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The Aiza research area covers over 650 km2 of the northern Adriatic offshore, a common Adriatic foreland of the older Dinarides on the NE, and the younger Apennines on the SW. High-quality 3D reflection seismic data were used to investigate the area's Mesozoic to Cenozoic tectono-stratigraphic evolution. Four main seismo-stratigraphical horizons were recognized: Base of Carbonate Platform (BCP), Top of Carbonate Platform (TCP), Messinian Erosional Surface (MES), and a Plio-Quaternary horizon (PlQh), as well as the dominant faults. The results depict the geological setting and tectonic evolution of the area. A long-lasting (Jurassic to Cretaceous) stable NW-SE striking platform margin evolved probably along the inherited Triassic normal fault. The marginal belt of the platform was affected during the Late Cretaceous to Palaeogene by extension and opening of the intra-platform basin, probably on the southern limb of the then developing Dinaric forebulge. The transverse fault system (Kvarner fault) was probably reactivated as a strike-slip zone during the late Miocene tectonic reorganization. The area was tilted to the SW during the Pliocene, in the distal foreland of the progressively northward propagating Northern Apennines. Sub-horizontal late Quaternary cover of Dinaric and Apenninic structures could imply active subsidence of the foreland in between nowadays sub-vertically exhuming neighboring orogenic belts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background of the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) resonance splitting by millimeter-wave radiation was investigated and so were calculated frequencies and amplitudes of radiation transitions between Rydberg states in alkaline earth atoms of IIA group elements, which are necessary for precise measurements of electric field magnitude at millimeter-wave (mmw) frequencies. Numerical values of the frequencies and matrix elements are approximated by asymptotic polynomials and tabulated for dipole transitions between singlet nS, nP, nD, and nF states with large values of principal quantum number n. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delusional infestation (DI) is a rare psychiatric disorder characterized by a persistent false belief that one is infected with nonliving or living pathogens, usually accompanied by formication. Other psychotic features, such as disorganized speech or hallucinations unrelated to the core delusion itself, are never present, and the delusional belief does not extend into other areas of life. Secondary DI, when one needs to address the underlying condition in order to achieve adequate treatment, is also possible. We present the case of a 42-year-old male with a 2-year history of having a persistent and firm belief that his house was infested with tiny insects that were constantly biting him and laying their eggs under his skin. His delusional belief was preceded by a complex, years-long substance use disorder, which confronted us with a differential diagnostic dilemma between primary and secondary DI. He was successfully treated with olanzapine pamoate depot, which was introduced to address his lack of insight and unsatisfactory compliance, and his delusion faded away after his symptoms subsided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proof for the lower bound is provided for the smallest eigenvalue of finite element equations with arbitrary conforming simplicial meshes. The bound has a similar form to the one by Graham and McLean [SIAM J. Numer. Anal., 44 (2006), pp. 1487-1513] but doesn't require any mesh regularity assumptions, neither global nor local. In particular, it is valid for highly adaptive, anisotropic, or nonregular meshes without any restrictions. In three and more dimensions, the bound depends only on the number of degrees of freedom N and the Hölder mean M1-d/2(|ῶ|/|ωi|) taken to the power 1-2/d, |ῶ| and |ωi| denoting the average mesh patch volume and the volume of the patch corresponding to the ith mesh node, respectively. In two dimensions, the bound depends on the number of degrees of freedom N and the logarithmic term (1 + |ln(Af|ωmin|)|), |ωmin| denoting the volume of the smallest patch. Provided numerical examples demonstrate that the bound is more accurate and less dependent on the mesh nonuniformity than the previously available bounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First evaluations of the blackbody-radiation (BBR)-induced shift and broadening of highly excited Rydberg states were based on the account of only the first term of the expansion for the Planck's distribution in powers of the ratio of the BBR-photon energy to the environmental thermal energy. The corresponding asymptotic expression for the shift is proportional to a sum rule for the oscillator strengths, which is identical for all states, independently of their principal and angular-momentum quantum numbers. The broadening appeared proportional to the sum of the oscillator-strength first moments, which is dependent on only the principal quantum number, being independent of the state's angular momentum. In this article, we demonstrate that the account of higher-order terms of the Planck's distribution expansion provides corrections revealing the dependence of asymptotic shift and broadening on the Rydberg-state principal and angular-momentum quantum numbers. The strongest corrections are observed for states with low angular momenta, in agreement with earlier performed numerical calculations. Sum rules for higher moments of oscillator strengths are used for evaluating the corrections for the BBR-induced broadening and shift of Rydberg-state energy levels in neutral atoms and ions of arbitrary nuclear charge Z. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unlike other schemes that locally violate the essential stability properties of the analytic parabolic and elliptic problems, Voronoi finite volume methods (FVM) and boundary conforming Delaunay meshes provide good approximation of the geometry of a problem and are able to preserve the essential qualitative properties of the solution for any given resolution in space and time as well as changes in time scales of multiple orders of magnitude. This work provides a brief description of the essential and useful properties of the Voronoi FVM, application examples, and a motivation why Voronoi FVM deserve to be used more often in practice than they are currently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitochondria of many living species internalize nuclear DNA-encoded ribonucleic acids. The pools of imported RNA molecules, as well as fine mechanisms of these processes, are highly species-specific. To date, baker's yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae are the best studied in this regard. Moreover, the processes of yeast RNA mitochondrial import have been the basis of modeling several gene therapy strategies aimed to palliate negative effects of pathogenic mutations in human mitochondrial DNA. In this review, we summarize our current knowledge about the molecular events taking place in course of yeast RNA import into mitochondria. Also, we describe how this process can be used for compensation of pathogenic mutations in mitochondrial genomes of humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analytical expressions for spontaneous and induced by blackbody radiation energy shifts and widths of atomic circular states are derived. The features of asymptotic behavior of the total width and energy shifts for highly excited Rydberg circular states in the blackbody radiation field are described. Approximate equations are proposed for simple evaluations of energy characteristics and an absence of temperature-independent spontaneous contribution to the total energy width in a range of high temperatures and principal quantum numbers is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given a tetrahedral mesh and objective functionals measuring the mesh quality which take into account the shape, size, and orientation of the mesh elements, our aim is to improve the mesh quality as much as possible. In this paper, we combine the moving mesh smoothing , based on the integration of an ordinary differential equation coming from a given functional, with the lazy flip technique, a reversible edge removal algorithm to modify the mesh connectivity. Moreover, we utilize radial basis function (RBF) surface reconstruction to improve tetrahedral meshes with curved boundary surfaces. Numerical tests show that the combination of these techniques into a mesh improvement framework achieves results which are comparable and even better than the previously reported ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The moving mesh PDE (MMPDE) method for variational mesh generation and adaptation is studied theoretically at the discrete level, in particular the nonsingularity of the obtained meshes. Meshing functionals are discretized geometrically and the MMPDE is formulated as a modified gradient system of the corresponding discrete functionals for the location of mesh vertices. It is shown that if the meshing functional satisfies a coercivity condition, then the mesh of the semi-discrete MMPDE is nonsingular for all time if it is nonsingular initially. Moreover, the altitudes and volumes of its elements are bounded below by positive numbers depending only on the number of elements, the metric tensor, and the initial mesh. Furthermore, the value of the discrete meshing functional is convergent as time increases, which can be used as a stopping criterion in computation. Finally, the mesh trajectory has limiting meshes which are critical points of the discrete functional. The convergence of the mesh trajectory can be guaranteed when a stronger condition is placed on the meshing functional. Two meshing functionals based on alignment and equidistribution are known to satisfy the coercivity condition. The results also hold for fully discrete systems of the MMPDE provided that the time step is sufficiently small and a numerical scheme preserving the property of monotonically decreasing energy is used for the temporal discretization of the semi-discrete MMPDE. Numerical examples are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rationale: Experienced primary care physicians handle most illnesses to everyone's satisfaction despite limited resources of time and means. However, cases can be multifaceted in that harmless‐presenting symptoms may also be warning signals or an indicator of a health disorder that too infrequently presents in family practice to be diagnosed correctly. On the basis of these observations, RN Braun developed 82 diagnostic protocols for a structured recording of various complaints. Method: All consultations during the years 2001 to 2014, in which 1 author (WF) had used diagnostic protocols in her single‐handed practice, were analyzed retrospectively regarding reasons for encounter, diagnostic classification, and long‐term outcome. Results: During the period, a diagnostic protocol was used 1686 times. It was applied at a rate of approximately 5% of 2500 new complaints annually, most often (1366 times) for febrile conditions. In 320 consultations for other complaints, 43 different diagnostic protocols were applied. Among them, the “tabula diagnostica” for various undifferentiated symptoms was used most frequently (n = 54), followed by diagnostic protocols for headache (n = 45), dizziness (n = 36), precordial pain (n = 20), nonspecific abdominal pain (n = 15), low back pain (n = 14), hypertension (n = 12), diarrhea > 1 week (n = 12), epigastralgia (n = 11), depression (n = 10), polyarthralgia (n = 8), cough, and lower abdominal pain (each n = 7). A final diagnosis was established in less than 20% of cases. Conclusions: This observational study from routine practice gives an insight how diagnostic protocols helped to manage complex patient presentations. A broader use of diagnostic protocols could investigate the potential of this consultation tool to handle the complexity of primary health care. The use of a standardized diagnostic approach could stimulate research, in particular on managing common complaints/undifferentiated illness and their inherent diagnostic uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adolescent period in mammals is a critical period of brain maturation and thus represents a time of susceptibility to environmental insult, e.g. psychosocial stress and/or drugs of abuse, which may cause lasting impairments in brain function and behavior and even precipitate symptoms in at-risk individuals. One likely effect of these environmental insults is to increase oxidative stress in the developing adolescent brain. Indeed, there is increasing evidence that redox dysregulation plays an important role in the development of schizophrenia and other neuropsychiatric disorders and that GABA interneurons are particularly susceptible to alterations in oxidative stress. The current study sought to model this adolescent neurochemical “stress” by exposing mice to the dopamine transporter inhibitor GBR12909 (5 mg/kg; IP) during adolescence (postnatal day 35–44) and measuring the resultant effect on locomotor behavior and probabilistic reversal learning as well as GABAergic interneurons and oxidative stress in adulthood. C57BL6/J mice exposed to GBR12909 showed increased activity in a novel environment and increased impulsivity as measured by premature responding in the probabilistic reversal learning task. Adolescent GBR12909-exposed mice also showed decreased parvalbumin (PV) immunoreactivity in the prefrontal cortex, which was accompanied by increased oxidative stress in PV+ neurons. These findings indicate that adolescent exposure to a dopamine transporter inhibitor results in loss of PV in GABAergic interneurons, elevations in markers of oxidative stress, and alterations in behavior in adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the stability of explicit one-step integration schemes for the linear finite element approximation of linear parabolic equations. The derived bound on the largest permissible time step is tight for any mesh and any diffusion matrix within a factor of 2(d + 1), where d is the spatial dimension. Both full mass matrix and mass lumping are considered. The bound reveals that the stability condition is affected by two factors. The first depends on the number of mesh elements and corresponds to the classic bound for the Laplace operator on a uniform mesh. The second factor reflects the effects of the interplay of the mesh geometry and the diffusion matrix. It is shown that it is not the mesh geometry itself but the mesh geometry in relation to the diffusion matrix that is crucial to the stability of explicit methods. When the mesh is uniform in the metric specified by the inverse of the diffusion matrix, the stability condition is comparable to the situation with the Laplace operator on a uniform mesh. Numerical results are presented to verify the theoretical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a simple direct discretization for functionals used in the variational mesh generation and adaptation. Meshing functionals are discretized on simplicial meshes and the Jacobian matrix of the continuous coordinate transformation is approximated by the Jacobian matrices of affine mappings between elements. The advantage of this direct geometric discretization is that it preserves the basic geometric structure of the continuous functional, which is useful in preventing strong decoupling or loss of integral constraints satisfied by the functional. Moreover, the discretized functional is a function of the coordinates of mesh vertices and its derivatives have a simple analytical form, which allows a simple implementation of variational mesh generation and adaptation on computer. Since the variational mesh adaptation is the base for a number of adaptive moving mesh and mesh smoothing methods, the result in this work can be used to develop simple implementations of those methods. Numerical examples are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serious mental illness occurs in 25% of the general population, with many disorders being neurodevelopmental, lifelong, and debilitating. The wide variation and overlap in symptoms across disorders increases the difficulty of research and treatment development. The NIMH Research Domain of Criteria initiative aims to improve our understanding of the molecular and behavioral consequences of specific neurodevelopmental mechanisms across disorders, enabling targeted treatment development. The transcription factor Specificity Protein 4 (SP4) is important for neurodevelopment and is genetically associated with both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Reduced Sp4 expression in mice (hypomorphic) reproduces several characteristics of psychiatric disorders. We further tested the utility of Sp4 hypomorphic mice as a model organism relevant to psychiatric disorders by assessing cognitive control plus effort and decision-making aspects of approach motivation using cross-species-relevant tests. Sp4 hypomorphic mice exhibited impaired attention as measured by the 5-Choice Continuous Performance Test, an effect that was attenuated by glycine type-1 transporter (GlyT-1) inhibition. Hypomorphic mice also exhibited reduced motivation to work for a reward and impaired probabilistic learning. These deficits may stem from affected anticipatory reward, analogous to anhedonia in patients with schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. Neither positive valence deficit was attenuated by GlyT-1 treatment, suggesting that these and the attentional deficits stem from different underlying mechanisms. Given the association of SP4 gene with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, the present studies provide support that personalized GlyT-1 inhibition may treat attentional deficits in neuropsychiatric patients with low SP4 levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apart from the nucleus, the mitochondrion is the only organelle of an animal cell that contains its own genome. Mitochondrial DNA is much less in size than the nuclear one and codes for only several dozens of biological macromolecules. Nevertheless, mutations in mitochondrial genes often result in the occurrence of serious hereditary neuromuscular diseases. New mitochondrial DNA mutations and their relations to clinical symptoms are continuously reported in the scientific literature. In this review, we summarize existing data about such mutations, and also about contemporary gene therapy approaches that have been developed for their suppression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bounds are developed for the condition number of the linear finite element equations of an anisotropic diffusion problem with arbitrary meshes. They depend on three factors. The first factor is proportional to a power of the number of mesh elements and represents the condition number of the linear finite element equations for the Laplacian operator on a uniform mesh. The other two factors arise from the mesh nonuniformity viewed in the Euclidean metric and in the metric defined by the diffusion matrix. The new bounds reveal that the conditioning of the finite element equations with adaptive anisotropic meshes is much better than what is commonly assumed. Diagonal scaling for the linear system and its effects on the conditioning are also studied. It is shown that the Jacobi preconditioning, which is an optimal diagonal scaling for a symmetric positive definite sparse matrix, can eliminate the effects of mesh nonuniformity viewed in the Euclidean metric and reduce those effects of the mesh viewed in the metric defined by the diffusion matrix. Tight bounds on the extreme eigenvalues of the stiffness and mass matrices are obtained. Numerical examples are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The quantitative data for contribution of continuum to Rydberg-state energy-level shift and broadening is determined for group IIb ions • Asymptotic equations for the rates of the blackbody radiation (BBR) induced ionization and energy-level shifts are presented analytically in terms of Rydberg-states binding energy and photoionization cross section • Quantitative analysis is given for angular-momentum dependence of photoionization cross section of Rydberg-state atoms and ions • Analytic equations for amplitudes of bound-bound transitions from Rydberg states in the quantum defect approach are written in terms of generalized hypergeometric polynomials. General properties of n -dependence at the threshold and regularities of above-threshold ionization cross sections for states with high principal quantum numbers n and arbitrary angular momenta l are determined and used for evaluating the blackbody-radiation(BBR)-induced ionization broadening of n S, n P, n D and n F Rydberg-state energy levels of the group IIb ions Zn + , Cd + , Hg + at temperatures from T = 100 K to T = 3000 K. The contributions to the energy level shifts from transitions into continuum are also determined with the use of the ionization cross sections. The single-electron quantum defect method (QDM) was used, which appears rather precise and suitable for calculating the amplitudes of radiation transitions from Rydberg states, and specifically for summation of matrix-element-dependent terms over infinite number of discrete states. The dependencies on temperature and binding energy are determined and approximate analytic equations are proposed for simplified evaluations of the BBR-induced ionization broadening and shifts. Numerical parameters of approximate equations are tabulated for S, P, D and F Rydberg states of the group IIb ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hessian recovery has been commonly used in mesh adaptation for obtaining the required magnitude and direction information of the solution error. Unfortunately, a recovered Hessian from a linear finite element approximation is nonconvergent in general as the mesh is refined. It has been observed numerically that adaptive meshes based on such a nonconvergent recovered Hessian can nevertheless lead to an optimal error in the finite element approximation. This also explains why Hessian recovery is still widely used despite its nonconvergence. In this paper we develop an error bound for the linear finite element solution of a general boundary value problem under a mild assumption on the closeness of the recovered Hessian to the exact one. Numerical results show that this closeness assumption is satisfied by the recovered Hessian obtained with commonly used Hessian recovery methods. Moreover, it is shown that the finite element error changes gradually with the closeness of the recovered Hessian. This provides an explanation of how a nonconvergent recovered Hessian works in mesh adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of analytical expressions in the Fues model potential approach for the second-order Stark effect on single-electron Rydberg states in atoms and ions, general equations are derived for coefficients of polynomials in powers of the principal quantum number n in asymptotic presentations of static scalar and tensor dipole polarizabilities. The power dependence for polarizabilities of isolated Rydberg states |nl〉 at n ≫ 1 scales as n7, in contrast with that of polarizabilities for hydrogenic states, degenerate in the orbital quantum number l ⩽ n − 1, which scales as n6. This difference is demonstrated analytically in the asymptotic dependencies of the second-order matrix elements, determining the Stark shifts of the isolated and degenerate states. Analytical equations for polynomial coefficients use the data on quantum defects determined from the level energies of corresponding series of states. Numerical values of coefficients are presented for S-, P- and D-series of Rydberg states in neutral atoms of alkali-metal elements and helium in comparison with existing data of the literature. The analytical equations are also used for determining numerical values of coefficients in asymptotic polynomials for polarizabilities of Rydberg states in positive ions of alkaline-earth-metal elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to obtain additional quantities of hydrogen after the reforming reactions of natural gas and protect the ammonia synthesis catalyst, it is crucial to achieve and maintain maximum possible activity, selectivity and stability of the low temperature shift catalyst for conversion of water gas reaction during its lifetime. Whereas the heterogeneous catalyst comes in oxidized form, it is of the utmost importance to conduct the reduction procedure properly. The proper reduction procedure and continuous analysis of its performance would ensure the required activity, selectivity and stability throughout the catalyst's service time. For the proper reduction procedure of the low temperature shift catalyst, in addition to process equipment, also necessary is a reliable and realistic system for temperature measurements, which will be effective for monitoring the exothermal temperature curves through all catalyst bed layers. For efficiency evaluation of low shift temperature catalyst reduction and its optimization, it is necessary to determine at regular time intervals the temperature approach to equilibrium and temperature profiles of individual layers by means of "S" and "die off" temperature exothermal curves. Based on the obtained data, the optimum inlet temperature could be determined, in order to maximally extend the service life of the heterogeneous catalyst as much as possible, and achieve the optimum equilibrium for conversion of the water gas. This paper presents the methodology for in situ reduction of the low temperature shift heterogeneous catalyst and the developed system for monitoring its individual layers to achieve the minimum possible content of carbon monoxide at the exit of the reactor. The developed system for temperature monitoring through heterogeneous catalyst layers provides the proper procedure for reduction and adjustment of optimum process working conditions for the catalyst by the continuous increase of reactor inlet temperature. The applied system provides maximum catalytic activity, selectivity and stability, as well as enables prediction of the catalyst's performance, which can be the basis for a proper decision on its timely replacement, and significant reduction of production costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

B Background: b Facial emotional recognition (FER) is a domain of social cognition representing the capacity to recognize emotions that other people are experiencing based on their facial expressions [1]. The aim of our study was to investigate possible correlations between the impaired FER and functionality and quality of life in patients with FEP. Therefore, specific treatment interventions targeting FER could possibly help in achieving functional remission and improve patients' quality of life. [Extracted from the article]

Background. Chronic diseases affect more than half of the population ≥75 years of age in developed countries. Prescription medication use increases with age. Depending on definition, 25–80% of elderly are exposed to polypharmacy. Polypharmacy increases the risk of hospitalization, interactions and adverse drug reactions. Objective. To examine the frequency of medication errors in patients with polypharmacy treated in general practice. Methods. The medications of 169 patients with polypharmacy treated in 22 GP surgeries in Austria were analysed. The analysis identified (i) medication errors, including non-evidence-based medications, dosing errors and potentially dangerous interactions in all patients and (ii) potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) in the subgroup of elderly patients (≥65 years). Results. The patients took on average 9.1±3.0 medications per day. The maximum, in one patient, was 20 medications per day. Some 93.5% had at least one non-evidence-based medication. On average, 2.7±1.66 medications per patient were found to be not indicated. At least one dosing error was found in 56.2% of all patients. One potential interaction of the most severe degree (category X interaction) was detected in 1.8% (n = 3) and two such interactions in 0.6% (n = 1). These combinations should have been avoided. Of the 169 patients, 158 were elderly (≥65 years). Of these seniors, 37.3% (n = 59) had at least one PIM according to the PRISCUS list for the elderly. Conclusion. The frequency of medication errors is high in patients with polypharmacy in primary care. Development of strategies (e.g. external medication review) is required to counteract medication errors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTI) are a frequent reason for consultation of women in primary health care. To avoid therapy failure and development of resistances, the choice of an antibiotic should be based on the knowledge of recent local resistance data but these data are scarce for the Austrian primary health care sector. Within the context of the ECO·SENS II study it was the aim to obtain appropriate and relevant local resistance data and describe the changes in the resistance pattern in comparison to the ECO·SENS study. Methods: 23 GPs from different parts of Austria participated in the study between July 2007 and November 2008. According to the defined inclusion- and exclusion criteria female patients with symptoms of an uncomplicated UTI were included and a midstream urine sample was collected. In case of significant bacteriuria susceptibility testing of E. coli against 14 antibiotics was performed. Descriptive statistical methods were used. Results: In 313 patients included in the study, a total of 147 E. coli isolates (47%) were detected and tested. The resistance rates were in %: Mecillinam (0.0), nitrofurantoin (0.7), fosfomycin trometamol (0.7), gentamycin (1.4), cefotaxime (2.7), ceftazidime (2.7), Cephadroxil (4.1) and ciprofloxacin (4.1). Higher resistance rates were found in amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (8.9), nalidixic acid (9.6), trimethoprim/sulphamethoxazole (14.4), trimethoprim (15.8), sulphamethoxazole (21.2) and ampicillin (28.8). Additionally, the comparison of these results with the results of the ECO·SENS study demonstrated an increase in resistance rates of ampicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin. Conclusions: The resistance data for E. coli in uncomplicated UTIs in women gained by this study are the most recent data for this disease in Austria at the moment. The increased resistance rates of amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, ciprofloxacin and nalidixic acid should be respected when choosing an appropriate antibiotic for uncomplicated UTIs. The use of ampicillin, sulphamethoxazole, trimethoprim and trimethoprim/sulphametoxazole in uncomplicated UTIs in women should be questioned at all. The findings of this study should result in a regular surveillance system of resistances emerging in the ambulatory sector designed after the model of the EARS-Net. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Cascade simulations in single crystal and nanocrystalline SiC have been conducted in order to determine the role of grain boundaries and grain size on defect production during primary radiation damage. Cascades are performed with 4 and 10keV silicon as the primary knock-on atom (PKA). Total defect production is found to increase with decreasing grain size, and this effect is shown to be due to increased production in grain boundaries and changing grain boundary volume fraction. In order to consider in-grain defect production, a new mapping methodology is developed to properly normalize in-grain defect production rates for nanocrystalline materials. It is shown that the presence of grain boundaries does not affect the total normalized in-grain defect production significantly (the changes are lower than ∼20%) for the PKA energies considered. Defect production in the single grain containing the PKA is also studied and found to increase for smaller grain sizes. In particular, for smaller grain sizes the defect production decreases with increasing distance from the grain boundary while for larger grain sizes the presence of the grain boundaries has negligible effect on defect production. The results suggest that experimentally observed changes in radiation resistance of nanocrystalline materials may be due to long-term damage evolution rather than changes in defect production rates from primary damage. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Mitochondria of many species import of nuclear DNA-encoded tRNAs. This widely spread but poorly studied phenomenon proved to be a promising tool for mitochondrial transfection. In yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, one cytosolic tRNAsLys is partially targeted into mitochondria. Previous studies have shown that binding of this tRNA to its putative protein carrier, the precursor of mitochondrial lysyl-tRNA synthetase (preMsk1p), IIb class aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase, was a pre-requisite of import. In this work, we identify the hinge region with two adjacent helices H5 and H7 to be responsible for mitochondrial targeting of the tRNA and characterize preMsk1p versions with altered tRK1 import capacities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A new anisotropic mesh adaptation strategy for finite element solution of elliptic differential equations is presented. It generates anisotropic adaptive meshes as quasi-uniform ones in some metric space, with the metric tensor being computed based on hierarchical a posteriori error estimates. A global hierarchical error estimate is employed in this study to obtain reliable directional information of the solution. Instead of solving the global error problem exactly, which is costly in general, we solve it iteratively using the symmetric Gauß–Seidel method. Numerical results show that a few GS iterations are sufficient for obtaining a reasonably good approximation to the error for use in anisotropic mesh adaptation. The new method is compared with several strategies using local error estimators or recovered Hessians. Numerical results are presented for a selection of test examples and a mathematical model for heat conduction in a thermal battery with large orthotropic jumps in the material coefficients. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: Although mitochondrial import of nuclear DNA-encoded RNAs is widely occurring, their functions in the organelles are not always understood. Mitochondrial function(s) of tRNALys CUU, tRK1, targeted into Saccharomyces cerevisiae mitochondria was mysterious, since mitochondrial DNA-encoded tRNALys UUU, tRK3, was hypothesized to decode both lysine codons, AAA and AAG. Mitochondrial targeting of tRK1 depends on the precursor of mitochondrial lysyl-tRNA synthetase, pre-Msk1p. Here we show that substitution of pre-Msk1p by its Ashbya gossypii ortholog results in a strain in which tRK3 is aminoacylated, while tRK1 is not imported. At elevated temperature, drop of tRK1 import inhibits mitochondrial translation of mRNAs containing AAG codons, which coincides with the impaired 2-thiolation of tRK3 anticodon wobble nucleotide. Restoration of tRK1 import cures the translational defect, suggesting the role of tRK1 in conditional adaptation of mitochondrial protein synthesis. In contrast with the known ways of organellar translation control, this mechanism exploits the RNA import pathway. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Mitochondria are multifunctional eukaryotic organelles that provide cells with energy via oxidative phosphorylation. They participate in the formation of Fe-S clusters, oxidation of fatty acids, and synthesis of certain amino acids and play an important role in apoptosis. Mitochondria have their own genome and are able to transcribe and translate it. However, most macromolecules functioning in mitochondria, such as proteins and some small RNAs, are imported from the cytoplasm. Protein import into mitochondria is a universal process, and its mechanism is very similar in all eukaryotic cells. Today this mechanism is known in detail. At the same time, the RNA import was discovered only in several eukaryotic groups. Nevertheless, it is proposed that this process is typical for most species. A set of imported RNA molecules varies in different organisms. Although the knowledge about the mechanisms of RNA import is less extensive than that of protein import, it becomes clear that these mechanisms greatly differ between different species. The review summarizes information about the import of such macromolecules into mitochondria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Almost all societies carry responsibility towards patients who require continuous medical care at home. In many health systems the general practitioner cooperates with community based services of home care and coordinates all medical and non medical activities. In Austria the general practitioner together and in cooperation with relatives of the patient and professional organisations usually takes on this task by visiting his patients. This study was carried out to identify diseases that need home care and to describe the functional profile of home care patients in eastern Austria. Methods: Cross sectional observational study with 17 GP practices participating during 2 study periods in 1997 and in 2004 in eastern Austria. Each GP identified patients requiring home care and assessed their underlying diseases and functional status by filling in a questionnaire personally after an encounter. Patients in nursing homes were excluded. Statistical tests used were t-tests, contingency tables, nonparametric Wilcoxon signed rank sum test and Fisher-combination test. Results: Patients with degenerative diseases of the central nervous system (65%) caused by Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular occlusive disease and patients with degenerative diseases of the skeletal system (53%) were the largest groups among the 198 (1997) and 261 (2004) home care cases of the 11 (1997) and 13 (2004) practices. Malignant diseases in a terminal state constituted only 5% of the cases. More than two thirds of all cases were female with an average age of 80 years. Slightly more than 70% of the patients were at least partially mobile. Conclusion: Home care and home visits for patients with degenerative diseases of the central nervous and skeletal system are important elements of GP's work. Further research should therefore focus on effective methods of training and rehabilitation to better the mental and physical status of patients living in their private homes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The C-terminal domain (CTD) of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) integrates nuclear events by binding proteins involved in mRNA biogenesis. CTD-binding proteins recognize a specific CTD phosphorylation pattern, which changes during the transcription cycle, due to the action of CTD-modifying enzymes. Structural and functional studies of CTD-binding and -modifying proteins now reveal some of the mechanisms underlying CTD function. Proteins recognize CTD phosphorylation patterns either directly, by contacting phosphorylated residues, or indirectly, without contact to the phosphate. The catalytic mechanisms of CTD kinases and phosphatases are known, but the basis for CTD specificity of these enzymes remains to be understood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wavefunctions, matrix elements, and probabilities of radiative transitions between Stark sublevels of atomic multiplets are calculated as a function of the strength of a dc electric field. The general expressions for the wavefunction of a multiplet state in a field obtained by perturbation theory for close-lying levels with the use of completely reduced Green’s function allow one to determine the field dependence of both the dipole-allowed and dipole-forbidden radiation amplitudes. A decomposition of the second-order amplitude for the transition between fine-structure sublevels of two levels of equal parity into irreducible components is obtained. Numerical calculations of the probabilities of radiative transitions between triplet states of helium show the possibility of experimental observation of the emergence and vanishing of Stark lines of radiative transitions in the vicinity of anticrossing fields. © 2005 Pleiades Publishing, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recycling of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) after transcription requires dephosphorylation of the polymerase C-terminal domain (CTD) by the phosphatase Fcp1. We report the X-ray structure of the small CTD phosphatase Scp1, which is homologous to the Fcp1 catalytic domain. The structure shows a core fold and an active center similar to those of phosphotransferases and phosphohydrolases that solely share a DXDX(V/T) signature motif with Fcp1/Scp1. We demonstrate that the first aspartate in the signature motif undergoes metal-assisted phosphorylation during catalysis, resulting in a phosphoaspartate intermediate that was structurally mimicked with the inhibitor beryllofluoride. Specificity may result from CTD binding to a conserved hydrophobic pocket between the active site and an insertion domain that is unique to Fcp1/Scp1. Fcp1 specificity may additionally arise from phosphatase recruitment near the CTD via the Pol II subcomplex Rpb4/7, which is shown to be required for binding of Fcp1 to the polymerase in vitro. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Reaction mechanisms are generated for the first stage of biological nitrification (NH4+⇒NO2−) by using graph theoretical methods and the chemical information for reaction intermediates. On this basis, a large number of kinetic models are obtained. As a result of model discrimination, a kinetic model is derived to describe the kinetics of the biological nitrification reaction appropriately. The kinetic constants of the model were estimated by implementation of a differential method for parameter estimation. The selection of a correct reaction mechanism and kinetic model is performed on the basis of the experimental data obtained using laboratory scale equipment. A kinetic model which appropriately describes the kinetics of ammonia oxidation into nitrite and its parameter estimates is obtained. It is in correspondence with the mechanism including the reaction step of formation and decomposition of an intermediate complex between ammonia, bacteria and oxygen. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper is devoted to a nonlinear averaging principle for periodic solutions of a class of second order inclusions. In addition an existence theorem for periodic solutions of such inclusions is established. This work which complements the abstract nonlinear averaging principle worked out in Couchouron and Kamenski (Nonlin. Anal. 42 (2000) 1101) makes a synthesis of the methods contained in Couchouron and Kamenski and Couchouron and Precup (Electron. J. Differential, Equations 4 (2002) 1) and represents a (nonvariational) topological approach for boundary values problems. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A regular method for deriving the consecutive terms of a series in powers of field strength F for the intensities of hydrogen radiation lines is presented both analytically and numerically. Specific modification of the perturbation theory for degenerate states and the Sturm-series expansion for the completely reduced Coulomb-Green function in parabolic coordinates are used to derive simple analytical formulas for matrix elements and the intensities of the radiation transitions between circular states. Particular cases of transitions between the closest Rydberg levels are presented and discussed in detail. Analytical expressions are also derived for the quadrupole matrix elements, which may contribute to the probability of σ-transitions with the selection rule for the magnetic quantum number Δm = ±1 and determine the probability of the dipole-forbidden radiation transitions between Stark levels with Δm = ±2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we consider a nonlinear control system affected by deterministic uncertainty and described by a system of ordinary differential equations. The uncertainty is modelled by a multivalued map whose t‐measurable and x‐Lipschitz selections represent the possible system dynamics of the uncertain system. We propose a dynamical feedback control design, based on the singular perturbation theory, which allows all the possible system trajectories corresponding to the system dynamics to have the same prescribed behaviour. Specifically, given a manifold K of the state space, defined as the zeros of a smooth map, the proposed control steers and then holds, during finite or infinite time intervals, any possible system trajectory to any prescribed neighbourhood of K. A result ensuring the exact attainability of K is also provided. Some examples illustrating the obtained results are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Perturbation theory for the wave function of a hydrogen-like atom in a homogeneous electric field of strength F makes it possible to obtain the Rayleigh-Schrödinger series with the coefficients of F[sup N] (N = 0, 1, 2, …) being linear combinations of the Sturm function, which represents the unperturbed state, with 8N² functions of the corresponding complete set with indices adjacent to the parabolic quantum number of the initial level. A method for recursive analytic calculation of the coefficients of the linear combination for any order N is developed. General expressions for corrections to the matrix elements and intensities of the radiation transitions between Stark sublevels are obtained. Analytic formulas and numerical values of the corrections up to the fourth order for the Lyman and Balmer series are presented. A comparison with the available data for transitions between the Stark components of Rydberg states is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conditioning of implicit Runge–Kutta (RK) integration for linear finite element approximation of diffusion equations on general anisotropic meshes is investigated. Bounds are established for the condition number of the resulting linear system with and without diagonal preconditioning for the implicit Euler (the simplest implicit RK method) and general implicit RK methods. Two solution strategies are considered for the linear system resulting from general implicit RK integration: the simultaneous solution where the system is solved as a whole and a successive solution which follows the commonly used implementation of implicit RK methods to first transform the system into a number of smaller systems using the Jordan normal form of the RK matrix and then solve them successively. For the simultaneous solution in case of a positive semidefinite symmetric part of the RK coefficient matrix and for the successive solution it is shown that the conditioning of an implicit RK method behaves like that of the implicit Euler method. If the smallest eigenvalue of the symmetric part of the RK coefficient matrix is negative and the simultaneous solution strategy is used, an upper bound on the time step is given so that the system matrix is positive definite. The obtained bounds for the condition number have explicit geometric interpretations and take the interplay between the diffusion matrix and the mesh geometry into full consideration. They show that there are three mesh-dependent factors that can affect the conditioning: the number of elements, the mesh nonuniformity measured in the Euclidean metric, and the mesh nonuniformity with respect to the inverse of the diffusion matrix. They also reveal that the preconditioning using the diagonal of the system matrix, the mass matrix, or the lumped mass matrix can effectively eliminate the effects of the mesh nonuniformity measured in the Euclidean metric. Illustrative numerical examples are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the construction of a polyhedral Delaunay partition as a limit of the sequence of power diagrams (in Russian traditionally called radical partitions), while the dual Voronoi diagram is obtained as a limit of the sequence of weighted Delaunay partitions. Using a lifting analogy, this problem is reduced to the construction of a pair of dual convex polyhedra, inscribed and superscribed around a circular paraboloid, as a limit of the sequence of pairs of general dual convex polyhedra. The sequence of primal polyhedra should converge to the superscribed polyhedron, while the sequence of dual polyhedra converges to the inscribed polyhedron. For building sequences of dual polyhedra we are mostly interested in the case when the vertices of primal polyhedra can move or merge together. This means that no new faces are allowed for dual polyhedra. These rules essentially define the transformation of the set of initial spheres defining a power diagram into the set of Delaunay spheres using sphere movement, radius variation, and sphere elimination as admissible operations. Although a rigorous foundation (existence theorems) for this problem is still unavailable, we suggest a functional measuring the deviation of the convex polyhedron from the one inscribed into the paraboloid. This functional is the discrete Dirichlet functional for the power function (power of a point with respect to a ball) which is a linear interpolant of the vertical distance of the dual vertices from the paraboloid. The absolute minimizer of this functional is attained on the constant power field, meaning that the inscribed polyhedron can be obtained using a simple translation. This formulation of the Dirichlet functional for the dual surface is not quadratic since the unknowns are the vertices of the primal polyhedron. Hence, the transformation of the set of spheres into Delaunay spheres is not unique. In this work, we concentrate on the experimental confirmation of the viability of suggested approach and put aside mesh quality problems. The zero value of the gradient of the proposed functional defines a manifold describing the evolution of Delaunay spheres. Hence, Delaunay–Voronoi meshes can be optimized using this manifold as a constraint. Numerical examples illustrate polygonal Delaunay meshing in planar domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines linear kinetic damping mechanisms of helicon waves in helicon wave driven plasma sources. Reversal of the phase velocity of the wave in the near field of an antenna; Transient overshoot in the rate of work done by the wave; Occurrence of the overshoot when the magnitude of the phase velocity is a few times the thermal speed.

A magnetohydrodynamic numerical model, based on the finite element method, is employed to analyze the antenna radiation resistance in a cylindrical helicon wave driven plasma source. The antenna radiation resistances of four commonly used antennas are compared. The effects on antenna radiation resistance of frequency, plasma density, density profile and the system dimensions are investigated. It is confirmed that m=+1 is the most strongly excited mode. It is shown that the plasma density gradient tends to suppress the excitation of negative m-modes. Some wave field patterns are also presented which demonstrate commonly observed features in the experiments such as the beat patterns of copropagating radial modes. The findings highlight the importance of antenna radiation resistance modelling as a first step to a self consistent model of the discharge physics of cool dense helicon wave driven sources. © 1996 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the periodic boundary value problem (PBVP) for a semilinear fractional-order delayed functional differential inclusion in a Banach space. We introduce and study a multivalued integral operator whose fixed points coincide with mild solutions of our problem. On that base, we prove the main existence result (Theorem 4). We present an example dealing with existence of a trajectory for a time-fractional diffusion type feedback control system with a delay satisfying periodic boundary value condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This issue presents papers based on talks given at the 9th International Conference "Numerical Geometry, Construction of Numerical Grids, and High-Performance Computations (NUMGRID 2018/Voronoi 150)", which was dedicated to Georgy Voronoi on the occasion of his 150th birthday. In addition, recently a number of researchers have also attempted a direct usage of the Voronoi graph ideas to construct a polyhedral mesh, avoiding the usage of the Delaunay tessellation. The main issue addressed by the conference is associated with mesh generation methods, which are of crucial importance for numerical simulation in all subject areas. [Extracted from the article]

Abstract: Analytical expressions for the constants of resolution in powers of inverse interatomic distance 1∕R are determined for the energy of the long-range interaction between two atoms A and B in their circular Rydberg states of equal principal quantum numbers nA = nB ≡ n ≫ 1, maximal angular momenta and magnetic quantum numbers lA = lB = |mA| = |mB| = n − 1 in the case of arbitrary orientation of the interatomic axis relative the axis of the m-quantization. Coefficients of the odd-power terms Ck∕Rk are derived for k = 5, 7, 9 from the first-order perturbation theory (PT) for the interaction Hamiltonian. The constant C6 of the van der Waals interaction ΔEvdW = −C6∕R6, determined from the second-order PT, is resolved into irreducible components. The combinations of irreducible components determine coefficients at Legendre polynomials and/or cosine functions describing the dependence of C6 on the angle between the interatomic and quantization axes. The asymptotic dependence on the principal quantum number C6 ∝ n12 is demonstrated analytically. Polynomials in powers of n are derived for extrapolation of calculated data to the case of arbitrary n. The transformation of attractive van der Waals force (C6 > 0) for low-energy states n < 6 into repulsive force (C6 < 0) for all higher-energy states of n ≥ 8 is demonstrated in numerical calculations. Graphical abstract: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitochondria carry out various vital roles in eukaryotic cells, including ATP energy synthesis, the regulation of apoptosis, Fe-S cluster formation, and the metabolism of fatty acids, amino acids, and nucleotides. Throughout evolution, mitochondria lost most of their ancestor's genome but kept the replication, transcription, and translation machinery. Protein biosynthesis in mitochondria is specialized in the production of highly hydrophobic proteins encoded by mitochondria. These proteins are components of oxidative phosphorylation chain complexes. The coordination of protein synthesis must be precise to ensure the correct assembly of nuclear-encoded subunits for these complexes. However, the regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial translation in human cells are not yet fully understood. In this study, we examined the contribution of the SLIRP protein in regulating protein biosynthesis in mitochondria. Using a click-chemistry approach, we discovered that deletion of the SLIRP gene disturbs mitochondrial translation, leading to the dysfunction of complexes I and IV, but it has no significant effect on complexes III and V. We have shown that this protein interacts only with the small subunit of the mitochondrial ribosome, which may indicate its involvement in the regulation of the mitochondrial translation initiation stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolution of mitochondria has proceeded independently in different eukaryotic lines, which is reflected in the diversity of mitochondrial genomes and mechanisms of their expression in eukaryotic species. Mitochondria have lost most of bacterial ancestor genes by transferring them to the nucleus or eliminating them. However, mitochondria of almost all eukaryotic cells still retain relatively small genomes, as well as their replication, transcription, and translation apparatuses. The dependence on the nuclear genome, specific features of mitochondrial transcripts, and synthesis of highly hydrophobic membrane proteins in the mitochondria have led to significant changes in the translation apparatus inherited from the bacterial ancestor, which retained the basic structure necessary for protein synthesis but became more specialized and labile. In this review, we discuss specific properties of translation initiation in the mitochondria and how the evolution of mitochondria affected the functions of main factors initiating protein biosynthesis in these organelles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work analyses a study, conducted among Bulgarian speech and language pathologists - SLTs on the use of educational computer games in their practice, attitudes and perceptions, related to it, as well as the type of deficits they tackle, and its effects and expected outcomes. 103 participants answered 26 questions in a survey, designed by the authors, related to the educational computer games use. The study shows a widespread use of games without overuse and need of structured policy development for specialized educational computer games elaboration to support the work of the SLT in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]