Effects of UVB on the synthesis of complement proteins by keratinocytes

Conditioned taste aversion is a common classic conditioning procedure used to identify noxious stimuli. When a rat is given a taste solution, the conditioned stimulus (CS), followed by an unpleasant experience, the unconditioned stimulus (US), the rat will avoid consumption of the CS in future presentations. These experiments use the taste aversion procedure to examine the effect of exposure to a high magnetic field. A solution consisting of 3.0 g glucose and 1.25 g saccharin per 1 L of solution (G+S) was used as the CS and a 9.4-T magnet served as the US. In Experiment 1, all rats received a 10 min presentation of the G+S solution followed by either a 30 min exposure to the magnetic field (Magnet, n = 8), a 30-min exposure in a container with similar conditions but lacking the magnetic field (Sham, n = 8), or no exposure (Control, n = 8). The Magnet Group showed a taste aversion on the first day of preference testing (p < 0.05). Experiment 2 employed the same US-CS protocol for 3 consecutive days of conditioning. The Magnet Group demonstrated a taste aversion for the postexposure Days 1-8 (p < 0.01). There was no difference between the Sham and Control Groups in either experiment. The results of this study clearly demonstrate that the rats associated the G+S solution with the experience of being exposed to the high magnetic field and avoided the solution in subsequent presentations.     

Free vibration analysis of orthotropic plates by the initial value method

A modified method of the classical initial value technique is presented for the free vibration analysis of rectangular orthotropic plates. The method employs finite difference operators in one direction and uses integration in the other direction. The solutions are superimposed to satisfy the boundary conditions. A detailed discussion of the method is given. A comparative study is presented of the initial value method and other numerical methods. Three examples that show the accuracy of the method are presented.     

Developmentally regulated gene expression of thrombomodulin in postimplantation mouse embryos

Embryonic lethality of thrombomodulin-deficient mice has indicated an essential role for this regulator of blood coagulation in murine development. Here, the embryonic expression pattern of thrombomodulin was defined by surveying beta-galactosidase activity in a mouse strain in which the reporter gene was placed under the regulatory control of the endogenous thrombomodulin promoter via homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells. The murine trophoblast was identified as a previously unrecognized anatomical site where TM expression is conserved between humans and mice and may exert a critical function during postimplantation development. Targeted reporter gene expression in mesodermal precursors of the endothelial cell lineage defined thrombomodulin as an early marker of vascular differentiation. Analysis of the thrombomodulin promoter in differentiating ES cells and in transgenic mice provided evidence for a disparate and cell type-specific gene regulatory control mechanism in the parietal yolk sac. The thrombomodulin promoter as defined in this study will allow the targeting of gene expression to the parietal yolk sac of transgenic mice and the initiation of investigations into the role of parietal endoderm in placental function.     

Inverse dual converter (IDC) for high-power DC-DC applications

A family of DC-DC converters suitable for high-power applications is introduced. The inverse dual converter (IDC) is capable of continuous voltage step-up or step-down control over a wide range of and without the need of a transformer. Experimental verification of the analysis is given for the simple single-phase IDC. Some of the more sophisticated members of the IDC family are described, and their characteristics and possible application, are mentioned     

Post-mortem stimulation of carcasses: effects on biochemistry, biophysics, microbiology, and quality of meat

The influence of post-mortem electrical stimulation of carcasses on the physicochemical, ultrastructural, microbiological, and quality characteristics of meat have been described at length. The latest views, based on the physiological, biochemical, and mechanical models that have been extended to explain the development of tension (contraction) in muscle are presented. The mechanisms by which electrical stimulation causes improvement in certain quality characteristics of meat are considered with some new thoughts. The significance of the mode of electrical flow through the carcass and how the various electrical parameters (electrode-carcass contact, type of current, voltage, pulse characteristics) affect the rate of glycolysis have been explained. The commercial implications of electrical stimulation in the meat industry are highlighted giving special emphasis to hot-boning, energy conservation, and operator safety.     

Preparation of cupric palmitate membrane,its characterization and evaluation of thermodynamically effective fixed charge density

Membrane potentials have been measured across, parchment-supported cupric palmitate membrane separating various 1∶1 electrolytes at concentrations C₁ and C₂ such that C₂=10 C₁. Membrane potential data have been used to calculate transference number of ions, permselectivity and also to derive the thermodynamically effective fixed charge density which is an important characteristic governing the membrane phenomena, by utilizing the generally accepted and most widely used theory of Teorell-Meyer and Sievers as well as the recent theories for membrane potential of Kobatake et al. and Nagasawa et al. based on the principles of nonequilibrium thermodynamics. The values of charge densities derived from different theories were almost the same, confirming thereby the validity of the recently developed theories of membrane potential.     

Analysis of a flat plate solar collector/storage water heater with evaporation

We analyse the performance of a flat-plate collector with a constant rate of evaporation of flowing water between a glass cover and an absorbing plate. The effects of fluid-flow velocity, depth of fluid and length of the absorbing surface are discussed. We have allowed for periodic variation of the solar intensity and ambient air temperature during a typical day in New Delhi.     

Humoral (antibody-mediated) rejection in lung transplantation

To confirm the existence and characterize the pathologic features of humoral (antibody-mediated) lung rejection, we prospectively studied 55 lung transplant recipients (24 male [44%] and 31 female [56%], age range 14 to 69 years [mean 45]). The time between transplantation and biopsy ranged from 2 to 1546 days (mean 274). We performed direct immunofluorescence with C3, immunoglobulin M, and immunoglobulin G antibodies on frozen sections of 106 transbronchial biopsies and one wedge biopsy and compared the results with 13 explanted lungs, one donor lung, and two controls. The histologic diagnoses of these 107 biopsies included acute cellular rejection (62, 58% [minimal 23, mild 33, moderate 5, and severe 1]), chronic rejection (eight, 7%), chronic vascular rejection (two, 2%), acute vasculitis (five, 5%), cytomegalovirus pneumonitis (two, 2%), acute pneumonia (two, 2%), acute organizing pneumonia (two, 2%), diffuse alveolar damage (one, 1%), no evidence of rejection or infection (30, 28%), lipoid pneumonia (one, 1%), and inadequate for histologic diagnosis (one, 1%). Eighty-nine of 106 (84%) transbronchial biopsies, the wedge biopsy, and control lungs were satisfactory for direct immunofluorescence, because each contained alveolate lung parenchyma and arterioles or venules. There was no demonstrable immunofluorescence in the wall of the blood vessels or in the lung parenchyma in any case. We conclude that (1) transbronchial biopsies and wedge biopsies provide adequate material to evaluate humoral rejection, and (2) in spite of the large population studied, the satisfactory material obtained, and the wide range of histologic diagnoses, we could not demonstrate the occurrence of humoral rejection in the lung.     

Shannon's entropy concept in optimum air monitoring network design

The selection of an optimum number of stations and their optimum locations in a region are the main objectives in air monitoring network design. There are a number of approaches to the achievements of these objectives. Among these, the criterion based on the estimation performance measurements, and the identification of adversely affected subregions are the most commonly used approaches. This article introduces a new concept of air monitoring network design using Shannon's entropy concept. The multivariate discrete entropy concept is proposed with the objectives of optimum estimation performance measurements. However, this concept does not guarantee the location of stations in adversely affected subregions. A generalized entropy concept using multivariate lognormal distribution is developed to consider both criteria in optimum air monitoring network design. The methodology is then applied to design an optimally air monitoring network scheme for Al-Khobar city in Saudi Arabia.