Detection of muramidase (lysozyme)-secreting leucocytes at the single-cell level by a protein A plaque assay

Using a modification of the protein A plaque assay, muramidase (lysozyme)-producing leucocytes were detected as plaque-forming cells. In the presence of anti-muramidase Ig and complement the secreted lysozyme resulted in lysis of protein-A-coated target erythrocytes. By the use of a monolayer technique individual plaque-forming cells could be identified by staining procedures. Granulocytes as well as monocytes were found to produce muramidase and thus to form plaques. This method could serve as a useful tool when studying lysozyme secretion. Furthermore, by the use of appropriate antisera, this method could be employed for the study of any cell type (any secretion), provided enough molecules are being secreted.     

Certification of the European Reference Soil Set (IRMM-443--EUROSOILS). Part II. Soil-pH in suspensions of water and CaCl2

IRMM-443 re-groups a set of six European Reference Soils (EUROSOILS), which had been certified for their adsorption coefficients for atrazine, 2,4-D and lindane (Certification of the European Reference Soil Set (IRMM-443-EUROSOILS)-Part I. Adsorption coefficients for atrazine, 2,4-D and lindane. Sci Total Environ, in press). The certification of these parameters was complemented by an additional certification of pH in suspension as well by the determination of indicative values for total nitrogen, organic and total carbon content. While Part I explained the principles of the value assignment process and discussed their application to the adsorption coefficients, Part II presents the certified values for pH as well as the indicative values for N(tot), C(tot) and C(org). In addition, the assessment of uncertainty components for stability and homogeneity, which have been included in the final uncertainty budget, is discussed.     

Changes in sample collection and analytical techniques and effects on retrospective comparability of low-level concentrations of trace elements in ground water

Ground-water sampling techniques were modified to reduce random low-level contamination during collection of filtered water samples for determination of trace-element concentrations. The modified sampling techniques were first used in New Jersey by the US Geological Survey in 1994 along with inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis to determine the concentrations of 18 trace elements at the one microgram-per-liter (microg/L) level in the oxic water of the unconfined sand and gravel Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system. The revised technique tested included a combination of the following: collection of samples (1) with flow rates of about 2 L per minute, (2) through acid-washed single-use disposable tubing and (3) a single-use disposable 0.45-microm pore size capsule filter, (4) contained within portable glove boxes, (5) in a dedicated clean sampling van, (6) only after turbidity stabilized at values less than 2 nephelometric turbidity units (NTU), when possible. Quality-assurance data, obtained from equipment blanks and split samples, indicated that trace element concentrations, with the exception of iron, chromium, aluminum, and zinc, measured in the samples collected in 1994 were not subject to random contamination at 1 microg/L. Results from samples collected in 1994 were compared to those from samples collected in 1991 from the same 12 PVC-cased observation wells using the available sampling and analytical techniques at that time. Concentrations of copper, lead, manganese and zinc were statistically significantly lower in samples collected in 1994 than in 1991. Sampling techniques used in 1994 likely provided trace-element data that represented concentrations in the aquifer with less bias than data from 1991 when samples were collected without the same degree of attention to sample handling.     

Patterns of connections between zona incerta and brainstem in rats

To understand better the organisation of zona incerta of the thalamus, this study has examined the patterns of connections that this nucleus has with various nuclei of the brainstem. Injections of biotinylated dextran or cholera toxin subunit B were made into the dorsal raphe, midbrain reticular nucleus, pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus, periaqueductal grey matter, pontine reticular nucleus, substantia nigra, superior colliculus, and ventral tegmental area of Sprague-Dawley rats, and their brains were processed by using standard tracer-detection methods. In general, our results show that zona incerta forms the major zone in the thalamus where these ascending brainstem axons terminate and from which descending axons that travel back to these same brainstem centres originate. These incertal inputs and outputs are limited largely to a distinct sector of zona incerta, the dorsal sector. An exception to this pattern is evident in the incertal projection to the deep layers of the superior colliculus; this projection, unlike all of the others, arises from cells in the ventral sector of zona incerta. Our results also show little evidence for a well-defined topography of projection between the brainstem and the zona incerta. For instance, small injections into each brainstem nucleus result in labelled terminals and in cells spread throughout much of the dorsal sector of zona incerta, with no local zone of concentration within the sector. Again, an exception to this pattern is seen in the incertal projection to the superior colliculus. This projection, unlike the others, shows a clear topographical organisation: A medial-lateral shift in the injection site in the colliculus results in a lateral-medial shift in the position of labelled cells in zona incerta. Curiously, even though the incertal projection to the colliculus appears to be mapped, the collicular projection back to zona incerta is not mapped. In conclusion, then, a number of brainstem nuclei (except for the deep collicular layers) have strong and overlapping connections within the same sector of zona incerta. This convergence of many functionally diverse brainstem afferents within zona incerta places this nucleus in a strategic position to sample the general activity of the brainstem and, perhaps, acts as a relay of this information to higher centres, such as the dorsal thalamic relay nuclei and the cerebral hemispheres.     

标准化降水指数与有效干旱指数在新疆干旱监测中的应用

基于干旱监测理论,根据新疆测站1961—2010年逐日降水资料,对比分析了基于不同时间尺度(1、3、6、9、12、24个月)标准化降水指标(SPI)与有效干旱指数(EDI)对干旱监测的有效性与实用性。结果表明:不论针对短期干旱还是长期干旱,EDI监测能力均明显优于SPI。短时间尺度的SPI受短时间降水影响较大,能反映短时间新疆地区的干旱变化特征;随时间尺度的增加,SPI对短时间降水的响应能力较差,但仍可反映长时间序列下明显的干旱变化趋势。与SPI相比,EDI能够很好地反映出短期干旱和当时降水量的影响;同时能够随时间迁移,给每日降水量分配以不同权重,考虑前期降水量对当前干湿状况的影响。相关研究结果可为湿润区及其他气候区洪旱灾害监测提供重要理论依据。     

稀土元素Ce对热挤压变形Al-Mg合金组织与性能的影响

为了确定稀土元素Ce在Al-Mg系合金中的作用,向Al-4％Mg合金中加入不同含量的Ce,研究了Ce对合金显微组织和力学性能的影响。显微组织观察结果表明,加入0.3％～1．0％的Ce不仅可细化Al-4％Mg系合金的晶粒,同时也可改变合金中析出相的类型。拉伸试验结果表明,随着Ce的加入,挤压变形Al-4％Mg系金的室温抗拉强度和屈服强度均有所提高,其中当Ce的加入量为0．6％时,合金的强度最高,与未添加稀土元素的Al-4％Mg合金相比,可使抗拉强度提高近20％,屈服强度提高约16％。室温拉伸断口SEM分析结果表明,挤压变形Al-4％Mg系合金均表现出典型的韧性断裂特征。     

融合内容和服务的未来网络体系架构

互联网难以适应其通信模式由主机为中心向以内容和服务为中心的转变,从而提出了融合内容和服务的未来网络体系架构(Content and Service Aware Network:CoreNet)。CoreNet基于面向内容和服务的设计理念,并通过灵活的协议栈"腰"设计允许应用显式地表达它们的通信意愿,使得网络能感知不同应用模式并进行优化处理。同时,通过网络内置缓存和高效任播路由,提升内容分发和服务获取的效率,适应未来人机物三元融合创新应用的需求。