Beyond the trailing spouse: the commuter partnership as an alternative to family migration

Combining commitments in the domains of work, family, and residence has become a complex puzzle for the contemporary (dual-earner) family, especially when these choices concern family migration. For some families, non-standard alternatives to family migration, such as a commuter partnership in which one partner lives near work part of the time, might provide the best solution in matching both individual and family commitments. Through in-depth interviews with both partners in commuter partnerships, this paper explores the commitments that form the basis underlying the choice for a commuter partnership as an alternative to family migration or not migrating. It further describes how the balance in partners’ individual and their common interests, as well as the gender ideologies the couple holds, influence the choice for a commuter partnership. Our findings suggest that the commuter partnership is regarded as a suitable compromise between several commitments not only for partners who are both oriented towards their employment careers, but also for couples who have distinct commitments in their private lives. Partners in egalitarian partnerships were found to view the commuter partnership as a household arrangement that fitted their approach of reinforcing each other’s interests and commitments. For couples with non-symmetrical gender beliefs we found that in order for one (usually male) partner to pursue a choice biography through the commuter partnership, substantial sacrifices were demanded from the (usually female) spouse.

gamma-Ray-mediated oxidative labeling for detecting protein conformational changes by electrospray mass spectrometry

Exposure of proteins to hydroxyl radicals induces the incorporation of oxygen atoms into solvent-exposed side chains. Earlier studies have employed this approach for mapping protein-protein interactions in mass spectrometry-based footprinting experiments. This work explores whether the overall level of gamma-ray mediated oxidative labeling can be used for monitoring large-scale conformational changes. According to a recently developed kinetic model (Tong, X.; Wren, J. C.; Konermann, L. Anal. Chem. 2007, 79, 6376-6382), the apparent first-order rate constant for oxidative labeling can be approximated as k(app) = k(RAD)/([P](tot) + C/k(u)), where k(RAD) is the primary rate of *OH formation, [P](tot) is the protein concentration, C reflects the presence of competing radical deactivation channels, and ku is the rate constant at which hydroxyl radicals react with the protein. The current study introduces conformational effects into this model by proposing that k(u) = [see text for formula] , where N is the number of amino acids, alphai is a measure for the solvent exposure of residue i, and k(ch)(i) is the oxidation rate constant that would apply for a completely solvent-exposed side chain. Using myoglobin and cytochrome c as model systems, it is demonstrated that unfolding by addition of H(3)PO(4) increases k(app) by up to 30% and 70%, respectively. Unfolding by other commonly used denaturants such as organic acids or urea results in dramatically lower oxidation levels than for the native state, a behavior that is due to the radical scavenging activity of these substances (corresponding to an increased value of C). Control experiments on model peptides are suitable for identifying such "secondary" effects, i.e., factors that modify oxidation levels without being related to conformational changes. In conclusion, the overall *OH labeling level represents a viable probe of large-scale protein conformational changes only under conditions where secondary effects are known to be minimal and where [P](tot) is constant.     

Unsupervised illuminant estimation from natural scenes: an RGB digital camera suffices

A linear pseudo-inverse method for unsupervised illuminant recovery from natural scenes is presented. The algorithm, which uses a digital RGB camera, selects the naturally occurring bright areas (not necessarily the white ones) in natural images and converts the RGB digital counts directly into the spectral power distribution of the illuminants using a learning-based spectral procedure. Computations show a good spectral and colorimetric performance when only three sensors (a three-band RGB camera) are used. These results go against previous findings concerning the recovery of spectral reflectances and radiances, which claimed that the greater the number of sensors, the better the spectral performance. Combining the device with the appropriate computations can yield spectral information about objects and illuminants simultaneously, avoiding the need for spectroradiometric measurements. The method works well and needs neither a white reference located in the natural scene nor direct measurements of the spectral power distribution of the light.     

Smart sensors/actuators for biomedical applications: Review

This paper reflects on review of smart sensor activities for biomedical applications. The rise of biotechnology has provided innovative development of new therapies and detection methods for life threatening diseases. As a worldwide research focus, there is especially a strong interest in the use of microsystems in health care, particularly as smart implantable devices. Recent years have seen an increasing activity of hip and knee replacement and other type of implants, which are some of the most frequently performed surgical procedures in the world. Loosening of hip prosthesis is the dominant issue for many patients who undergo a hip arthroplasty. Artificial joints are subject to chronic infections associated with bacterial biofilms, which only can be eradicated by the traumatic removal of the implant followed by sustained intravenous antibiotic therapy. This review focuses on the clinical experience using all kinds of smart implants like orthopedic implants instrumented with strain gauges, retina implant system using image sensors. Technical design improvements will enhance function, quality of life, and longevity of total knee arthroplasty and all other kind of implants. Application of biocompatible nanomaterials in implantable biosensors for continuous monitoring of metabolites is an area of sustained scientific and technological interests.     

Perforin Expression by CD4+ Regulatory T Cells Increases at Multiple Sclerosis Relapse: Sex Differences

Multiple sclerosis (MS) represents the leading cause of neurological deficit among young adults, affecting women more frequently than men. In MS, the extent of central nervous system lesions is determined by the net balance between self-reactive and regulatory T-cells at any given time, among other factors, as well as by the effect of inflammatory response. Here, we studied both CD4+ and CD8+ T(Reg) in parallel in blood and CSF during MS relapse. A recruitment of both regulatory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (T(Reg)) within the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) takes place during MS relapse. Not previously described, the presence of CD4+ T(Reg) in CSF was higher in women than in men, which could account for the sexual dimorphism in the incidence of MS. A direct correlation between plasma oestradiol (E2) and IL-2 levels was observed, in line with a putative circuit of E2 and perforin expression by CD4+ T(Reg) playing a role in MS. Also, serum IFN-alpha was higher in females, with direct correlation with serum E2 levels. This is the first study to analyze perforin expression by CD4+ T(Reg) in MS, which was greatly enhanced in CSF, what points out a relevant role of this molecule in the suppressive effects of the CD4+ T(Reg) in MS, and contributes to the understanding of MS pathophysiology.     

Effects of toasting on the carbohydrate profile and antioxidant properties of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) flour added to durum wheat pasta

The effects of the toasting process on the carbohydrate profile and antioxidant properties of chickpea flour were studied, along with the cooking behaviour, and antioxidant and nutritional properties of pasta enriched with the chickpea flour. The toasting process increased the resistant starch, insoluble dietary fibre and antioxidant properties of the flour. Addition of chickpea flour (raw and toasted) to durum wheat semolina changed the carbohydrate profile in the uncooked and cooked enriched pasta, especially with the toasted chickpea, and worsened the overall quality of the pasta. The increase in total phenolic content and total free phenolic acid content in the uncooked pasta was due to positive effects of addition of the chickpea flours, while the increase in the bound phenolics fraction in the cooked pasta was from the durum wheat, which was crucial for its high concentrations of ferulic acid. The increase in the free fraction of the Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity in cooked pasta was consistent with the addition of chickpea.     

Molecular and toxigenic characterization of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus thuringiensis strains isolated from commercial ground roasted coffee

Thirty samples of roasted ground coffee beans from 10 different commercial brands were analyzed to investigate the occurrence and levels of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus thuringiensis strains. Strains were evaluated for their genetic diversity by repetitive element sequence polymorphism PCR (Rep-PCR) and for their toxigenic profiles, i.e., the presence of hblA, hblC, hblD, nheA, nheB, nheC, cytK, ces, and entFM. Survival and multiplication of B. cereus sensu lato in the ready-to-drink coffee was determined to evaluate this beverage as a possible vehicle for B. cereus infection. B. cereus was detected in 17 (56.7%) of the 30 samples, and B. thuringiensis was detected in 8 (26.7%) of the 30 samples. Five samples did not produce any characteristic growth. The most common gene, entFM, was detected in 23 strains (92%). The NHE complex (nheA, nheB, and nheC genes) was found in 19 strains (76%). The HBL complex (hblA, hblC, and hblD) was found in 16 strains (64%). All strains were negative for ces. The cytK gene was found in 16 strains (64%). The computer-assisted cluster analysis of Rep-PCR profiles using a clustering criterion of 80% similarity revealed four main clusters. Cluster 1 was the predominant and comprised three B. thuringiensis strains with 100% similarity, cluster 2 comprised two B. cereus strains (100% similarity), cluster 3 comprised two B. thuringiensis strains (90% similarity), and cluster 4 comprised one B. thuringiensis strain and one B. cereus strain (85% similarity). The cluster analysis of fingerprints generated by Rep-PCR revealed a high genetic diversity among the B. cereus strains, suggesting that the contamination could have originated from different sources. In our experiments, when sugar was added and the beverage was kept in thermic bottles there was a significant increase in B. cereus sensu lato levels, which may increase the risk of food poisoning. These results highlight the need for additional studies on this subject to better evaluate coffee as a food poisoning vehicle.     

Multi-objective optimal control of an air-to-water heat pump for residential heating

The current study investigates the optimal operation of an air-to-water heat pump system. To this end, the control problem is formulated as a classic optimal control or dynamic optimization problem. As conflicting objectives arise, namely, minimizing energy cost while maximizing thermal comfort, the optimization problem is tackled from a multi-objective optimization perspective. The adopted system model incorporates the building dynamics and the heat pump characteristics. Because of the state-dependency of the coefficient of performance (COP), the optimal control problem (OCP) is nonlinear. If the COP is approximated by a constant value, the OCP becomes convex, which is easier to solve. The current study investigates how this approximation affects the control performance. The optimal control problems are solved using the freely available Automatic Control And Dynamic Optimization toolkit ACADO. It is found that the lower the weighting factor for thermal discomfort is, the higher the discrepancy is between the nonlinear and convex OCP formulations. For a weighting factor resulting in a quadratic mean difference of 0.5°C between the zone temperature and its reference temperature, the difference in electricity cost amounts to 4% for a first scenario with fixed electricity price, and up to 6% for a second scenario with a day and night variation in electricity price.     

Computer-aided lesion diagnosis in automated 3-D breast ultrasound using coronal spiculation

A computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for the classification of lesions as malignant or benign in automated 3-D breast ultrasound (ABUS) images, is presented. Lesions are automatically segmented when a seed point is provided, using dynamic programming in combination with a spiral scanning technique. A novel aspect of ABUS imaging is the presence of spiculation patterns in coronal planes perpendicular to the transducer. Spiculation patterns are characteristic for malignant lesions. Therefore, we compute spiculation features and combine them with features related to echotexture, echogenicity, shape, posterior acoustic behavior and margins. Classification experiments were performed using a support vector machine classifier and evaluation was done with leave-one-patient-out cross-validation. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to determine performance of the system on a dataset of 201 lesions. We found that spiculation was among the most discriminative features. Using all features, the area under the ROC curve (A(z)) was 0.93, which was significantly higher than the performance without spiculation features (A(z)=0.90, p=0.02). On a subset of 88 cases, classification performance of CAD (A(z)=0.90) was comparable to the average performance of 10 readers (A(z)=0.87).     

Non-invasive pre-lens tear film assessment with high-speed videokeratoscopy

Purpose

To evaluate the effect of two types of daily contact lenses (delefilcon A and omafilcon A) on the tear film and establish whether it is dependent on pre-corneal tear film characteristics using a new method to analyse high-speed videokeratoscopy recordings, as well as to determine the sensitivity of the method in differentiating between contact lens materials on eye.