Sulfur-containing compounds from Scorodocarpus borneensis and their antimicrobial activity

This paper reports two cases of neotropical echinococcosis caused by Echinococcus oligarthrus and E. vogeli, neither of which has been reported from Suriname. Case 1, a six-year-old boy, presented a 15 x 25 mm retro-ocular cystic tumor (observed by ultrasound, computed tomography scan, and magnetic resonance imaging) causing exophthalmia, chemosis, palpebral ptosis, and blindness of the left eye. Of two tentative diagnoses, Echinococcus cyst or dermoid tumor, the former was shown to be correct at surgery when a clear liquid and detached protoscoleces were aspirated. Rostellar hooks of the protoscolex were characteristic of E. oligarthrus. Case 2, a 41-year-old man, had polycystic masses excised from the liver and abdomen. A presurgery diagnosis of E. vogeli infection was made due to calcifications seen in the lesions, positive serology, residence of the patient in the tropical forest, and later by the size and shape of rostellar hooks. The presence of these two parasites in one of the former Guianas is not surprising; both species are endemic in tropical forest in Central and South America wherever people have not exterminated wild canids, especially the bush dog, (Speothos venaticus), and felids (wild cats of several species), along with pacas, agoutis, and other rodents that serve as intermediate host of these two cestodes. Eighty-six cases of polycystic echinococcosis are known in people from 11 countries from Nicaragua to Argentina: 32 due to E. vogeli, three to E. oligarthrus, and 51 for which determination of the species was not possible because the hooks of the protoscolex were not found or described. Research to elucidate aspects of transmission of E. vogeli and E. oligarthrus is of practical importance for defining measures for preventing the severe and frequently fatal illnesses caused by these two cestodes.     

Determination of 5-aminolaevulinic acid dehydratase activity in erythrocytes and porphobilinogen in urine by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography

A micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatographic (MECC) method has been developed and optimised for the separation of 5-aminolaevulinic acid (ALA) and porphobilinogen (PBG). The running buffer consisted of a mixture of 20 mM sodium phosphate and 20 mM sodium borate containing 50 mM sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) adjusted to pH 9.5 with 1 M NaOH. The running voltage and temperature were 20-25 kV and 30 degrees C, respectively. The MECC method for the analysis of PBG is fast and simple and is useful for the screening of PBG in the urine of patients suspected to have acute intermittent porphyria (AIP), and for the confirmation of lead exposure by measuring red-cell ALA-dehydratase (ALA-D) activity with ALA as the enzyme substrate.     

Service-oriented smart home applications: composition, code generation, deployment, and execution

A smart home usually has a variety of devices or home appliance, instead of designing software for a specific home, this paper proposes a service-oriented framework with a set of ontology systems to support service and device publishing, discovery of devices and their services, composition of control software using existing control services that wrap devices, deployment, and execution of the composed service in an computing environment, monitoring the execution, and recovery from device failure. The ontology systems specify semantic information about devices, services, and workflows used in various smart home, and users can compose and recompose services for their specific needs. New devices, workflows, and services can be added into ontology. Most of the steps in this process can be automated including code generation. For example, service composition will be carried out in three steps: abstract workflow design, function construction, and device discovery, and different codes can be generated for different computing platforms such as Java and Open Services Gateway initiative environments. In this way, a variety of smart home can be constructed rapidly using the framework by discovery and composition using existing services and workflows. This paper illustrates this framework using a media control example to illustrate the ontology, discovery, composition, deployment, execution, monitoring, and recovery.     

Simple systolic arrays for discrete cosine transform

in this paper, simple 1-D and 2-D systolic array for realizing the discrete cosine transform (DCT) based on the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) fo an input sequence are presented. The proposed arrays are obtained by a simple modified DFT (MDFT) and an inverse DFT (IDFT) version of the Goertzel algorithm combined with Kung's approach. The 1-D array requiresN cells, one multiplier and takesN clock cycles to produce a completeN-point DCT. The 2-D array takes N clock cycles, faster than the 1-D array, but the area complexity is larger. A continuous flow of input data is allowed and no idle time is required between the input sequences.     

Employee stress and health complaints in jobs with and without electronic performance monitoring

Current applications of electronic performance monitoring based on job design theories that consider worker performance rather than stress issues are likely to generate unsatisfying and stressful jobs (Smith et al, 1986). This study examines critical job design elements that could influence worker stress responses in an electronic monitoring context. A questionnaire survey of employees in telecommunications companies representative of each region in the United States examined job stress in directory assistance, service representative and clerical jobs with specific emphasis on the influence of electronic monitoring of job performance, satisfaction and employee health. Useable surveys were received from 745 employees representing seven operating companies and AT & T; a response rate of about 25%. The results of this survey indicated that employees who had their performance electronically monitored perceived their working conditions as more stressful, and reported higher levels of job boredom, psychological tension, anxiety, depression, anger, health complaints and fatigue. It is postulated that these effects may be related to changes in job design due to electronic performance monitoring.     

Sex-Related Differences in Regional Blood–Brain Barrier Integrity in Non-Demented Elderly Subjects

The role of the blood–brain barrier (BBB) breakdown has been recognized as being important in Alzheimer’s disease pathogenesis. We aimed to evaluate whether regional BBB integrity differed according to sex and whether differences in BBB integrity changed as a consequence of aging or cognitive decline, using dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE)-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In total, 75 participants with normal cognition (NC) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) underwent cognitive assessments and MRI examination including DCE-MRI. Regional K_trans was calculated in cortical regions and the Patlak permeability model was used to calculate BBB permeability (K_trans, min⁻¹). Females had a lower median K_trans in the cingulate and occipital cortices. In the “older old” group, sex differences in K_trans were only observed in the occipital cortex. In the MCI group, sex differences in K_trans were only observed in the occipital cortex. Age was the only predictor of cognitive assessment scores in the male MCI group; however, educational years and K_trans in the occipital cortex could predict cognitive scores in the female MCI group. Our study revealed that females may have better BBB integrity in cingulate and occipital cortices. We also found that sex-related differences in BBB integrity are attenuated with aging or cognitive decline.     

Supplementing with L-Tryptophan Increases Medium Protein and Alters Expression of Genes and Proteins Involved in Milk Protein Synthesis and Energy Metabolism in Bovine Mammary Cells

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of supplementing with L-tryptophan (L-Trp) on milk protein synthesis using an immortalized bovine mammary epithelial (MAC-T) cell line. Cells were treated with 0, 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.2, and 1.5 mM of supplemental L-Trp, and the most efficient time for protein synthesis was determined by measuring cell, medium, and total protein at 0, 24, 48, 72, and 96 h. Time and dose tests showed that the 48 h incubation time and a 0.9 mM dose of L-Trp were the optimal values. The mechanism of milk protein synthesis was elucidated through proteomic analysis to identify the metabolic pathway involved. When L-Trp was supplemented, extracellular protein (medium protein) reached its peak at 48 h, whereas intracellular cell protein reached its peak at 96 h with all L-Trp doses. β-casein mRNA gene expression and genes related to milk protein synthesis, such as mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and ribosomal protein 6 (RPS6) genes, were also stimulated (p < 0.05). Overall, there were 51 upregulated and 59 downregulated proteins, many of which are involved in protein synthesis. The results of protein pathway analysis showed that L-Trp stimulated glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway, and ATP synthesis, which are pathways involved in energy metabolism. Together, these results demonstrate that L-Trp supplementation, particularly at 0.9 mM, is an effective stimulus in β-casein synthesis by stimulating genes, proteins, and pathways related to protein and energy metabolism.     

Optimization and evaluation of reduced graphene oxide hydrogel composite as a demulsifier for heavy crude oil-in-water emulsion

The rising production of produced water from oilfields had been proven to bring detrimental environmental effects. In this study, an efficient, recyclable, and environmental-friendly reduced graphene oxide immobilized κ-Carrageenan hydrogel composite(κCa GO) was fabricated as an alternative sorbent for crude oil-in-water demulsification. Polyethyleneimine(PEI) was employed to form a stable hydrogel composite. The conditions for the immobilization of graphene oxide(GO) on PEI-modified κ-Carrageenan(κC) beads were optimized appropriately. An immobilization yield of 77% was attained at 2% PEI, 2 h immobilization activation time, and p H6.5. Moreover, the synthesized κCa GO is capable of demulsification with an average demulsification efficiency of 70%. It was found that the demulsification efficiency increases with salinity and κCa GO dosage, and it deteriorates under alkaline condition. These phenomena can be attributed to the interfacial interactions between κCa GO and the emulsion. Furthermore, the κCa GO can be recycled to use for up to six cycles without significant leaching and degradation. As such, the synthesized κCa GO could be further developed as a potential sorbent substitute for the separation of crude oil from produced water.