Topographic analysis of coherence and propagation of EEG activity during sleep and wakefulness

Overnight sleep EEG recorded from 21 derivations was studied in 8 healthy subjects. The vector autoregressive model was fitted to all 21 channels simultaneously. Ordinary, multiple and partial coherences and directed transfer functions were estimated for sleep stages and wakefulness. Ordinary coherences give rather trivial information that coherence decreases with distance. Partial coherences revealed specific structure that was well repeatable for the subjects studied. Differences in coherence patterns between sleep stages were found by means of statistical tests. An increase of coherence was found for sleep stages 2, 3 and 4. Directed transfer function made possible the identification of the main centers from which EEG activity is spreading during sleep and wakefulness. During sleep the influence of subcortical structures was manifested by propagation of activity from the fronto-central region. The range of this interaction was highest in sleep stages 3 and 4. An EEG analysis, based on the approach of treating time series as a realization of one process and on the simultaneous (not pair-wise) evaluation of signals offers new possibilities in the investigation of synchronization and functional relations in the brain.     

The over-claiming technique: Measuring self-enhancement independent of ability.

Over-claiming is a concrete operalization of self-enhancement based on respondents' ratings of their knowledge of various persons, events, products, and so on. Because 20% of the items are nonexistent, responses can be analyzed with signal detection formulas to index both response bias (over-claiming) and accuracy (knowledge). Study 1 demonstrated convergence of over-claiming with alternative measures of self-enhancement but independence from cognitive ability. In Studies 2-3, the validity of the over-claiming index held even when respondents were (a) warned about the foils or (b) asked to fake good. Study 3 also showed the utility of the over-claiming index for diagnosing faking. In Study 4, the over-claiming technique was applied to the debate over the adaptive value of positive illusions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Removing of light hydrocarbons from gas mixtures using polymeric composite membranes based on poly(1-trimethylsilylpropyne)

Usually the methodologies used to analyse the feasibility of water reuse projects are focused on the internal costs. The aim of this paper is to show a methodology to assess the feasibility of a water reuse project taking into account not just the internal impact, but also the external impact (environmental and social, for example) and the opportunity cost derived from the project. Internal benefit is obtained from the difference between internal income and internal costs. Internal income is obtained by multiplying the selling price of reclaimed water and the volume obtained. Internal costs are made up of the sum of investment costs, operating costs, financial costs and taxes. While some of these factors identified can be calculated directly in terms of money, biophysical and social aspects demand the definition of units of measurement. In order to homogenize results, an annual reference is proposed. A monetary value can be obtained from the calculation of each impact. However, there are a series of externalities for which no explicit market exists. In these cases economic valuation methods are used, based on hypothetical scenarios or patterns observed in related markets.     

Pneumocystis carinii infections in patients with neoplasms and AIDS--clinical-pathologic changes in the lungs

Administration of 0.5 or 1% lyophilized green tea (5 or 10 mg tea solids per ml, respectively) as the sole source of drinking fluid to female Long-Evans rats for 18 days stimulated liver microsomal glucuronidation of estrone, estradiol and 4-nitrophenol by 30-37%, 15-27% and 26-60%, respectively. Oral administration of 0.5% lyophilized green tea to female CD-1 mice for 18 days stimulated liver microsomal glucuronidation of estrone, estradiol and 4-nitrophenol by 33-37%, 12-22% and 172-191%, respectively. The in vitro addition of a green tea polyphenol mixture, a black tea polyphenol mixture or (-)-epigallocatechin gallate inhibited rat liver microsomal glucuronidation of estrone and estradiol in a concentration-dependent manner and their IC50 values for inhibition of estrogen metabolism were approximately 12.5, 50 and 10 microg/ml, respectively. Enzyme kinetic analysis indicates that the inhibition of estrone glucuronidation by 10 microM (-)-epigallocatechin gallate was competitive while inhibition by 50 microM (-)-epigallocatechin gallate was noncompetitive. Similarly, several flavonoids (naringenin, hesperetin, kaempferol, quercetin, rutin, flavone, alpha-naphthoflavone and beta-naphthoflavone) also inhibited rat liver microsomal glucuronidation of estrone and estradiol to varying degrees. Naringenin and hesperetin displayed the strongest inhibitory effects (IC50 value of approximately 25 microM). These two hydroxylated flavonoids had a competitive mechanism of enzyme inhibition for estrone glucuronidation at a 10 microM inhibitor concentration and a predominantly noncompetitive mechanism of inhibition at a 50 microM inhibitor concentration.     

Transplantation of Peyer''s patches under the kidney capsule in syngeneic mice. I. Morphological studies

The morphology of Peyer's patches transplanted under the kidney capsule in syngeneic mice was studied up to 30 days after transplantation. Changes undergoing in transplants were arbitrarily divided into three stages: the initial stage of necrosis, then from the third day on -- clearing of dead tissues, and finally, from the fifth day -- lymphoid regeneration. Starting from the ninth day on, the lymphoid structure of the transplants was quite distinct. Transplants appeared to be similar to Peyer's patches in situ. Reconstituted transplants contained a huge number of blood vessels located with lymphocytes. The epithelial cysts were found in all the transplants. They were formed by remnants of persisted intestinal epithelium covering Peyer's patches in situ. The possibility of epithelial influence on lymphoid regeneration of the transplants is discussed.     

Application of Inhibitor‐Loaded Halloysite Nanotubes in Active Anti‐Corrosive Coatings

Halloysite particles are aluminum‐silicate hollow cylinders with a length of 0.5–1 µm, an outer diameter of ca. 50 nm and a lumen of 15 nm. These nanotubes are used for loading and sustained release of corrosion inhibitors. The inhibitor is kept inside the particles infinitely long under dry conditions. Here, halloysite nanotubes filled with anticorrosive agents are embedded into a SiO_x–ZrO_x hybrid film. An aluminum plate is dip‐coated and immersed into 0.1 M sodium chloride aqueous solution for corrosion tests. A defect in the sol–gel coating induces pitting corrosion on the metal accompanied by a strong anodic activity. The inhibitor is released within one hour from halloysite nanotubes at corrosion spots and suppresses the corrosion process. The anodic activity is successfully restrained and the protection remains for a long time period of immersion in NaCl water solution. The self‐healing effect of the sol–gel coating doped with inhibitor‐loaded halloysite nanotubes is demonstrated in situ via scanning vibrating electrode technique measurements.     

Stochastic Spatial Heterogeneity in Activities of H+-ATP-Ases in Electrically Connected Plant Cells Decreases Threshold for Cooling-Induced Electrical Responses

H⁺-ATP-ases, which support proton efflux through the plasma membrane, are key molecular transporters for electrogenesis in cells of higher plants. Initial activities of the transporters can influence the thresholds of generation of electrical responses induced by stressors and modify other parameters of these responses. Previously, it was theoretically shown that the stochastic heterogeneity of individual cell thresholds for electrical responses in a system of electrically connected neuronal cells can decrease the total threshold of the system (“diversity-induced resonance”, DIR). In the current work, we tested a hypothesis about decreasing the thresholds of generation of cooling-induced electrical responses in a system of electrically connected plant cells with increasing stochastic spatial heterogeny in the initial activities of H⁺-ATP-ases in these cells. A two-dimensional model of the system of electrically connected excitable cells (simple imitation of plant leaf), which was based on a model previously developed in our works, was used for the present investigation. Simulation showed that increasing dispersion in the distribution of initial activities of H⁺-ATP-ases between cells decreased the thresholds of generation of cooling-induced electrical responses. In addition, the increasing weakly influenced the amplitudes of electrical responses. Additional analysis showed two different mechanisms of the revealed effect. The increasing spatial heterogeneity in activities of H⁺-ATP-ases induced a weak positive shift of the membrane potential at rest. The shift decreased the threshold of electrical response generation. However, the decreased threshold induced by increasing the H⁺-ATP-ase activity heterogeneity was also observed after the elimination of the positive shift. The result showed that the “DIR-like” mechanism also participated in the revealed effect. Finally, we showed that the standard deviation of the membrane potentials before the induction of action potentials could be used for the estimation of thresholds of cooling-induced plant electrical responses. Thus, spatial heterogeneity in the initial activities of H⁺-ATP-ases can be a new regulatory mechanism influencing the generation of electrical responses in plants under actions of stressors.     

The influence of sodium caseinate on the physical properties of spray‐dried honey

The aim of this work was to spray dry honey (rape and buckwheat varieties) with Arabic gum (AG) as a carrier alone or in combination with sodium caseinate (1% and 2% w/w NaCas) as a drying aid. Powder recovery ranged from 66.2 ± 0.7% to 75.8 ± 4.9%, and the values were significantly higher for samples containing NaCas. Powders were characterised by good flowability, the addition of NaCas had positive impact on this factor. However, the hygroscopicity of protein‐containing powders was higher, especially at 2% w/w of NaCas. Powders hygroscopicity was related to particle size: AG powder of the smallest particle size was the most hygroscopic, while the particle size did not affected flowability, which was strongly related to the feed solution composition. Based on the obtained results, it was concluded that the addition of 1% w/w of NaCas as a drying aid during buckwheat and rape honey spray drying with Arabic gum as a carrier is favourable, while the further increase of protein content does not give additional benefits.     

Acid hydrolysis of kappa‐carrageenan as a way of gaining new substances for freezing process modification and protection from excessive recrystallisation of ice

The effects of κ‐carrageenan and its hydrolysates on modification of the freezing process and also on inhibition of excessive recrystallisation of ice in sucrose solutions during storage were compared. Acid hydrolysis of κ‐carrageenan was carried out using sulphuric (H₂SO₄) and hydrochloric acid (HCl). Most effective in the hydrolysis process turned out to be H₂SO₄, which degraded κ‐carrageenan to a molecular mass of around 3 × 10⁶ Da, after 1.5 h of hydrolysis. Addition of 0.005% of the new poligeenan (degraded carrageenan), to a sucrose solution (30%), frozen at ?20 °C, caused a nearly 50% reduction in the phase‐change stages, and consequently, the total time of freezing was shorter. Significant retardation of recrystallisation was observed for both types of poligeenan, but a stronger effect was observed for the oligosaccharides obtained after HCl hydrolysis, and after 96 h of storage at ?8 °C, the equivalent diameter of ice crystals was not greater than 11 μm.     

Tsallis entropy in dual homogenization of random composites using the stochastic finite element method

This work concerns an application of the Tsallis entropy to homogenization problem of the fiber‐reinforced and also of the particle‐filled composites with random material and geometrical characteristics. Calculation of the effective material parameters is done with two alternative homogenization methods—the first is based upon the deformation energy of the Representative Volume Element (RVE) subjected to the few specific deformations, while the second uses explicitly the so‐called homogenization functions determined under periodic boundary conditions imposed on this RVE. Probabilistic homogenization is made with the use of three concurrent non‐deterministic methods, namely Monte‐Carlo simulation, iterative generalized stochastic perturbation technique as well as the semi‐analytical approach. The last two approaches are based on the Least Squares Method with polynomial basis of the statistically optimized order— this basis serves for further differentiation in the 10th‐order stochastic perturbation technique, while semi‐analytical method uses it in probabilistic integrals. These three approaches are implemented all as the extensions of the traditional Finite Element Method (FEM) with contrastively different mesh sizes, and they serve in computations of Tsallis entropies of the homogenized tensor components as the functions of input coefficient of variation.