Supraclavicular abscess caused by Salmonella enteritidis in patient without gastrointestinal symptoms

Soft tissue infections are among the rare manifestations of extra intestinal salmonellosis and occur more frequently in immunocompromised patients. Herein we report a case of a 51-year-old white male with type II. diabetes mellitus, diagnosed with supraclavicular abscess caused by Salmonella enteritidis. The patient denied any gastrointestinal symptoms, and stool cultures were negative. After incision, drainage, and administration of intravenous ampicillin (4 x 1.5 g/day for two weeks) the patient recovered completely. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of cervical soft tissue abscess caused by Salmonella enteritidis without preceding gastrointestinal symptoms. We feel that the presence of diabetes was a risk factor for developing the infection.     

Quantitative relations between farinogram area and new extensogram characteristics of wheat flour

In the analysis of farinographic curves, it has been determined that the farinogram area is a very reliable indicator of the quality of wheat flour, if it has been measured 12 min from the achievement of the maximum. In such a way, the dough development time, which can considerably influence the size of the farinographic curve, if it has been measured 15 min after the farinograph has been set in motion, has been eliminated. Quantitative relations between one of the most important characteristics of the farinogram – the farinogram area, and the determined dough characteristics related to dough quality which can be registrated by means of the extensogram, have been determined: , where A_far = farinogram area measured 12 min from the achievement of the maximum, E = dough extensibility, A = area of the extensogram, k′ = represents the farinographic area when the ratio unit value is $ \frac{{{\rm E}^2 }}{{\rm A}}$, k?′ = 4.18 and standard deviation s = 0.214. This determined relation gives a new approach to the farinographic curve interpretation and stresses the new importance of the farinograph as an instrument for physical testing of wheat flour quality.     

Desaturation of endogenous and exogenous palmitate in lung tissue in vitro

Lung slices from rats fed a fat-free diet supplemented with safflower oil (control) or tripalmitoyl-glycerol (essential fatty acid [EFA]-deficient) were incubated with [¹⁴C] acetate, [¹⁴C] palmitate, or [¹⁴C] stearate. Of the¹⁴C recovered in phospholipids after incubation with [¹⁴C] acetate, more than 87% was in 16-carbon fatty acids. Desaturation, as assayed by the percentage of radioactivity in monoenoates in phospholipid fatty acids, was generally double in EFA-deficient slices compared to control slices, regardless of substrate. Desaturation was significantly greater in slices incubated with acetate or octanoate compared to palmitate, indicating that endogenously synthesized palmitate was desaturated more actively than that derived from an exogenous source. Presented in part to the American Physiological Society, Toronto, Canada, October 1980, and published in abstract form inPhysiologist (1980) 23, 135.     

Pressure difference across the free surface of a stable static meniscus in a possible Ge1−XSiX ribbon growth by edge-defined film-fed growth (E.F.G.) technique

In this paper, it is shown in which kind the pressure difference across the free surface has to be chosen to obtain a stable convex static meniscus with a prescribed size in the case of a Ge_1−XSi_X single crystal ribbon growth by E.F.G. technique. The dependence of the pressure difference on the composition X is analyzed. The same tools as for a Ge or Si single crystal ribbon growth are used. The results can be useful in a future experiment planning or manufacturing technology design.     

Effect of phosphate binders on oxidative stress and inflammation markers in hemodialysis patients

It has been suggested that phosphate binders may reduce the inflammatory state of hemodialysis (HD) patients. However, it is not clear whether it has any effect on oxidative stress. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of sevelamer hydrochloride (SH) and calcium acetate (CA) on oxidative stress and inflammation markers in HD patients. Hemodialysis patients were randomly assigned to therapy with SH (n=17) or CA (n=14) for 1 year. Before the initiation of therapy (baseline) and at 12 months, we measured in vitro reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by stimulated and unstimulated polymorphonuclear neutrophils and serum levels of tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin-10, C-reactive protein, and albumin. There was a significant reduction of spontaneous ROS production in both groups after 12 months of therapy. There was a significant decrease of Staphylococcus aureus stimulated ROS production in the SH group. There was a significant increase in albumin serum levels only in the SH group. In the SH group, there was also a decrease in the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor α and C-reactive protein. Our results suggest that compared with CA treatment, SH may lead to a reduction in oxidative stress and inflammation. Therefore, it is possible that phosphate binders exert pleiotropic effects on oxidative stress and inflammation, which could contribute toward decreasing endothelial injury in patients in HD.     

An integrated scheme for crystal plasticity analysis: Virtual grain structure generation

An integrated scheme is developed based on the controlled Poisson Voronoi tessellation (CPVT) model to generate the polycrystalline grain structure for micromechanics simulations. The proposed model of CPVT involves a single control parameter that is used to produce the grain structure with regularity control, by which the yielded tessellation varies from the purely random Voronoi tessellation to the regular hexagonal tessellation. The system extends the standard CPVT model by the addition of two features: a one-parameter gamma distribution and a mapping from a set of quantitative metallographic measurements to the distribution parameter. Based on this scheme, a grain structure can be constructed such that the virtual tessellation is statistically equivalent to the expected grain size distribution. To validate the modules that utilise the physical parameters that dictate the regularity, a series of theoretical investigations is performed. Efforts are devoted to proving the uniqueness of the mapping from the physical parameters to the distribution parameter and the regularity parameter. An efficient numerical algorithm is provided to facilitate the mapping solution process. A software system (VGRAIN) is developed implementing the proposed CPVT model to generate the grain structure for crystal plasticity finite element (CPFE) analysis. To demonstrate the proposed scheme and the VGRAIN system, a plane strain CPFE analysis is conducted. Two microstructures are generated with different regularities, and the deformation under uniaxial tension is simulated.     

Initial microstructure and retained austenite in 8 Mn steel controlled by cooling rate

The present work investigates the effect of the initial microstructure on phase transformation after intercritical annealing by measuring the amount of austenite, which was obtained by X-ray diffraction and saturation magnetisation. Pieces of 8?Mn steel were austenitised at 1100°C for 1?h followed by different cooling rates: water, air, and furnace. Samples of each piece were subsequently intercritically annealed from 600 to 800°C followed by air cooling. The microstructure was characterised using scanning electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction. Results show how changing the cooling rate affects the temperature of intercritical annealing at which the highest content of retained austenite was obtained.