Long posterior flap amputation in geriatric patients with ischaemic disease

A series of 165 primary amputations performed on 148 patients at Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, from 1967 to 1975 is reported. The average age of these patients was 70 years, the oldest being 95. Those aged 70 years and over are considered in special detail. The problems of management of these elderly patients are complex, involving medical, surgical, and social problems. The object of treatment is to restore these patients to their previous way of life with the shortest possible time in hospital. Every patient is assessed with a view to arterial surgery, and amputation is avoided where possible by a lumbar sympathetic block or direct arterial surgery. When amputation cannot be avoided a below-knee level is selected if possible. A long posterior flap technique is used which forms a myoplasty of the gastrocnemius muscle; thus the ischaemic anterior tibial skin is avoided. Before the operation the patient is assessed by a specialist team and the management is discussed in detail. Every patient is kept in hospital until rehabilitation is achieved to the point of independence inside the home. Of the 90 patients in the group aged 70 years and over, 22% had above-knee amputations and 75% had below-knee amputations, with the result that 69% of the latter were discharged home walking. This result is contrasted with the smaller number who had an above-knee amputation. Below-knee amputation gives the elderly patient a better chance of walking because of the use of the patellar tendon bearing prosthesis. When followed up 36% of those patients with below-knee amputation were fully independent for periods exceeding six months. The price of a below-knee level of amputation is a longer hospital stay, but the quality of function and mobility obtained by the patient makes this worth while.     

Rapid field screening of soils for heavy metals with spark-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Spark-induced breakdown spectroscopy (SIBS) is a recently developed atomic-fluorescene-based analytical technique that is analogous to laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. SIBS, however, uses an electrical plasma generation method on nonconductive samples instead of a focused laser beam. Here we describe the basic characteristics of SIBS and its application to the field-screening analysis of soil, using a standard addition analytical approach. Detection limits of approximately 25 mg/kg have been seen for lead, chromium, barium, mercury, and cadmium. A variety of soils have been tested, some cocontaminated with organic material and uranium (238U).     

Determination of neotectonic features of the Karasu Basin (SE Turkey) and their relationship with Quaternary volcanic activity using Landsat ETM+ imagery

The junction between the East Anatolian and the Dead Sea fault zones lies close to an unstable F: Transform fault (FFF) triple junction where the African, Eurasian and Arabian plates meet in south-eastern Turkey. The Karasu Basin is an ephemeral rifted structure located close to the junction of these plate boundaries and is expressed by a range of tectono-morphological features. This study uses remote sensing to define tectonic structures and discriminate volcanic rocks linked to rifting within the basin using Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery. Prior to advanced image processing stages, images were corrected to eliminate atmospheric scattering effects and determine the best band combination for multi-spectral processing techniques based on statistical methods. Following pre-processing stages, edge detection filters were applied to derive tectonic structures defining the basin. The Brovey transformation, a statistical data merging method, was used to combine reflective multi-spectral bands with the Landsat ETM+?panchromatic band. This method fuses higher spatial data with data of lower spatial value. The western margin of the Karasu Basin is defined by the left-lateral Amanos Fault Zone with a contemporary motion (c. –0.4 mm a^?1) probably accommodating most of the left-lateral strike-slip motion between Arabian and African plates on the northern continuation of the Dead Sea Fault Zone. The rift zone has been the site of extensive recent volcanism concentrated within the Brunhes Chron (<0.78 Ma) and linked to fault block rotations between the intracontinental master faults. The boundaries of this activity are defined here using a regolith mapping technique.     

The membrane protein alkaline phosphatase is delivered to the vacuole by a route that is distinct from the VPS-dependent pathway

Membrane trafficking intermediates involved in the transport of proteins between the TGN and the lysosome-like vacuole in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can be accumulated in various vps mutants. Loss of function of Vps45p, an Sec1p-like protein required for the fusion of Golgi-derived transport vesicles with the prevacuolar/endosomal compartment (PVC), results in an accumulation of post-Golgi transport vesicles. Similarly, loss of VPS27 function results in an accumulation of the PVC since this gene is required for traffic out of this compartment. The vacuolar ATPase subunit Vph1p transits to the vacuole in the Golgi-derived transport vesicles, as defined by mutations in VPS45, and through the PVC, as defined by mutations in VPS27. In this study we demonstrate that, whereas VPS45 and VPS27 are required for the vacuolar delivery of several membrane proteins, the vacuolar membrane protein alkaline phosphatase (ALP) reaches its final destination without the function of these two genes. Using a series of ALP derivatives, we find that the information to specify the entry of ALP into this alternative pathway to the vacuole is contained within its cytosolic tail, in the 13 residues adjacent to the transmembrane domain, and loss of this sorting determinant results in a protein that follows the VPS-dependent pathway to the vacuole. Using a combination of immunofluorescence localization and pulse/chase immunoprecipitation analysis, we demonstrate that, in addition to ALP, the vacuolar syntaxin Vam3p also follows this VPS45/27-independent pathway to the vacuole. In addition, the function of Vam3p is required for membrane traffic along the VPS-independent pathway.     

Replicating the cross-sectional distribution of house-dust mite allergen found in carpet

With a view to producing carpets that could be used to determine the ease of particulate aerosolisation during domestic activity, we measured the cross-sectional distribution of dust-mite allergen, Der p 1, produced using American Society for Testing and Materials method (ASTM F608–89) for embedding house dust in carpets with that produced by several alternative protocols. Allergen concentrations produced at different levels within the pile using the different techniques were also compared with those in carpets from actual houses – in which the majority of allergen is typically found towards the base of the pile. To obtain profiles of allergen, horizontal sections, 2-mm thick, were taken from new carpets after they had been seeded with dust and embedded using one of four following techniques: (1) dragging a fixed roller across the surface of the carpet four times, (2) using the same roller but following it up with 200 revolutions in a hexapod wear simulator, (3) dragging the fixed roller across the carpet surface 30 times (the ASTM method), and (4) 2 minutes under a commercial plate compactor. Fibre from each 2-mm-thick section was collected and the Der p 1 content determined using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay and results expressed as ng Der p 1 per area in each section. Embedding with a fixed roller alone was not found to be particularly effective, resulting in roughly equal amounts of dust being apportioned within each pile layer, irrespective of the number of embedding passes used. In contrast, a distribution biased towards the base of the pile was found after roller-embedding/hexapod wear, although still to a lesser extent than has been observed in used carpets. Plate compaction gave a similar allergen distribution profile to combined roller/hexapod treatment but was considerably easier to perform. Thus, both techniques offer promise for researchers seeking to replicate the cross-sectional distribution of dust mite allergen found in carpets after actual use (and conceivably other particulate pollutants also).     

Immunocapture diagnostic assays for malaria using Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH)

Differentiation-related expression of endogenous retrovirus ERV-3 env in the normal human placental syncytiotrophoblast suggests a role in placental development. The choriocarcinoma cell line BeWo, a model of trophoblast differentiation, is maintained in an undifferentiated state and undergoes differentiation upon the addition of forskolin. The expression of ERV-3 env mRNA increased after 48 h forskolin treatment, concurrently with increased intercellular fusion and production of human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) mRNA, a hormonal differentiation marker for trophoblast. Over expression of ERV-3 env induced differentiation of BeWo characterized by decreased cell growth, differentiation-related morphologic changes, and induction of beta-hCG mRNA. These results support the first known role for the expression of an endogenous retrovirus in trophoblast differentiation.     

From sensory marketing to sensory design: How to drive formulation using consumers’ input?

Companies need to continuously innovate to maintain market leadership. When the market is overloaded the challenge consists in creating innovative products able to attract and satisfy consumers. The general aim of this research is to set-up an operational protocol that aids in creating innovative products using a sensory marketing approach, i.e. involving consumers at different stages of the process and demonstrates the validity of this protocol.The chosen product – a specific category of drink – has been duplicated by many competitors; therefore, it is necessary to create again differentiation by improving its sensory characteristics. First, a qualitative phase explored the concerned food universe and the possible sensory variations of the product across the five senses. Following this phase, a limited number of factors were selected for sample formulation: colour intensity (4 intensities), flavouring (3 types), label type (soft touch vs. hard) and pack size (standard vs. oversize). Next, a statistical experimental design was used to select a partial number of all combinations to be tested quantitatively. Finally, a quantitative phase allowed for evaluating the liking and concept fitting of 12 scenarios from the experimental design and data was analyzed with a conjoint approach. The results showed that the main factors which drive consumer preference for this concept are colour intensity and flavouring. Pack size and label type are taken into account by the consumer to a lesser extend. The ideal combination of the studied factors was also determined and lead to an agreement between product developers and marketers.This experiment showed the feasibility of the proposed multi-sensory design method based on mixed qualitative and quantitative approaches.     

Greater rate of decline in maximal aerobic capacity with age in physically active vs. sedentary healthy women

Using a meta-analytic approach, we recently reported that the rate of decline in maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) with age in healthy women is greatest in the most physically active and smallest in the least active when expressed in milliliters per kilogram per minute per decade. We tested this hypothesis prospectively under well-controlled laboratory conditions by studying 156 healthy, nonobese women (age 20-75 yr): 84 endurance-trained runners (ET) and 72 sedentary subjects (S). ET were matched across the age range for age-adjusted 10-km running performance. Body mass was positively related with age in S but not in ET. Fat-free mass was not different with age in ET or S. Maximal respiratory exchange ratio and rating of perceived exertion were similar across age in ET and S, suggesting equivalent voluntary maximal efforts. There was a significant but modest decline in running mileage, frequency, and speed with advancing age in ET. VO2 max (ml . kg-1 . min-1) was inversely related to age (P < 0.001) in ET (r = -0.82) and S (r = -0.71) and was higher at any age in ET. Consistent with our meta-analysic findings, the absolute rate of decline in VO2 max was greater in ET (-5.7 ml . kg-1 . min-1 . decade-1) compared with S (-3.2 ml . kg-1 . min-1 . decade-1; P < 0. 01), but the relative (%) rate of decline was similar (-9.7 vs -9. 1%/decade; not significant). The greater absolute rate of decline in VO2 max in ET compared with S was not associated with a greater rate of decline in maximal heart rate (-5.6 vs. -6.2 beats . min-1 . decade-1), nor was it related to training factors. The present cross-sectional findings provide additional evidence that the absolute, but not the relative, rate of decline in maximal aerobic capacity with age may be greater in highly physically active women compared with their sedentary healthy peers. This difference does not appear to be related to age-associated changes in maximal heart rate, body composition, or training factors.     

The prevention of mindlessness.

We conducted three experiments to assess the hypothesis that mindlessness could be prevented with a simple linguistic variation. Subjects in the first two experiments were either introduced to new objects conditionally (e.g., this could be an X) or unconditionally (e.g., this is an X), and the objects used were either unfamiliar or familiar. In each study a different need was then generated for which the object in question was not explicitly suited but could fulfill. Only those subjects in the conditional-unfamiliar group gave the creative response and met the need. When subjects were asked explicitly to generate novel uses for the target items, they had no difficulty doing so. However, given the way we are traditionally taught, it simply does not occur to us to think creatively unless explicitly instructed to do so. In the third experiment we introduced an unfamiliar item in one of three ways. In addition to the groups used in the earlier experiments, we added a group that was led to believe that the object was identifiable (unconditional) but was currently unknown. We also added a second need to determine whether the original conditional group truly learned conditionally or if they were in search of an absolute understanding of the target object. Significantly more of the subjects in the conditional group gave the creative response to both needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)