An interactive design system for pop-up cards with a physical simulation

We present an interactive system that allows users to design original pop-up cards. A pop-up card is an interesting form of papercraft consisting of folded paper that forms a three-dimensional structure when opened. However, it is very difficult for the average person to design pop-up cards from scratch because it is necessary to understand the mechanism and determine the positions of objects so that pop-up parts do not collide with each other or protrude from the card. In the proposed system, the user interactively sets and edits primitives that are predefined in the system. The system simulates folding and opening of the pop-up card using a mass?Cspring model that can simply simulate the physical movement of the card. This simulation detects collisions and protrusions and illustrates the movement of the pop-up card. The results of the present study reveal that the user can design a wide range of pop-up cards using the proposed system.     

Co-expression of polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase and (R)-enoyl-CoA hydratase genes of Aeromonas caviae establishes copolyester biosynthesis pathway in Escherichia coli

Arylamine N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2) is involved in both the detoxification and bioactivation of carcinogenic arylamines and other mutagens. This enzyme is polymorphic, and the fast and slow phenotypes are thought to be risk factors for colon and bladder cancer, respectively. Here, we report on a case-control study of adenomatous and hyperplastic polyps, with particular attention to tobacco smoking, a known risk factor for adenomas, and polymorphisms of NAT2. All participants underwent complete colonoscopy and were subsequently divided into case and control groups on the basis of pathology. Cases were diagnosed with confirmed adenomas (n = 527) or hyperplastic polyps (n = 200); controls (n = 633) had no history of colonic neoplasia and no polyps at colonoscopy. NAT2 genotype was determined using an oligonucleotide ligation assay and fast, intermediate, or slow phenotype imputed. Multivariate-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals were computed using logistic regression adjusting for age, sex, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, and hormone replacement therapy use. Smoking was associated with an increased risk of adenomas [current versus never smoking OR = 2.0 (95% confidence interval, 1.4-2.9)] and hyperplastic polyps [current versus never smoking OR = 4.1 (2.6-6.5)]. NAT2 status among adenomatous polyp patients and hyperplastic polyp patients, respectively, showed ORs of 1.1 (0.8-1.4) and 1.2 (0.8-1.6; intermediate versus slow) and 1.1 (0.6-1.9) and 0.9 (0.4-1.9; fast versus slow). There were no differences in risk when adenoma patients were stratified on multiplicity, size, or histopathological subtype of polyps. Never-smokers showed no variation in risk across acetylator status for either species of polyp, whereas current smokers showed ORs of 2.0 (1.2-3.2) and 2.3 (1.4-3.9) for adenomas and 3.9 (2.1-7.1) and 4.9 (2.6-9.4) for hyperplastic polyps for slow and intermediate/fast NAT2, respectively, compared with slow-NAT2 never-smokers. Risks of both multiple [OR = 4.3 (2.1-8.8)] and large [OR = 3.8 (1.9-7.5)] adenomas were somewhat elevated in current smokers with an intermediate/fast phenotype compared with smokers with a slow NAT2 phenotype, but the interaction was not statistically significant. Risk of hyperplastic polyps and adenomatous polyps is strongly related to smoking. There is little suggestion of interaction between NAT2 status and smoking and no relationship with NAT2 genotype alone.     

Neonatal androgenization potentiates the inhibitory effects of blood withdrawal on ovulation in the rat

Rats treated on Day 5 of life with testosterone propionate (TP) were tested for their ovulatory response to pregnant mare's serum gonadotropin (PMSG) on the 30th day of life with and without cardiac puncture under ketamine/xylazine anesthesia. TP without cardiac puncture in doses of 0.625, 1.25, or 2.5 microg did not inhibit ovulation, but 5.0 microg of TP inhibited ovulation in 15 of 16 rats. When cardiac puncture was performed at 1900 hr in rats not given TP, seven of eight ovulated on Day 33. However, none of the rats that received either 1.25 or 2.5 microg of TP ovulated after cardiac puncture at 1900 hr, and only one of seven given the 0.625-microg dose ovulated. Thus, the stress of bleeding greatly enhanced the inhibitory effect of otherwise ineffective doses of TP. The preovulatory luteinizing hormone (LH) surge was delayed and diminished by neonatal TP in a dose-related manner in animals from which blood was drawn from a previously inserted catheter. When blood drawn from similarly TP-treated animals by cardiac puncture, serum levels of LH were further reduced. Progesterone, given at 1100 hr on Day 32, was capable of partially overcoming the inhibitory effects of the combined treatments on both ovulation and serum LH levels at all but the highest dose of TP tested (5.0 microg). We conclude that neonatal exposure to androgen sensitizes rats to ovulation-inhibiting factors, such as bleeding, in a manner which appears to delay as well as inhibit the preovulatory release of LH. Such early exposure to androgen, therefore, may determine the susceptibility of individuals to reproductive failure in adult life.     

Percutaneous mitral valvuloplasty with the single balloon technique. Short-term results, complications and in-hospital follow-up

The results of the ICD-10 Diagnostic Criteria for Research (DCR) field trial in German-speaking countries concerning section F0 (organic mental disorders) are reported. On the comparatively small data basis of the study, acceptance and interrater-reliability cannot be estimated satisfactorily. Despite this general problem, it can be said that section F0 of ICD-10 DCR maintains a high degree of continuity with respect to ICD-10. Some categories caused diagnostic disturbances and needed further specification, especially the criteria regarding the temporal relationship between the onset of an organic disorder and the psychiatric symptomatology. The recently published definite DCR seem to avoid most of the problems of the earlier version used in this study.     

精梳机圆梳钢针倾斜角的确定

通过对精梳机梳理过程中圆抗钢针的受力分析，指出了传统圆梳钢针倾斜角偏小的不足，提出了圆梳钢针倾斜角的合理范围，为精梳机产质量的提高，提供了理论依据．     

Intra-articular administration of hyaluronic acid increases the volume of the hyaline cartilage regenerated in a large osteochondral defect by implantation of a double-network gel

Implantation of PAMPS/PDMAAm double-network (DN) gel can induce hyaline cartilage regeneration in the osteochondral defect. However, it is a problem that the volume of the regenerated cartilage tissue is gradually reduced at 12 weeks. This study investigated whether intra-articular administration of hyaluronic acid (HA) increases the volume of the cartilage regenerated with the DN gel at 12 weeks. A total of 48 rabbits were used in this study. A cylindrical osteochondral defect created in the bilateral femoral trochlea was treated with DN gel (Group DN) or left without any implantation (Group C). In both Groups, we injected 1.0 mL of HA in the left knee, and 1.0 mL of saline solution in the right knee. Quantitative histological evaluations were performed at 2, 4, and 12 weeks, and PCR analysis was performed at 2 and 4 weeks after surgery. In Group DN, the proteoglycan-rich area was significantly greater in the HA-injected knees than in the saline-injected knees at 12 weeks (P = 0.0247), and expression of type 2 collagen, aggrecan, and Sox9 mRNAs was significantly greater in the HA-injected knees than in the saline-injected knees at 2 weeks (P = 0.0475, P = 0.0257, P = 0.0222, respectively). The intra-articular administration of HA significantly enhanced these gene expression at 2 weeks and significantly increased the volume of the hyaline cartilage regenerated by implantation of a DN gel at 12 weeks. This information is important to develop an additional method to increase the volume of the hyaline cartilage tissue in a potential cartilage regeneration strategy using the DN gel.