Synthesis of enantiomerically pure 1-O-phosphocholine-2-O-acyl-octadecane and 1-O-phosphocholine-2-N-acyl-octadecane

This is the first report on the chemical synthesis of enantiomerically pure R- or S-1-O-phosphocholine-2-O-acyl-octadecanes and R- or S-1-O-phosphocholine-2-N-acyl-octadecanes. From a structural point of view these phospholipids are intermediates between phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin. The synthesis of these model compounds is based on R- or S-1.2-O-isopropylidene-glyceraldeyde for chain elongation in a Wittig reaction with pentadecane-triphenylphosphine bromide. The resulting 1.2-O-isopropylidene-octadec-3-en is converted to R- or S-1.2-octadecanediol by catalytic hydrogenation of the double bond and by acidic removal of the isopropylidene protecting group. Tritylation of R- or S-1.2-octadecanediol results in the general intermediates R- or S-1-O-trityl-2-hydroxy-octadecane. These are the key intermediates for the synthesis of the phosphatidylcholine- or sphingomyelin-like end products. R- or S-1-O-phosphocholine-2-O-acyl-octadecane is obtained from the tritylated intermediates via benzylation in position 2, acidic detritylation and conversion of the R- or S-1-hydroxy-2-benzyl-octadecanes to the respective phosphocholines via the phosphoethanolamines. Catalytic hydrogenolysis of the benzyl group results in R- or S-1-O-phosphocholine-2-hydroxy-octadecane, which is converted to the phosphatidylcholine-like end products by acylation. R- or S-1-O-phosphocholine-2-N-acyl-octadecane is obtained from the tritylated intermediate by conversion of the R- or S-2-hydroxy group into the N-phthalimido group, which is achieved by inversion of the configuration using the Mitsunobu reaction with phthalimid. After acidic detritylation, the product is converted to the respective S- or R-1-O-phosphocholine derivative in a similar sequence of reactions. The phthalimido group is converted to the 2-amino group, and acylation results in the sphingomyelin-like end products.     

Impaired stereoacuity due to a lesion in the left pulvinar

A right-handed patient with a haematoma in the left pulvinar showed impaired stereoacuity. In contrast with previous reports, he did not show peripheral visual extinction or prolonged reaction times for targets on the side contralateral to the lesion.     

Cytotoxicity versus antibacterial activity of some antiseptics in vitro

The relationship between endometriosis and infertility is observed frequently. Patients with both conditions require a conservative approach to their management. Since hormonal therapy is one of those approaches, we sought to compare the efficacy of Danazol and Gestrinone in 80 infertile patients (48 and 32, respectively). Therapy lasted 6 months in both treatment groups, and all patients studied had laboratory tests performed and were clinically evaluated and classified through laparoscopy before and after therapy. The improvement of symptoms and favorable follow-up were similar with both treatments. The reestablishment of menstrual patterns and fertility were also nearly alike in both groups. However, Gestrinone was associated with fewer secondary effects and is easier to administer than Danazol. We conclude that Gestrinone is a useful medication in the management of the infertile patient with endometriosis.     

A Programmable Pulse Sequence Generator for an NMR Relaxometer

A pulse sequence generator for NMR relaxometer is described. The operation mode is loaded into the internal memory of the device by a program from a personal computer via a PCI bus. The project is realized on two MAX7000S and Cyclone (Altera) chips using the Qartus II 4.0 software. The basic parameters of the device are as follows: the minimal pulse length is 50 ns, the time resolution is 10 ns, the maximum number of pulses is 1024, and the number of controlled output channels is 8. This device, operating in the automatic mode as part of the hardware-software NMR system, makes possible recording, processing, and storing experimental results in electronic form.     

Broken rotor bar detection in induction machines with transient operating speeds

Previous work on condition monitoring of induction machines has focused on steady-state speed operation. Here, a new concept is introduced based on an analysis of transient machine currents. The technique centers around the extraction and removal of the fundamental component of the current and analyzing the residual current using wavelets. Test results of induction machines operating both as a motor and a generator shows the ability of the algorithm to detect broken rotor bars.     

Mass customization of medical devices and implants: state of the art and future directions

The medical field is one in which the need for customization can be clear cut, as providing tailored devices and implants for unique physiologies can provide for a better overall treatment than the use of 'off the shelf' devices and implants. Customization in the production of medical products can be roughly divided into consideration of medical devices, and of implantable parts or systems. The present paper outlines the current state of the art in both of these areas, presents details of projects that are ongoing at the University of Leeds and outlines future research directions.     

Advances in speech transcription at IBM under the DARPA EARS program

This paper describes the technical and system building advances made in IBM's speech recognition technology over the course of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Effective Affordable Reusable Speech-to-Text (EARS) program. At a technical level, these advances include the development of a new form of feature-based minimum phone error training (fMPE), the use of large-scale discriminatively trained full-covariance Gaussian models, the use of septaphone acoustic context in static decoding graphs, and improvements in basic decoding algorithms. At a system building level, the advances include a system architecture based on cross-adaptation and the incorporation of 2100 h of training data in every system component. We present results on English conversational telephony test data from the 2003 and 2004 NIST evaluations. The combination of technical advances and an order of magnitude more training data in 2004 reduced the error rate on the 2003 test set by approximately 21% relative-from 20.4% to 16.1%-over the most accurate system in the 2003 evaluation and produced the most accurate results on the 2004 test sets in every speed category.     

Syntax and consistent equation semantics of hybrid Chi

The hybrid χ (Chi) formalism integrates concepts from dynamics and control theory with concepts from computer science, in particular from process algebra and hybrid automata. It integrates ease of modeling with a straightforward, structured operational semantics. Its ‘consistent equation semantics’ enforces state changes to be consistent with delay predicates, that combine the invariant and flow clauses of hybrid automata. Ease of modeling is ensured by means of the following concepts: (1) different classes of variables: discrete and continuous, of subclass jumping or non-jumping, and algebraic; (2) strong time determinism of alternative composition in combination with delayable guards; (3) integration of urgent and non-urgent actions; (4) differential algebraic equations as a process term as in mathematics; (5) steady-state initialization; and 6) several user-friendly syntactic extensions. Furthermore, the χ formalism incorporates several concepts for complex system specification: (1) process terms for scoping that integrate abstraction, local variables, local channels and local recursion definitions; (2) process definition and instantiation that enable process re-use, encapsulation, hierarchical and/or modular composition of processes; and (3) different interaction mechanisms: handshake synchronization and synchronous communication that allow interaction between processes without sharing variables, and shared variables that enable modular composition of continuous-time or hybrid processes. The syntax and semantics are illustrated using several examples.     

Ozone micro-bubble disinfection method for wastewater reuse system.

Reuse of wastewater is regarded as one important way to deal with the world's shortage of potable water. The authors focused on a disinfection system using micro-bubbles and evaluated its capability for wastewater reuse. This paper reports experimental results from examination of the basic characteristics of micro-bubbles and disinfection of secondary effluent by air or ozone micro-bubbles. The results suggest that when micro-bubbles are applied in an ozonation system it is possible to reduce the reactor size, the amount of ozone decomposition equipment needed and the ozone dose rate.     

Removal of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) using low pressure reverse osmosis membrane (LPROM).

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are the focus of current environmental issues, as they can cause adverse health effects to animals and human, subsequent to endocrine function. The objective of this study was to remove a specific compound of EDCs (i.e. pentachlorophenol, C(6)OCL(5)Na, molecular weight of 288 g/mol) using low pressure reverse osmosis membrane (LPROM). A cross flow module of LPROM was used to observe the effects of operating parameters, i.e. pH, operating pressure and temperature. The design of the experiment was based on MINITAB(TM) software, and the analysis of results was conducted by factorial analysis. It was found that the rejection of pentachlorophenol was higher than 80% at a recovery rate of 60 to 70%. The rejection was subjected to increase with the increase of pH. The flux was observed to be increased with the increase of operating pressure and temperature. This study also investigated the interaction effects between operating parameters involved.