Sodium oxacillin in the horse: serum, synovial fluid, peritoneal fluid, and urine concentrations after single-dose intramuscular administration

Six healthy adult mares were given a single dose (25 mg/kg of body weight) of sodium oxacillin IM. Oxacillin concentrations in serum, synovial fluid, peritoneal fluid, and urine were measured serially over a 48-hour period. The mean peak serum oxacillin concentration was 9.75 microgram/ml at 0.5 hour after injection. Mean peak oxacillin concentrations in synovial and peritoneal fluids were 1.45 microgram/ml and 2.60 microgram/ml at 1 hour and 2 hours, respectively. These concentrations decreased in parallel with serum values and were not measurable at 48 hours. Urine concentrations of oxacillin were high, with a mean peak concentration of 2,790.2 microgram/ml at 0.5 hour.     

Combined transoral and median labiomandibular glossotomy approach to the upper cervical spine

A surgical approach to the clivus and anterior spine from C-1 to the upper part of C-5 is described. It is a direct approach that provides a wider and longer exposure than does the transoral approach. Despite the seemingly radical incision, the cosmetic deformity and functional loss are minimal. This approach is useful for the surgical treatment of a variety of processes that are situated ventral to the upper cervical spinal cord and the cervicomedullary junction.     

Proportioning cement based composites with burnt coal cinder

This paper presents an experimental investigation to advance a stepwise procedure to proportion plain and slag concrete mixes with burnt coal cinder waste as coarse aggregate. When typical strength of coarse aggregate in concrete is lower than the concrete strength required, conventional methods such as British Method, ACI and country’s standard code cannot be used directly since failure of concrete is predominantly by aggregate crushing. To analyze the data, concrete, for simplicity, is regarded as two phase composite of cement mortar matrix and coarse aggregate. With the concrete and constituent cement mortar matrix strengths and their respective volume fractions as input parameters, the typical strength of coarse aggregate in concrete is determined from linear law of mixtures. Using again the same law, the cement mortar matrix strength required for higher or at par to that of the typical aggregate strength is calculated. To arrive at water–cement ratio for matrix strength, the Generalized Abrams’ law is employed.     

Impact of traffic localization on communication rates in ad-hoc networks

The effect of traffic distribution on communication rates and receiver complexity in ad-hoc networks is addressed, considering a network with constant density of users and a certain traffic model. Information theoretic upper bounds on communication rates are derived under an assumption that transmitting nodes as well as receiving nodes cooperate. It is shown that for the case of large signal attenuation the bounds hold even when the cooperation among users is limited to a certain region of the network domain. Furthermore, achievability bounds on communication rates are derived. The bounds rely on two proposed local cooperation strategies. A comparison shows that the upper bounds are tight and closely follow the achievability results. Finally, the impact of traffic localization on the receiver complexity is addressed.     

Synthetic peptides corresponding to the beta-hairpin loop of rabbit defensin NP-2 show antimicrobial activity

Mammalian defensins, a class of antibacterial peptides, are composed of 29-35 amino acids with six cysteines which form three disulfide bonds. Structural studies indicate a triple stranded beta-sheet structure with a well defined beta-hairpin loop at the C-terminal region. It is demonstrated in this report that 18 and 26 residue synthetic peptides corresponding to the beta-hairpin region, constrained by a single disulfide bond, have potent antimicrobial activity without hemolytic activity. Circular dichroism spectroscopy indicates that the single S-S bridge appears to constrain the peptides to a beta-structure. Peptides corresponding to the beta-hairpin region of defensins could thus be attractive candidates as therapeutic agents as well as good model compounds for investigation of the various physiological actions of defensins.     

Stability and Mobility of Sand-Bed Channels Affected by Seepage

Seepage effects on the stability, mobility, and incipient motion of sand-bed particles are experimentally investigated. Seepage through a sand bed in a downward direction (suction) reduces the stability of particles, and it can even initiate their movement. The bed erosion is increased with the increased rates of suction. Whereas the seepage in an upward direction (injection) increases the stability of bed particles, it does not aid initiating their movement. The rate of bed erosion is reduced or even stopped by the increased injection rates. Hydrodynamic conditions leading to the so-called “pseudoincipient motion” with suction (for the initiation of particles movement that are otherwise at rest under no-seepage conditions), and with injection (for only arresting the particles movement that are otherwise moving initially) are evaluated. The conventional Shields curve cannot be used to predict such pseudoincipient motion conditions with seepage. The concepts thus developed are useful for a better understanding of the sediment transport mechanics and in the design of stable alluvial channels affected by seepage.