Off-grid energy services for the poor: Introducing LED lighting in the Millennium Villages Project in Malawi

Lanterns that use light-emitting diodes (LEDs) powered by batteries, which are in turn charged by grid electricity or small solar panels, have emerged as a cost-competitive alternative to kerosene and other fuel-based lighting technologies, offering brighter light for longer duration at equal or lower cost over time. This paper presents lessons learned from the introduction of solar LED lanterns in rural Malawi. We discuss a market-based program using new and existing local commercial structures such as vendors and cooperatives to sell lanterns to village households without subsidy. The paper addresses issues of enterprise development, community interactions, and survey data on lighting use and expenditure patterns before and after LED lantern introduction. Households that purchased a lantern reported high levels of satisfaction with the LED lanterns as well as savings in annual kerosene expenditure comparable to the price of the lantern. These households also reported monthly incomes comparable to the price of the LED lanterns whereas non-adopters surveyed reported monthly incomes about half this level, suggesting a need for financing options to maximize adoption among poorer populations in rural areas. These results suggest that similar market based models of LED lighting technology dissemination have the potential to be replicated and scaled up in other off-grid regions in developing countries. However, viability of local cooperatives and supply chains for lantern products over the medium-to-long term remain to be assessed.     

Hygienic and physicochemical quality characterisation of artisanal and industrial Pecorino Calabrese cheese

Samples of artisanal and industrial Pecorino Calabrese cheese were collected from 20 dairy farms located in Calabria (Italy) and analysed to evaluate the microscopic and microbiological quality. The number of yeasts and moulds, total coliforms and enterococci was significantly higher in the artisanal cheese. The presence of two samples in both farms exceeding the hygienic limit in terms of Escherichia coli count highlights incorrect hygienic procedures in this kind of production. The filth analysis showed that the amount of solid impurities was significantly higher in the artisanal cheese, while only arthropods were more frequent in the industrial one.     

The importance of accurate muscle modelling for biomechanical analyses: a case study with a lizard skull

Computer-based simulation techniques such as multi-body dynamics analysis are becoming increasingly popular in the field of skull mechanics. Multi-body models can be used for studying the relationships between skull architecture, muscle morphology and feeding performance. However, to be confident in the modelling results, models need to be validated against experimental data, and the effects of uncertainties or inaccuracies in the chosen model attributes need to be assessed with sensitivity analyses. Here, we compare the bite forces predicted by a multi-body model of a lizard (Tupinambis merianae) with in vivo measurements, using anatomical data collected from the same specimen. This subject-specific model predicts bite forces that are very close to the in vivo measurements and also shows a consistent increase in bite force as the bite position is moved posteriorly on the jaw. However, the model is very sensitive to changes in muscle attributes such as fibre length, intrinsic muscle strength and force orientation, with bite force predictions varying considerably when these three variables are altered. We conclude that accurate muscle measurements are crucial to building realistic multi-body models and that subject-specific data should be used whenever possible.     

Magnesium- and strontium-co-substituted hydroxyapatite: the effects of doped-ions on the structure and chemico-physical properties

The present study is aimed at investigating the contribution of two biologically important cations, Mg²⁺ and Sr²⁺, when substituted into the structure of hydroxyapatite (Ca₁₀(PO₄)₆(OH)₂,HA). The substituted samples were synthesized by an aqueous precipitation method that involved the addition of Mg²⁺- and Sr²⁺-containing precursors to partially replace Ca²⁺ ions in the apatite structure. Eight substituted HA samples with different concentrations of single (only Mg²⁺) or combined (Mg²⁺ and Sr²⁺) substitution of cations have been investigated and the results compared with those of pure HA. The obtained materials were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, specific surface area and porosity measurements (N₂ adsorption at 77?K), FT-IR and Raman spectroscopies and scanning electron microscopy. The results indicate that the co-substitution gives rise to the formation of HA and ??-TCP structure types, with a variation of their cell parameters and of the crystallinity degree of HA with varying levels of substitution. An evaluation of the amount of substituents allows us to design and prepare BCP composite materials with a desired HA/??-TCP ratio.     

Changes in Drug Use During Young Adulthood: The Effects of Parent Alcoholism and Transition Into Marriage.

The present study examined the changes in drug use during the transition from emerging adulthood into young adulthood among a community sample of children of alcoholics (COAs) and demographically matched non-COAs. Consistent with national data, the non-COAs significantly decreased their drug use during this time, but the COAs did not significantly decrease their use. On the basis of role compatibility theory, the authors next examined whether marital status mediated or moderated this difference between COAs and non-COAs in linear drug use growth trajectories. In support of mediation, the authors found that COAs were significantly less likely than non-COAs to be currently married and that, for male participants, marriage was significantly associated with greater decreases in drug use during the mid to late 20s. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Affect and behavioral involvement in spousal complaints and compliments.

The authors explored affect and behavioral involvement (gaze, talk time, and speaking turns) in spousal complaints and compliments, relating these constructs to current and longitudinal relational well-being. Participants were 65 married couples. Concurrent relational well-being was higher when partners negotiated (a) complaints with less negative affect, more gaze, less wife talk time, and more husband talk time and (b) compliments with less negative affect and more husband gaze. Husbands' satisfaction decreased over time when they experienced more negative affect while complimenting. Both spouses' satisfaction decreased over time when either partner, especially wives, took more speaking turns complaining. Partial support for the sentiment-override effect is discussed, but findings went beyond the effect to demonstrate contingent affect when responding to spousal behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Estimates of the chromium(VI) reducing capacity in human body compartments as a mechanism for attenuating its potential toxicity and carcinogenicity

Cathepsin L was purified from carp hepatopancreas by a method involving ammonium sulfate precipitation and a series of column chromatographies, in which the enzyme had an affinity toward Concanavalin A and Cibacron Blue F3GA. Its homogeneity was established by Native-PAGE, but two protein bands corresponding to molecular masses of 30,000 (single chain) and 24,000 (heavy chain) migrated on SDS-PAGE. The enzyme exhibited a maximum activity for carbobenzoxy-L-phenylalanyl-L-arginyl-4-methylcoumaryl-7-amide (Z-Phe-Arg-MCA) at pH 5.5-6.0 and 50 degrees C and the remarkable stability at pH 5.0-6.5 and below 40 degrees C. All tested cysteine protease inhibitors and TLCK and chymostatin markedly inhibited its activity, whereas the other serine protease inhibitors and a metalloprotease inhibitor negligibly affected it. In addition, several metal compounds reduced either its activity or stability to differing extents. Although EDTA alone caused an only marginal activation of the enzyme, its maximum activation required both 2 mM cysteine and 1 mM EDTA. The enzyme had an ability to hydrolyze three peptidyl-MCA substrates including Z-Phe-Arg-MCA, but all kinetic constants indicate that Z-Phe-Arg-MCA is the optical substrate to the enzyme.     

Methods to detect the RYR1 G742A and A1565C mutations associated with malignant hyperthermia using a PCR-modified restriction sites technique

Tricyclic antidepressants are a class of drugs commonly used for the treatment of depression. Tricyclic antidepressants account for approximately 20 to 25 per cent of drug overdoses that require acute medical admission. The most common cause of mortality is cardiovascular toxicity (e.g., arrhythmia, heart block, or hypotension). Other morbidities include conditions secondary to anticholinergic effects (central and peripheral) and respiratory complications. Ileus, constipation and urinary retention are common peripheral anticholinergic sequelae, whereas unusual complications include pancreatitis, intestinal pseudo-obstruction with cecal perforation, and sigmoid colon gangrene. We report a case of imipramine overdose that was complicated by toxic megacolon with an associated perforation.