Placement of retrograde nephroureteral stents through ileal conduits

Preeclampsia is a multisystem disorder of unknown etiology. During the past 2 decades, numerous clinical reports and randomized trials described the use of various methods to prevent or reduce the incidence and severity of preeclampsia. These methods were used in an attempt to correct certain abnormalities such as biochemical imbalance, a pathophysiologic mechanism, or a dietary deficiency. There are at least 15 randomized trials evaluating the use of various antihypertensive drugs including diuretics for the prevention of preeclampsia. Results of these trials reveal no such benefit. There are few randomized trials evaluating magnesium (n = 2), zinc (n = 2), or fish oil supplementation (n = 3) to prevent preeclampsia. The majority of these trials had limited sample size; however, results reveal minimal-to-no benefit. There are 7 placebo-controlled trials evaluating calcium supplementation during pregnancy. Findings of these trials reveal that calcium supplementation does not reduce the incidence of preeclampsia in healthy nulliparous women. The majority of randomized trials for the prevention of preeclampsia have used low-dose aspirin. Results of early single-center trials demonstrated an average reduction of preeclampsia of 70% with low-dose aspirin. However, results of recent large multicenter trials (n = 7) that included >27,000 women revealed minimal-to-no benefit. Until the pathogenesis of preeclampsia is well defined, prevention of this syndrome with any modality remains unlikely.     

南宁水文站"2001.7"大洪水水位流量分析

2001年7月8日南宁出现了自1938年以来的最大洪水，南宁水文站收集到大量的水文资料。就南宁水文站实测到的洪水水位、流量资料进行综合分析，通过论证，证明了南宁水文站实测流量资料是合理、可靠的，同时对南宁出现水位高、流量相对偏小的原因进行探讨。     

Kinetic analysis of the interaction of actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF)/cofilin with G- and F-actins. Comparison of plant and human ADFs and effect of phosphorylation

The thermodynamics and kinetics of actin interaction with Arabidopsis thaliana actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF)1, human ADF, and S6D mutant ADF1 protein mimicking phosphorylated (inactive) ADF are examined comparatively. ADFs interact with ADP.G-actin in rapid equilibrium (k+ = 155 microM-1.s-1 and k- = 16 s-1 at 4 degreesC under physiological ionic conditions). The kinetics of interaction of plant and human ADFs with F-actin are slower and exhibit kinetic cooperativity, consistent with a scheme in which the initial binding of ADF to two adjacent subunits of the filament nucleates a structural change that propagates along the filament, allowing faster binding of ADF in a "zipper" mode. ADF binds in a non-cooperative faster process to gelsolin-capped filaments or to subtilisin-cleaved F-actin, which are structurally different from standard filaments (Orlova, A., Prochniewicz, E., and Egelman, E. H. (1995) J. Mol. Biol. 245, 598-607). In contrast, the binding of phalloidin to F-actin cooperatively inhibits its interaction with ADF. The ADF-facilitated nucleation of ADP.actin self-assembly indicates that ADF stabilizes lateral interactions in the filament. Plant and human ADFs cause only partial depolymerization of F-actin at pH 8, consistent with identical functions in enhancing F-actin dynamics. Phosphorylation does not affect ADF activity per se, but decreases its affinity for actin by 20-fold.     

Predicting termination and continuation status in psychotherapy using the transtheoretical model.

Measures from the transtheoretical model of change (TMC) were compared to traditional client characteristic variables as predictors of psychotherapy client termination and continuation. According to the TMC, stages of change, processes of change, decisional balance, and levels of attribution are core dimensions of behavior change in psychotherapy. 60 pairs of therapists (mean age 35 yrs) and 18–71 yr old clients were given questionnaires assessing demographics, distress symptoms, and dimensions of the TMC. Therapists also completed an Assessment of Client's Termination Status questionnaire. Client characteristics were not significant predictors but the transtheoretical variables of stages of change, processes of change, and decisional balance for therapy were excellent predictors. A discriminative function analysis correctly classified 92% of the clients into two groups: (1) premature terminators and (2) appropriate terminators and therapy continuers. Discussion focused on the importance of matching therapy to client's stage of change in order to reduce the average rate of 40% of clients terminating therapy prematurely. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The use of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy for predicting the quality of grass silage

Near infrared reflectance spectroscopy, using a fixed-filter instrument fitted with 19 filters, was evaluated for the prediction of crude protein and in-vitro dry matter digestibility in commercial farm grass silage. Crude protein (6.5–17.6%) was estimated with acceptable accuracy (standard error of prediction=0.63%) using a six-wavelength calibration, but in-vitro dry matter digestibility (40.7–69.9%) was not predicted with sufficient accuracy (standard error of prediction=2.96%) by this technique.