In-vivo confocal scanning laser microscopy of the cerebral microcirculation

Confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM) was used to study the microcirculation of the brain neocortex in anaesthetized rats. After removal of the dura mater, implantation of a closed cranial window, and intravenous injection of fluorescein, three-dimensional reconstructions of cortical capillaries were performed down to a depth of 250 μm below the pial surface. Using a one-dimensional approach (single line scanning), erythrocyte (negative contrast in fluorescently labelled plasma) and leucocyte (labelled with rhodamine 6 G) velocity and supply rate in cortical capillaries were measured. The effect of CO₂-inhalation on capillary blood flow dynamics was studied. Capillaries were imaged continuously for up to 1 h without changes in flow or fluorescence pattern. However, by increasing the laser power 10–100-fold, aggregate formation was induced and capillaries were occluded, possibly due to damage to vascular endothelium. We conclude that CSLM can be used to study morphological and dynamic aspects of fluorescently labelled subsurface structures in organs of experimental animals.     

High-intensity x-ray diffraction apparatus for pressures up to 100 kilobars and temperatures down to 1.5 K

A high-pressure diamond anvil pressure technique for x-ray structure investigations at temperatures down to 1.5 K is described. An energy dispersive method in conjunction with a newly developed conical x-ray shutter brings maximum intensity to the adjacent germanium detector. Superconductivity is detected by use of a SQUID. The 4096-channel analyzer data are evaluated on-line by a computer. The precision of the lattice parameter determination is discussed.     

一种无线传感器网络蚁群优化路由算法

如何在资源受限的无线传感器网络中进行高效的数据路由是无线传感器网络研究的热点之一.将蚁群优化算法(ACO)应用于无线传感器网络的路由,提出一种无线传感器网络蚁群优化路由算法.该算法利用蚁群的自组织、自适应和动态寻优能力进行网络优化路径的建立与维护,采用Stigmergy的概念来减少控制信息的流量,以实现网络数据的高效传输.仿真分析表明,该算法和DD算法相比在传输延时方面性能相当,在路由代价方面效果显著.另外,该算法还具有可靠性高、适应性强等优点,并能够根据需要实现网络的拥堵控制和能量均衡等综合优化.     

Morphology, optical, and photoelectrochemical properties of electrodeposited nanocrystalline ZnO films sensitized with Cd x Zn1−x S nanoparticles

Nanocrystalline ITO/ZnO films formed by porous zinc oxide microplatelets 1–3 μm in size and 100–200 nm in thickness, which consist of 30–50 nm ZnO crystallites, were sensitized to visible light by Cd _x Zn_1?x S nanocrystals deposited using the method of successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR). The composition of Cd _x Zn_1?x S nanocrystals as well as the dependence between molar Cd(II) fraction in the films and the ratio of cadmium and zinc nitrate concentrations in solutions used for the SILAR procedure were determined by a combination of electron, Raman, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopies. The photovoltage observed at illumination of the ITO/ZnO/Cd _x Zn_1?x S heterostructures by white light (λ >400 nm) in aqueous Na₂S solution increases with a decrease of Cd(II) content proportionally to an increment in the conduction band potential of the Cd _x Zn_1?x S nanocrystals. The photocurrent density normalized to the light absorbance of the ITO/ZnO/Cd _x Zn_1?x S films increases by a factor of around four when the conduction band potential of Cd _x Zn_1?x S nanocrystals grows by 220 mV as a result of Cd(II) fraction changing from 1.0 to 0.62–0.67. The results show that Cd _x Zn_1?x S solid solutions are more advantageous sensitizers for the short-wavelength part of the sensitivity window of the liquid-junction solar cells (400–450 nm) than conventionally used cadmium sulfide.     

Über das Protein in Kartoffel-, Mais- und ReisstärkeHerrn Prof. Dr. Erwin Welte,Direktor des Instituts für Agrikulturchemie der Universität Göttingen,zum 60. Geburtstag gewidmet.

On the Protein in Potato, Maize and Rice Starch The protein content of potato, maize and rice starch was determined, and 21 amino acids could be identified. With the usual hydrochloric acid hydrolysis to set free the amino acids a portion (residual protein) remains in the dark residue (melanine), and can be isolated only after destruction of the latter, e.g. with sodium chlorite, and analyzed for amino acids. As shown by the nitrogen determination after Kjeldahl and amino acid analysis potato starch has the lowest, maize starch a mean and rice starch a high content of amino acids. The total amount of nitrogen in the amino acids compared with the Kjeldahl nitrogen is only 83% for potato protein and 80% for maize and rice protein. The residue from hydrolysis can vary substantially.     

Microstructure characterization of CVI-densified carbon/carbon composites with various fiber distributions

Mechanical behavior of multi-phase composites is crucially influenced by volume fractions, orientation distributions and geometries of microconstituents. In the case of carbon–carbon composites manufactured by chemical vapor infiltration, the microconstituents are carbon fibers, pyrolytic carbon matrix, and pores. The local variable thickness of the pyrolytic carbon coating, distribution of the fibers and porosity are the main factors influencing the properties of these materials. Two types of fiber arrangements are considered in this paper: 2D laminated preform and random felt. The materials are characterized by determining their densities and their fiber distribution functions, by establishing types of pyrolytic carbon matrix present in the composites, and by studying the porosity. A technique utilizing X-ray computed tomography for estimation of the orientation distribution of the fibers and pores with arbitrary shapes is developed. A methodology based on the processing of microstructure images with subsequent numerical simulation of the coating growth around the fibers is proposed for estimation of the local thickness of the coating. The obtained information is appropriate for micromechanical modeling and prediction of the overall thermo-mechanical properties of the studied composites.     

Next-Generation Grade and Survival Expression Biomarkers of Human Gliomas Based on Algorithmically Reconstructed Molecular Pathways

In gliomas, expression of certain marker genes is strongly associated with survival and tumor type and often exceeds histological assessments. Using a human interactome model, we algorithmically reconstructed 7494 new-type molecular pathways that are centered each on an individual protein. Each single-gene expression and gene-centric pathway activation was tested as a survival and tumor grade biomarker in gliomas and their diagnostic subgroups (IDH mutant or wild type, IDH mutant with 1p/19q co-deletion, MGMT promoter methylated or unmethylated), including the three major molecular subtypes of glioblastoma (proneural, mesenchymal, classical). We used three datasets from The Cancer Genome Atlas and the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas, which in total include 527 glioblastoma and 1097 low grade glioma profiles. We identified 2724 such gene and 2418 pathway survival biomarkers out of total 17,717 genes and 7494 pathways analyzed. We then assessed tumor grade and molecular subtype biomarkers and with the threshold of AUC > 0.7 identified 1322/982 gene biomarkers and 472/537 pathway biomarkers. This suggests roughly two times greater efficacy of the reconstructed pathway approach compared to gene biomarkers. Thus, we conclude that activation levels of algorithmically reconstructed gene-centric pathways are a potent class of new-generation diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for gliomas.     

MDS-based segmentation model for the fusion of contour and texture cues in natural images

In this paper, we present an original image segmentation model based on a preliminary spatially adaptive non-linear data dimensionality reduction step integrating contour and texture cues. This new dimensionality reduction model aims at converting an input texture image into a noisy color image in order to greatly simplify its subsequent segmentation. In this latter de-texturing model, the (spatially adaptive) non-local constraints based on edge and contour cues allows us to efficiently regularize the reduced data (or the resulting de-textured color image) and to efficiently combine inhomogeneous region and edge based features in a data fusion/reduction model used as pre-processing step for a final segmentation task. In addition, a set of color/texture and edge-based adaptive spatial continuity constraints is imposed during the segmentation step. These improvements lead to an appealing and powerful two-step adaptive segmentation model, integrating contour and texture cues. Extensive experimental evaluation on the Berkeley image segmentation database demonstrates the efficiency of this hybrid segmentation model in terms of classification accuracy of pairwise pixels in the resulting segmentation map and in the precision–recall framework widespread used for evaluating contour detectors.     

Linear response algorithms for approximate inference in graphical models

Belief propagation (BP) on cyclic graphs is an efficient algorithm for computing approximate marginal probability distributions over single nodes and neighboring nodes in the graph. However, it does not prescribe a way to compute joint distributions over pairs of distant nodes in the graph. In this article, we propose two new algorithms for approximating these pairwise probabilities, based on the linear response theorem. The first is a propagation algorithm that is shown to converge if BP converges to a stable fixed point. The second algorithm is based on matrix inversion. Applying these ideas to gaussian random fields, we derive a propagation algorithm for computing the inverse of a matrix.