Quantum Entanglement and Correlations in Superconducting Flux Qubits

We report on the quantum correlations dissipative dynamics followed by coupled superconducting flux qubits. The coupling between the superconducting quantum register and the reservoir is described by two different mechanisms: collective and independent decoherence. By means of the Bloch?CRedfield formalism, we solve the quantum master equation and show that coupling under collective quantum noise is more robust to decoherence. This result is demonstrated for different flux qubit initial preparations, taking into account the influence due to external fields and temperature. Furthermore, we compute the entanglement and the quantum discord dissipative dynamics as controlled by external parameters. We show that the discord is more robust against decoherence effects. This fact could be harnessed in the realization of quantum computing tasks that do not need to invoke entanglement in their implementation.     

Effect of Long-Term Supplementation with Acetic Acid on the Skeletal Muscle of Aging Sprague Dawley Rats

Mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle, which plays an essential role in oxidative capacity and physical activity, declines with aging. Acetic acid activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which plays a key role in the regulation of whole-body energy by phosphorylating key metabolic enzymes in both biosynthetic and oxidative pathways and stimulates gene expression associated with slow-twitch fibers and mitochondria in skeletal muscle cells. In this study, we investigate whether long-term supplementation with acetic acid improves age-related changes in the skeletal muscle of aging rats in association with the activation of AMPK. Male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were administered acetic acid orally from 37 to 56 weeks of age. Long-term supplementation with acetic acid decreased the expression of atrophy-related genes, such as atrogin-1, muscle RING-finger protein-1 (MuRF1), and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), activated AMPK, and affected the proliferation of mitochondria and type I fiber-related molecules in muscles. The findings suggest that acetic acid exhibits an anti-aging function in the skeletal muscles of aging rats.     

Assessment of renal osteodystrophy in dialysis patients: use of bone alkaline phosphatase, bone mineral density and parathyroid ultrasound in comparison with bone histology

Bone biopsies were studied in 73 patients to determine if a two-site radioimmunometric assay for serum bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP), total serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), serum intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), hand X-rays, regional bone mineral density (BMD) measurements and parathyroid enlargement detected by ultrasonography could accurately predict renal osteodystrophy. In the patients studied 57 had hyperparathyroid bone disease, 4 mixed renal osteodystrophy, 3 adynamic bone disease, 1 osteomalacia and 8 normal histology. Serum BAP, ALP and iPTH correlated positively with mineral apposition rate, osteoblastic, osteoid and eroded surface. In the diagnosis of hyperparathyroid bone disease serum iPTH was the most sensitive investigation, detecting 81% of patients at a level > 100 pg/ml but with a specificity of only 66%. Serum BAP was more sensitive, 70% at a level of > 10 ng/ml, than serum total ALP, 30% at a level of 300 IU/l, with similar specificities, 92 and 100%, respectively. Ultrasound detection of an enlarged parathyroid gland had a sensitivity of 64% and a specificity of 100% for the diagnosis of hyperparathyroid bone disease. Hand X-rays had a poor sensitivity, 47%, but a high specificity, 92%, for the detection of hyperparathyroid bone disease. The majority of patients had regional BMD values within the normal reference range and this test was of poor discriminatory value. The non-invasive markers were unable to distinguish between patients with low turnover, mild hyperparathyroidism and patients with normal histology. In conclusion the measurement of serum iPTH is a useful screening tool for the detection of hyperparathyroid bone disease which can be confirmed by the finding of a raised serum BAP or parathyroid enlargement. For definitive diagnosis, however, the gold standard remains bone biopsy and at present one cannot recommend any non-invasive method as an adequate substitute.     

Comparison between the LLC-MK2 and MDCK cell lines in the isolation of parainfluenza virus from nasopharyngeal aspirates

BACKGROUND: We report a prospective comparative study of the efficacy of three commercial cell lines in the isolation of the parainfluenza (PI) virus from nasopharyngeal samples. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In a 16 months period we studied all nasopharyngeal samples from patients with the suspension of a viral respiratory infection. The compared cell lines were LLC-MK2 and MDCK. All samples were processed by the shell-vial assay, incubated 3 days at 36 degrees C. The monolayers were stained by an indirect immunofluorescence assay with a monoclonal antibody against the nucleoprotein of the PI virus. RESULTS: In the study period 746 samples were analyzed, 46 PI virus were isolated, all belonged to the serotype 3. The LLC-MK2 cell line isolated 44 viruses (95.6%) and the MDCK cell line 41 (89.1%), no statistically significant differences were detected (p = 0.14) (qualitative sensitivity). In 84.8% of positive samples, the PI virus was isolated simultaneously in the two cell lines. Neither cell line isolated all PI virus. No statistical differences were detected in the quantitative sensitivity, although the LLC-MK2 cell line detected a slightly more samples with a low viral load (70.4 vs 68.2%). CONCLUSIONS: In view of the results obtained in this study, we believe that anyone of the two cell lines would be used in the isolation of the PI virus from respiratory samples.     

Critical care medicine

A postmortem case of HTLV-I associated myelopathy (HAM)/tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP) with a history of remission and exacerbation of neurological signs and symptoms, resembling those of multiple sclerosis is reported. MRI analysis revealed lesions in the periventricular white matter in addition to atrophy of the thoracic spinal cord, characteristic of HAM/TSP. The cerebral periventricular areas consisted of ill-defined paucity of myelin sheaths with astrocytic gliosis and hyaline thickening of blood vessels. The poorly demarcated white matter lesions found in both brain and spinal cord were different from plaques found in multiple sclerosis. It is suggested that, in some cases of HAM/TSP, inflammatory lesions that destroy myelin can involve not only the spinal cord but also the cerebral periventricular white matter.