Experiences with high-frequency oscillatory ventilation in premature infants with respiratory distress syndrome

BACKGROUND: High-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) has been used in treating premature infants with respiratory distress syndrome who have a low incidence of ventilation-associated lung injury. Herein, we report our initial clinical experience in using HFOV to treat such infants. METHODS: From October 1996 to February 1997, 10 premature infants with severe respiratory distress syndrome treated with HFOV were retrospectively evaluated. Clinical course and laboratory data collected during treatment were analyzed. Parameters evaluated included patient survival rate, incidence of chronic lung disease and morbidity associated with HFOV usage. RESULTS: The mean gestational age was 29 +/- 2 weeks; mean birth weight, 1,182 +/- 342 g; and mean period of HFOV treatment, 3.4 +/- 1.9 days. One patient died of sepsis due to infective pancarditis. Two patients developed moderate chronic lung disease at 30 days post delivery and in one of these patients, the disease persisted at 36 weeks' of age. The overall survival rate was 90%. No patient developed air-leak syndrome during the course of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our initial experience demonstrated that using HFOV in treating premature infants with severe respiratory distress syndrome was safe and effective. The incidence of moderate to severe chronic lung disease or air-leak syndrome following HFOV was low.     

NRCS (SCS) Synthetic Curvilinear Dimensionless Unit Hydrograph

A continuous time function with two parameters for a curvilinear dimensionless unit hydrograph (CDUH) is derived from the unit hydrograph in the form of a gamma probability density function. This equation is then applied to the Natural Resources Conservation Service [formerly, Soil Conservation Service (SCS)] curvilinear dimensionless unit hydrograph [NRCS (SCS) CDUH]. The values of the parameters are slightly different for the rising and recessing limbs of the unit hydrograph. The NRCS unit hydrograph that expresses the time distribution of runoff of unit depth is shown to be a two-parameter gamma probability density function. Its mass curve is, therefore, an incomplete gamma function. This technical note explains mathematically that what was originally called the mass curve of the ratio of runoff volume to the total volume of the NRCS CDUH is shown to be, in fact, the mass curve of the unit hydrograph. The equations of continuous time functions derived in this study can be used in place of the NRCS CDUH tabulation and the NRCS linear triangular unit hydrograph. An example is shown to illustrate the application.     

Innovative wire bonding method using a chemically reacted thin layer for chips with copper interconnects

This paper presents a novel method in which an oxide film is used to facilitate the thermosonic wire bonding of gold wire onto copper pads. A cuprous oxide film is generated by controlling the pH values of the chemical solution. Compared to cupric oxide films, the cuprous oxide film is denser and more brittle and therefore facilitates the bonding process without the need for the elaborate procedures and equipment required by more conventional wire bonding methods.     

Identification of exciter constants using a coherence functionbased weighted least squares approach

Experience with generator exciter modeling at the Ta-Kuan pumped storage power plant in Taiwan is reported. To identify exciter parameters, frequency response data are first obtained by injecting wide bandwidth signals into the system. Then a modified weighted least squares (WLS) approach using a coherence function is developed to determine exciter constants. A novel feature of the proposed coherence function based WLS method is that it can eliminate measurement dependent inaccuracies by placing less weights on measurements that are more severely corrupted by noise. Based on the established excitation system model, computer simulations are performed to examine the dynamic responses of the generating unit under small and large disturbance conditions. Field test results are also provided     

Quantitative trait locus mapping of human blood pressure to a genetic region at or near the lipoprotein lipase gene locus on chromosome 8p22

Resistance to insulin-mediated glucose disposal is a common finding in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), as well as in nondiabetic individuals with hypertension. In an effort to identify the generic loci responsible for variations in blood pressure in individuals at increased risk of insulin resistance, we studied the distribution of blood pressure in 48 Taiwanese families with NIDDM and conducted quantitative sib-pair linkage analysis with candidate loci for insulin resistance, lipid metabolism, and blood pressure control. We found no evidence for linkage of the angiotensin converting enzyme locus on chromosome 17, nor the angiotensinogen and renin loci on chromosome 1, with either systolic or diastolic blood pressures. In contrast, we obtained significant evidence for linkage or systolic blood pressure, but not diastolic blood pressure, to a genetic region at or near the lipoprotein lipase (LPL) locus on the short arm of chromosome 8 (P = 0.002, n = 125 sib-pairs, for the haplotype generated from two simple sequence repeat markers within the LPL gene). Further strengthening this linkage observation, two flanking marker loci for LPL locus, D8S261 (9 cM telomeric to LPL locus) and D8S282 (3 cM centromeric to LPL locus), also showed evidence for linkage with systolic blood pressure (P = 0.02 and 0.0002 for D8S261 and D8S282, respectively). Two additional centromeric markers (D8S133, 5 cM from LPL locus, and NEFL, 11 cM from LPL locus) yielded significant P values of 0.01 and 0.001, respectively. Allelic variation around the LPL gene locus accounted for as much as 52-73% of the total interindividual variation in systolic blood pressure levels in this data set. Thus, we have identified a genetic locus at or near the LPL gene locus which contributes to the variation of systolic blood pressure levels in nondiabetic family members at high risk for insulin resistance and NIDDM.     

Study of an assembly tolerance allocation model based on Monte Carlo simulation

The traditional design methods of assembly tolerance allocation are usually based on engineers' experience, or the worst on worst tolerance analysis (WOW) method, or the root sum square tolerance analysis (RSS) method. However, the above-mentioned methods, whilst used frequently in the analysis of a single-dimensional chain, are not suitable for the analysis of geometrical tolerance and multi-dimensional chains. Also, the relationship between tolerance and manufacturing cost is not considered and a suitable tolerance allocation based on minimum manufacturing cost can not be obtained. Some research works have applied linear or non-linear programming methods to optimize the tolerance allocation of each part in an assembly. However, the convergence of the solution is not ensured. The purpose of this study is to provide an integrated approach, including tolerance design, manufacturing cost analysis and multiple chains consideration, using the Monte Carlo method to optimize the tolerance allocation with minimum cost. The Monte Carlo method, a statistical simulation method, was used to simulate the dimension variance of each part and each dimensional chain. The contribution percentage of each part on each dimensional chain was calculated. Tolerance cost was chosen as an object function and the tolerance allocation model as a constraint condition, the optimum tolerances of each part being obtained by the iteration method. Results of computer simulation for several examples were compared with published data for demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed method. It can be concluded that the tolerance-allocation model combined with a tolerance-cost relationship can provide a very practical and useful approach for design engineers.     

Characteristics of the dual-bridge giant magnetoresistance magnetometer

The responsivity and the field noise characteristics of the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) magnetometer driven by an alternating magnetic field are investigated. The harmonic spectrum of the sensor voltage shows that only the odd harmonics of excitation frequency are sensitive to the external dc field. To cancel out the even harmonics, the dual-bridge GMR magnetometer with the balanced output is proposed. With the dual-bridge configuration, the field-to-voltage transfer coefficient is doubled and the field noise is reduced by a factor of 1.4. The minimum field noise is 7 nT∕√Hz at 1 Hz with the ac excitation power of 5.5 mW. The proposed sensor is suitable for the electronic compass application.     

Analysis of Thermal Stability of High-Performance Rolling–Sliding Contacts in Mixed Lubrication

Thermal instability has been considered by pioneer researchers to be one of the most promising lines for a fundamental investigation into the failure mechanisms of rolling–sliding contacts. This article uses a recently developed mixed lubrication model that integrates interrelated topographical, mechanical, thermal, and tribochemical aspects to study the thermal instability of high-performance rolling–sliding contacts. The effects of various system parameters on the relation between the system bulk temperature and the heat generation in the contact are analyzed. The parameters include surface roughness; contact component size; surface and lubricant mechanical, thermal, and tribochemical properties; and operating conditions. Key results and their implications to system design and operation considerations are summarized in the Conclusion section of the article in relation to enhancing the thermal stability of the contact, particularly under adverse lubrication conditions.     

A new method for Stokes problems with circular boundaries using degenerate kernel and Fourier series

This study is concerned with the Stokes flow of an incompressible fluid of constant density and viscosity with circular boundaries. To fully capture the circular boundary, the boundary densities in the direct and indirect boundary integral equations (BIEs) are expanded in terms of Fourier series. The kernel functions in either the direct BIE or the indirect BIE are expanded to degenerate kernels by using the separation of field and source points. Consequently, the improper integrals are transformed to series sum and are easily calculated. The linear algebraic system can be established by matching the boundary conditions at the collocation points. Then, the unknown Fourier coefficients can be easily determined. Finally, several examples including circular and eccentric domains are presented to demonstrate the validity of the present method. Five gains were obtained: (1) meshless approach; (2) free of boundary‐layer effect; (3) singularity free; (4) exponential convergence; and (5) well‐posed model. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

From enzyme to zymogen: engineering Vip2, an ADP-ribosyltransferase from Bacillus cereus, for conditional toxicity

The adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-ribosyltransferase, Vip2 (vegetative insecticidal protein), from Bacillus cereus in combination with another protein from the same organism, Vip1, has insecticidal activity against western corn rootworm larvae. The Vip2 protein exerts its intracellular poisoning effect by modifying actin and preventing actin polymerization. Due to the nature of this toxin, expression of Vip2 in planta is lethal. In this work, we attempted to build an enzyme precursor (proenzyme, zymogen) that would silently reside in one biological system (e.g. plants or yeast) and be activated in the other (insect larvae). Our approach involved engineering a random propeptide library at the C-terminal end of Vip2 and selecting for malfunctional enzyme variants in yeast. A selected proenzyme (proVip2) possesses reduced enzymatic activity as compared with the wild-type Vip2 protein, but remains a potent toxin toward rootworm larvae. In addition, upon analysis of the digestive fate of the engineered enzyme precursor in rootworm larvae, we demonstrated that 'zymogenized' Vip2 can be proteolytically activated by rootworm digestive enzyme machinery. This report represents an example of applying a protein engineering strategy for the creation of a plant-tolerated, zymogen-like form of an otherwise toxic protein. This approach may outline a novel path to address challenges associated with utilizing toxic proteins in certain biotechnological applications.