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Purpose: Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is commonly used to treat unresectable lung nodules. Given its relative safety and effective local control, SBRT has also been used to treat recurrent lung nodules after high-dose external beam radiation (EBRT) to the lung. The toxicity of such treatment is unknown. Methods and Materials: Between 2006 and 2012, 18 subjects at the Mayo Clinic with 27 recurrent lung nodules were treated with SBRT after receiving EBRT to the lung. Median local control, overall survival, and progression-free survival (PFS) were described. Acute toxicity and late toxicity (defined as toxicity ≥ and >90 days, respectively) were reported and graded as per standardized CTCAE 4.0 criteria. Results: The median age of patients treated was 68 years. Fifteen patients had recurrent lung cancer as their primary histology. Twelve patients received ≥60 Gy of conventional EBRT prior to SBRT. SBRT dose and fractionation varied; the most common prescriptions were 48 Gy/4, 54 Gy/3, and 50 Gy/5 fractions. Only four patients had SBRT planning target volumes (PTVs) that overlapped more than 50% of their prior EBRT PTV. Two patients developed local recurrence following SBRT. With a median follow up of 21.2 months, median SBRT-specific overall survival and PFS were 21.7 and 12.3 months, respectively. No grade ≥3 acute or late toxicities were noted. Conclusion: Stereotactic body radiotherapy may be a good salvage option for select patients with recurrent lung nodules following definitive EBRT to the chest. Toxicity is minimal and local control is excellent.

A series of NiO–CaO photocatalysts have been successfully prepared by a precipitation–calcination method. The specimen was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra. The UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra revealed that the NiO–CaO samples exhibited absorptions in a wide visible-light range of 400–600 and 700–800 nm. These results showed that the NiO–CaO samples might possess excellent photocatalytic performances in the wide visible-light region. By using photocatalytic degrading methyl blue as the model reaction, the NiO–CaO samples showed higher photocatalytic activity than those of NiO, CaO, and commercial TiO 2 under visible-light illumination.

Purpose: To plan, target, and calculate delivered dose in atrioventricular node (AVN) ablation with volume-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) in an intact porcine model. Methods: Seven pigs underwent AVN irradiation, with prescription doses ranging between 25 and 55Gy in a single fraction. Cardiac CT scans were acquired at expiration. Two physicians contoured AVN targets on 10 phases, providing estimates of target motion and inter-physician variability. Treatment planning was conducted on a static phase-averaged CT. The volume designated to receive prescription dose covered the full extent of AVN cardiac motion, expanded by 4mm for setup uncertainty. Optimization limited doses to risk structures according to single-fraction tumor treatment protocols. Orthogonal kV images were used to align bony anatomy at time of treatment. Localization was further refined with respiratory-gated cone-beam CT, and range of cardiac motion was verified under fluoroscopy. Beam delivery was respiratory-gated for expiration with a mean efficiency of 60%. Deformable registration of the 10 cardiac CT phases was used to calculate actual delivered dose for comparison to electro-anatomical and visually evident lesions. Results: The mean [minimum,maximum] amplitude of AVN cardiac motion was LR 2.9 [1.7,3.9]mm, AP 6.6 [4.4,10.4]mm, and SI 5.6 [2.0,9.9]mm. Incorporating cardiac motion into the dose calculation showed the volume receiving full dose was 40–80% of the volume indicated on the static planning image, although the contoured AVN target received full dose in all animals. Initial results suggest the dimensions of the electro-anatomical lesion are correlated with the 40Gy isodose volume. Conclusion: Image-guidance techniques allow for accurate and precise delivery of VMAT for catheter-free arrhythmia ablation. An arsenal of advanced radiation planning, dose optimization, and image-guided delivery techniques was employed to assess and mitigate effects of cardiac and respiratory motion. Feasibility of delivery to the pulmonary veins and left ventricular myocardium will be investigated in future studies. D. Packer Disclosures: Abiomed, Biosense Webster, Inc., Boston Scientific Corp., CardioFocus, Inc., Johnson and Johnson, Excerpta Medica, Ortho-McNeil-Jannsen, Sanofi Aventis, CardioInsight Technologies, InfoBionic, SIEMENS, Medtronic, Inc., CardioDx, Inc., CardioInsight Technologies, FoxP2 Medica, Mediasphere Medical, Wiley-Blackwell, St. Jude Medical, Endosense, Thermedical, EP Advocate LLC, Hansen Medical, American Heart Association, EpiEP, NIH

In the process of CAN communication, control units are connected by two lines, the high CAN line and the low CAN line, so as to transmit information efficiently between different controllers with fewer lines. Taking Nissan as the case, the paper introduces the application of CAN system in the automobile control, the general process of fault diagnosis, and the method of fault diagnosis on bus malfunction.

A novel rod-shape sonocatalyst Sr(OH)2·8H2O was prepared by a facile precipitation method, and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and UV–vis absorption spectroscopy. Comparative sonocatalytic degradation experiments were carried out in different conditions under ultrasonic irradiation by using rhodamine B (RhB) as the model substrate, indicating that Sr(OH)2·8H2O was highly sonocatalytic. Total organic carbon experiment demonstrated Sr(OH)2·8H2O with mass mineralization of organic carbon. The effects of catalyst amount, initial RhB concentration and ultrasonic energy of degradation were investigated, and the sonocatalyst could be reused 5 times without significant loss of activity. Furthermore, the potent degrading capability was ascribed to ultrasonic cavitation producing flash light/energy which generated radicals (e.g., OH) with high oxidation activity.

Flow control technique is an important research field of aerodynamics. Flow control technique uses the interactions of fluid hydrodynamic to control and amplify the flow signal by changing the local flow. As far as possible to optimize the flow field distribution, increase the lift, reduce the drag and effectively improve the lift drag ratio, are also the important research subjects in aircraft design. As the requirements of plane design performance improving constantly, the fluid flow control becomes more and more important, and shows the irreplaceable role. In this paper the passive flow control method and active flow control method with applications to increasing lift and reducing drag are introduced in detail. The conclusion is active flow control’s effect is more obvious compared by the passive flow control means. The working keys and directions are put forward in the paper. Keywordspassive flow control; active flow control; drag reduction; high lift

Mismatch repair corrects biosynthetic errors generated during DNA replication. Mismatch repair deficiency causes a mutator phenotype and directly underlies hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer and some sporadic cancers. Because of remarkably high conservation of the mismatch repair machinery between the budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and humans, the study of mismatch repair in yeast has provided tremendous insights into the mechanisms of this repair pathway in humans. Here we describe a set of practical protocols for how to prepare the yeast and HeLa cell-free nuclear extracts and site-specific DNA mismatch substrates, and how to carry out the in vitro mismatch repair assay. We validated the yeast cell-free system by the mismatch repair deficient strain (Δmsh2) and the complementation assay with purified yeast MutSα.

Mismatch repair corrects biosynthetic errors generated during DNA replication. Mismatch repair deficiency causes a mutator phenotype and directly underlies hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer and some sporadic cancers. Because of remarkably high conservation of the mismatch repair machinery between the budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and humans, the study of mismatch repair in yeast has provided tremendous insights into the mechanisms of this repair pathway in humans. Here we describe a set of practical protocols for how to prepare the yeast and HeLa cell-free nuclear extracts and site-specific DNA mismatch substrates, and how to carry out the in vitro mismatch repair assay. We validated the yeast cell-free system by the mismatch repair deficient strain (Δmsh2) and the complementation assay with purified yeast MutSα.

This paper proposes am adaptive ideal image reconstruction method for bacteria colony detection. The philosophy of the proposed method lies in converting the problem of bacteria colony detection into image segmentation. Different from the traditional ways of image segmentation that the key point is threshold selection, this method focuses on reconstructing ideal bacteria colony image by eliminating the bias of illumination. Especially, in the reconstructed ideal image bacteria regions correspond to high intensity parts and the backgrounds lie in relatively low intensity parts. Therefore the reconstructed image can be conveniently binaried with Ostu’s method and bacteria colony can be easily detected. Large-scale experiments show the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method.

Porous and trigonal TiO2 nanoflakes (p-TiO2) have been synthesized via a simple hydrothermal calcination process, and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and UV–vis absorption/reflection spectroscopy (UV–vis). The X-ray diffraction patterns of the as-prepared samples show that p-TiO2 has an anatase structure. Transmission electron microscopy images indicate that p-TiO2 consists of sheet-like particles with numerous pores about 100 nm in diameter. Ultraviolet–visible reflection spectroscopy exhibits that the absorption edge acquires a blue shift with increased calcination temperature. The effects of the calcination temperature, catalyst dosage, and initial rhodamine B (RhB) concentration on the sonocatalytic activity for removing RhB are investigated in detail. The results show that the as-prepared p-TiO2 obtained at the optimal calcination temperature of 600 °C exhibits a higher sonocatalytic activity than commercial P25. Based on the effects of the initial RhB concentration on sonocatalytic activity, the sonocatalytic degradation kinetics of RhB is also investigated.

Optical fiber distributed sensing technologies, consisting of many sensors in one single fiber, present unique and cost-effective solutions for the oil refining and petrochemical industries to optimize process operations and improve reliability and safety. In addition, optical fiber sensors do not require electrical power at the sensing locations, reducing the need for explosion-proof electronic packaging. This paper reviews state-of-the-art commercial optical fiber distributed temperature and strain sensing technologies, and presents challenges and opportunities for these technologies in the oil refining and petrochemical industries. Attention is drawn to the fundamental understanding of optical fiber materials and development of reliable sensor protection and installation methods for harsh environments.

Ni2P, Cu3P, and CoP are prepared in 63, 56, and 51% yield, resp., by reaction of the metal with 2 equiv.

Petrochemical plants are extremely complex systems with many dynamically interconnected components. Traditional approaches to fault detection and diagnosis of these complex systems follow a centralized design in which huge and sophisticated models (e.g., first principle models) are constructed to process sensor data acquired from the entire plant. These systems are very difficult to design due to their complexity. Maintaining such a system to reflect any plant changes (e.g., equipment replacement), is also very challenging. In this article, we introduce a multi-agent model for fault detection and diagnosis which exploits the concept of leadership; that is, when a fault is detected one agent emerges as leader and coordinates the fault classification process. The proposed model is flexible, modular, decentralized, and portable. Our experimental results show that even using simple detection and diagnosis methods, the model can achieve comparable results to those from sophisticated centralized approaches.

The relationship between the physicochemical properties and the activity of sonocatalysts is investigated and elucidated in the sonodegradation of amaranth. The sonocatalyts are composed of La(3+) doped TiO(2) synthesized via a sol-gel process. The sonocatalysts are characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopic analysis, UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron emission spectroscopy. The sonodegradation products of amaranth are analyzed by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy. The presence of the La(3+) doped TiO(2) catalysts substantially enhances the sonocatalytic degradation of amaranth in aqueous suspensions. The possible sonocatalytic mechanisms for such are discussed.

A Tb(7)O(12)/TiO(2) composite was successfully synthesized through a hydrolysis-calcination process. The Tb(7)O(12)/TiO(2) composite catalyst was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy, UV-Vis absorption/reflection spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The heterogeneous sonocatalytic oxidation of amaranth in water, containing dispersed pure TiO(2) and Tb(7)O(12)/TiO(2) composite, was investigated under ultrasonic irradiation. The activity of the Tb(7)O(12)/TiO(2) catalyst is higher than that of pure TiO(2) during the sonodegradation of amaranth. The enhanced sonocatalytic activity of the composite may be attributed to the increase in charge separation efficiency and the presence of surface acidity.

Mismatch repair (MMR) corrects innate DNA replication infidelities. Many components of eukaryotic MMR have been identified, the molecular mechanism of MMR has been largely demonstrated, and furthermore the nick-directed MMR reactions have been reconstituted with purified human proteins in vitro. However, some fundamental questions still remain to be answered. One such question is whether a DNA helicase activity is required for MMR in eukaryotes. This short review presents an overview of the interactions between eukaryotic DNA helicases and MMR factors, and suggests a possible mechanism for how DNA helicases may be involved in repair of DNA mismatches.

Based on high-resolution ultraviolet spectroscopy obtained with FUSE and COS, we present new detections of O VI and N V emission from the black-hole X-ray binary (XRB) system LMC X-3. We also update the ephemeris of the XRB using recent radial velocity measurements obtained with the echelle spectrograph on the Magellan-Clay telescope. We observe significant velocity variability of the UV emission, and we find that the O VI and N V emission velocities follow the optical velocity curve of the XRB. Moreover, the O VI and N V intensities regularly decrease between binary phase = 0.5 and 1.0, which suggests that the source of the UV emission is increasingly occulted as the B star in the XRB moves from superior to inferior conjunction. These trends suggest that illumination of the B-star atmosphere by the intense X-ray emission from the accreting black hole creates a hot spot on one side of the B star, and this hot spot is the origin of the O VI and N V emission. However, the velocity semiamplitude of the ultraviolet emission, K_{UV}~180 km/s, is lower than the optical semiamplitude; this difference could be due to rotation of the B star. If our hypothesis about the origin of the highly ionized emission is correct, then careful analysis of the emission occultation could, in principle, constrain the inclination of the XRB and the mass of the black hole., Comment: To be published in the Astronomical Journal; 10 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables

In a trustworthy network with the mechanism of Source Address Validation Architecture (SAVA), each packet received and forwarded has been ensured to hold an authenticated source IP address, which can prevent the attackers to forge the originating IP address to evade responsibility for their malicious packets. However, it is impossible to deploy SAVA all over the Internet in one night. In this paper, we investigate the SAVA mechanism from the point of routing for a trustworthy network with a partial deployment of SAVA nodes. We propose a new routing algorithm, called Minimum Hop to First SAVA node (MHFS). Extensive simulations show that MHFS can not only guarantee that each route for packets includes at least one SAVA node, but also achieve a better successful probability for routing packets and a improvement in resource usage.

The effects of an intraperitoneal hormone injection of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (D-Ala6, Pro9-NEt GnRHa) alone or in combination with a dopamine antagonist, domperidone (DOM), on ovulation induction in yellow catfish Pelteobagrus fulvidraco were tested. The hormone treatments were as follows: 6 mg kg−1 body weight (BW) of carp pituitary extract as a positive control, GnRHa 10, 20, 40 and 80 μg kg−1 BW and a combination of GnRHa and DOM as follows: 10 μg+5 mg, 20 μg+10 mg, 40 μg+20 mg and 80 μg+40 mg kg−1 BW. Physiological saline (0.7% NaCl) was used as a negative control. Significant differences in the ovulation ratio, latency period and ovulation index (OI) were observed among treatments (P

There are mainly two kinds of methods for foreign fiber detecting, one is image processing which is applied more widely because of its lower cost, and the other is model identifing. This article will carry out a design scheme which takes ADSP-BF533 as the core processor based on image processing theory. The foreign fiber detecting algorithm produced by auther will be migrated onto ADSP-BF533. Research and data simulation experiments have proved that this foreign fiber detecting system based on ADSP-BF533 can meet both validity and real-time requirement for foreign fiber detecting. The mathematic model, algorithm and development experience described in the article can be also migrated and applied to other correlative projects, especially projects of textile field.

A new, computational approach provides a methodology for specifying how the acoustic power radiated from a complex, three‐dimensional vibrating structure may be controlled. The method uses a superposition principle to transform the surface of a vibrating structure into a discrete distribution of acoustic sources interior to the boundary surface of the structure. The transformation is carried out by requiring that the interior sources produce the same or nearly the same normal velocities as those prescribed on the surface of the vibrating structure. Based on this transformation, the total time‐averaged, acoustic power output from the vibrating structure can be expressed in terms of the strengths of the equivalent sources. To control the radiated acoustic power, one or more secondary point sources is then placed on or near the surface of the vibrating structure. By using the total power radiated from the vibrating structure and the secondary sources as an objective function for an optimization operation, the optimal strengths and locations of the secondary sources are found that lead to a maximum reduction in the acoustic power radiated from the vibrating structure. The significance of this approach is that it provides design guidelines for applying active control techniques to complex vibrating structures.

The method of “wave superposition” is based on the idea that an acoustic radiator can be approximately represented by the sum of the fields due to a finite number of interior point sources. The accuracy of this representation depends upon how well the velocity boundary condition on the surface of the body is approximated. The ultimate objective of this study, then, is to provide some guidelines for improving the accuracy of the surface velocity reconstruction and, consequently, the accuracy of the superposition solutions. In general, this is dependent upon the particular surface velocity distribution to be reconstructed, as well as other formulation factors such as the acoustic wave number, the number and locations of the surface nodes, and the number and locations of the point sources. Velocity interpolation functions are introduced as a means of quantifying the dependence of reconstruction errors on the acoustic wave number and the placement of the surface nodes and point sources. Numerical experiments on cylindrical radiators with different velocity distributions are performed to further illustrate how the solution accuracy depends on the surface velocity boundary conditions as well as the other formulation factors.

The observed intergalactic OVI absorbers at z>0 have been regarded as a significant reservoir of the ``missing baryons''. However, to fully understand how these absorbers contribute to the baryon inventory, it is crucial to determine whether the systems are collisionally ionized or photoionized (or both). Using the identified intergalactic OVI absorbers as tracers, we search for the corresponding X-ray absorption lines, which are useful for finding the missing baryons and for revealing the nature of the OVI absorbers. Stacking the Chandra grating spectra along six AGN sight lines, we obtain three spectra with signal-to-noise ratios of 32, 28, and 10 per 12.5 mA spectral bin around the expected OVII Kalpha wavelength. These spectra correspond to OVI absorbers with various dynamic properties. We find no detectable NeIX, OVII, OVIII, NVII, or CVI absorption lines in the spectra, but the high counting statistics allows us to obtain firm upper limits on the corresponding ionic column densities (in particular N(OVII), 10 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; minor changes following referee's comments; Accepted for publication in ApJ

In this paper, a Mo/Si multilayer mirror of normal incidence at E=60eV was firstly analyzed. From the measurement curves of a small angle x ray diffraction, the property of interfaces and the parameters including period thickness and roughness were gained. Through the analyzing, we found that performance is not good, the peak reflectivity is low and is not correspond with 60eV. Secondly, a revised design using Simulated Annealing arithmetic was applied in it. The revised design results shows a promising mirror at 60eV and are consistent with the results of the program of optical coating technology R&D center in Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics.

Under the constraints of the number of transceivers per node and wavelength continuity, the fairness issue of connections with different bandwidth granularities in survivable traffic-grooming WDM mesh networks is investigated. An extended wavelength-plane graph (EWG) model and two dynamic grooming path protection algorithms with considering blocking fairness are proposed. Based on dynamic traffic with different load, the performance of our schemes has been evaluated via simulations. The results show that they provide good blocking fairness while at the same time ensure a small increase in the overall traffic blocking probability.

X-ray absorption lines of highly-ionized species such as OVII at about zero redshift have been firmly detected in the spectra of several active galactic nuclei. However, the location of the absorbing gas remains a subject of debate. To separate the Galactic and extragalactic contributions to the absorption, we have obtained Chandra LETG-HRC and FUSE observations of the black hole X-ray binary LMC X--3. A joint analysis of the detected OVII and Ne IX Kalpha lines, together with the non-detection of the OVII Kbeta and OVIII Kalpha lines, gives the measurements of the temperature, velocity dispersion, and hot oxygen column density. The X-ray data also allow us to place a 95% confidence lower limit to the Ne/O ratio as 0.14. The OVII line centroid and its relative shift from the Galactic OI Kalpha absorption line, detected in the same observations, are inconsistent with the systemic velocity of LMC X--3 ($+310 {\rm km s^{-1}}$). The far-UV spectrum shows OVI absorption at Galactic velocities, but no OVI absorption is detected at the LMC velocity at $> 3\sigma$ significance. Both the nonthermal broadening and the decreasing scale height with the increasing ionization state further suggest an origin of the highly-ionized gas in a supernova-driven galactic fountain. In addition, we estimate the warm and hot electron column densities from our detected OVII Kalpha line in the LMC X--3 X-ray spectra and from the dispersion measure of a pulsar in the LMC vicinity. We then infer the O/H ratio of the gas to be $\gtrsim 8 \times 10^{-5}$, consistent with the chemically-enriched galactic fountain scenario. We conclude that the Galactic hot interstellar medium should in general substantially contribute to zero-redshift X-ray absorption lines in extragalactic sources., Comment: 11 pages, accepted for publication in ApJ

Purpose/Objectives: Spine SBRT is widely performed and the reported risk of myelopathy is very low. Currently, guidelines vary on the maximum tolerable dose levels and designation of spinal cord vs thecal sac as the dose limiting structure. The current single institution study examines dose metrics to both structures and correlations with toxicity for patients treated with IMRT/VMAT. Materials/Methods: The radiation plans and DVH parameters were exported for 46 patients treated with SBRT for spinal metastases between April 2008 and December 2010 at the Mayo Clinic Rochester. Diagnostic MRI and where applicable, CT myelograms, from each patient were fused with the CT planning set and used to contour the spinal cord and the thecal sac. High resolution PRV structures were created in 1 mm increments for the cord (1-7 mm) and the thecal sac (1-2 mm), to examine dose gradients. Using an alpha/beta of 2 Gy, the biologically equivalent 2 Gy dose maximum (Max(2)[EQ2 Gy]) and high dose sub-volumes (Dxcc(2)[EQ2 Gy]) were calculated for xZ 0.1 cc to 1.0 cc in 0.1 cc increments from the dose volume histograms (DVHs). Toxicities for pain, nausea, myelitis, fatigue, fracture and radionecrosis were assessed (CTCAE v4.0). ROC analysis was used to define thresholds for constructing 2 x 2 contingency tables indicating toxicity using fisher exact test for significance (p < 0.01). Differences in mean values for groups with/without toxicity were assessed using t-tests for significance (p < 0.05). Results: Median values of Max(2)[EQ2 Gy] for the spinal cord and thecal sac were 38.5 (range, 7.9-67.9 Gy) and 67.7 Gy (range, 15.5-155.8 Gy), respectively. There were no cases of myelopathy (median follow-up 14 months). Median values for high dose sub volumes, Dxcc(2)[EQ2 Gy], were 2 times higher than the doses for 5% predicted grade 3 cord toxicity recommended by Sahgal et al. (IJORBP: 2013;85). Five patients had pain (4 with grade 1, 1 with grade 2). Four patients had nausea (3 with grade 1, 1 with grade 2). Cord D0.1cc(2)[EQ2 Gy] 23.8 Gy was significant (p Z 0.007) as an indicator for pain 1. Thecal sac D2.0cc(2)[EQ2 Gy] 29.3 Gy was significant (pZ 0.008) as an indicator for nausea 1. Distribution of Max(2)[EQ2 Gy] values for the thecal sac corresponded most closely to spinal cord + 3.5 mm margin. Median survival was 14 months (range 1-64 months). Conclusions: Current guidelines may overestimate the risk of myelopathy from spine SBRT. The current study’s population included patients who were both radiation naive and retreated after conventional palliative radiotherapy. The actual risk of myelopathy may be much lower than predicted. For patients with limited survival, it may be appropriate to allow higher doses to cord if it would be expected to result in better QOL/ functional outcomes/pain relief for the duration of their life. Author Disclosure: D. Owen: None. C.S. Mayo: None. L.S. Song: None. K. Ahmed: None. N.N. Laack: None. K.R. Olivier: None.

Using data from HST/STIS (Hubble Space Telescope / Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph) and FUSE (Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer) toward two QSOs, H1821+643 and HS0624+6907, we find that the overall metallicity of the Galactic “Outer Arm” is Z=0.3−0.5 Z⊙ with underabundant nitrogen and little depletion by dust. The results are consistent with those based on H II region measurements in the outer galaxy and provide additional constrains on models of the Galactic abundance gradient and Milky Way (MW) chemical evolution. The lower metallicity observed in the outer galaxy is consistent with abundance patterns observed in higher redshift damped Lyα absorbers (DLAs) extrapolated to z=0. The slow metallicity evolution of DLAs could be due to the larger cross sections of the outer regions of galaxies combined with the observed metallicity gradients.

Purpose: To develop treatment plans and delivery techniques for ex situ isolated perfused (Langendorff) porcine hearts in order to explore the feasibility of using photon radiation to create cardiac lesions as a treatment for cardiac arrhythmias. Methods: Six domestic swines were used for the creation of Langendorff preparation, of which three received radiation and three served as a control group. For the study group, treatment planning was performed on their CT images. Two stainless‐steel clips in the CS ostium and in the pulmonary artery and the beaker were contoured and assigned to the proper CT numbers. Treatment couch attenuation and clip scattering were also taken into account. The AV node was contoured and was positioned at the isocenter of the accelerator. MLC were used to provide conformal shaping of the photon beam and a 1 cm margin was added around the AV node to accommodate cardiac motion. 3D conformal planning technique was chosen. Two orthogonal KV images were acquired before the radiation delivery for accurate positioning of the heart. Results: 200 Gy was successfully delivered to the AV node of the heart in the service mode of the machine. The field size was about 3 × 3 cm^2. The dose distribution was not uniform in the target due to the one or three fixed beam arrangement. The averaged delivery time was about 40 minutes with an averaged dose rate of 600 MU/min. Complete heart block was observed during treatment and notable cellular damages were presented in the histological specimen. Conclusion: Simple and efficient treatment plan and delivery technique are required to deliver high dose to the ex situ isolated hearts in a short time window. Flattening‐Filter‐Free mode of the Linac will dramatically decrease the delivery time and therefore allow the development of more complicated treatment plans, for example, the IMRT. Dr. DL Packer in the past 12 months has provided consulting services for Abiomed, Biosense Webster, Inc., Boston Scientific, CardioFocus, CardioInsight, Excerpta Medica, FoxP2 Medica LLC, InfoBionic, Inc., Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Systems, Johnson & Johnson, MediaSphere Medical, LLC, Medtronic CryoCath, OrthoMcNeill, Sanofi‐aventis, Siemens, St. Jude Medical, and Siemens AG. Dr. Packer received no personal compensation for these consulting activities. [PLEASE NOTE: any web or printed program must include this statement of noncompensation] Dr. DL Packer receives research funding from the Biosense Webster, Boston Scientific/EPT, Endosense, EpiEP, EP Advocate, Medtronic CryoCath LP, Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics/ University of Minnesota, NIH, CardioFocus, Hansen Medical, Siemens P4D, St. Jude Medical, Siemens AcuNav, and Thermedical (EP Limited). Dr. Packer received Royalties from Blackwell Publishing and St. Jude Medical. Dr. HI Lehmann receives a research fellowship from the German Heart Foundation/Deutsche Herzstiftung e.V. Mit Foerdermitteln der Deutschen Herzstiftung e.V.

Fanconi anemia is a rare autosomal recessive or X-linked genetic disease characterized by progressive bone marrow failure, various developmental anomalies, and cancer predisposition. Fanconi anemia complementation group A (FANCA) gene is one of the 15 disease-causing genes and has been found to be mutated in ∼60% of Fanconi anemia patients. Except for its constituent role in the ubiquitin ligase of the Fanconi anemia core complex, no other biochemical activity has been identified thus far. Using purified protein, we observed that human FANCA has intrinsic affinity to nucleic acids. FANCA binds to both single-stranded and double-stranded DNA; however, its affinity to single-stranded DNA is dramatically higher. FANCA also binds to RNA with an intriguingly higher affinity than its DNA counterpart. A patient-derived FANCA truncation mutant, Q772X, has diminished affinity to both DNA and RNA. On the contrary, the complementing C-terminal fragment of Q772X, C772-1455, retains the differentiated nucleic acids binding activity (RNA>ssDNA>dsDNA), indicating that the nucleic acids binding domain of FANCA is primarily located at its C-terminus. Using DNA and RNA ladders, we determined that the minimum numbers of nucleotides required for FANCA recognition are ∼30 for both DNA and RNA. By testing the affinity between FANCA and a variety of DNA structures, we found that a 5’ flap or tail on DNA facilitates its interaction with FANCA. In addition, we observed that FANCA greatly stimulates the endonuclease activity of flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1), which processes 5’ flap structures. Our study reported that purified human FANCA binds to nucleic acids with strong preference for single-stranded forms. Our finding suggests that FANCA FANCA may participate in maintenance of replication forks by regulating removal of Okazaki fragment during maturation of lagging strand replication. Citation Format: Liangyue Qian, Fenghua Yuan, Paola Rodriguez-Tello, Xinliang Zhao, Limin Song, Gennaro D'Urso, Chaitanya Jain, Yanbin Zhang. FANCA binds to nucleic acids and stimulates endonuclease activity of FEN1. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1286. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-1286

This paper presents a time reversal imaging technique utilizing a group of guided wave modes over a broad frequency band. This increases both the bandwidth integrated power and the mode diversity of the propagating wave. Typically, dispersion is minimized by selecting a single mode. Instead, we develop algorithms to coherently combine the group of modes to obtain increased signal to noise ratio and sensitivity, and we compensate for dispersion using time reversal to improve image quality and extend the inspection range. Imaging is computed via an efficient angular spectrum propagation algorithm without numerically computing the Greens functions. The performance improvement is demonstrated via signal processing results based on numerically simulated data.

Using high-resolution ultraviolet spectra obtained with the HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) and the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer, we study the metallicity, kinematics, and distance of the gaseous "Outer Arm" (OA) and the high-velocity clouds (HVCs) in the outer Galaxy. We detect the OA in a variety of absorption lines toward two QSOs, H1821+643 and HS0624+6907. We search for OA absorption toward eight Galactic stars and detect it in one case, which constrains the OA Galactocentric radius to 9, Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal

Fanconi anemia (FA) is an autosomal recessive or X-linked disorder characterized by bone marrow failure, developmental defects, predisposition to cancer, and hypersensitivity of crosslinking agents. Fanconi anemia complementation group A (FANCA) gene is one of the 15 disease-causing genes and has been found to be mutated in ∼60% of all FA patients. Using the purified human WT-FANCA protein, we report that FANCA possesses intrinsic affinity to nucleic acids. FANCA binds to single-stranded DNA with affinity significantly higher than double-stranded DNA. FANCA also binds to single-stranded RNA with similar affinity to single-stranded DNA. FANCA requires a certain length of nucleic acids for optimal binding. Using DNA and RNA ladders, we determine the minimum numbers of nucleotides required for FANCA recognition are −30 and −40 for DNA and RNA respectively. A patient-derived FANCA truncation mutation, Q772X, has diminished affinity to both DNA and RNA. On the contrary, the complementing C-terminal fragment of Q772X, 772–1455, retains the differentiated DNA binding activity (ssDNA>dsDNA), indicating that the nucleic acids binding domain of FANCA is located at its C-terminus where most disease-causing mutations are found. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Second AACR International Conference on Frontiers in Basic Cancer Research; 2011 Sep 14-18; San Francisco, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(18 Suppl):Abstract nr B39.

Vibrational energy generated with a pneumatic vibrator (22) is controlled to independently adjust the amplitude and the frequency. A mechanical resonator (14) is used to adjust the frequency. The controlled vibrational energy can be applied to equipment, such as a heat exchanger to mitigate fouling.

A system and methodology for continuous condition monitoring of rotating equipment. Employ adaptive signal processing techniques to determine the RPM of a rotating machine from time-based vibration data. RPM is determined based upon the input of a digitized time-based sample sequence of vibration data acquired directly from a vibration transducer for on-line real-time measurement of the machine RPM. Once RPM is determined, online vibration analysis for a given RPM or set of RPMs may be performed. The present invention extracts characteristic vibration features from vibration data and uses these extracted values to provide condition detection and diagnoses of machine faults.

Acoustic agglomeration (AA) of the fly‐ash particles from coal combustion in pressurized, fluidized bed combustors for power plants is an intermediate treatment of the aerosol to improve the fractional removal efficiency of conventional particle removal devices such as cyclones so that recently proposed clean air requirements can be met. Tests were performed on Penn State's high‐pressure (10 atm), high‐temperature (891 °C) acoustic agglomerator (6‐in. i.d., 14‐ft length) at 158 dB and about 850 Hz, with particle loading of 10–18 g/m3 and residence times of about 4 s. The sound source was a high‐efficiency siren of Penn State's design providing about 1500 acoustic watts. The mass fraction in the critical 0.5‐ to 5‐μm particle size range was reduced by a factor of 5 and the 10‐ to 20‐μm size range increased by a factor of 3. An acoustic agglomeration simulation model (AASM) computer code that predicts AA quite reliably at both atmospheric and HTHP conditions was developed at Penn State. The simulation resul...

A transfer impedance method has been developed to analyze the acoustic response of a complex piping system to low‐frequency pulsation sources such as a reciprocating compressor. The acoustic transfer impedance of a piping system is defined as the complex amplitude of acoustic pressure in the piping system generated by a constant‐frequency source at a given location that has a unity complex amplitude of acoustic volume velocity. In this method, the transfer impedance in each pipe component is expressed in terms of transmission and reflection coefficients that are determined through boundary conditions. Recurrence relations are derived to relate the transmission and reflection coefficients of one pipe component to those of an adjacent pipe component. This method is particularly useful in analyzing piping acoustic resonance and pulsation mode shape in which the location of maximum acoustic pressure can be easily identified. If the pulsation source is known, the pulsation levels in the piping system can be ca...

The superposition method is a newly developed method for computing the acoustic field radiated or scattered from a structure. By this method, a solution to the acoustic field is obtained by superposing the waves from a number of equivalent point sources interior to the surface of the structure. The strengths of the sources are determined such that they give the same velocity at each mode on the surface of the structure as prescribed. This paper presents an analysis of the numerical error of the superposition solution. It has been shown that the maximum error of the superposition solution can be estimated by the surface velocity reconstruction error. The surface velocity reconstruction error, which can be computed directly, depends on the surface velocity distribution and velocity interpolation functions associated with the surface nodes. A spherical radiator with different surface velocity distributions is chosen to demonstrate how acoustic wavenumbers, the number of the surface nodes, and locations of th...