Progressive subretinal fibrosis and blindness in patients with multifocal granulomatous chorioretinitis

Since women with a first-degree relative with breast cancer are at increased risk for breast cancer, it is of special importance that they adhere to early detection programs. In this study, women with (389) and without (3295) a family history of breast cancer were compared with respect to risk perception, breast cancer anxiety, and early detection behavior. Special attention was paid to the role of knowing that family history is a breast cancer risk factor. It was found that 46% of "family history positives" did not know that their risk was increased by their family history. Still, family history positives had increased risk perception; our results suggest that this was partly caused by their knowing they belonged to a risk group and partly by their having experienced the disease at close range. Although family history positives had higher risk perceptions, no differences in early detection behavior were found. This could not be attributed to high anxiety levels. Implications for health education are discussed.     

Obesity does not reduce maximum acceptable weights of lift

The maximum acceptable weights of lift (MAWL) of obese and non-obese participants were empirically investigated. Three obesity levels were considered: non-obese (18.5 kg/m(2)< or= body mass index (BMI)or= 40 kg/m(2)). Ten male and 10 female participants were recruited for each obesity level. The participants determined their MAWL for 18 different lifting task conditions (six lifting frequencies x three lifting heights). An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to determine the effects of obesity level, gender, lifting height, lifting frequency and their interactions on MAWL. Overall, the ANOVA results indicated that obesity does not reduce MAWL, and thus, suggested that the existing MAWL data can be used to accommodate both general and obese workers. However, further studies based on the biomechanical and physiological approaches are required to provide more complete understanding of obesity effects on lifting tolerance limits.     

半透膜仪采集空气中多氯联苯采样速度与其结构和性质定量构效关系研究

根据MOPAC2009软件包中PM6算法得到的分子描述符研究半透膜仪(SPMDs)采集大气中多氯联苯(PCBs)采样速度(R_(air))的定量构效关系(QSPR)模型,并分析影响R_(air)的关键因素。以半经验PM6算法得到的分子量子化学描述符作为预测变量,采用偏最小二乘算法(PLS)构建了R_(air)的QSPR模型。根据交叉验证,所得到的最佳模型中PLS成分解释的因变量的累积变异(Q~2_(cum))为0.683,这表明该模型具有良好的预测能力和稳健性。通过外部验证和将实验测得的R_(air)与预测得到的R_(air)进行比较,对所构建模型的稳定性和可靠性进行了验证,结果表明无论是训练组还是预测组,其预测值与实测值间均具有较好的线性关系,线性相关系数均大于0.8376。对PCBs采样速度R_(air)的主要影响因素为PCBs与SPMDs中甘油三油酸酯分子间的相互作用大小和为将PCBs溶解在甘油三油酸酯中形成洞穴所需能量要求。     

MetaMol: high-quality visualization of molecular skin surface

Modeling and visualizing molecular surfaces is an important and challenging task in bioinformatics. Such surfaces play an essential role in better understanding the chemical and physical properties of molecules. However, constructing and displaying molecular surfaces requires complex algorithms. In this article we introduce MetaMol, a new program that generates high-quality images in interactive time. In contrast with existing software that discretizes the surface with triangles or grids, our program is based on a GPU accelerated ray-casting algorithm that directly uses the piecewise-defined algebraic equation of the molecular skin surface. As a result, both better performances and higher quality are obtained.     

Raman microprobe analysis of preforms and optical fibers

The concentration profile of various dopants (germanium, phosphorus, and fluorine) in preforms and optical fibers has been obtained with a Raman microprobe. A 2-microm spatial resolution was achieved. In the case of germanium and phosphorus, the results agree quite well with those obtained with an electron microprobe. Raman spectroscopy easily detects fluorine. From measurements of various F-doped samples, diffusion of fluorine in undoped and doped silica is suggested.     

Accommodation of impurities in α-Al2O3, α-Cr2O3 and α-Fe2O3

Atomic scale computer simulation was used to predict the mechanisms and energies associated with the accommodation of aliovalent and isovalent dopants in three host oxides with the corundum structure. Here we consider a much more extensive range of dopant ions than has previously been the case. This enables a rigorous comparison of calculated mechanism energetics. From this we predict that divalent ions are charge compensated by oxygen vacancies and tetravalent ions by cation vacancies over the full range of dopant radii. When defect associations are included in the model these conclusions remain valid. At equilibrium, defects resulting from extrinsic dopant solution dominate intrinsic processes, except for the largest dopant cations. Solution reaction energies increase markedly with increasing dopant radius. The behaviour of cluster binding energies is more complex.     

Fungal products. Part XVII. Microbiological hydroxylation of gibberellin A9 and its methyl ester

Angiotensin II (A II) and analogues were tested for their ability to restore electrical and mechanical activity to cardiac muscle preparations in which the fast Na+ channels had been inactivated by partial depolarization (22-27 mM K+) or by tetrodotoxin (TTX). The partially depolarized or TTX-blocked preparations were chosen because under these conditions electrical and mechanical responses are primarily Ca2+ -dependent. In depolarized rabbit right atria, A II restored spontaneous mechanical and electrical activity (measured by both intracellular and extracellular recording techniques). The frequency of action potential discharge was concentration-dependent; the threshold concentration of A II was 10(-10) M, the ED50 was 8 X 10(-9) M, and the maximum effect was observed at 5 X 10(-8) M. In contrast, depolarized guinea pig atria were insensitive to A II, Sar1-angiotensin II, and des-Asp1-angiotensin II, even at concentrations as high as 10(-5) M. Rabbit papillary muscle (TTX-blocked), embryonic (18-day) chick heart (partially depolarized) and chick heart reaggregates (TTX-blocked) responded similarly to rabbit atria in that A II (9.6 X 10(-7) M) restored both electrical and mechanical activity. We found that in these preparations the action of A II was unaffected by propranolol (5.0 X 10(-6) M to 5.0 X 10(-5) M) but was blocked by Mn2+ (10(-3) M), D-600 (1 X 10(-7) g/ml) and the specific A II antagonists Sar1-Ala8-angiotensin II (P-113) (5.0 X 10(-5) M) and Sar1-Ile8-angiotensin II (5.28 X 10(-5) M). We conclude that the positive inotropic effect of A II on the myocardium is due to its ability to increase transmembrane ion movements in or through the cell membrane. The ability of Mn2+ and D-600 to block this effect suggests that this ion movement is via the so-called "slow channels."     

Crossover: online pests plaguing the off line world

During the past 10 years, several technological trends have emerged that significantly and positively affected today's world. Two in particular are noteworthy: the apparently unbounded desire to network any and all devices and deployment of Microsoft's operating systems in everything from consumer PCs and business servers to embedded devices. We could well see the telecommunications boom; the rise of the Internet, and the rush to connect everything to it as one of humanity's milestones, not far removed from, that of the invention of the telephone or telegraph. Computer networking, over the Internet, particularly, has democratized the publishing of information, made massive amounts of information and services accessible to the general public, and enabled new business models. But everything has a dark side. Along with its benefits, the Internet has brought about such things as cybercrime, computer worms, online fraud, spam, and denial-of-service attacks, among other online unpleasantness. This down side is considered in the article.