‐principles representations of highly dynamic and localized Joule heating events in a fully coupled whole geospace model is critical to accurately capture both generation and propagation of traveling atmospheric disturbances (TADs) that produce neutral density perturbations globally. The MAGE simulation shows that larger density peaks in the equatorial region observed by CHAMP and GRACE are the result of TADs generated at high‐latitudes in both hemispheres, and intersect at low‐latitudes. This study reveals the importance of investigating thermospheric density variations at all latitudes in a fully coupled geospace model with sufficiently high resolving power. During geomagnetic storms, increased activity within the geospace environment causes large scale plasma convection to occur and electrons to precipitate into the upper atmosphere. The enhanced heating of the thermosphere by the plasma convection and electron precipitation can produce large perturbations in the neutral density. These neutral density perturbations propagate away from their point of origin, oftentimes traveling to the equator and into the other hemisphere. Here, simulation results using a high resolution coupled geospace model that includes a magnetosphere, inner magnetosphere, ionosphere, and thermosphere model show that neutral density perturbations generated in one hemisphere can propagate far enough to interact with those in the other hemisphere. The intersection of two or more perturbations produce regions of larger neutral density perturbations. The high resolution coupled geospace model performs significantly better than the standalone model when compared to observations of neutral density by low altitude spacecraft. A significant fraction of the observed neutral density perturbations is captured by the coupled model, especially those at low latitudes. Proper simulation and understanding of storm‐time neutral density perturbations is imperative to space weather prediction as neutral density perturbations can greatly affect satellite drag. Most neutral density peaks observed by CHAMP and GRACE during a geomagnetic storm are associated with traveling atmospheric disturbancesTADs generated at high‐latitudes propagate globally and intersect to produce large amplitude enhancements at low latitudesA coupled geospace model with high spatial resolving power is necessary to properly resolve TADs observed by CHAMP and GRACE Most neutral density peaks observed by CHAMP and GRACE during a geomagnetic storm are associated with traveling atmospheric disturbances TADs generated at high‐latitudes propagate globally and intersect to produce large amplitude enhancements at low latitudes A coupled geospace model with high spatial resolving power is necessary to properly resolve TADs observed by CHAMP and GRACE