Tubercular mastitis: a pragmatic approach to its management

Six cases of tubercular granulomatous mastitis were studied retrospectively. Three of these six cases posed diagnostic difficulties because of a lack of caseation in granuloma on fine needle aspiration cytology. A pragmatic approach is described here that is based on the correlation of the clinical features with the cytological findings. All six cases improved on therapeutic trial of antitubercular treatment.     

Sterigmatocystin: Incidence,fate and production by Aspergillus versicolor in Ras cheese

The occurrence, distribution, and stability of sterigmatocystin (STG) in Ras cheese were investigated. An incidence value for STG in market samples of Ras cheese was 35% with a mean value of 22.2 μg/kg. In experimental Ras cheese from milk contaminated with STG, 80% of the toxin was retained in the curd while 20% was found in the whey. The temperature for cheese ripening affected the toxin content. At 6 °C the toxin concentration was hardly affected, but at 20 °C the concentration was reduced by 16% after 90 days. In Ras cheese contaminated with spores of Aspergillus versicolor, toxin production started after 45 days of the ripening, reached a maximum after 90 days, and declined thereafter. Cow's milk favoured toxin formation in comparison with buffaloe's milk. Aged cheese (more than 6 months) inhibited toxin production.     

Coupled effects of gold electroplating and electrochemical discharge machining processes on the performance improvement of a capacitive accelerometer

Coupled effects of an electroplated gold layer and damper holes drilled by Electro Chemical Discharge Machining (ECDM) process on the performance improvement of a quad beam capacitive accelerometer is presented in this paper. A simple quad beam-proof mass configuration with its beams located symmetrically at the centre of all the edges of the proof mass and connected to an outer supporting frame is considered in the present study. For a fixed damping ratio, prime-axis sensitivity of the sensor is increased by the damper holes whereas an electroplated gold layer improves the prime-axis sensitivity, cross-axis sensitivity, and Brownian Noise Equivalent Acceleration (BNEA). Moreover, the increased weight of the proof mass due to an electroplated gold layer further reduces the damping of the device which in turn helps to increase the prime-axis sensitivity more. A new figure of merit called Performance Factor (PF), defined as the ratio of the product of the prime-axis sensitivity and resonant frequency to the cross-axis sensitivity at a fixed damping ratio of 0.7 is used as a quantitative index to evaluate the performance improvement caused by the coupled effects of gold electroplating and ECDM processes. Simulation results show that for a device with damper holes of 8 μm diameter and electroplated gold layer of dimensions 3,000 μm × 3,000 μm × 20 μm, the prime-axis sensitivity is increased by more than 500 times, rotational cross-axis sensitivity and BNEA are reduced by around 10 and 30%, respectively and the PF is improved by around 482 times at a fixed damping ratio of 0.7.

     

Estimating the Performance of Free Space Optical Link Under Adverse Weather Conditions by Using Various Models

Free space optics (FSO), going to replace the present microwave communications in the future is gaining considerable attention as it supplies fruitful solutions to many complications like the last mile problem. Besides availing many advantages like high bandwidth, data rate, low bit error rate any communication system operating in free space undergoes a significant amount of degradation in its signal strength due to the atmospheric affects in its pathway. Similarly, an optical signal launched into free space will also interfere with its surroundings and may get impaired due to the presence of different climatic conditions like rain, fog, haze, snow, gas molecules etc. As FSO is a perfect line of sight communication it may also undergo the problems of outage due to obstructions (birds, base motion), scattering, beam dispersion etc. Precise prediction of the impairments (atmospheric affects) can result in an efficient and flawless communication system. Supporting the research on free space optics this paper mainly focuses on the performance analysis of free space optical link in the presence of rain considering the parameters like received optical power its corresponding electrical power, quality factor. The analysis was extracted with the help of simulation using Opti System software developed by Optiwave.

     

Studies on the Work-Hardening Behavior of AA2219 under Different Aging Treatments

Uniaxial tensile tests were performed to examine the influence of the precipitation state on the yield strength and work-hardening behavior of AA2219 for different aging treatments. The microstructural observations in four aging treatments (viz. natural aging, underaging, peak aging, and overaging) were made through transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to understand the type of phase or intermediate stages of the phase present (Guinier–Preston (GP) zones, θ″, θ′, and θ). To characterize the work-hardening behavior, the analysis of the experimental results has focused on two parameters, viz. the initial work-hardening rate Θ_max (≡dσ/dε) and the slope (dΘ/dσ) of the Θ-σ plot, which is related to the rate of dynamic recovery. The initial work-hardening rate (Θ_max) first drops as aging proceeds and then increases significantly upon overaging. The large increase in Θ_max is also associated with a concomitant increase in the slope (dΘ/dσ) of the Θ-σ curve. The material constants in the differential equation for the dislocation density are evaluated and flow stress vs plastic strain curves are generated using the flow stress contributions from the solid-solution, dislocation, and precipitation hardening. The model predictions are found to be in excellent agreement with the experimental data for a range of precipitation states from underaged (UA) to overaged (OA) conditions. Curves of flow stress due to dislocation hardening with the plastic strain were also generated in the presence of shearable and nonshearable precipitates.     

Myoglobin Interaction with Lactate Rapidly Releases Oxygen: Studies on Binding Thermodynamics,Spectroscopy, and Oxygen Kinetics

Myoglobin (Mb)-mediated oxygen (O₂) delivery and dissolved O₂ in the cytosol are two major sources that support oxidative phosphorylation. During intense exercise, lactate (LAC) production is elevated in skeletal muscles as a consequence of insufficient intracellular O₂ supply. The latter results in diminished mitochondrial oxidative metabolism and an increased reliance on nonoxidative pathways to generate ATP. Whether or not metabolites from these pathways impact Mb-O₂ associations remains to be established. In the present study, we employed isothermal titration calorimetry, O₂ kinetic studies, and UV-Vis spectroscopy to evaluate the LAC affinity toward Mb (oxy- and deoxy-Mb) and the effect of LAC on O₂ release from oxy-Mb in varying pH conditions (pH 6.0–7.0). Our results show that LAC avidly binds to both oxy- and deoxy-Mb (only at acidic pH for the latter). Similarly, in the presence of LAC, increased release of O₂ from oxy-Mb was detected. This suggests that with LAC binding to Mb, the structural conformation of the protein (near the heme center) might be altered, which concomitantly triggers the release of O₂. Taken together, these novel findings support a mechanism where LAC acts as a regulator of O₂ management in Mb-rich tissues and/or influences the putative signaling roles for oxy- and deoxy-Mb, especially under conditions of LAC accumulation and lactic acidosis.     

LOW TEMPERATURE FLOW CHARACTERISTICS OF SOME WAXY CRUDE OILS IN RELATION TO THEIR COMPOSITION : PART II EFFECT OF WAX COMPOSITION AND CONCENTRATION ON THE DEW AXED CRUDE OILS WITH / WITHOUT ADDITIVES

ABSTRACT

In this part of the work the effect of wax concentrations on the rheologica! properties of the dewaxed Duliajan (Assam) and Lingaia crude oils have been studied. The dewaxing of the crude oil was done by removing n-paraffins from the crude oil by urea adduction. The urea adducted n-paraffins concentrate-the wax- was characterized by its carbon number distribution. The urea non adducted oil portion - the denormalized crude oil (DNO)- was characterized for its pour point. The wax in different concentration was then added in the DNO and the change in the rheological properties like pour point, yield stress and plastic viscosity were studied using a Haake Rota Viscometer. The effect of carbon number distribution, i.e. the composition of the wax, on these rheological properties was also investigated. Four different commercial pour point depressanl additives have been used to study their effects on the pour point, yield stress and plastic viscosity of the reconstituted (wax mixed DNO) crude oils.

From this study it has been found that wax concentration and its composition are primarily responsible for the variation in the pour point of the DNO, and the DNO composition has a small effect. However, as seen in the Part I of this paper, the response of the pour point depressant additive in effecting the change in the pour point is primarily governed by the composition of the DNO. The additives have shown better response in the DNO having more aromatic concentrate, as has been found in the case of Duliajan (Assam) DNO.     

UWB MIMO antenna with 4-element,compact size,high isolation and single band rejection for high-speed wireless networks

Wireless Networks - In this paper, a miniaturized size UWB 4-element MIMO antenna with a band rejection feature is introduced. The four elements have a rectangular radiator with curved edges and a...     

Disc bulge diagnostic model in axial lumbar MR images using Intervertebral disc Descriptor (IdD)

Multimedia Tools and Applications - One of the common types of lumbar disc disease is bulging which cause low back pain, tingling, and numbness. An automatic diagnostic system to detect the disc...