Components Of SF Research Articles

Shenfu Injection Mediated NLRP3/Caspase 1 Through (R)-Norcoclaurinee Alleviates Sepsis-Induced Cognitive Dysfunction.

Shenfu injection (SF) has demonstrated its potential to enhance cellular immunity and induce clinical regression in patients suffering from sepsis or infectious shock. However, the therapeutic effect of SF on sepsis-induced cognitive dysfunction (SAE) and the mechanisms involved are still unclear. We aimed to investigate the mechanism of SF in mice with SAE. Sepsis was constructed by caecal ligation and puncture. Mice were injected intraperitoneally with SF or NLRP3 inhibitor. The hippocampus injury of brain tissues was evaluated, and the levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-18) and NLRP3 and Caspase 1 were measured. The active ingredients of SF were analyzed using network pharmacology, and molecular docking of the active ingredients of SF with NLRP3 and Caspase 1 was performed. BV-2 cells were treated with LPS or norcoclaurine. CCK-8 detected the cell viability, and the levels of inflammatory cytokines and NLRP3 and Caspase 1 were measured. SF and NLRP3 inhibitor increased survival rate and the number of crossing the platform and decreased the escape latency time of sepsis mice. Moreover, SF and NLRP3 inhibitor improved neuronal damage and apoptosis in hippocampus of sepsis mice. In addition, SF and NLRP3 inhibitor reduced the levels of inflammatory cytokines, as well as inflammasomes in sepsis mice. There were 43 active ingredients in SF. Among them, 22 were Renshen and 21 were Fuzi. Renshen and Fuzi, the main active components of SF, form a complex regulatory network with NLRP3 and Caspase 1. (R)-norcoclaurine was most closely bound to NLRP3 with binding energy of -7.2 kJ·mol-1, ignavine was most closely bound to Caspase 1 with binding energy of -8.3 kJ·mol-1. Norcoclaurine increased the cell viability and decreased inflammation and pyroptosis. SF regulated NLRP3/Caspase 1 through (R)-norcoclaurinee to prevent SAE.

The Impact of Symptomatic Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) on Health-Related Quality of Life (HR Qol) in A Multi-Ethnics Society in a Developing Nation

INTRODUCTION: Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) is a common condition especially among those of advance age that is often neglected. As the disease severity progresses, it increases the healthcare cost and resources required, while diminishing the quality of life of the persons. Health-related Quality of Life (HRQoL) among CVI patients begins to decline once the symptom starts to appear, and reduces it further as the symptoms worsens. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a prospective, multi-centred, cross-sectional study on consenting symptomatic CVI patients who presented to the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) teaching hospital in Pahang, Malaysia. The diagnosis of CVI was confirmed on duplex imaging. Clinical grading was performed using Clinical Etiologic Anatomic Pathophysiologic (CEAP) classification. Patients completed generic validated Malay language Short Form 36 (SF36) HRQoL instrument. RESULTS: One hundred and ten patients (62% male) with a mean age of 57 years, Malays (60%), Chinese (25%) and Indian (15%) were recruited. The most frequent CVD symptoms reported were pain (42%). The clinical, aetiological, anatomical, and pathophysiological (CEAP) classification placed most patients in the C2 class (34%). Apart from partaking in social functions, all other elements of mental and physical health component of SF 36 showed a marked deterioration as the disease progressed. CONCLUSIONS: We found a significant decline in the HRQoL among symptomatic CVI patients presenting to IIUM hospital in a multi-ethnic developing country.

Enabling dads and improving First Nations adolescent mental health: a pragmatic randomised controlled study

IntroductionThere are few empirically supported social and emotional well-being programmes for First Nations adolescents, and we found none targeting those living in Aboriginal communities in remote areas of Australia. The...

Adsorption and gas sensing properties of Co modified InN to SF6-N2 mixture decomposition components

• It is the first time that Co-InN is used as the adsorbent to remove the decomposition components of SF 6 -N 2. • Co-InN shows good adsorption properties to NO 2 , SOF 4 , SOF 2 , SO 2 F 2 by chemisorption. • The theoretical calculation results are important to guide the development of resistive gas sensor based on the Co-InN. This paper presents a detection method of partial discharge decomposition components of SF 6 -N 2 mixture by Co-doped InN. The severity of partial discharge in gas insulated switchgear (GIS) can be judged by the gas components when SF 6 -N 2 decomposes. Exploring sensors with excellent gas-sensing detection capabilities can provide method to partial discharge decomposition component detection and fault diagnosis of GIS. Undoped InN is a wide bandgap semiconductor with good sensing properties. In this paper, the adsorption of SF 6 -N 2 decomposition components on Co-doped InN monolayer, as well as the adsorption mechanism and gas sensitivity characteristics were investigated by density functional theory (DFT), including adsorption energy, charge transfer, the density of state theory and molecular orbital theory. Our calculations found that Co-doped InN has the optimal structure at the T N site and has good adsorption performance for NO 2 , SOF 4 , SOF 2 , and SO 2 F 2 gas molecule. All adsorption reactions belong to chemisorption. These results could direct the development of gas sensor based on the Co-doped InN monolayer, and provides methods to online monitoring of GIS discharge failures.

Ten-Year Outcomes of MobilityTM Total Ankle Replacement Confirms Radiological Loosening is Not Conclusive or Reliable for Long Term Survival Analysis

Category:Ankle; Ankle ArthritisIntroduction/Purpose:Different designs of Ankle replacement are being performed nowadays, long-term outcome data is the better way to understand these implants behaviour and survival. We compared the differences in demographic data, clinical, Radiological, and patient-reported outcomes among patients who underwent total ankle replacement performed with use of the uncemented stemmed mobile bearing (MOBILITY) Total Ankle System with 10 year follow up.Methods:We analysed 156 (15 bilateral ankles (3 non-mobility) Mobility TAR (of which 41, 45, 22 for OA, PTOA, Inflammatory arthritis respectively). Mean age 61.7 (SD 11.4) (Range 33-90). 70 Ankles had 10 years of follow up, 115 had 5 years follow up,. 96 were males, with 30 patients deceased before 10 years follow up covering 33 ankles. All from our local registry looking at the patient's demographic data, and patient-reported outcomes as measured with use of WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index), the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS), the 36-item Short-Form (SF-36) Health Survey, clinical and radiological outcomes and patient-satisfaction scores, collected preoperatively and at 1,3,5 and 10 years postoperatively.Results:Of the 156 ankles18 had wound complications after surgery two only needed surgical debridement. 5 CRPS,16 stress fractures 2 only requiring surgical fixation,11 had subsequent STJ fusion.77 had no signs of radiolucency. The rest had some degree of radiolucency on x-ray (55% on the tibia side) only 11 where symptomatic to require further surgery (6 revised to another TAR, 2 fused, and3 required bone grafting). 11 needed osteotomies after surgery. Aseptic loosening and infection are the least common complications requiring revision. There was significant improvement in WOMAC for pain (35.9 to 67.9), function (40.6 to 66.9) and stiffness (39.4 to 62.5) from pre-op to 1 year (p<0.05), this was maintained for 10 years. Although improvement noted in the composite physical component of SF=36 (28.3 to 34.5) there was no significant increase for composite mental component score. 77.5% reported satisfaction from pain relief,72.4% with return to ADL, 40% were dissatisfied with return to recreational activities and15.5% reported dissatisfaction with overall results of surgery. Mobility TAR shown about 86% survival in our 10 years cohort.Conclusion:With improved PROMS at 1,3,5,10 years showing Patient satisfaction score at 10 years indicates that uncemented mobile bearing implants have good long-term results, osteolysis and aseptic loosening as the least common cause of revision. It is pertinent that reporting of radiological loosening in an uncemented ankle is not conclusive or reliable for long term survival analysis.

Preparation of Silk Fibroin Nanofiber Scaffold and Its Application in Tendon-Bone Healing and Sports Rehabilitation

ABSTRACTIn this work, polylactic acid/polycaprolactone/silk fibroin (PLA/PCL/SF) nanofiber scaffolds with different mass ratios were prepared by electrospinning technology. The morphology and structure of the nanofiber scaffold were characterized with the scanning electron microscope (SEM), and its porosity and adsorption were tested using the Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR). 24 New Zealand white rabbits were rolled into control group (n = 8, with autologous tendons) and experimental group (n = 16) randomly. The PLA/PCL/SF nanofiber scaffolds were adopted to wrap autologous tendons to establish extra-articular models. Tendon-bone healing was evaluated six weeks after surgery through histological and biomechanical tests, and the related gene expressions in tissue cells were detected. It turned out that mass ratio of PLA/PCL and SF components had a considerable impact on the morphology of the nanofiber scaffold. The surface of nanofiber with a mass ratio of 3:1 was distributed with dense pores. As the content of SF increased, the porosity and adsorption of the nanofiber scaffold gradually decreased. Moreover, the experimental results suggested that the addition of SF improved the hydrophilicity of PLA/PCL/SF scaffold, which was beneficial to the adhesion and proliferation of NIH/3T3 (a mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line established by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)). In addition, histological observation results showed that the width of the tendon-bone interface (TBI) of rabbits in control group was still relatively large at the 6th week after the surgery, with poor healing effect and disordered collagen arrangement. The widths of the TBI of the material group and rehabilitation group were substantially narrower relative to that in control group, and the collagen was arranged regularly. It was suggested that the healing effects between tendon and bone in material group and rehabilitation group were accelerated, and the effect in the rehabilitation group was superior to that of material group, indicating that rehabilitation exercise could organize the negative effects of training in postoperative rehabilitation training and promote the healing between tendons and bones.

Structural, mechanical and thermal properties of gamma irradiated SF_HPMC blend films

Introduction: The properties of the silk fibroin can be improved by blending silk with some other biopolymers. The improvement in properties of the blend depends on the degree of compatibility or miscibility of the polymers at the molecular level (1). Depending upon the degree of molecular mixing, blends can be compatible, semi-compatible or incompatible. Gamma irradiation is one of the techniques used to promote the compatibility between the individual polymer molecules of the polymer blends. Here gamma irradiation is performed in order to investigate the effect of gamma radiation on the silk fibroin blends, which may be useful for development of silk fibroin blends for biomedical applications in the future. The goal of this study was to prepare and characterize SF_HPMC blend films, aiming at an insoluble film, with a more stable and crystalline structure. Later the blend film was exposed to gamma radiation of different doses. Methods: The Silk Fibroin solution was prepared from Bombyx mori CSR4 bivoltine cocoons. Prepared SF solution was added with Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose solution of same weight percentage (5 wt%), with constant stirring at room temperature. The final solution mixture is tuned into free standing flexible film of SF_HPMC by solution casting method. Gamma irradiation of SF_HPMC blend films was done at CARRT centre, Mangalore university, using Cobalt-60 source, with a dose range of 0-250 kGy (50 kGy interval) at a dose rate of 7.065 kGy/h. The average energy of the gamma photons was 1.25 MeV. The irradiation was carried at normal temperature and pressure. Structural property of the samples was studied by using Rigaku Miniflex-II, X-ray Diffractometer. Mechanical studies of the sample were done by universal testing machine (Zwick Roell Z020, Germany) according to ASTM D882. Thermal properties of the samples were studied using TA instruments, SDT Q600 analyzer. Results & Discussions: The XRD results suggested that both α-helical (silk I) and β sheet (silk II) components were present in the SF_HPMC irradiated with the high doses of gamma radiation. It also seems that up to 100 kGy of gamma energy the composition of silk fibroin and its crystal conformation did not change significantly. The increase in doses of gamma radiation increases the crystallite sizes and decreases the lattice strain slightly. Mechanical strength analysis shows the breaking strength and elongation at break of SF_HPMC films showed almost a linear downward trend due to free radical formation, chain scissions, and disordering of silk fibroin chains due to the breakage of hydrogen bonds and peptide bonds in amorphous region, which results loss of the average molecular orientation in the polymer assembly. The thermal stability of SF_HPMC blend film decreases with gamma irradiation, which is due to the weakening of molecular interactions between SF and HPMC components and decrease in the percentage composition of silk II (β- sheet components). Conclusions: It was found from results that the increase in the energy of incident gamma radiation the thermal stability and mechanical strength of the SF_HPMC blend films decreased. Also, the structural and chemical properties of the blend films were slightly altered with increase in the dose of gamma radiation. The various characterization techniques used here to study the properties of the gamma radiated Silk fibroin-HPMC blend revealed that when silk fibroin materials were sterilized by gamma irradiation smaller radiation doses should be used, otherwise irreversible damages (breakdown of secondary bonds and covalent bonds) on the materials would be caused. Keywords: Silk fibroin, Gamma irradiation, structural properties, chemical, mechanical, thermal properties References Shetty GR, Rao BL, Asha S, Wang Y, Sangappa Y, Preparation and Characterization of Silk Fibroin/Hydroxypropyl Methyl Cellulose (HPMC) Blend Films. Fiber Polym, 2015;16(8):1734-1741.

Gas Sensor Based on Semihydrogenated and Semifluorinated h-BN for SF₆ Decomposition Components Detection

Real-time monitoring of SF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> status is of exceptional importance to ensure stable operation of the power system, to promptly diagnose whether an insulation failure has occurred and to assess the severity. Considering the excellent physicochemical properties and insulation defects of hexagonal boron nitride, the strategy of surface modification, namely, hydrogenation, fluorination, and combinations of the two ways, is proposed to improve its chemical activity, and the gas-sensing potential of the most effective one is investigated using density functional theory. The typical adsorption models of SF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> decomposition component gases on the surface of F-BN-H are constructed, and the most stable adsorption structures with their density of states, molecular orbitals, and sensing responses are analyzed. The results show that F-BN-H has good sensitivity to decomposition components of SF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> . To be specific, SO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> and SOF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> have good adsorption properties, prominent charge transfer, and distinct change in electronic properties. The response of gas adsorption can be detected timely by the change in conductivity, and, additionally, the adsorbent has fast desorption capacity at room temperature. These results indicate that the F-BN-H-based gas sensor is a qualified potential candidate with dependable application and recoverability for detecting SF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> decomposition in high-voltage insulated equipment.

Improving structure-based virtual screening performance via learning from scoring function components.

Scoring functions (SFs) based on complex machine learning (ML) algorithms have gradually emerged as a promising alternative to overcome the weaknesses of classical SFs. However, extensive efforts have been devoted to the development of SFs based on new protein-ligand interaction representations and advanced alternative ML algorithms instead of the energy components obtained by the decomposition of existing SFs. Here, we propose a new method named energy auxiliary terms learning (EATL), in which the scoring components are extracted and used as the input for the development of three levels of ML SFs including EATL SFs, docking-EATL SFs and comprehensive SFs with ascending VS performance. The EATL approach not only outperforms classical SFs for the absolute performance (ROC) and initial enrichment (BEDROC) but also yields comparable performance compared with other advanced ML-based methods on the diverse subset of Directory of Useful Decoys: Enhanced (DUD-E). The test on the relatively unbiased actives as decoys (AD) datasetalso proved the effectiveness of EATL. Furthermore, the idea of learning from SF components to yield improved screening power can also be extended to other docking programs and SFs available.

The unique compositions of steryl ferulates in foxtail millet, barnyard millet and naked barley

Although oryzanol in rice bran is one of the most utilised steryl ferulates (SFs, ferulic acid/coumaric acid esters of phytosterol/triterpene alcohol), SFs are also present in other cereals. Thus, we herein report the SF profiles present in various cereals, pseudo-cereals and millets using a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. The SF contents of whole foxtail millet, whole proso millet, and whole barnyard millet were 28.9, 0.2, and 4.8 mg-oryzanol equivalent/100 g, respectively, indicating that the SF content in whole foxtail millet was about 80% of oryzanol in brown rice. Using an atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation method combined with mass spectrometry (APCI-MS), the SF components from several millets and cereals were identified. It revealed that SFs of whole foxtail millet was composed of stigmastanyl ferulate (73%), stigmastanyl coumarate (10%), and others (17%). Furthermore, SF compositions of whole barnyard millet and naked barley were firstly determined and they were considerably different from those of other cereals.

Scaling within the spectral function approach

Scaling features of the nuclear electromagnetic response functions unveil aspects of nuclear dynamics that are crucial for interpretating neutrino- and electron-scattering data. In the large momentum-transfer regime, the nucleon-density response function defines a universal scaling function, which is independent of the nature of the probe. In this work, we analyze the nucleon-density response function of $^{12}$C, neglecting collective excitations. We employ particle and hole spectral functions obtained within two distinct many-body methods, both widely used to describe electroweak reactions in nuclei. We show that the two approaches provide compatible nucleon-density scaling functions that for large momentum transfers satisfy first-kind scaling. Both methods yield scaling functions characterized by an asymmetric shape, although less pronounced than that of experimental scaling functions. This asymmetry, only mildly affected by final state interactions, is mostly due to nucleon-nucleon correlations, encoded in the continuum component of the hole SF.

Appraise the Health-Related Quality of Life among Trauma Patients

Background: Limb injures is revolve a life-changing event that can cause significant disruptions in many important areas of life. Objectives: The objective of our study was to appraise the Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) and psychosocial factors associated with pain and disability in patients following Upper limb (UL) and lower limb (LL) trauma patients Materials and methods: A sample of convenience 300 adult male and female patients who met the inclusion criteria was included. A short form (36) health status questionnaire was filled by a single author from each patient after one year of follow up. This part was utilized to assess the QOL among limbs traumas patients. Results: Intraclass correlation coefficients were greater than 0.7 in five of the eight domains of SF 36 except mental health, social function and general health. Chronbach’s α was higher than 0.8 all the domains except in social function domain. There was no difference in Health Related Quality of Life in patients with upper and lower limb trauma. However there was significant difference in 4 domains related to physical components of SF 36 survey form between male and females. Conclusion: Both upper and lower limb trauma similarly affects the Health Related Quality of Life in all age group of patients. Keywords: Sf-36, Trauma, HRQOL

Thermal Energy Losses During Night, Warm-up and Full-Operation Periods of a CSP Solar Field Using Thermal Oil

In Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) systems, solar radiation allows to keep the Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) at the design temperature (250-400°C using thermal oil) during daylight. During night, the thermal losses of the receiver tubes lead to a fast reduction of this temperature. The very first hours of daily solar irradiance are used to warm-up the Solar Field to the nominal temperature. This work focuses on a detailed analysis of the thermal losses of a 8,400 m2 Solar Field based on Linear Fresnel Collectors (LFC) using thermal oil as Heat Transfer Fluid. The proposed simulation model evaluates the performance of the Solar Field as a function of solar radiation, solar position, ambient temperature and wind speed for given values of the main geometrical and technical characteristics of the SF components (insulated piping and solar receivers), as well as for assigned thermodynamic properties of the Heat Transfer Fluid. The time-step considered (1 second) and the dense spatial discretization chosen allow the energy-balance-equation-based model to be suited to simulate night, warm-up and full-operation phases.

So You Think You Can Dance: Dance as Therapy for Adult Patients With IBD: A Pilot Study

Introduction: Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) often struggle with psychosocial issues of depression and anxiety with poor quality of life. Dance therapy may be a beneficial untapped resource to address these concerns. Dance therapists believe that mental and emotional problems are held in the body in the form of muscle tension and constrained movement patterns. They believe the body can affect attitude and feelings, both positively and negatively Aim: This study is a pilot study to determine the effectiveness of dance as therapy in adult IBD patients Methods: Patients with IBD were recruited from a single university IBD practice to partake in a 6 week dance class. Each class was 1.5 hours and occurred once a week. Before, during, and after each class, participants were asked to complete questionnaires that explore their emotional and psychological status, their opinions about the experience, disease activity, and quality of life using previously validated scales. Results: Nine patients with IBD,7 female, all non-smokers, 4 with UC and 5 with Crohn's disease, aged 25 to 55 years participated. Seven patients were in clinical remission. 22% reported depression and 33% had generalized anxiety disorder. The mental health component of SF 36 showed a statistically significant improvement in the vitality sub-score (p0.06), Work productivity (p>0.1), Brief COPE (p>0.6), and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (p>0.23 between Week 6 and Week 0. The subjective comments showed all 9 patients enjoyed the group activity, felt a strong sense of community, felt dance gave a positive outlook on life, and can turn to dance as a tool. Conclusion: Conclusion: Though there was no significant difference in disease activity, SIBDQ, work productivity, or sleep quality, there was a trend in improvement in the mental health component of the SF-36, specifically in the vitality score. The subjective opinions about the experience were positive. Dance may improve self-esteem, reduce stress, decrease isolation, and increase feelings of well-being. The negative results of this study may owe to the small sample size. Further research is warranted to look at dance as a component of a multidisciplinary management for IBD.

Effect of cycling versus treadmill walking on function and quality of life in subjects with osteoartritis of knee

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) refers to a clinical syndrome of joint pain, accompanied by varying degrees of functional limitation and reduced quality of life. It is, by far, the most common form of arthritis, and one of the leading causes of pain and disability worldwide. Aims & Objectives: To see and compare the effect of cycling and walking on pain, function and quality of life in patients with OA knee. Materials and Methods: 30 patients were divided into 2 groups, 15 patients in each. Group A and Group B underwent conventional physiotherapy in the form of warm up exercises. Group A performed cycling and Group B did supervised walking for 30 minutes. Both the protocols were followed by a cool down period of stretching exercises for tendoachillis and hamstring. Pre and post treatment measurement of Visual Analog Scale for pain, Lequesne index for function and SF-36 scores for quality of life were documented for both groups. Results: There was statistically significant improvement in VAS, Lequesne index and physical component of SF 36 scores in both groups. But there was no statistically significant improvement in mental component scores of Quality of life in either group. There was no statistically significant difference in outcome measures between both the groups. (p>0.05) Conclusion: Cycling and walking both are effective in treating patients with OA knee, and there is no difference in the effect of cycling and walking.

Efficient coverage of parallel and hierarchical stateflow models for test case generation

SUMMARYThis paper is concerned with test case generation from Simulink/Stateflow (SL/SF) models with a focus on coverage of SF model elements. Coverage of the SF component in a model is a difficult task because of two primary reasons: (i) the SF component itself may lie deep in the SL/SF model in which case, inputs have to pass through a complex chain of SL blocks to reach the SF block and (ii) nonlinear constraints in the model are difficult to solve using constraint solvers. Hierarchy and parallelism in the SF model add further complexity to the problem. The existing approaches flatten such SF elements, and generate test cases from the flattened finite state machines. Handling of issues (i) and (ii) has already been discussed in earlier research. In this paper, we present a method of covering SF components, which does not require to flatten any hierarchy or parallelism in the components. This not only makes the test case generation problem efficient but also addresses the problem of scalability. We have implemented this method and performed a number of medium‐sized case studies. The results show improved performance over the results obtained by some commercial tools. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

The aperture problem in contoured stimuli

A moving object elicits responses from V1 neurons tuned to a broad range of locations, directions, and spatiotemporal frequencies. Global pooling of such signals can overcome their intrinsic ambiguity in relation to the object's direction/speed (the "aperture problem"); here we examine the role of low-spatial frequencies (SF) and second-order statistics in this process. Subjects made a 2AFC fine direction-discrimination judgement of 'naturally' contoured stimuli viewed rigidly translating behind a series of small circular apertures. This configuration allowed us to manipulate the scene by randomly switching which portion of the stimulus was presented behind each aperture or by occluding certain spatial frequency bands. We report that global motion integration is (a) largely insensitive to the second-order statistics of such stimuli and (b) is rigidly broadband even in the presence of a disrupted low SF component.

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor activity in cerebrospinal fluid.

The purpose of this study was to analyse the presence of the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in human cerebrospinal fluid (SF) of patients affected by multiple sclerosis (MS) in comparison with non-inflammatory neurological diseases. All SFs were collected from 59 patients for diagnostic purpose. The presence of GM-CSF was revealed by measuring its activity and by immunoassay. The data obtained were statistically evaluated. We found that GM-CSF is constitutively present in human SF; this presence was confirmed by its stimulating activity of colony-forming-unit granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) production. No significant changes of the GM-CSF concentration in the SFs were observed among different neurological disorders (degenerative or vascular) and MS. Our data suggest that GM-CSF is a constitutive component of human SF, relatively uninfluenced by the different morbid conditions of the nervous system.

An Improved Vibration Analysis Algorithm as a Diagnostic Tool for Detecting Mechanical Anomalies on Power Circuit Breakers

This paper deals with the successful application of vibration analysis for circuit-breaker (CB) diagnostic testing with the aim of detecting mechanical anomalies in CB drive mechanisms and other moving parts in the interrupting chamber. An improved dynamic time warping algorithm was developed. Several case studies of defective mechanical components of SF <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> power CBs equipped with hydraulic or spring-loaded drive mechanisms are presented. It is foreseen that vibration analysis can be used as a diagnostic tool for all CBs whenever mechanical anomalies are suspected.

Critical behavior of the contact process in a multiscale network

Inspired by dengue and yellow fever epidemics, we investigated the contact process (CP) in a multiscale network constituted by one-dimensional chains connected through a Barabási-Albert scale-free network. In addition to the CP dynamics inside the chains, the exchange of individuals between connected chains (travels) occurs at a constant rate. A finite epidemic threshold and an epidemic mean lifetime diverging exponentially in the subcritical phase, concomitantly with a power law divergence of the outbreak's duration, were found. A generalized scaling function involving both regular and SF components was proposed for the quasistationary analysis and the associated critical exponents determined, demonstrating that the CP on this hybrid network and nonvanishing travel rates establishes a new universality class.