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Abstract: Navigation fields are a popular data structure for directing the movement of virtual crowds. However, the congestion problem may occur at the corners of objects in using a navigation field because the agents move quite closely to each other. The agents may congest at the corners even though there is room for the agents to move away from the congested regions. In this paper, we propose to place crowd monitors at the corners to collect the data such as the movement direction of crowds and crowd densities. Then the navigation field is adjusted dynamically so that the crowds are led to move away from the congested regions. We also propose a simple data structure for speeding up the collision detection process between agents and objects. Experimental results show that our approach successfully alleviates the congestion problem at the corners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the apoptosis-inducing effect of honokiol on human non-Hodgkin lymphoma Raji cells and the possible mechanism., Methods: Raji cells were treated with different concentrations of honokiol, and the proliferation of the cells was detected using MTT assay. Flow cytometry was employed to analyze the cell cycle changes and apoptosis of honokiol-treated cells. Caspase 8 activity in the cells was measured by caspase 8 kit, and RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of apoptosis-related genes Bcl-2, Bad, and Bax., Results: Honokiol significantly inhibited the growth of Raji cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner, with IC(50) concentration of 17.53, 12.61, and 7.4 µg/ml at 12, 24, 48 h, respectively. Flow cytometry revealed cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase following honokiol treatment. The apoptosis rates of Raji cells treated with 7.5 and 15 µg/ml honokiol were significantly higher than that of the control cells [(18.24∓2.53)%, (28.44∓2.48)% vs (4.84∓1.15)%, P<0.01]. Caspase 8 activity in Raji cells was significantly enhanced by honokiol (P<0.05). The mRNA expression of the apoptosis-promoting gene Bad was significantly increased following honokiol treatment (P<0.01), while the expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax remained unchanged., Conclusion: Honokiol can induce apoptosis in Raji cells possibly in relation to enhancement of caspase 8 activity and Bad gene expression.