Incipient Type Research Articles

Modification of permanent magnet ac electric scooter motor to test controlled stator electrical faults

This paper presents the electrical modification of the windings of a 350 W three-phase permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) of an electric scooter to insert short-circuit faults in a controlled manner. The in-wheel motor (outer rotor) was altered in two of its windings in order to cause two types of faults: short-circuit fault between windings and short-circuit faults between winding and stator structure (chassis). The type of fault of interest to cause is the incipient type (small in magnitude); therefore the selection of the taps will be in the same coils or close to the star point. To guarantee that the values of the electrical parameters in the windings (resistance and self inductance) correspond to those of the manufacturer, they are measured by means of instruments and the industrial method is also used to obtain the nominal values without the presence of a fault and in the presence of incipient short-circuit faults. Faults are entered manually and temporarily by means of electrical contactors; the information is measured by means of an RLC instrument and an oscilloscope for current and voltage measurement in each phase.

Levonorgestrel-Releasing Intrauterine System Improves Menorrhagia-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Symptomatic Adenomyosis.

Levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) relieves dysmenorrhea and heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) in adenomyosis. However, its efficacy on health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) in patients with symptomatic adenomyosis remains unclear. The menorrhagia multi-attribute scale (MMAS), which measures HR-QOL improvement through the treatment of HMB, has never been used for evaluating menorrhagia-specific HR-QOL in patients with symptomatic adenomyosis. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the efficacy of LNG-IUS in improving menorrhagia-specific HR-QOL in these patients using the MMAS. The participants were diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging. We also assessed the relationships between menorrhagia-specific HR-QOL, blood hemoglobin levels, and the degree of dysmenorrhea before and during LNG-IUS treatment. The LNG-IUS treatment improved the menorrhagia-specific HR-QOL more effectively in incipienttype adenomyosis than in advanced type adenomyosis. The efficacy of LNG-IUS treatment on dysmenorrhea evaluated by the visual analog scale score tended to be better in the incipient type than in the advanced type. By the treatment of LNG-IUS, the blood hemoglobin level was not improved in the advanced type but in the incipient type. Furthermore, dysmenorrhea and HMB-related anemia were associated with HR-QOL impairment, and LNG-IUS treatment may improve the HR-QOL by relieving the symptoms. In conclusion, the effectiveness of LNG-IUS on HR-QOL is decreased by advanced adenomyosis. Thus, magnetic resonance imaging use should be reinforced to predict LNG-IUS efficacy in improving the HR-QOL of patients with adenomyosis.

The Relationship between Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone and Insulin Resistance in Incipient Elderly Type 2 Diabetics with Normal Thyroid Function.

Objective To explore correlations between serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration within the normal range and insulin resistance and its possible mechanism in incipient type 2 diabetes in elderly patients. Methods 453 elderly patients with type 2 diabetes were divided into four groups by the quartile of TSH. Body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), fasting insulin (FINS), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and homeostasis model assessment of insulin secretion (HOMA-β), blood lipids, and other indicators were compared among all groups, and correlation and regression analysis were conducted. 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were induced into mature adipocytes in vitro, and different concentrations of bovine TSH were used to stimulate adipocytes. The levels of TNF-α in the culture medium were detected by ELISA. Results (1) With the increase of TSH, TC showed an increasing trend. Compared with the G1 group (4.80 ± 1.08), G2 group (5.13 ± 1.16), G3 group (5.14 ± 1.39), and G4 group (5.38 ± 1.16), the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). The LDL also showed an increasing trend. Compared with the G4 group (3.47 ± 0.89), the G1 (3.12 ± 0.82) and G2 groups (3.14 ± 1.05) had a lower LDL, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.01). The BMI increased between the G4 group (26.7 ± 3.97) and the G1 group (25.6 ± 3.54), and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). (2) The serum TSH level was positively correlated with FPG, FINS, HOMA-IR, TC, and LDL (R = 0.292, 0.271, 0.394, 0.195, and 0.178, all P < 0.01). (3) TSH is the dependent variable, other indicators are independent variables, and multiple stepwise regression analysis is performed; the results show that only HOMA-IR, TC, and LDL enter the regression equation. (4) The TSH stimulated TNF-α secretion of 3T3-L1 adipocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusion The TSH level was positively correlated with the insulin resistance and LDL in the elderly incipient type 2 diabetic patients. Higher levels of TSH may be involved in the development of insulin resistance in the elderly incipient type 2 diabetic patients.

Spheroidal weathering of basalt from Gebel Qatrani, Fayum Depression, Egypt

BackgroundThree stages of basalt weathering are known: early or incipient weathering, intermediate weathering and advanced weathering. The Late Oligocene basalt of Gebel Qatrani in Fayum Depression, Egypt, shows signs of early weathering, particularly exhibited in basalt spheroids found at the top of the basalt flow. The present paper gives the results of detailed petrographical, mineralogical and geochemical study of the weathering of these basalt spheroids.ResultsThe core-stones of the basalt spheroids are composed of phenocrystals of plagioclase feldspars and clinopyroxenes set in a groundmass of tiny feldspars and pyroxenes, relatively altered olivine and opaque minerals. The basalt is subalkali (tholeiitic). The outer weathered shells surrounding the core-stones are composed of partly altered feldspars and pyroxenes. The calculated weathering indices show that there is marked weathering trend from the core-stones of the spheroids to the outer shells. The chemical mobility of the elements shows marked depletion of Mg, Ca, Na and K from the core-stones to the outer shells due to the weathering of olivine, pyroxene and feldspars. The trace elements Rb, Sr, Ni, V, Cr and Zn are also depleted.ConclusionsThe weathering of basalt spheroids from Gebel Qatrani, Fayum Depression, Egypt, is of the incipient type. The degree of weathering from the core-stones of the basalt spheroids to the corresponding weathered shells indicates that the weathering occurred under predominantly semiarid to arid conditions.

Thermal Analysis of Low-Power Three-Phase Induction Motors Operating under Voltage Unbalance and Inter-Turn Short Circuit Faults

Three-phase induction motors are considered to be the workhorse of industry. Therefore, induction motor faults are not only the cause of users’ frustrations but they also drive up the costs related to unexpected breakdowns, repair actions, and safety issues. One of the most critical faults in three-phase induction motors is related to the occurrence of inter-turn short circuits, due to its devastating consequences. The topic of inter-turn short-circuit faults in three-phase induction motors has been discussed over recent decades by several researchers. These studies have mainly dealt with early fault detection to avoid dramatic consequences. However, they fall short of addressing the potential burnout of the induction motor before the detection step. Furthermore, the cumulative action played by an inevitable degree of unbalanced supply voltages may exacerbate such consequences. For that reason, in deep detail, this paper delves into the thermal analysis of the induction motor when operating under these two harsh conditions: unbalanced supply voltages and the presence of the most incipient type of inter-turn short-circuit condition—a short-circuit between two turns only. In this work, the finite element method has been applied to create the faulty scenarios, and a commercial software (Flux2D) has been used in order to simulate the electromagnetic and thermal behavior of the machine for various degrees of severity of the aforementioned faulty modes. The obtained results confirm that the diagnostic tools reported in the literature might not be effective, failing to warrant the required lead time so that suitable actions can be taken to prevent permanent damage to the machine.

GEARBOX FAULT CLASSIFICATION BY USING FREQUENCY BASED FEATURE EXTRACTION

Gearboxes are the fundamental elements of rotational systems to provide speed adjustment ratios from a rotating power source to another. In industrial applications, the existence of any kind of faults in rotational systems may be hazardous unless the early detection and maintenance procedures are applied. Incipient types of faults such as a few chipped or worn teeth at the gearbox mechanism may deteriorate and cause the maladjustment of the rotation and even the mechanism may stop to rotate which may cause loss of the production. Preventive maintenance strategies such as monitoring of the vibration signals and comparison of the frequency domain irregularities with normal operation case with healthy gearbox elements is essential to ensure safe and accurate rotational speed transmission in industrial systems. In this work, frequency domain characteristics of three different pinion conditions; healthy, a chipped tooth, and three consequent worn teeth are analyzed, and frequency domain features are proposed for classification of the pinion state. Proposed features obtained from the statistical properties of the coefficients of third level Wavelet packet decomposition. After feature extraction process, classification of the gear condition is made with different Support Vector Machine based classifiers and significant classification success observed with the proposed technique.

MON-290 THE ASSOCIATION OF URINARY BIOMARKERS FORECASTS RENAL INJURIOUS EXTENT IN THE INCIPIENT TYPE 2 DIABETIC KIDNEY DISEASE PATIENTS

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) becomes a common health problem worldwide as one of the major microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus (DM). The incipient diagnosis and the noninvasive detections in clinic are thereby of major importance of preventing the progression from DKD to end-stage renal disease. Recently the increasing evidences have demonstrated the impaired absorption of the filtered proteins by renal tubular epithelium might also play the important roles in the incipient DKD patients. Despite this, the clinical significances of urinary biomarkers in predicting renal injurious extent of DKD are controversial. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate ulteriorly the clinical significances of association of urinary biomarkers in predicting renal damaged extent of the type 2 DKD patients at the early stage in a signal-center. The study was performed on the 92 type 2 DM patients with the different levels of urinary albumin (UAlb) and certain range of serum creatinine (Scr). According to urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR), all patients were categorized into 3 groups, a normo-albuminuria (< 30 mg/g creatinine) group, a micro-albuminuria (30-300 mg/g creatinine) group and a macro-albuminuria (> 300 mg/g ceatinine) group. In addition to UAlb and UACR, Scr, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urinary tubular biomarkers including urinary cystatin C (UCysC), urinary N-acety1-β-D-glucosaminidase (UNAG) and urinary retinal binding protein (URBP) were tested, respectively. In all patients, 24hUAlb and UACR showed the stepwise increases and the significant differences in normo-albuminuria, micro-albuminuria and macro-albuminuria groups. Additionally, UCysC, UNAG and URBP synchronously revealed the gradual increases along with albuminuria in the 3 groups, and there was a significant difference between normo-albuminuria and micro-albuminuria groups, as well as that between micro-albuminuria and macro-albuminuria groups. Moreover, 24hUAlb and UACR were positively correlated with UCysC, UNAG and URBP. In the 72 type 2 DKD patients with micro-albuminuria and macro-albuminuria, there was a positive correlation between UNAG and URBP, and that UCysC was positively correlated with UNAG and URBP. In the incipient type 2 DKD patients, increased UCysC, UNAG and URBP are independently associated with UAlb, and these urinary tubular biomarkers cooperated with UAlb may be widely used as the practical targets in clinic in predicting renal damaged extent.

Hydrothermal Alteration in Porphyry Cu-Mo-Au Mineralizations of the Chagai Arc, Balochistan, Pakistan

Subduction-related east-west trending Chagai Arc located in the western part of Pakistan. This arc is the western extension of Tethyan Magmatic Belt which is about 5000 km long and extends from central Europe, Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan. During the last four decades, several porphyry copper settings were reported from the Chagai Arc. Seven more famous occurrences are selected for the present study owing to more detailed work carried out on them. From west to east these deposits include Saindak, Reko Diq (formerly known as Koh-e-Dalil), Humai, Missi, Durbanchah, Dasht-e-Kain and Ziarat Pir Sultan. Hydrothermal alterations in the porphyry copper setting of Chagai Arc are mostly associated with tonalite porphyry stocks, except Durbanchah and Humai prospects which are hosted in dacite porphyry stocks, whereas Missi Prospect occurs in a granodiorite batholith. The alteration is normally developed in a concentric zonal pattern as observed in the majority of the world deposits, except that absence of a regular argillic and peripheral zone. In most of the occurrences the potassium silicate alteration zone (K-alteration zone) occurs usually within the intrusive porphyry stock, but in Saindak and Reko Diq deposit, some of the adjacent wall-rock sediments, and in Durbanchah setting the microdioritic country rock, has also undergone the K-alteration. Quartz sericitic or phyllic alterations zones are developed in all the occurrences as continuous or discontinuous haloes around the K-alteration zone except in Durbanchah prospect. In Humai prospect an advanced argillic alteration zone is developed around the K-alteration zone. Propylitic alteration has also developed in almost all settings and generally encircles the quartz sericitic alteration. The oxide mineralization is generally represented by goethitic jarositic, hematitic limonites and malachite, with minor pitch limonite, chrysochola, neotocite, brochanthite and molybdite. Hypogene mineralization is represented by pyrite, chalcopyrite and minor bornite. A regular supergene sulfide enrichment is only reported from the Reko Dik deposit and represented by chalcosite and covellite in other deposits restricted incipient type supergene sulfide enrichment is encountered. In terms of ore reserves the Riko Dik deposit is on the top with 2,200 million tons of copper followed by Saindak with 412 million tons and Dasht-e-Kain 350 million tons. Grade wise Reko Diq Deposit is again on the top with 0.53% Cu, 0.01% Mo and 0.3g/t Au, followed by Saindak with 0.4% Cu, 0.015% Mo and 0.35 g/t Au. Dasht-e-Kain deposit contains 0.35% Cu and 0.015% Mo. Gold has not been reported from the Dasht-e-Kain deposit. From other deposits of the Chagai Arc ore reserves and grade are not reported so far.

Corrigendum to “Urinary Exosomal MicroRNA Profiling in Incipient Type 2 Diabetic Kidney Disease”

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2017/6978984.].

Fault detection of process correlation structure using canonical variate analysis-based correlation features

This paper proposes a canonical variate analysis (CVA) approach based on feature representation of canonical correlation for the monitoring of faults associated with changes in process correlations, which involves two new metrics, Rs and Rr, corresponding to the state and residual spaces. The utilization of the canonical correlation feature can improve the monitoring proficiency by providing more application-dependent representations compared with the original data, as well as a decreased degree of redundancy in the feature space. A physical interpretation is provided for the canonical correlation-based method. The effectiveness of the proposed approach for the monitoring of process correlation changes is demonstrated for both abrupt (step change) and incipient (slow drift) types of faults in simulation studies of a network system. In the simulation results, the canonical correlation-based method has superior performance over both the causal dependency-based method and the traditional variable-based method.

Urinary Exosomal MicroRNA Profiling in Incipient Type 2 Diabetic Kidney Disease.

Background Albuminuria is an early sign but not a strong predictor of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Owing to their high stability, urinary exosomal miRNAs can be useful predictors of the progression of early-stage DKD to renal failure; fluid biopsies are ideal for detecting abnormalities in these miRNAs. The aim of this study was to identify novel differentially expressed miRNAs as urine biomarkers for type 2 DKD by comparing between patients of type 2 diabetes (T2D) with and without macroalbuminuria. Methods Ten patients with T2D, including five who had no renal disease and five with macroalbuminuria (DKD G1-2A3), were selected for this study. Exosome- (UExo-) derived miRNA profiles were used to identify candidate biomarkers, a subset of which was verified using quantitative reverse transcription PCR. Results A total of 496 UExo-derived miRNA species were found to be differentially expressed (>2-fold) in patients with DKD, compared to those with T2D. A validation analysis revealed that three miRNAs (miR-362-3p, miR-877-3p, and miR-150-5p) were upregulated and one (miR-15a-5p) was downregulated. These miRNAs might regulate DKD through p53, mTOR, and AMPK pathways. Conclusions In conclusion, UExo-derived miRNAs were altered in type 2 DKD. MiR-362-3p, miR-877-3p, miR-150-5p, and miR-15a-5p might be novel biomarkers for incipient DKD.

Incipient seafloor spreading segments: Insights from the Red Sea

AbstractCrustal‐scale forward models of marine satellite potential field data suggest that the Red Sea comprises a single segment of ocean crust, which extends along ~60% of the Red Sea. The segment “tips” are bounded by continental crust, and there is no evidence for transforms at the segment terminations at the south. These observations indicate that ocean crust formation does not necessarily occur in response to wholesale tearing or “unzipping” of continental lithosphere nor is it necessarily controlled by preexisting transform faults. Ocean crust initiation occurs as a series of isolated segments that coalesce as the basin evolves. The recognition of this process in an orthogonal extension setting is comparable to spreading segmentation in modern ocean systems generated at a highly oblique convergent margin, suggesting that oceanic crust segmentation is not controlled by kinematic boundary conditions. The Red Sea may represent a combination of incipient type I and type II passive margins development.

Measuring urinary tubular biomarkers in type 2 diabetes does not add prognostic value beyond established risk factors

Tubulointerstitial disease plays an important role in the pathophysiology of diabetic kidney disease. To determine whether biomarkers of tubular injury could predict renal outcome and mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes, we measured urinary levels of kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) and glycoprotein non-metastatic melanoma B (Gpnmb), both normalized to the urinary creatinine, in 978 individuals from the Edinburgh Type 2 Diabetes Study. At baseline, 238 patients had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) below 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 while 147 and 15 patients had microalbuminuria or overt proteinuria, respectively. Both the urine KIM-1 and Gpnmb to creatinine ratios correlated with the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio, the duration of diabetes, and the stringency of glycemic control but not with blood pressure or baseline eGFR. Higher ratios of each marker were associated with a faster decline in kidney function during 4 years of follow-up; however, this was not independent of the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio. Higher KIM-1, but not Gpnmb ratios were associated with an increased risk of mortality, but this association was no longer significant after adjustment for other risk factors, in particular albuminuria. Thus, tubular injury in persons with type 2 diabetes may contribute to the decline in kidney function; however, measuring the urinary concentration of these two tubular biomarkers does not confer additional prognostic information beyond established risk factors.

El turismo rural. Estructura económica y configuración territorial en España

In the Spanish context, the role of rural tourism has become increasingly relevant, with a growing trend in both the number of reservations and accommodation, and with growth exceeding that of tourism in general. This incipient type of tourism is an ideal complement to the traditional Spanish tourism model, which has been based mainly on the sun and beach binomial. For all these reasons, it is considered an engine for the creation of wealth in traditionally depressed areas. This work, coordinated by Pulido Fernan-Dez and published in 2008, contributes to this current issue by providing a detailed conceptual framework and analysis of the development of Spanish rural tourism.

Presence of immunoglobulin heavy chain rearrangement in so-called “plasma cell granuloma of the lung”

Inflammatory pseudotumor of the lung appears to be a set of heterogeneous disorders. Histologically, three subtypes of pulmonary IPTs have been delineated. Among these, plasma cell granuloma (PCG) is characterized by prominent lymphoplasmacytic infiltration, and PCG has been added to the list of differential diagnostic problems of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) type lymphoma. To investigate the presence or absence of monoclonal B-cell proliferation, we analyzed the immunohistological and genotypic findings in three cases of pulmonary PCGs. Histologically, the three lesions were characterized by severe infiltration of mature plasma cells, plasmacytoid cells, and small lymphocytes intermixed. Scattered Russell bodies (intracytoplasmic inclusions) were present in all three cases, but there were no Dutcher bodies (intranuclear inclusions) or centrocyte-like cells. Immunohistochemical studies of light chain determinants demonstrated the polytypic nature of B-cells. There was no CD5(+), CD43(+) or cyclin D1(+) B-lymphocytes in any of the three lesions. There were no lymphoepithelial lesions detected within any of the three lesions even by immunostaining for cytokeratin. However, polymerase chain assay for immunoglobulin heavy chain gene demonstrated a clonal band in one of the three cases. It currently remains unclear whether this one case, demonstrating IgH gene rearrangement in our series, could be a sign of the prelymphomatous stage (e.g. incipient MALT type lymphoma) or merely represents an exaggeration of normal B-cell clonal response.

Binding of Genistein to the Estrogen Receptor Based on an Experimental Electron Density Study

In a continuing effort to determine a relationship between the biological function and the electronic properties of steroidal and nonsteroidal estrogens by analysis of the submolecular properties, an experimental charge density study has been pursued on the nonsteroidal phytoestrogen, genistein. X-ray diffraction data were obtained using a Rigaku R-Axis Rapid high-power rotating anode diffractometer with a curved image plate detector at 20(1) K. The total electron density was modeled using the Hansen-Coppens multipole model. Genistein packs in puckered sheets characterized by intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds while weaker intermolecular hydrogen bonds (O...H-C) exist between the sheets. A topological analysis of the electron density of genistein was then completed to characterize all covalent bonds, three O...H-O and four O...H-C intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Two O...H-O hydrogen bonds are incipient (partially covalent) type bonds, while the other O...H-O hydrogen bond and O...H-C hydrogen bonds are of the pure closed-shell interaction type. In addition, two intermolecular H...H interactions have also been characterized from the topology of the electron density. The binding of genistein to the estrogen receptor is discussed in terms of the electrostatic potential derived from the electron density distribution.

Relationship between plasma level of homocysteine and urine microalbumin in incipient type 2 diabetic nephropathy

目的 探讨血浆同型半胱氨酸(Hcy)水平及亚甲基四氢叶酸还原酶(MTHFR)基因多态性与2型糖尿病(T2DM)早期肾病的关系及影响因素.方法 对252例T2DM患者[140例为无并发症者(NDC组),112例为早期糖尿病肾病者(DN组)]和30例对照者,测定血浆Hcy、叶酸、维生素B12(VitB12)、糖化血红蛋白(HbA1c)、空腹血糖、餐后2 h血糖(PBG)、胆固醇(CHO)、甘油三酯(TG)、肌酐、转化生长因子β1(TGF-β1)水平,尿N-乙酰-D氨基葡萄糖苷酶(NAG)、微量白蛋白/肌酐(Malb/Cr)值、Malb水平,并以聚合酶链反应-限制性内切酶片段长度多态性技术(PCR-RFLP)检测MTHFR基因C677T突变率.结果 DN组血浆Hcy水平高于对照组[(16.6±12.6)与( 9.7±2.0)μmol/L,P＜0.05],DN组又高于NDC组[(16.6±12.6)与( 11.9±7.3)μmol/L,P＜0.05];高Hcy 血症患者的早期糖尿病肾病发生率明显高于血Hcy水平正常患者(61.4%与 36.1%,P＜0.05).T2DM患者血浆Hcy水平与MTHFR基因型、体重指数、HbA1c、空腹血糖、PBG、NAG、Malb/Cr、病程、吸烟、二甲双胍的使用呈正相关,与叶酸、VitB12呈明显负相关;logistic回归分析显示病程、舒张压、空腹血糖、NAG、Hcy均为早期糖尿病肾病的危险因素.结论 空腹高Hcy血症是早期糖尿病肾病的危险因素;MTHFR基因型、叶酸、VitB12、Malb/Cr、NAG以及代谢紊乱程度影响血浆Hcy水平。

The effect of the dependence of health education on incipient type II diabetes mellitus patients who have received insulin reinforcement therapy

胰岛素强化治疗是目前糖尿病治疗的研究热点,国内外研究发现,持续性皮下胰岛素输注(CSII胰岛素泵治疗)用于初诊断的2型糖尿病患者,可迅速控制血糖,显著改善胰岛β细胞功能[1,2].但现实中,糖尿病患者正规治疗者为数不多.我们在多年的临床中发现,患者无论是消极焦虑、盲目乐观,还是持无所谓的态度,都是对此病缺乏正确的认识,以至于不能积极地配合治疗,进而出现多种并发症.为此,2003年6月-2004年12月,我科对108例入住本科的初发2型糖尿病强化治疗患者进行了依从性的研究,取得满意效果,现报道如下。

Biovariability of plasma adiponectin

Adiponectin is a cytokine produced by adipose tissue with insulin sensitising and anti-atherosclerotic effects. Low plasma adiponectin levels are used as a marker of the metabolic syndrome and incipient type 2 diabetes. We carried out a series of studies to determine the short- and long-term variability of plasma adiponectin levels, including diurnal and post-prandial changes. These investigations also included examining the effect of frozen storage on plasma adiponectin levels. A nested study in 10 overweight subjects with the metabolic syndrome and 10 age- and sex-matched controls showed intra-subject variation in adiponectin levels over a 30-day period of 12.2% and 18.8%, respectively, equivalent to reference change values of 1.7 and 3.6 microg/mL. In non-obese subjects, plasma adiponectin levels varied minimally over a 15-month period (baseline, 8.3+/-2.9 microg/mL vs. +15 months, 8.2+/-3.0 microg/mL, p=0.95) and showed only minor diurnal and post-prandial changes (pre-meal, 8.2+/-3.0 microg/mL vs. 3 h post-prandial, 8.3+/-3.1 microg/mL, p=0.60). The adiponectin assay had an intra-assay variation of 8.8%, with storage at -30 degrees C for 33 months or three cycles of freezing and thawing having no discernible effect on adiponectin levels. These results demonstrate that plasma adiponectin levels have relatively low biovariability and that adiponectin can be sampled fasting or non-fasting to provide a reliable marker of insulin resistance and incipient type 2 diabetes.

Eighteenth-Century Redware Folk Terms and Vessel Forms: A Survey of Utilitarian Wares from Southeastern Pennsylvania

Domestically produced, lead-glazed red earthenwares (or redwares) are among the most frequently recovered artifacts from 18th-century Pennsylvania sites. Utilitarian pottery met the colonial consumer’s need for inexpensive, everyday wares for food preparation, dairying, and tableware. Comparison of two data sources resulted in the organization of an incipient type series for southeastern Pennsylvania redwares. A survey of a variety of primary documents yielded a folk lexicon for some redware vessels. These terms have been tentatively ascribed to reconstructed vessels from six archaeological assemblages from the southeastern Pennsylvania region. A pattern of continuity in a number of vessel forms has also been observed in the redware assemblages analyzed. Prior to the initiation of redware manufacture in America, a flourishing network of commercial trade throughout 17th-century Europe contributed to the ethnic fusion of specific vessel shapes. By the late 1700s, immigrant craftsmen had incorporated these specific vessel shapes into their potting repertoire.