Transient elevation of serum thyroid hormone concentration after initiation of replacement therapy in myxedema

Measurements of thyroid hormone concentrations in serum are commonly used to determine the proper dose of hormone replacement. We have noted that early in the course of thyroxine (T4) replacement in myxedema, serum T4 concentrations may be transiently elevated before reaching a lower "steady-state" level. This observation is illustrated in a study of six patients. Serum T4, free thyroxine index, and triiodothyronine (T3) rose to peak concentrations at 2 to 6 weeks, 35% to 120% above the values achieved 4 to 8 months later. Values were transiently in the thyrotoxic range in five of the six patients. This phenomenon is most likely due to a decrease in the metabolic clearance rate of the absorbed hormone associated with hypometabolism. Thus, serum T4 and T3 concentrations during the first 6 months of therapy do not reflect the optimal dose of T4 replacement on a long-term basis.     

Experience-dependent plasticity in adult rat barrel cortex

This study tested the hypothesis that the receptive fields (RFs) of neurons in the adult sensory cortex are shaped by the recent history of sensory experience. Sensory experience was altered by a brief period of "whisker pairing": whiskers D2 and either D1 or D3 were left intact, while all other whiskers on the right side of the face were trimmed close to the fur. The animals were anesthetized 64-66 h later and the responses of single neurons in contralateral cortical barrel D2 to stimulation of whisker D2 (the center RF) and the four neighboring whiskers (D1, D3, C2, and E2; the excitatory surround RF) were measured. Data from 79 cells in four rats with whiskers paired were compared to data from 52 cells in four rats with untrimmed whiskers (control cases). During the period of whisker pairing, the RFs of cells in barrel D2 changed in three ways: (i) the response to the center RF, whisker D2, increased by 39%, (ii) the response to the paired surround RF whisker increased by 85-100%, and (iii) the response to all clipped (unpaired) surround RF whiskers decreased by 9-42%. In the control condition, the response of barrel D2 cells to the two neighboring whiskers, D1 and D3, was equal. After whisker pairing, the response to the paired neighbor of D2 was more than twice as large as the response to the cut neighbor of D2. These findings indicate that a brief change in the pattern of sensory activity can alter the configuration of cortical RFs, even in adult animals.     

一种求解数值优化问题的进化规划算法

针对进化规划算法收敛速度慢、容易早熟收敛等问题,提出一种基于探测变异的进化规划算法。该算法通过降维得到多个探测变异量,对个体进行探测变异,使个体始终向适应度好的方向进化,并利用自适应高斯变异标准差伸缩搜索空间,使个体跳出局部最优解。通过3个经典算例对其性能进行测试,实验结果证明该算法收敛速度快,求解质量高,可以解决早熟收敛等问题。     

Metals in the sediments of the Huron-Erie Corridor in North America: Factors regulating metal distribution and mobilization

Sediment samples from the Huron‐Erie Corridor (Great Lakes, North America) were collected to quantify the relative importance of natural and anthropogenic sources of contamination, and to study the spatial metal distribution patterns of metals as a function of the characteristics of the Corridor sediments. A stratified random sampling design was used to measure the spatial patterns of metal inputs, settling and sorting along the length of the Corridor. Factors regulating metal mobilization were assessed by determining metal affinities with the total organic fraction (TOM), the mineral fraction (represented as Al), and the granulometric characteristic (represented as <0.063 mm fraction). The study revealed that anthropogenic factors primarily regulated metal distributions and mobilization throughout the Huron‐Erie Corridor. In the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers, the spatial pattern of metal distributions strongly reflected local industrial sources. In the Walpole Delta and Lake St. Clair, however, inorganic (clays) and organic (TOM) particles dominated the contaminant distribution. Sediment contamination issues throughout the Huron‐Erie Corridor were dominated by mercury, released from sources along the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers. The mean enrichment factor EF_Al for mercury in these sediments has reached 68.3. Other metal pollutants were confined to the sediments in the lower depositional reach of the Corridor.     

Gamma irradiation-induced modifications in the structural,thermal, and optical properties of polyvinyl alcohol-polyethylene glycol/cobalt oxide nanocomposite films

Cobalt oxide nanoparticles (NPs) are highly consistent dispersed into the blend polymers rather than other NPs. Also, the ability of polyvinyl alcohol-polyethylene glycol (PVA-PEG) to form homogenous blend attained it essential characteristics that allow it to be suitable candidate for numerous industrial applications. Thus in the present work, Co₃O₄ nano-oxide, was synthesized by the sol-gel procedure and PVA-PEG/Co₃O₄ nanocomposite NCP films were synthesized by the casting technique. Samples from the synthesized NCP were exposed to γ doses between 20 and 230 kGy. The induced alterations in the synthesized NCP due to gamma irradiation have been illustrated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential thermal analysis (DTA), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and UV spectroscopes. Further, Color divergence between the blank and the irradiated films has been estimated. Gamma doses between 60 and 230 kGy lead to the prevalence of intermolecular crosslinking, which enhances the disordered phase. This is reflected in a rise in the degradation temperature values from 225°C to 236°C indicating an improvement in the thermostability of the NCP samples. Moreover, the γ-radiation induces defects that split the ordered portion, reducing T_m from 238°C to 229°C. In addition, the band gap decreases from 5.24 to 4.61 eV with increasing the γ doses to 230 kGy, signifying disorder character. Finally, the NCP samples showed a color change by γ radiation, as ΔE raised with increasing dose. The resultant improvements in the optical properties of the NCP samples allow it to be used in optoelectronic and dosimetric applications.     

Geoffrey Meen and Christine Whitehead,Understanding Affordability. The Economics of Housing Markets

Journal of Housing and the Built Environment -     

Experimental Investigation of the Mixing Between Hot and Cold Gas in Two Cooling Processes

The mixing between a hot turbulent flow and a cold fluid, injected through a porous plate or using a discrete injection, is experimentally investigated. The blowing is shown to dramatically modify the dynamic and thermal fields, whereas the discrete injection has a weaker effect. The influence on the average quantities and fluctuating parts are found to be different. The effect of the main flow temperature is addressed and a discussion for the mixing in the blowing and discrete injection cases is proposed.     

Activation of neurotrophin-3 receptor TrkC induces apoptosis in medulloblastomas

Elevated expression of the neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) receptor TrkC by childhood medulloblastomas is associated with favorable clinical outcome. Here, we provide evidence that TrkC is more than simply a passive marker of prognosis. We demonstrate that: (a) medulloblastomas undergo apoptosis in vitro when grown in the presence of NT-3; (b) overexpression of TrkC inhibits the growth of intracerebral xenografts of a medulloblastoma cell line in nude mice; and (c) trkC expression by individual tumor cells is highly correlated with apoptosis within primary medulloblastoma biopsy specimens. TrkC-mediated NT-3 signaling promotes apoptosis by activating multiple parallel signaling pathways and by inducing immediate-early gene expression of both c-jun and c-fos. Considered collectively, these results support the conclusion that the biological actions of TrkC activation affect medulloblastoma outcome by inhibiting tumor growth through the promotion of apoptosis.     

Polymeric display of immunogenic epitopes from herpes simplex virus and transmissible gastroenteritis virus surface proteins on an enteroadherent fimbria

Polydnaviruses are the only known group of mutualistic viruses. They are required for successful parasitization in many braconid and ichneumonid parasitoids. The intimacy of this mutualistic association is indicated by the integration and vertical transmission of polydnaviruses in wasp genomes and by their asymptomatic, developmentally regulated replication. The evolution of this mutualism raises several interesting issues that require a better understanding of the viral genome and viral replication. To develop probes for virus replication and morphogenesis, we have begun to characterize several viral structural proteins. A 699 bp cDNA encoding the p12 viral structural protein was cloned and sequenced. The p12 gene localizes to viral segment Y and encodes a predicted protein of 92 amino acids that does not encode a signal peptide and is unrelated to known peptide or nucleic acid sequences. The p12 mRNA is detected at the onset of virus replication. mRNA titers increase with increasing rates of virus replication. Polyclonal antisera raised against histidine-tagged p12 protein expressed in bacteria reacted specifically with the p12 polypeptide in Western blots of CsPDV virions. The p12 polypeptide was not detected in non-replicative wasp or lepidopteran tissues by Western blot analyses but was readily detected in protein extracts of wasp ovaries. The data indicate that the p12 gene is a viral gene encoding a virion protein and provides a specific probe for virus replication that will be useful for studying the evolution of this group of mutualistic viruses.