Flexible job-shop scheduling with routing flexibility and separable setup times using ant colony optimisation method

This paper proposes an ant colony optimisation-based software system for solving FMS scheduling in a job-shop environment with routing flexibility, sequence-dependent setup and transportation time. In particular, the optimisation problem for a real environment, including parallel machines and operation lag times, has been approached by means of an effective pheromone trail coding and tailored ant colony operators for improving solution quality. The method used to tune the system parameters is also described. The algorithm has been tested by using standard benchmarks and problems, properly designed for a typical FMS layout. The effectiveness of the proposed system has been verified in comparison with alternative approaches.     

Hippocampal neurotoxicity of Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol

Marijuana consumption elicits diverse physiological and psychological effects in humans, including memory loss. Here we report that Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the major psychoactive component of marijuana, is toxic for hippocampal neurons. Treatment of cultured neurons or hippocampal slices with THC caused shrinkage of neuronal cell bodies and nuclei as well as genomic DNA strand breaks, hallmarks of neuronal apoptosis. Neuron death induced by THC was inhibited by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including indomethacin and aspirin, as well as vitamin E and other antioxidants. Furthermore, treatment of neurons with THC stimulated a significant increase in the release of arachidonic acid. We hypothesize that THC neurotoxicity is attributable to activation of the prostanoid synthesis pathway and generation of free radicals by cyclooxygenase. These data suggest that some of the memory deficits caused by cannabinoids may be caused by THC neurotoxicity.     

A C-terminal fragment of Agouti-related protein increases feeding and antagonizes the effect of alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone in vivo

Agouti-related protein (Agrp) is present in rat and human hypothalamus and is structurally related to agouti protein. Overexpression of either of these proteins results in obesity. However the effect of exogenous Agrp and its in vivo interaction with alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alphaMSH), the likely endogenous melanocortin 3 and 4 receptor (MC3-R and MC4-R) agonist, have not been demonstrated. We report that 1 nmol of Agrp(83-132), a C-terminal fragment of Agrp, when administered intracerebroventricularly (ICV) into rats, increased food intake over a 24-h period (23.0+/-1.4 g saline vs 32.9+/-2.3 g Agrp, p<0.05). The hyperphagia was similar to that seen when 1 nmol of the synthetic MC3-R and MC4-R antagonist SHU9119 was given i.c.v. (19.6+/-1.8 g saline vs 32.5+/-1.7 g SHU9119, p<0.001). Both Agrp(83-132) and SHU9119 blocked the reduction in 1-h food intake of i.c.v. alphaMSH at the beginning of the dark phase. This effect occurred independently of whether the antagonists were administered simultaneously, or nine hours prior, to the alphaMSH. We have also shown Agrp(83-132) is an antagonist at the MC3-R and MC4-R, with similar inhibition of cAMP activation to that previously reported for the full length peptide. In conclusion, Agrp(83-132) administered i.c.v. increases feeding with long lasting effects and is able to inhibit the action of alphaMSH. This interaction may be mediated by the MC3-R and/or MC4-R.     

Predicting acute denervation in carpal tunnel syndrome

OBJECTIVE: Defects of the cochlear modiolus have been found to be associated with most cases of large vestibular aqueduct. The clinical significance of these modiolar defects has not been studied previously. The purpose of this article is to correlate clinical (functional) parameters, such as hearing outcomes, with the severity of the radiographic findings in these dysplastic inner ears. STUDY DESIGN: The study design was a retrospective chart review, supplemented with telephone interviews and clinic visits. SETTING: The study was conducted at an academic, tertiary care center. PATIENTS: Thirty consecutive patients with large vestibular aqueducts participated. RESULTS: Scores of modiolar deficiencies yielded inconsistent correlations with hearing loss. Vestibular aqueduct morphology and thickness correlated very strongly with the severity of hearing loss. CONCLUSIONS: These observations support the hypothesis that large vestibular aqueduct-related hearing loss may be caused by transmission of subarachnoid pressure forces into the inner ear. However, the thickness and morphology of the vestibular aqueduct may simply be markers for more subtle cochlear dysplasia manifest by modiolar deficiency.     

Serotoninergic innervation of stapedial and tensor tympani motoneurons

cGMP-immunostaining in the islands of Calleja (ICj) in slices incubated in vitro partially co-localized with nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inside the ICj. No cGMP-immunostaining was found outside the ICj in unstimulated slices, whereas the NO-donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP) stimulated cGMP in cells and fibers bordering on the ICj. These findings show an ongoing NO synthesis in in vitro slices and suggest a relatively restricted diffusion range for endogenously synthesized NO.     

Fire fighting and its influence on the body

Working conditions for fire fighters can be described according to the environment temperature and the incident radiant heat flux. Measurements for this study in buildings for fire fighting training have shown that fire fighters are typically exposed to radiant heat fluxes of between 5 and 10 kWm(-2) during this kind of exercise. The heat load can nevertheless be much higher. In one case, 42 kWm(-2) was measured. The temperatures reached between 100 and 190 degrees C at 1 m above ground, going up to 278 degrees C in one case. Human trials have been performed with 17 fire fighters. After exercises (about 15 min) in a heated room, the mean core temperature of the fire fighters rose by 0.6 degrees C with a surrounding temperature of 31 degrees C and 1.0 degrees C with 38 degrees C. The sweat production varied from 0.7 to 2.1 lh(-1); 16% to 45% of sweat remained in the clothing layers. During the exercises in the training buildings, a mean of 48 degrees C has been measured between fire fighters' clothing and workwear. These conditions lead to an increase of the relative humidity in all the jackets up to 100%. When the fire fighters came out of the fire, the humidity remained at this level in the PVC coated jackets while it was in some cases strongly reduced in breathable jackets.     

Bacterial composition of commercial probiotic products as evaluated by PCR-DGGE analysis

The use of Polymerase Chain Reaction-Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) technique in identifying the microorganisms present in commercial probiotic yoghurts and lyophilised products was evaluated. Two reference ladders were assembled constituted by PCR-amplified V2-V3 regions of 16S rDNA from bacterial species generally used as probiotics. Identification was achieved comparing the PCR-DGGE patterns obtained from the analysed products with the ladder bands. Bands from members of the same species showed the same migration distance in denaturing gel, hence supporting the identificative value of the method. The validity of the technique was also proven confirming the PCR-DGGE identification results by sequence data analysis and by species-specific PCR. General congruence between microorganisms declared on the label and those revealed by PCR-DGGE was found for probiotic yoghurts. Conversely, some discrepancies were observed for probiotic lyophilised preparations, i.e. the incorrect identification of some Bifidobacterium and Bacillus species and the presence of not declared microorganisms. PCR-DGGE turned out to be an appropriate culture-independent approach for a rapid detection of the predominant species in mixed probiotic cultures.     

Influence of dietary fat, on fatty acid composition and sensory properties of dry-cured Parma ham

A feeding trial with 27 pigs was performed in order to estimate the effect of different dietary fats on the fatty acid composition, flavour and sensory properties of dry-cured Parma hams, ripened for 16 months. The animals received a pelleted diet supplemented with different fat sources: tallow (TA), corn oil (CO), and rapeseed oil (RO). The sensory quality of the hams was evaluated by means of sensory analyses and by instrumental procedures such as gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the volatile aroma compounds. A treatment effect was detected for linolenic acid in RO vs. CO and TA hams (P<0.01) and for MUFA content (P<0.01) that was higher in RO and TA compared with CO. The results of panel test showed a significant difference (P<0.05) between TA vs. CO and RO hams. Volatile compounds showed limited differences even if in CO group the amount of singular compound is higher than TA and RO.     

Identification of genes regulated by interleukin-1beta in human endometrial stromal cells

Interleukin-1beta (IL-1b) is an important immune regulatory factor that in human endometrium plays a role in both menstruation and implantation in the event of pregnancy. It promotes inflammatory-like processes and also stimulates tissue remodelling. We present a cDNA microarray study documenting the major effects of IL-1beta on gene expression in stromal cells from human endometrium. Endometrial stromal cells from five normal healthy women at the mid secretory phase were cultured with or without IL-1beta at 50 and 500 pg/ml for 48 h. cDNA microarrays were used to compare the levels of gene expression in total RNA isolated from cells stimulated with IL-1beta. These cDNA arrays were produced containing 15 164 sequence-verified clones, which included genes known to be important in angiogenesis, immune modulators, apoptosis, cell signalling, extra-cellular matrix (ECM) remodelling and cell cycle regulation. Genes which were regulated by IL-1beta were identified by analysis of the microarray data using the Significance Analysis of Microarrays software package. Upregulated (n = 23) and downregulated (n = 6) different genes were observed, which changed at least 3-fold, at a false discovery rate of less than 2% (P < 0.02). Our results have identified genes regulated by IL-1beta, which are involved in leukocyte recruitment, ECM remodelling and other cellular functions. Changes in three genes, IL-8, colony-stimulating factor 2 and aldoketo reductase family 1 member 1, which were upregulated by IL-1beta, were verified using real-time PCR. Novel functions regulated by IL-1beta in endometrium, including genes involved in free radical protection, and fatty acid metabolism were also identified. These results also provide new insights into the role of IL-1beta in disorders of the endometrium, especially in implantation-related infertility and endometriosis, in which this cytokine plays a major role.     

ICARUS: imaging pulse compression algorithm through remapping of ultrasound

In this work we tackle the problem of applying to echographic imaging those synthetic aperture focusing techniques (SAFT) in the frequency domain commonly used in the field of synthetic aperture radars (SAR). The aim of this research is to improve echographic image resolution by using chirp transmit signals, and by performing pulse compression in both dimensions (depth and lateral). The curved geometry present in the unfocused radio-frequency (RF) ultrasonic image is the main cause of inaccuracy in the direct application of frequency domain SAFT algorithms to echographic imaging. The focusing method proposed in this work, after pulse compression in the depth dimension, performs lateral focusing in the mixed depth-lateral spatial frequency domain by means of a depth variant remapping followed by lateral pulse compression. This technique has the advantage of providing a resolution that is uniform in nonfrequency selective attenuation media, and improved with respect to conventional time domain SAFT, without requiring the acquisition and processing of channel data necessary for the most advanced synthetic transmit aperture techniques. Therefore, the presented method is suitable for easy real-time implementation with current generation hardware.