Fine resolution mapping of population age-structures for health and development applications

The age-group composition of populations varies considerably across the world, and obtaining accurate, spatially detailed estimates of numbers of children under 5 years is important in designing vaccination strategies, educational planning or maternal healthcare delivery. Traditionally, such estimates are derived from population censuses, but these can often be unreliable, outdated and of coarse resolution for resource-poor settings. Focusing on Nigeria, we use nationally representative household surveys and their cluster locations to predict the proportion of the under-five population in 1 × 1 km using a Bayesian hierarchical spatio-temporal model. Results showed that land cover, travel time to major settlements, night-time lights and vegetation index were good predictors and that accounting for fine-scale variation, rather than assuming a uniform proportion of under 5 year olds can result in significant differences in health metrics. The largest gaps in estimated bednet and vaccination coverage were in Kano, Katsina and Jigawa. Geolocated household surveys are a valuable resource for providing detailed, contemporary and regularly updated population age-structure data in the absence of recent census data. By combining these with covariate layers, age-structure maps of unprecedented detail can be produced to guide the targeting of interventions in resource-poor settings.     

The removal of food fat based soils during the washing of fabrics

The removal of a deposition mass of 8.55 ± 0.43 mg cm⁻² of lard from plain-weave cotton fabrics under controlled flow conditions has been investigated using water and a solution containing a non-ionic surfactant. Three distinct flow regimes of cross-flow, through-flow and a 2:1 combination of cross- and through-flow respectively have been studied at three cleaning agent temperatures of 10 °C, 25 °C and 40 °C. The lard removal efficiency has been quantified using weighing and image analysis methods to determine the mass per unit area of lard in the treated region. The hydrodynamic resistance changes of the fouled samples have been monitored during the washing process.     

Variational wave-scattering theory for a sinusoidal reflection grating

Abstract

Scattering calculations via the Schwinger variational principle are exemplified for the canonical model of E _∥ plane waves incident on a planarsinusoidal perfect-reflector surface. The complete solution is obtained in terms of a contour integral from which analytic limits are derived that agree with exact results. The contour integral is then evaluated by principal-value and asymptotic techniques, furnishing an explicit solution in Bessel and digamma functions. The variational solution is cast finally into the form of a linear algebraic system, whence we derive various analytic expansions that reproduce further exact results and confirm the efficacy of a simple form of our trial functions. Computations employing this trial function are compared with other approximations and the exact solution. Alternative variational solution representations involving incomplete Anger–Weber or half-range Anger functions are appended.     

On building cyclic and shared structures in Haskell

We demonstrate how to build certain cyclic and other multi-linked structures in the lazy functional programming language Haskell. No explicit pointers are used in these constructions. Each task is accomplished by starting with a suitable specification and then calculating the required program.     

An experimental investigation into the pre-treatment of synthetic membranes using sodium hydroxide solutions

In this paper the effect of two pre-treatment methods are compared experimentally for the filtration of (i) a spent sulphite liquor (17.8 wt.% dry solids) using a 20 kg mol⁻¹ molar mass cut off (MMCO) fluoropolymer membrane and (ii) a molasses solution (45° Brix) using a polysulphone (Psf) membrane (1.5 μm pore size). Both feeds are industrially relevant, and subject to severe fouling issues when membranes are used in their subsequent processing. The pre-treatment methods evaluated were: (i) conditioning with water at 60 °C only [Protocol 1], and (ii) conditioning with water at 60 °C followed by cleaning with 0.5 wt.% NaOH [Protocol 2]. Results are presented that confirm the benefits of sodium hydroxide preconditioning upon performance, supporting the suggestion by some membrane manufacturers that this step be included as part of the pre-treatment protocol.     

Chromosome 17 and hereditary dementia: linkage studies in three non-Alzheimer families and kindreds with late-onset FAD

Several previous families with differing clinical and pathologic characteristics have demonstrated linkage to the 17q21-22 region. We have performed a linkage analysis with chromosome 17 markers on three families showing autosomal dominant inheritance of non-Alzheimer dementia and 60 kindreds with late-onset familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD). Family A shows unequivocal evidence of linkage with a maximum lod score of 5.0 for marker D17S934 (theta = 0.001). This family has an unusual syndrome of a schizophrenia-like psychosis beginning in the fifth or sixth decade followed by severe dementia with an average disease duration of 13.8 years. Neuropathology from five autopsies in this family has shown marked neurofibrillary tangle formation (NFT), degeneration of the amygdala, and no amyloid plaques. This confirms the presence of a gene associated with dementia on 17q and extends the related phenotype to include schizophrenia-like symptoms and classic NFT pathology. A second family with early aphasia progressing to dementia and cortical-basal ganglion-like degeneration also has suggestive evidence for linkage to 17q. A third family with very early-onset dementia (mean, 31 years) and nonspecific pathology can be excluded from the 17q region and emphasizes additional genetic heterogeneity in non-Alzheimer hereditary dementia. Finally, we also present evidence against linkage to D17S579 in the set of 60 families with late-onset FAD, providing further evidence that the chromosome 17 gene is unlikely to be involved in the pathogenesis of typical AD.     

Flow localization during plane strain punch stretching of a ferrite-austenite steel

This is an exploratory study of plastic flow and sheet forming characteristics of a 60 pct ferrite-40 pct austenite duplex stainless steel. Variations in austenite arrangement are shown to have little effect on tensile or punch stretching behavior. Flow and forming properties of the duplex alloy are dominated by its continuous ferrite phase. Flow localization during plane strain stretching over a hemispherical punch takes place at two levels of scale, by mechanisms that are physically different. Macroscopic shear bands develop as the final process of flow localization throughout the sheet as a whole. Macroscopic shear bands initiate at the surface of sheet at the edges of a localized neck and grow inward, as finite element models predict. Fracture takes place by void sheet coalescence within intersecting shear bands. These bands grow in from opposite sides of the sheet. Macroscopic shearing limits ductility during plane strain thinning. Row localization takes place also at the microscopic level within individual grains of the two-phase alloy. Coarse slip bands develop within individual grains of ferrite, and deformation twins develop in austenite as plastic flow takes place. Bands of in-homogeneous flow that develop on the microscopic scale form as an inherent part of the crystalline deformation mechanism of individual grains. T. POLLOCK, formerly Student in the School of Materials Engineering, Purdue University     

Protein kinase A, protein kinase C, and Ca(2+)-regulated expression of 21-hydroxylase cytochrome P450 in H295R human adrenocortical cells

The physiological importance of adrenal 21-hydroxylase cytochrome P450 (CYP21) expression is clearly demonstrated by 21-hydroxylase deficiency, which results in adrenal hyperplasia and over-production of C19 steroids, leading to virilization. The mechanisms regulating normal expression of this key enzyme in human adrenocortical cells are ill defined. Herein we examine the role of the calcium, protein kinase C, and protein kinase A signaling pathways in the expression of CYP21 messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) using the H295R human adrenocortical cell model. Forskolin (10 mumol/L) treatment caused a progressive increase in CYP21 mRNA levels (maximum, 4-fold; P < 0.05) over 36 h of treatment, whereas angiotensin II (AII; 10 nmol/L) produced a smaller, biphasic rise (maximum, 1.8-fold at 12 h; P < 0.05). K+ (14 mmol/L) also induced a time-dependent (maximal, 1.5-fold at 12 h; P < 0.05) and dose-dependent (P < 0.05 12 mmol/L or above at 20 h) rise in CYP21 mRNA levels. The action of forskolin was reproduced by dibutyryl cAMP, confirming the involvement of cAMP in this response. The action of AII was greater than that of K+ or the calcium channel agonist BAYK8644, suggesting that AII action was not solely through the Ca2+ signaling pathway. The action of AII was reproduced and indeed exceeded by the protein kinase C activator 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA; 10 nmol/L; 5.5-fold increase; P < 0.05). The actions of forskolin alone were not significantly increased by combined treatment with AII, suggesting neither synergy nor attenuation of the effects of protein kinase A activation. This was further demonstrated at the level of mRNA and 21-hydroxylase activity by the observation that the effect of forskolin and TPA in combination did not exceed that of TPA alone. Inhibition of protein synthesis with cycloheximide blocked induction of CYP21 as well as type II 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3 beta HSDII) mRNA expression in response to AII, forskolin, and dibutyryl cAMP, but had no effect on 17 alpha-hydroxylase cytochrome P450 (CYP17) or cholesterol side-chain cleavage cytochrome P450 (CYP11A) mRNA. Together, these findings were remarkably similar to those of our previous studies regarding mechanisms regulating 3 beta HSDII expression and underline the existence of a subset of steroidogenic enzymes regulated positively (CYP21 and 3 beta HSDII) as opposed to negatively (CYP17 and CYP11A) by the protein kinase C signaling pathway. The additional finding of a small induction of CYP21 expression in response to increased Ca2+, as previously reported for CYP17, but not 3 beta HSDII, expression, also demonstrates that the mechanisms of control of CYP21 and 3 beta HSDII are not identical. This latter finding may also relate to how CYP21 as well as CYP17 expression continues in the zona reticularis after adrenarche, whereas 3 beta HSD expression declines.