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Monel-sheathed MgB2 wires with 6, 18 and 54 filaments of diameter 0.83 mm manufactured by Sam Dong Co., Ltd, have been subjected to twisting, drawing and rolling and measurements at low temperatures. R(T), I–V characteristics, critical currents and stress/strain tolerances of these wires were analyzed. Low reduction of critical current (⩽10%) by twisting between 50 mm and 12.5 mm was observed, especially for the wire with 54 filaments, which also showed the best strain tolerance to tension, ∼0.43% at 4.2 K. The engineering current density of the 18-filament wire was decreased by 56% by drawing from 0.83 mm to 0.4 mm, but improved by ∼24% by rolling from 0.83 mm to 0.64 mm. A small uninsulated coil was made from wire flattened from 0.83 mm to 0.64 mm by the wind and react process, resulting in a very high winding packing factor of 0.91 and also a high winding current density of 104 A cm−2 at B ⩽ 5.6 T. The presented properties are interesting for possible applications of these MgB2 wires in DC windings.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major global health problem, and healthcare workers (HCWs) are at high risk for HBV infection. Current guidelines strongly recommend immunization and screening for high-risk groups.We evaluated immunization and screening for HBV vaccination, assessed post-vaccination immune status of HCW's and characterized potential risk factors associated with poor immune response.From January 2010 to December 2018, we retrospectively analyzed comprehensive health checkup data for a total of 303 HCWs who received an HBV vaccination. After vaccination, HBV surface antibody (anti-HBs) titers were collected and the distribution of immune response types was determined. Risk factors for poor immune responses were identified using logistic regression.A total of 213 HCWs were analyzed after exclusion based on the exclusion criteria. In total, 28 (13.2%) HCWs had anti-HBs titers100 mIU/mL (hyporesponsive/nonresponsive groups), and 185 (86.8%) had anti-HBs titers ≥100 mIU/mL (hyperresponsive group). Follow-up observations found that 75% (21/28) of the hyporesponsive/nonresponsive groups did not have increased anti-HBs titers or did not maintain an increased response. A multivariate analysis showed that HBV antibody titers at the time of employment were a significant risk factor (OR, 6.12; CI, 1.34-27.93; P = 0.019).More attention should be paid to groups that are hyporesponsive/nonresponsive after vaccination and to those with low anti-HBs titers at the beginning of employment. HCWs can be further protected from HBV if their results are discussed at postvaccination follow-ups.

Key-value stores are widely used as storage backends, due to their simple, yet flexible interface for cache, storage, file system, and database systems. However, when used with high performance NVMe devices, their high compute requirements for data management often leave the device bandwidth under-utilized. This leads to a performance mismatch of what the device is capable of delivering and what it actually delivers, and the gains derived from high speed NVMe devices is nullified. In this paper, we introduce KV-SSD (Key-Value SSD) as a key technology in a holistic approach to overcome such performance imbalance. KV-SSD provides better scalability and performance by simplifying the software storage stack and consolidating redundancy, thereby lowering the overall CPU usage and releasing the memory to user applications. We evaluate the performance and scalability of KV-SSDs over state-of-the-art software alternatives built for traditional block SSDs. Our results show that, unlike traditional key-value systems, the overall performance ofKV-SSD scales linearly, and delivers 1.6 to 57x gains depending on the workload characteristics.

This paper presents YourSQL , a database system that accelerates data-intensive queries with the help of additional in-storage computing capabilities. YourSQL realizes very early filtering of data by offloading data scanning of a query to user-programmable solid-state drives. We implement our system on a recent branch of MariaDB (a variant of MySQL). In order to quantify the performance gains of YourSQL, we evaluate SQL queries with varying complexities. Our result shows that YourSQL reduces the execution time of the whole TPC-H queries by 3.6×, compared to a vanilla system. Moreover, the average speed-up of the five TPC-H queries with the largest performance gains reaches over 15×. Thanks to this significant reduction of execution time, we observe sizable energy savings. Our study demonstrates that the YourSQL approach, combining the power of early filtering with end-to-end datapath optimization, can accelerate large-scale analytic queries with lower energy consumption.

Background Fluoroquinolones are a popular alternative to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole for Stenotrophomonas maltophilia infections. Objectives To compare the effects of fluoroquinolones and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole on mortality of S. maltophilia infections. Data sources PubMed and EMBASE. Study eligibility criteria Clinical studies reporting mortality outcomes of S. maltophilia infections. Participants Patients with clinical infections caused by S. maltophilia. Interventions Fluoroquinolone monotherapy in comparison with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole monotherapy. Methods Systematic review with meta-analysis technique. Results Seven retrospective cohort and seven case–control studies were included. Three cohort studies were designed to compare the two drugs, whereas others had other purposes. A total of 663 patients were identified, 332 of which were treated with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (50.1%) and 331 with fluoroquinolones (49.9%). Three cohort studies were designed to compare the effect of the two drugs, whereas the others had other purposes. Levofloxacin was most frequently used among fluoroquinolones (187/331, 56.5%), followed by ciprofloxacin (114/331, 34.4%). The overall mortality rate was 29.6%. Using pooled ORs for the mortality of each study, fluoroquinolone treatment (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.39–0.99) was associated with survival benefit over trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole treatment, with low heterogeneity (I2 = 18%). Specific fluoroquinolones such as ciprofloxacin (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.17–1.12) and levofloxacin (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.48–1.26) did not show a significant difference in comparison with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. In the sub-group analyses of adult and bacteraemic patients, significant differences in mortality were not observed between fluoroquinolones and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Conclusions Based on a meta-analysis of non-randomized studies, fluoroquinolones demonstrated comparable effects on mortality of S. maltophilia infection to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, supporting the use of fluoroquinolones in clinical S. maltophilia infections. Although the pooled analysis of overall studies favoured fluoroquinolones over trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, the studies included were observational, and sub-group analyses of certain fluoroquinolone agents did not show statistical differences with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Randomized clinical studies are needed to address these issues.

In a memory hierarchy, there are various classes of memory systems depending on the access latency. A typical memory hierarchy consists of a CPU cache, DRAM, and an SSD or HDD. The DRAM has an access latency of 100ns, while flash memory has a latency of about 50μs [1]. Recently, new non-volatile memories with latencies of less than 10μs, including PRAM, MRAM, and ReRAM [2], are getting attention for business-critical systems such as big-data analysis and storage caches. To meet the low latency requirements, a new type of NAND flash, Z-NAND, with a read time (t R ) of 3μs has also been introduced [3]. Figure 20.2.1 shows a feature comparison between Z-NAND and conventional 3D NAND [4,5]. The Z-NAND achieves a read time of 3μs, which is 15–20 times faster than conventional NAND. Write throughput reaches up to 160MB/s with a 100μs program time. To further minimize read latency, I/O circuit support a DDR interface for both x8 and x16 mode. To take full advantage of such low-latency memory devices, reduction of memory access overhead is necessary. In this paper, we introduce an NVMe SSD controller which leverages the advantages of the low-latency NAND and enables the reduction of total memory access time, thereby minimizing overall system latency.

Microstructural characterization and aging hardening behaviors of a new designed Ti-12.1Mo-1Fe alloy during solution treatment and aging were investigated in the present study. It is well known that when β-Ti alloys are generally under solution treatment or aging, α phases and ω phases appear or disappear dependent on heat treatment temperature and holding time. It is very necessary to understand the phase transformation phenomenon and to control the microstructure because these phases can control the drastic changes of the mechanical and physical properties of these alloys. According to the calculated [Mo]eq value and the microstructural observation, the β-transus temperature was about 780°. After the solution treatment, this alloy was composed of the β-phase and the microstructure mainly consisted of the equiaxed β grains with the average size of 25 μm. ω phases which were precipitated during aging process, played a more important role to the hardening effect than α phases. The highest hardness value of Ti-12.1Mo-1Fe alloy showed in the condition of the aging temperature of 450°. The hardening due to ω-phase precipitation can lead to a high hardness about 480 Hv but the coarse α-phase result in hardness below 300 Hv.

Among moulding methods, hot press moulding refers to heating the material up to the melting point and then moulding it. The difference in flow velocity separates the material from the matrix, and the displacement difference causes fibre orientation. As a result, the material becomes heterogeneous and anisotropic, and the changes affect the mechanical properties of moulded product. The properties naturally depend on the property of the matrix and yet on the structure of the fibre that forms the matrix. Until now, there has been no study on the effect of the mould temperature on the fibre separation and orientation in compression moulding of fibre reinforced thermoplastic composites, which is the objective this study was intended to address. The mould temperature was varied and the heterogeneity of moulded product and the fibre orientation was examined. The fibre orientation function increased when the mould temperature was higher and the compression ratio was larger. The degree of heterogeneity in a moulde...

Combine harvester is one of the most needed agricultural machinery by farmers as it is increasingly difficult to find harvest worker. To develop the machine, Department of Agriculture and Biosystem Engineering collaborated with AGM Systems & Engineering to test the DSF75GT type combine harvester machine. The preliminary test shows that the machine performance is not optimal, especially when it is viewed from the grain damage percentage during the harvesting process. Based on the process, the harvesting principle of the machine includes the stages of cutting, feeding, threshing, and moving the grain from the threshing unit to the grain tank, and finally with unloading stage. Process to grain transfer with screw conveyor system is suspected to be the cause of grain damage. For this reason, this study aims to determine the machine parts which potentially contribute to the grain damage. The test was carried out in laboratory with two sample, i.e. harvested grain samples (GKP) and milled dry grain (GKG). The sample was inserted in to the threshing chamber which is then transferred by screw conveyor to the grain tank before being removed. Observation of the grain damage is carried out at 5 points on the screw conveyors. The results showed that there were 3 screws which contribute significantly to grain damage. From the result, the next step focuses on modification of the parts.

The objective of this study was to present the development of GPS-based tracking system to evaluate the effectiveness of tillage using a four-wheel tractor. The system is composed of a location acquisition, using GPS (iGPSport), and data analysis for estimating the tractor trajectories and effectiveness of tillage by measuring the overlap during the tillage. The laboratory stage experiment was conducted to validate the system by measuring the specified size of the field and tractor trajectories. The performance evaluation of the system was done by measuring the displacement error of actual trajectories and the estimated one. The system was also tested for the actual tillage operation using a four-wheel tractor, Daedong Kioti RX7210, in two locations in Yogyakarta: Pajangan, and Moyudan. The tractor tracking system was developed based on GPS for estimating the tractor trajectory path and operation width distance (l) after the operation as tillage effectiveness evaluation by the evaluation of overlap and untillage land systematically using the tracking system. The system performance evaluation in the actual field for tillage operation using the four-wheel tractor in Moyudan and Pajangan shows that the RMSE < 50 cm, and the MAPE < 24% with R2 > 0.7. Overall performance of the tracking system, it could be used to estimate the behavior of tillage operation.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Life-threatening bleeding in the head and neck requires urgent management. This study evaluated the angiographic findings related to head and neck bleeding and presents endovascular management techniques. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty-one consecutive patients who presented with acute bleeding in the head and neck areas and subsequently underwent endovascular therapy between January 2002 and October 2012 were included in our study. We evaluated the angiographic findings, techniques, and results of endovascular management. RESULTS: Contrast leakage ( n = 10), pseudoaneurysm ( n = 20), or both ( n = 10) were the most common life-threatening angiographic findings (66%) and were the foci of immediate embolization or endoluminal vessel reconstruction. Seventeen patients (28%) had hypervascular staining of the tumor or mucosa, and 4 patients (6%) did not have any abnormal findings. The acute bleeding was successfully controlled by endovascular management according to the bleeding foci. Carotid arterial lesions, so-called “carotid blowout,” required reconstructive or deconstructive therapy. Bleeding of the external carotid artery required specific branch embolization by a combination of various embolic materials. No procedure-related complications occurred except in 1 patient who experienced acute infarction caused by thromboemboli from the covered stent. Seventeen patients (28%) were retreated due to rebleeding after the mean 20-month follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Contrast leakage or a pseudoaneurysm or both seen on angiography are active bleeding foci and targets for therapy in patients with acute bleeding in the head and neck area. Despite different bleeding-control strategies according to vessel involvement, endovascular treatment is safe and effective for controlling hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Acute occlusion of the ICA is often associated with poor outcomes and severe neurologic deficits. This study was conducted to evaluate outcome of the occluded ICA and efficacy of recanalization under protective flow arrest. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty consecutive patients who underwent endovascular treatment for acute ICA occlusion were identified from the prospectively collected data base. We assessed NIHSS(o), occlusion type (cardioembolism vs atherosclerosis), occlusion level (supraclinoid-terminal, petrocavernous, or bulb-cervical), recanalization degree (TICI), and efficacy of recanalization (protective flow arrest vs nonprotection) leading to better outcome. RESULTS: Successful recanalization (TICI ≥ 2) was obtained in 90% of patients and good recovery (mRS ≤ 2) in 60% of patients. Good outcome was related to National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score on admission (P < .001), TICI (P < .007), occlusion type (P = .022), and occlusion level (P = .038). Poor initial patient status, less recanalization, cardioembolism, and supraclinoid-terminal occlusion were associated with poor prognosis. Application of protective flow arrest led to better outcome in the distal ICA segment than in the bulb-cervical segment. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to the initial patient status and successful recanalization, the occlusion level or type of the occluded ICA could affect clinical outcome. In this study, treatment benefits of protective flow arrest were accentuated in patients with ICA occlusion above the bulb-cervical segment.

SUMMARY: Vertebral artery recanalization in symptomatic stenosis/occlusion remains controversial, as no definite evidence exists regarding this topic. There are only a few reports regarding the feasibility and safety of recanalization in the first segment of the vertebral artery with atherosclerotic vertebral ostial occlusion. We report our experience treating first segment occlusion in 8 patients and present a balloon protection technique used to reduce the thromboembolic burden during the stent placement procedure. The outcome at 3 months showed an mRS ≤2 except for a patient with a poor initial status with basilar artery occlusion. Revascularization of a rather long first segment occlusion is technically feasible and can be safely performed by use of embolic protection methods.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of feeding duration of diets containing corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) on productive performance, egg quality, and lutein and zeaxanthin concentrations of egg yolk in laying hens. A total of 300 57-week-old Hy-Line Brown laying hens were randomly assigned to one of 5 treatment groups (feeding duration) with 6 replicates consisting of 5 consecutive cages with 2 hens per cage. Diets were formulated to contain either 0% (the control diet) or 20% DDGS. Experimental diets were fed to hens for 12 wk. The feeding duration of diets containing 20% DDGS was 0, 3, 6, 9, or 12 wk before the conclusion of the experiment. Feeding the diet containing 20% DDGS for 3, 6, or 9 wk followed feeding the control diet for 9, 6, or 3 wk, respectively. The data for productive performance were summarized for 12 wk of the feeding trial. Results indicated that increasing feeding duration of diets containing 20% DDGS had no effects on productive performance of laying hens, but increased egg yolk color (linear, P

In injection moulded products using fibre reinforced plastics, weld line was unavoidable due to mould shaping factors such as the position and size and number of mould gates. The weld line leads to fibre orientation perpendicular to resin flow direction, sudden reduction of the reinforcement effect and consequently degrading of the mechanical properties of moulded products. Until now, there has been no research on the measurement of fibre orientation in the weld line using image processing. Using the image processing method, the fibre orientation distribution of weld line in injection moulded products was assessed. The effects of fibre content and injection mould gate conditions on the fibre orientation were also discussed.

In preparation for a clinical trial on the efficacy of Echinacea products with a pediatric population, a rational method for selection of test products was developed, based on phytochemical and bioassay evaluation. Ten currently available commercial products of Echinacea angustifolia (EA) or Echinacea purpurea (EP) were selected, and 3 bottles of each of 2 different lots were purchased for each product. Investigators were blinded to product identity before phytochemical analysis. Lot-to-lot variation was small, but product variation due to species and formulation was large. Products derived from ethanol extracts had low polysaccharide content and high levels of alkamides (EA), echinacoside (EA), cynarin (EA), cichoric acid (EP), and caftaric acid (EP). These products possessed high antiviral activities that differed between EA and EP products, but limited immune activation properties. In contrast, products derived without ethanol extraction had higher polysaccharide levels, but low levels of other components. These aqueous compounds showed immunostimulant activity as measured in a mouse macrophage model and a somewhat different antiviral profile. The choice of Echinacea product for clinical trial must therefore consider the impact of immune enhancement, the specific viral infection targeted, and the potential to reduce symptoms via antiinflammatory activity. Product selection may also depend on whether the intent of the trial is prophylaxis or treatment.

Buckwheat has been considered a functional health-improving pseudocereal grain throughout large areas of Eurasia, North America, South Africa, and Australia. Buckwheat is generally classified into common and Tartary buckwheat. Common buckwheat is self-incompatible while Tartary buckwheat is capable of self-pollination to some extent. In addition, the sprouts of Tartary buckwheat possess higher amounts of rutin, showing a strong antioxidant compound, than common buckwheat. Besides rutin, buckwheat contains plentiful quantities of functional metabolites for possible use in medicinal foods. The currently available buckwheat genomic information (proteome sequences), although incomplete, enables us to understand seed physiology, allowing improvements in the production and quality of buckwheat grains. In this review, we present previously published buckwheat proteomic studies, initially performed using gel-based and shotgun proteomic approaches. The challenges and perspectives of future buckwheat biochemical study will be addressed in light of the current advanced proteomic technologies.

The present study is concerned with effects of microstructural factors such as distribution and fraction of coarse carbides located along solidification cell boundaries and characteristics of tempered martensitic matrix on fracture properties of five high speed steel (HSS) rolls manufactured by a centrifugal casting method. In situ microfracture observation, fracture toughness measurement and fractographic observation were conducted on these rolls to clarify fracture mechanisms. The in situ observation results indicated that coarse carbides located along cell boundaries provided easy intercellular fracture sites under a low stress intensity factor level. In the rolls whose intercellular carbide fraction and matrix hardness were high, fracture easily occurred under a low stress intensity factor. On the contrary, in the rolls where a small amount of intercellular carbides was distributed on the relatively ductile matrix of lath tempered martensite, the fracture path was accompanied by a considerable...

To investigate the role of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations in Korean patients with sporadic breast cancer, 793 breast cancer patients were analyzed by denaturing high performance liquid chromatography and direct sequencing. The 793 breast cancer patients enrolled in this study had no family history of affected first- or second-degree relatives with breast and/or ovarian cancer. Seventy-nine different sequence variations were identified, of which 34 were novel. Fifteen deleterious mutations were detected in 20 out of 793 patients (2.5%): 11 frameshift mutations and 4 nonsense mutations (seven in BRCA1 and eight in BRCA2), and no recurrent or founder mutations were observed in BRCA mutation screening. However, three mutations (K467X, 3972delTGAG, and R2494X in BRCA2) were identified in other studies of the Korean population. Of 793 patients, the clinicopathological information was obtained in 135 patients, who included 20 deleterious mutation-positive and 115 deleterious mutation-negative groups. The median age at diagnosis, histologic type, histologic grade and T stage did not show statistically significant difference between these two groups. BRCA-mutation-associated tumors showed lower estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER-2/neu but higher p53 expression. Although poor prognostic features were noted in BRCA-associated tumors, we did not find statistically significant differences. The present study will be helpful in the evaluation of the need for the genetic screening of germline BRCA mutations and reliable genetic counseling for sporadic breast cancer patients.

Hot deformation behavior of a carbon steel (A350 LF2) was characterized by compression tests in the temperature range of and the strain rate range of , The microstructural evolution during hot compression was investigated and deformation mechanisms were analyzed by constructing a deformation processing map. Processing maps were generated using the combination of dynamic material model (DMM) and flow instability theories based on the flow stability criteria and Ziegler`s instability criterion. In order to evaluate the reliability of the map, the mirostructural characteristics of the hot compressed specimens were correlated with test conditions in the stable and unstable regime. The combined microstructural and processing map of A350 LF2 was applied to predict an optimum condition and unstable regions for hot forming.

In this paper, a new filter structure with the interacting multiple model (IMM) algorithm for estimating both the radome slope and target states is suggested to reduce the radome induced miss distance effectively in active homing engagements of a surface-to-air missile. The proposed filter in conjunction with proportional navigation guidance is tested by a series of simulation runs in three-dimensional engagement scenarios. Simulation results show that the proposed filter structure stabilizes the missile system and gives allowable miss distance in case of large incident lag that may cause system instability in the presence of the radome slope.

There is an ever increasing range of shielding gases, which vary from the pure gases to complex mixtures based on argon, helium, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. The commercially available gas mixtures should be considered in terms of their suitability for ensuring arc and metal transfer stability, performance, and weld quality. The objective of the present paper is to study the toughness of Al5083–O aluminium alloy, to evaluate the variation of welding zone toughness as a function of the shielding gas composition and the testing temperature. To achieve these objectives, gas metal arc welding was performed with four different shielding gas compositions (100%Ar−0%He, 67%Ar+33%He, 50%Ar−50%He, and 33%Ar+67%He), and tests were carried out at four different temperatures, namely,+25°C (+77°F), −30°C (−22°F), −85°C (−121°F), and −196°C (−321°F). The welding zone was divided into four subzones for analysis, namely, weld metal, fusion line, heat affected zone, and base metal according to the notch position. Te...

Effects of culture medium supplements and osmotic stress treatment on embryogenic callus induction andsomatic embryogenesis were investigated in order to optimize tissue culture conditions of alfalfa( Medicagosativa L.). SH medium containing 5mg/L 2,4-D and 0.2mg/L kinetin was optimal for embryogenic callusinduction from cotyledon tissue of alfalfa. Somatic embryos were formed when the embryogenic callus wascultured on SH medium supplemented with 1mg/L 2,4-D and 2mg/L BA. Supplementation of 5mM L-pro-line and 1g/L casein hydrolysate into the regeneration medium further increased plant regenerationfrequency. Osmotic stress treatment of callus appeared to improve the frequency of somatic embryo for-mation, but the frequency of somatic embryo formation differed by the osmotic stress treatment using dif-ferent osmotic stressors. The highest plant regeneration frequency of 30.7% was observed when embryogeniccallus was treated with 0.7M sucrose for 18h. Efficient regeneration system established in this study will beuseful for molecular breeding of alfalfa through genetic transformation.

Effects of crystalline particles formed in the strip cast Zr-base bulk metallic glass (BMG) alloy on ductility and strength were investigated in this study by directly observing microfracture processes. The compressive and fracture toughness test results indicated that ductility, strength, and fracture toughness of the strip cast BMG alloy were higher than those of the die cast monolithic BMG alloy, although the strip cast alloy contained a considerable amount (4.5 vol.%) of hard, brittle crystalline particles. The improvement of mechanical properties in the strip cast BMG alloy could be plausibly explained by mechanisms of (1) blocking of shear bands or crack propagation, (2) formation of multiple shear bands, and (3) crack deflection by crystalline particles.

Summary Background: Recently, echinacea has regained popularity as one of the treatments chosen most commonly by consumers with the expectation that it will reduce the severity and duration of the common cold. However, the results from a limited number of clinical trials for this application have thus far been inconclusive. This incongruity may be the result of investigators utilizing poorly standardized echinacea products, likely devoid of sufficient quantities of active constituents necessary to exert a definitive clinical effect. Therefore, a formulation containing alkamides, cichoric acid, and polysaccharides at concentrations of 0·25, 2·5, and 25 mg/mL, respectively, was prepared from freshly harvested Echinacea purpurea plants (commercially available as Echinilin, Natural Factors Nutritional Products, Inc., Vancouver, BC, Canada). The objective of this study was to test the efficacy of this highly standardized formulation in reducing the severity and duration of symptoms of a naturally acquired common cold. Methods: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 282 subjects aged 18–65 years with a history of two or more colds in the previous year, but otherwise in good health, were recruited. The subjects were randomized to receive either echinacea or placebo. They were instructed to start the echinacea or placebo at the onset of the first symptom related to a cold, consuming 10 doses the first day and four doses per day on subsequent days for 7 days. Severity of symptoms (10-point scale: 0, minimum; 9, maximum) and dosing were recorded daily. A nurse examined the subjects on the mornings of days 3 and 8 of their cold. Results: A total of 128 subjects contracted a common cold (59 echinacea, 69 placebo). The total daily symptom scores were found to be 23·1% lower in the echinacea group than in placebo in those who followed all elements of the study protocol (P

Aims: To investigate changes in the bacterial population and the safety of the biofilm at the end of the drinking water distribution system in Seoul (Korea), selective media and bacterial community analyses were applied to a semi-pilot galvanized iron pipe (GIP) model. Methods and Results: No total coliforms or faecal streptococci were detected on m-Endo or m-Enterococcus agar. No Salmonella spp. and Shigella spp. were detected on bismuth sulphite agar or Hektoen enteric agar, respectively. The latter two media detected coliforms, where m-Endo was negative. Biofilm formation started within 1 week (ca 104 CFU cm−2) and exceeded 105 CFU cm−2 within 6 weeks. Although the fatty acid methyl ester analysis revealed dynamic changes in bacterial composition, Micrococcus, Bacillus, and Pseudomonas spp. were persistent members of the biofilm community. Micrococcus spp. was detected most frequently and in high numbers. Conclusions: Coliforms and Enterococcus species can be recovered from biofilms in water distribution systems. Significance and Impact of the Study: This study illustrates the role of biofilms in the chronic deterioration of the water-distribution system in Seoul (Korea).

The box system that consists of reinforced concrete walls and slabs is adopted for many high-rise apartment buildings recently constructed. In an apartment building, shear walls may have one or more openings for functional reasons. Some researches on the analysis of shear wall with openings were performed, but some restrictions prevent those research results from being applied to the practical analysis and design procedure. It is necessary to use fine mesh finite element models for an accurate analysis of a box system structure with openings. But it would take a significant amount of computational time and memory if the entire building structure were subdivided into a finer mesh. An efficient analysis method that can be used regardless of the number, size and location of openings is proposed in this study. The analysis method uses super elements developed using the matrix condensation technique. Static and dynamic analyses of example structures having various types of openings were performed to verify the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method. The analyses of example structures demonstrated that the proposed method can be used for the analysis of a shear wall structure with openings. Outstanding accuracy in analysis could be achieved with drastically reduced computational time and memory.

The zygomatic arch fracture is one of the most common facial bone fractures. Especially the isolated zygomatic arch fracture is usually repaired via Gillies' approach. But in the case of unstable zygomatic arch fracture, we need an additional step for stabilising the unstable zygomatic arch segment after repositioning the fractured segment. For the stabilising method we use the ballooned Foley catheter on the medial side of the zygomatic arch in the zygomaticotemporal fossa. This method is of assistance to the patient who has a zygomatic arch fracture with comminution or an old patient with weak and torn periosteum. In this study, we achieved a good result and we will introduce this simple method as one of alternatives of stabilising tool.

A three-node flat triangular element incorporating layerwise zig-zag theory is developed that is suitable for analyzing damped laminated composite structures. By the use of an interdependent kinematic relation, the higher-order shear rotations are replaced by in-plane displacements, a transverse displacement, and section rotations, which result in three translations and two rotations. Natural frequencies and modal loss factors of cantilevered laminated plates with embedded damping layers are calculated with the zig-zag triangular element and compared to the experimental results and MSC/NASTRAN results using a layered combination of plate and solid elements. Frequencies and corresponding loss factors of symmetric and antisymmetric damped laminated cantilever plates as a function of fiber angle are also calculated.

Expression of alkaline phosphatase(ALP)activity represents a key event during the differentiation processes of osteoblasts, and the level of ALP activity has been routinely used as a relative measure of differentiation stages of osteoblasts. In human osteoblasts, we showed that vitamin D3 analogue, 1,25(OH)2D3, had a stimulatory effect on ALP activity after 3 days, compared with control. The treatment of PD098059, an ERK MAP Kinase inhibitor, had a reducing effect on ALP activity, a differentiation marker in 1,25(OH)2D3-treated primary human osteoblasts. However, SB203580, a potent p38 MAP Kinase inhibitor, had no effect on the differentiation in this system. This indicates that ERK, not p38, is directly related to 1,25(OH)2D3-stimulated ALP activity in primary human osteoblasts. These results also show that the vitamin D3 analogue stimulates ERK1 activation in primary human osteoblasts. This finding provides one of signaling pathways for differentiation in primary human osteoblasts.

The alpha-helical antibiotic peptide (P18: KWKLFKKIPKFLHLAKKF-NH2) designed from the cecropin A(1-8)-magainin 2 (1-12) hybrid displayed strong bactericidal and tumoricidal activity without inducing hemolysis. The effect of the Pro9 residue at central position of P18 on cell selectivity was investigated by Pro9 --> Leu or Pro9 --> Ser substitution. Either substitution markedly reduced the antibacterial activity of P18 and increased hemolysis, although it did not significantly affect cytotoxicity against human transformed tumor and normal fibroblast cells. These results suggest that a proline kink in alpha-helical antibiotic peptide P18 serves as a hinge region to facilitate ion channel formation on bacterial cell membranes and thus plays an important role in providing high selectivity against bacterial cells. Furthermore, to investigate the structure-antibiotic activity relationships of P18, a series of N- or C-terminal deletion and substitution analogs of P18 were synthesized. The C-terminal region of P18 was related to its antibiotic activity and alpha-helical conformation on lipid membranes rather than N-terminal one. Higher alpha-helicity of the peptides was involved in the hemolytic and antitumor activity rather than antibacterial activity. Except for [L9]-P18 and [S9]-P18, all the designed peptides containing a Pro residue showed potent antibacterial activity, although they did not induce a cytolytic effect against human erythrocyte and normal fibroblast cells at the concentration required to kill bacteria. In particular, P18 and some analogs (N-1, N-2, N-3, N-3L and N-4L) with potent bactericidal and tumoricidal activity and little or no normal cell toxicity may serve as an attractive candidate for the development of novel anti-infective or antitumor agents.

Soft-x-ray emission from a cryogenically cooled Ne jet irradiated by intense, 25-fs laser pulses was measured. The Ne spectrum started to drastically change in emitting ions from Ne5+ to Ne7+ below the preexpansion temperature of -120 degrees C. The significant change in the spectrum is attributed to the collisional heating of small-sized Ne clusters formed in the cooled jet. The increase of the laser pulse length from 25 fs to 100 fs resulted in further increase of x-ray emission from Ne7+ states.

The type of immune response generated following exposure to Ag depends on a variety of factors, including the nature of the Ag, the type of adjuvant used, the site of antigenic entry, and the immune status of the host. We have previously shown that infection of rodents with Nippostrongylus brasiliensis (Nb) shifts the development of type 1 allo-specific responses toward type 2 immunity, suggesting nematode modulation of T cell activation. In this report we explore the immunomodulatory effects of Nb on T cell activation. We found that spleen cells from Nb-infected mice exhibited dramatically increased proliferation in response to Con A and anti-CD3. This hyperproliferation could be transferred in vitro to naive splenocytes by coculture with mitomycin C-treated cells from Nb-infected animals. The transfer was mediated by non-T accessory cells and supernatants derived from Con A-activated non-T cells, suggesting the involvement of a soluble factor secreted by accessory cells. The accessory cells secreted high levels of IL-6, and anti-IL-6 treatment abrogated the supernatant-induced hyperproliferation, thus confirming that IL-6 was mediating the effect. Further, spleen cells from Nb-infected mice were more resistant to activation-induced cell death (AICD) following mitogenic stimulation. Reduced AICD was also transferable and IL-6 dependent. Thus, the hyperproliferation was in part due to enhanced activated T cell survival. These phenomena mediated by accessory cells may contribute to the powerful polyclonal activation of type 2 immunity caused by nematode infection.

Strains of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae that are virulent to rice lines carrying the Xa21 resistance gene were widely distributed in Korea. A total of 105 strains collected during 1987 to 1996 in Korea was characterized by pathogenicity tests and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the XorII methyltransferase (xorIIM) and avrXa10 genes. Although the lesion lengths on rice line IRBB21, which carries Xa21, decreased as plant age increased, resistance and susceptibility of the plants to 31 strains were clearly differentiated at the seedling (14, 21, and 28 days old), maximum tillering, and flag leaf stages. The resistance or susceptibility of seedlings was correlated with bacterial populations within an inoculated leaf. There was a significant change in the population structure of X. oryzae pv. oryzae with regard to virulence to Xa21 over the last 10 years; this change in population was confirmed by genome analysis. Lineage I, which is avirulent to Xa21 and does not have a genomic xorIIM homolog, was the predominant lineage found between 1987 and 1989, while lineage II, which is virulent to Xa21 and contains the xorIIM homolog, was predominant in strains collected between 1994 and 1995. Our results demonstrate that introduction of Xa21 into commercial rice should be based on the regional structure of X. oryzae pv. oryzae populations and suggest that Xa21 will not be useful in Korea.