The interaction of cationic liposomes with the skin-associated bacterium Staphylococcus epidermidis: effects of ionic strength and temperature

OBJECTIVE: Treatment with recombinant interferon-alpha (rIFN-alpha) may induce autoimmunity. We have evaluated the effect of rIFN-alpha on pre-existing thyroid disease with special reference to changes in TSH receptor antibody. DESIGN AND PATIENTS: Five patients, who had a history of autoimmune thyroid disease diagnosed between 2 and 16 years earlier (three patients had Graves' disease while two had Hashimoto's thyroiditis), were treated with rIFN-alpha for chronic hepatitis C. Before, during and after rIFN-alpha therapy, we determined thyroid function, antithyroid antibody, thyroid echogenicity and the surface phenotype of the peripheral and intrathyroidal lymphocytes. RESULTS: Four of the patients developed overt hypothyroidism after 4-7 months of rIFN-alpha therapy, and two of them had a preceding history of low-uptake thyrotoxicosis. Recovery of thyroid function was observed in all four patients. Strongly positive blocking type TSH receptor antibody was detected and an increase in the percentage of CD19 positive cells in the intrathyroidal lymphocytes was also observed in three of the patients even though the goitre size increased in two of them. One of the patients became thyrotoxic later when stimulating type TSH receptor antibody became positive. Another patient suffered from reversible hypothyroidism although stimulating type TSH receptor antibody remained strongly positive throughout the clinical course. CONCLUSIONS: Our data thus indicated a high incidence of an unusual type of reversible hypothyroidism with TSH receptor antibodies in patients with chronic hepatitis C and pre-existing autoimmune thyroid disease after recombinant interferon-alpha therapy through a mechanism involving both the humoral and cellular immune systems.     

Surface Decomposition of Strontium-Doped Soft PbZrO3–PbTiO3

Sintering temperature has a pronounced effect on perovskite phase stability at the surface of Pb_0.88Sr_0.12Zr_0.54Ti_0.44Sb_0.02O₃ (PSZT) soft piezoelectric ceramics ( d ₃₃≈ 600 pC/N). After sintering 4 h at 1070°C, XRD reveals only perovskite PSZT peaks in the bulk and at the surface. As sintering temperature increases, XRD from the ceramic surface reveals a second-phase peak at ∼27° (2θ), 0.316 nm ( d -spacing). After 4 h at 1280°C, further second-phase peaks are observed, confirming it to be monoclinic ZrO₂, accompanied by a strong increase in the degree of tetragonality of the perovskite phase. These observations are consistent with decomposition of the PSZT to ZrO₂ and tetragonal PZT (PbZrO₃–PbTiO₃) associated with PbO loss. SEM and cross-sectional TEM indicated that surface decomposition had progressed ∼0.5 mm into the sample after 4 h at 1280°C.     

Solution of linear optimal control systems by differential transform method

In this paper, we obtain the approximate solutions for optimal control of linear systems, which have a quadratic performance index. The differential transform method (DTM) is applied for solving the extreme conditions obtained from the Pontryagin’s maximum principle. The differential transform method is one of the approximate methods, which can be easily applied to many linear and nonlinear problems and is capable of reducing the size of computational work. Applying DTM, we construct an optimal feedback control law. The results reveal that the proposed method are very effective and simple. Comparisons are made between the results of the proposed methods, homotopy perturbation method, Adomian decomposition method and exact solutions.     

Triacylglycerols responsible for the onset of nucleation during clouding of palm olein

This paper discusses the results of an investigation to identify triacylglycerols that induce clouding of refined bleached deodorized (RBD) palm olein, which occurred within 24 h after fractionation. The experiments were conducted in a jacketed glass vessel in which the liquid sample was cooled from 70 to 23°C at a predetermined rate. Clouding began at around 28.5°C. The presence of three different types of saturated triglycerides, namely tripalmitin, dipalmitoyl-myristoylglycerol and dipalmitoyl-stearoyl-rac-glycerol, is critical in the formation of nuclei and thus clouding of the RBD palm olein. This conclusion is based on the significant increase in the relative concentration of these components in the nuclei as compared to the mother oil.     

Paradigm lost … paradigm gained: a hermeneutical rejoinder to Banville and Landry’s ‘Can the Field of MIS be Disciplined?’

This study offers an alternative interpretation to Banville and Landry’s (B&L, 1989) Can the Field of MIS Be Disciplined?, the canonical text that argued persuasively against the adoption of the Kuhnian view of scientific progress for the information systems (IS) field. Much has transpired in the quarter of a century since its publication, which provides us with new sources of understanding about paradigms and how they relate to the challenges faced by the IS field. On the basis of the hermeneutical principles of tradition, prejudice, temporal distance, history of effect and application, this study describes the context from which B&L was written, its dependence on Whitley’s (1984) The Intellectual and Social Organization of the Sciences, and examines several of its claims and assertions. In contrast to B&L, this study finds the Kuhnian model of scientific progress well suited for a multidisciplinary and pluralistic field like IS and concludes with guidelines on how to reclaim the more transformative aspects of the paradigm concept, engender a culture of contextual borrowing from reference disciplines, and encourage conceptual development and autonomous theory construction.     

A method for the generation of 3D representative models of granular based materials

The morphology of many naturally occurring and man‐made materials at different length scales can be modelled using the packing of correspondingly shaped and sized particles. The mechanical behaviour of this vast category of materials – which includes granular media, particle reinforced materials and foams ‐ depends strongly upon the shape and size distribution of the particles. This paper presents a method for the generation and packing of arbitrarily shaped polyhedral particles. The algorithm for the generation of the particles is based on the Voronoi tessellation technique, whilst the packing is performed using a geometrical approach, which guarantees the non‐overlapping of the bodies without relying upon any, otherwise typically computationally expensive, contact detection and interaction algorithm. The introduction of three geometrical parameters allows to control the shape, size and spacial density of the polyhedral particles, which are used to build numerical models representative of densely packed granular assemblies, granular reinforced materials and closed‐cell foams. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mobility of Air-Stable p -type Polythiophene Field-Effect Transistors Fabricated Using Oxidative Chemical Vapor Deposition

Air-stable organic field-effect transistors (FETs) based on an unsubstituted polythiophene (PT) channel, processed using oxidative chemical vapor deposition (oCVD), have been investigated. The intrinsic properties of PT, including its rigid backbone structure and resistance to reactions with water and oxygen, lead to excellent air stability of oCVD PT-based FET devices. The effect of the channel/metalization contact resistance on the field-effect mobility (μFE) of PT-based FETs has also been investigated. Due to the channel/metallization contact resistance, the actual voltages applied to the channel are found to be significantly lower than the intended drain bias because of the voltage drops that occur at the source/drain contacts. Transmission-line measurements reveal that more than 30% of the intended drain bias is lost at all gate voltages applied to the channel. Reconstructed output characteristics excluding the contact effect allow the extraction of a corrected μFE, which is approximately 40% higher than that with contact resistance.     

S. I: hybridization of neural computing with nature-inspired algorithms

Neural Computing and Applications -     

A floating point conversion algorithm for mixed precision computations

The floating point number is the most commonly used real number representation for digital computations due to its high precision characteristics. It is used on computers and on single chip applications such as DSP chips. Double precision (64-bit) representations allow for a wider range of real numbers to be denoted. However, single precision (32-bit) operations are more efficient. Recently, there has been an increasing interest in mixed precision computations which take advantage of single precision efficiency on 64-bit numbers. This calls for the ability to interchange between the two formats. In this paper, an algorithm that converts floating point numbers from 64- to 32-bit representations is presented. The algorithm was implemented as a Verilog code and tested on field programmable gate array (FPGA) using the Quartus II DE2 board and Agilent 16821A portable logic analyzer. Results indicate that the algorithm can perform the conversion reliably and accurately within a constant execution time of 25 ns with a 20 MHz clock frequency regardless of the number being converted.     

Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction of lycopene: A review

Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant and potential high-value compound for the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical sectors. Its low solubility in water and high solubility in toxic organic solvents has led to a number of studies being carried out on using supercritical carbon dioxide to extract lycopene, with a majority of the studies focusing on extraction from tomatoes or tomato-derived preparations. Parameters such as temperature, pressure, flow rate, extraction time, sample moisture content and sample particle size influence the yield of lycopene via the exertion of different mechanisms. The use of co-solvents and modifiers can greatly enhance the lycopene yield beyond optimization of the parameters previously mentioned, while the co-extraction method offers a new way of enhancing lycopene yields. The scope of this review covers the effects of various parameters on lycopene extraction by supercritical carbon dioxide.