Identifying Candidate Protein Markers of Acute Kidney Injury in Acute Decompensated Heart Failure

One-quarter of patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) experience acute kidney injury (AKI)—an abrupt reduction or loss of kidney function associated with increased long-term mortality. There is a critical need to identify early and real-time markers of AKI in ADHF; however, to date, no protein biomarkers have exhibited sufficient diagnostic or prognostic performance for widespread clinical uptake. We aimed to identify novel protein biomarkers of AKI associated with ADHF by quantifying changes in protein abundance in the kidneys that occur during ADHF development and recovery in an ovine model. Relative quantitative protein profiling was performed using sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragment ion spectra–mass spectrometry (SWATH–MS) in kidney cortices from control sheep (n = 5), sheep with established rapid-pacing-induced ADHF (n = 8), and sheep after ~4 weeks recovery from ADHF (n = 7). Of the 790 proteins quantified, we identified 17 candidate kidney injury markers in ADHF, 1 potential kidney marker of ADHF recovery, and 2 potential markers of long-term renal impairment (differential abundance between groups of 1.2–2.6-fold, adjusted p < 0.05). Among these 20 candidate protein markers of kidney injury were 6 candidates supported by existing evidence and 14 novel candidates not previously implicated in AKI. Proteins of differential abundance were enriched in pro-inflammatory signalling pathways: glycoprotein VI (activated during ADHF development; adjusted p < 0.01) and acute phase response (repressed during recovery from ADHF; adjusted p < 0.01). New biomarkers for the early detection of AKI in ADHF may help us to evaluate effective treatment strategies to prevent mortality and improve outcomes for patients.     

Hydrogel‐mediated formation of living cartilage template for endochondral initiation

The use of hydrogel in cartilage tissue engineering is especially popular due to its high hydrophilic property which is similar to native cartilage matrix. Alginate hydrogel was used as a transient scaffold material to facilitate chondrocyte proliferation into a three‐dimensional scaffold‐free living hyaline cartilaginous graft (LhCG). As LhCG is purely cell‐based and has a marked resemblance to native hyaline cartilage, it served as an excellent in vitro platform for studying the endochondral ossification pathway. Due to the complexity of events involved throughout endochondral ossification, this study only focuses on early stages of the process where it involves chondrocyte hypertrophy and blood vessel invasion. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were selected as the target cells for possible endothelialization in the LhCG template. They were seeded onto the LhCG construct and subjected to vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) treatment. Results suggested that VEGF is indeed a potent driving force for initiation of the endochondral pathway. It alone is sufficient to induce hypertrophy in chondrocytes and the corresponding expression of osteogenic genes with or without the presence of HUVECs in the LhCG template. On the other hand, the effect of HUVECs in the LhCG system was less evident. It is hypothesized that this is attributed to the preservation of anti‐angiogenic properties in primary chondrocytes from the LhCG construct, inhibiting HUVECs from endothelialization in the LhCG+HUVEC construct. Based on the outcome from this study, it is recommended that hypertrophy in chondrocytes should be induced prior to endothelial cell introduction so that the microenvironment will be altered to favor angiogenesis within the cartilaginous template. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry     

基于计算机的材料性能测试

 恩斯特马赫研究所(EMI)的弗劳恩霍费尔瞬时动力学研究所通过多功能动态材料试验台、碰撞和冲击装置、冲击管装置进行实验以及数值模拟，从事材料动态特性研究，并将所确定的动态材料数据用于未来新材料的优化设计。     

Cottonseed flavonoids as lipid antioxidants

Methanolic extracts of cottonseeds were found to possess antioxidant activity. Separation of antioxidant components was achieved by paper, thin layer (TLC) and gas liquid chromatography (GLC) and spectral analysis. Chromatographic technique indicated that the flavonoids quercetin and rutin were the major flavonoids present. GLC analysis of the cottonseed extract eluted from TLC plates, developed in n-butanol/acetic acid/water (4:1:5, v/v/v) and ethyl acetate/methyl ethyl ketone/formic acid/water (5:3:1:1, v/v/v) solvents, corresponded in retention times to the rutin standard (10⁻⁴ M). TMS derivatives of the aglycone fraction, prepared by acid hydrolysis, correlated to the retention time of quercetin. Spectral analysis of the aglycone fraction also indicated quercetin derivatives to be present in cottonseed. The glycosyl substitution of the flavonoids were identified by the 3 chromatographic procedures to be glucose and rhamnose. Chromogenic spray reagents were used to further characterize the cottonseed flavonoids and flavonoid components on TLC and paper chromatography. The investigation, therefore, demonstrated that quercetin derivatives appear to be the main flavonoid species in cottonseed. Rutin was found to be one of the major quercetin glycosides. Quercetin and rutin are shown to possess potent antioxidant activity.     

Customer Thermal Energy Storage a Marketing Opportunity for Cooling off Electric Peak Demand

Traditionally, electric utilities have forecast the demand for their product and planned a supply system to satisfy the market. Rather than treating the forecast demand as a given, Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), has established a marketing planning function to alter future demand through direct involvement in the marketplace. The crucial element in management's evaluation of opportunities to build, maintain, shift, or reduce customer load is a better understanding of our customers, including their preferences and behavior in purchasing energy. A market analysis utilizing a comprehensive marketing planning model, the Load Management Strategy Testing Model (LMSTM), indicates that the commercial sector, in general, and customer thermal energy storage, in particular, is a demand-side option the Company will actively promote. That identification is made by a detailed market feasibility study FPL is currently managing.     

Evaluation of students' clinical competence.

In this article we describe a clinical proficiency review required of 3rd-year graduate students, and we present data from a study of its psychometric properties and utility. Students' oral and written case presentations were evaluated on seven dimensions by a six-member panel composed of faculty and students. Moderately high interjudge reliabilities were achieved, although the level of agreement between rater pairs was related to the level of similarity of their theoretical orientation. Significant correlations were obtained between panel ratings and those of current field placement supervisors, but not with supervisor's ratings from prior or subsequent placements. Performance on the clinical proficiency review was relatively independent of academic performance measures such as course grades and scores on a six-part comprehensive examination. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The therapist's dilemma: Using nomothetic information to answer idiographic questions.

The therapist is faced with the dilemma of conducting therapy at an idiographic level while psychology research is conducted and organized at a nomothetic level. Increasingly, psychiatric diagnosis serves as the conceptual bridge from the science of psychology to its clinical applications. Yet diagnosis has a number of well-known limitations for determining treatment. An alternative conceptual bridge from nomothetic science to clinical applications draws from 3 overlapping categories: (1) general causal principles derived from all areas of scientific psychology; (2) probabilities and base rate data associated with the covariation of psychological problems; and (3) clinical outcome research. Suggestions as to how therapists can use these nomothetic categories to form treatment strategies are given. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hybrid threshold optimization between global image and local regions in image segmentation for melasma severity assessment

Melasma image segmentation plays a fundamental role for computerized melasma severity assessment. A method of hybrid threshold optimization between a given image and its local regions is proposed and used for melasma image segmentation. An analytic optimal hybrid threshold solution is obtained by minimizing the deviation between the given image and its segmented outcome. This optimal hybrid threshold comprises both local and global information around image pixels and is used to develop an optimal hybrid thresholding segmentation method. The developed method is firstly evaluated based on synthetic images and subsequently used for melasma segmentation and severity assessment. Statistical evaluations of experimental results based on real-world melasma images show that the proposed method outperforms other state-of-the-art thresholding segmentation methods for melasma severity assessment.