Hindshaker, a novel myelin mutant showing hypomyelination preferentially affecting the spinal cord

Animals with spontaneous mutations affecting myelin formation have provided useful information about the genetic and cellular mechanisms regulating normal and abnormal myelination. In this paper we describe a novel murine mutation termed hindshaker (hsh), which is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. Affected mice are characterised by a variable tremor of the hind end which commences at about 2 weeks of age and largely disappears in animals older than 6 weeks. There is hypomyelination affecting predominantly the spinal cord, although the optic nerves and brain are involved to a much lesser degree. The defect of thinly myelinated and naked axons is maximal at 20 days of age and largely resolves with time so that in the adult most axons are myelinated. The myelin structure appears normal and immunostains for the major proteins. Although the distribution of oligodendrocytes in the spinal cord is similar to normal during the period of hypomyelination, there are fewer mature cells. The hsh mutation appears to delay the maturation of oligodendrocytes, particularly in the spinal cord. Additionally, there is a considerable variation in phenotypic expression and in penetrance when the mutation is expressed on different genetic backgrounds, suggesting the hsh locus is subject to the influence of modifying gene(s). Identification of the hsh gene should identify a factor important in the development of oligodendrocytes, particularly those in the spinal cord.     

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.     

Bulk metallic glasses for biomedical applications

The selection criteria for biomaterials include the material’s properties and biocompatibility, and the ability to fabricate the desired shapes. Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are relative newcomers in the field of biomaterials but they exhibit an excellent combination of properties and processing capabilities desired for versatile implant applications. To further evaluate the suitability of BMGs for biomedical applications, we analyzed the biological responses they elicited in vitro and in vivo. The BMGs promoted cell adhesion and growth in vitro and induced improved foreign body responses in vivo suggesting their potential use as biomaterials. Because of the BMGs’ flexible chemistry, atomic structure, and surface topography, they offer a unique opportunity to fabricate complex implants and devices with a desirable biological response from a material with superior properties over currently used metallic biomaterials.     

Integral buckle arrestors for offshore pipelines: Enhanced design criteria

Integral buckle arrestors are relatively thick wall rings periodically welded in an offshore pipeline at intervals of several hundred meters in order to safeguard the line in case a propagating buckle initiates. They provide additional circumferential rigidity and thus impede downstream propagation of collapse, limiting the damage to the length of pipe separating the two arrestors. The effectiveness of such devices was studied parametrically through experiments and numerical simulations in Park and Kyriakides [On the design of integral buckle arrestors for offshore pipelines. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 1997;39(6):643–69]. The experiments involved quasi-static propagation of collapse towards an arrestor, engagement of the arrestor, temporary arrest, and the eventual crossing of collapse to the downstream pipe at a higher pressure. The same processes were simulated with finite element models that included finite deformation plasticity and contact. The experimental crossover pressures enriched with numerically generated values were used to develop an empirical design formula for the arresting efficiency of such devices. A recent experimental extension of this work revealed that for some combinations of arrestor and pipe yield stresses, the design formula was overly conservative. Motivated by this finding, a new broader parametric study of the problem was undertaken, which demonstrated that the difference between the pipe and the arrestor yield stress affects significantly the arrestor performance. The original arrestor design formula was then modified to include the new experimental and numerical results producing an expression with a much wider applicability.     

Acute hemodynamic effects of estrogen administration in postmenopausal women

The hemodynamic effects of estrogens in replacement doses have not been fully clarified; therefore, we studied the acute hemodynamic changes after 0.625 and 1.25 mg of conjugated estrogens, administered intravenously, using a thermodilution catheter, in postmenopausal women without structural heart disease. Pulmonary and systemic pressures and resistances and stroke volume did not change compared with baseline, but heart rate and cardiac output decreased significantly, which may be associated with estrogen's previously described calcium-blocking effect or with a more recently contemplated beta-blocking action.     

On-line estimation of synchronous Generator parameters using a damper current observer and a graphic user interface

This paper presents a method to identify synchronous generator parameters from on-line data measured at the terminals of the machine. An observer for estimation of synchronous generator damper currents is designed and implemented. The observer-estimator is used in a Graphic User Interface (GUI) application. Possible internal machine fault conditions can be detected and remedial action can be applied. Noise filtering and bad data detection and rejection are implemented to increase the reliability of the estimates. Saturation of the synchronous generator inductances is also considered. Secondary objectives include calculation of the error characteristics of the estimation, development of an index of confidence, study of the observability of generator parameters, and evaluation of alternative GUI features.     

Sequential Monte Carlo Methods for Tracking Multiple Targets With Deterministic and Stochastic Constraints

In multitarget scenarios, kinematic constraints from the interaction of targets with their environment or other targets can restrict target motion. Such motion constraint information could improve tracking performance if effectively used by the tracker. In this paper, we propose three particle filtering methods that incorporate constraint information in their proposal and weighting process; the number of targets is fixed and known in all methods. The reproposed constrained motion proposal (RCOMP) utilizes an accept/reject method to propose particles that meet the constraints. The truncated constraint motion proposal (TCOMP) uses proposal densities truncated to satisfy the constraints. The constraint likelihood independent partitions (CLIP) method simply rejects proposed partitions that do not meet the constraints. We use simulation to evaluate the performance of these three methods for two constrained motion scenarios: a vehicle convoy and soldiers executing a leapfrog motion. Moreover, we demonstrate the utility of constraint information by comparing the proposed algorithms with the independent partition (IP) proposal method that does not use constraint information. The simulation results demonstrate that the root mean square error (RMSE) tracking performance of the RCOMP and the TCOMP methods is much better than the CLIP and IP methods; this is due to their more efficient proposal process.     

Glycocalyx‐Like Hydrogel Coatings for Small Diameter Vascular Grafts

Novel biological vascular conduits, such as decellularized tissue engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs) are hindered by high thrombogenicity. To mimic the antithrombogenic surface of native vessels with a continuous glycosaminoglycan layer that is present on endothelial cells (ECs), a hyaluronic acid (HA) modified surface is established, to effectively shield blood platelets from collagen‐triggered activation. Using the amine groups present on 4 mm diameter decellularized TEVGs, a continuous HA hydrogel coating is built via a bifunctional thiol‐reactive cross‐linker, thereby avoiding nonspecific collagen matrix cross‐linking. The HA hydrogel layer recreates a luminal wall, “hiding” exposed collagen from the bloodstream. In vitro blood tests show that adhered platelets, fibrinogen absorption, and fibrin formation on HA‐coated decellularized TEVGs are significantly lower than on uncoated decellularized TEVGs. The HA surface also inhibits macrophage adhesion in vitro. HA‐coated decellularized syngeneic rat aortae (≈1.5 mm diameter), and TEVGs in rat and canine models, respectively, are protected from aggressive thrombus formation, and preserve normal blood flow. Re‐endothelialization is also observed. HA‐coated TEVGs may be an off‐the‐shelf small‐diameter vascular graft with dual benefits: antithrombogenic protection and promotion of endothelium.     

Collapse of partially corroded or worn pipe under external pressure

This paper is concerned with the effect of internal corrosion or erosion defects on the collapse of pipelines under external pressure. Experiments are conducted on SS-304 tubes with D/t's of 21.0 and 18.7 with axially uniform grooves of several thicknesses and angular spans of 6–60°. All specimens exhibited the classical ovalization mode of collapse with the grooved side being more deformed. For groove angles between 6° and 20° the collapse pressure decreases as the angle increases but remains essentially constant for angles between 20° and 60°. The collapse pressure was found to decrease with groove depth, reducing by nearly 50% when the groove depth reached 50% of the pipe wall thickness. The experiments were simulated numerically using both the custom computer code BEPTICO as well as an axially uniform finite element model. The predictions were found to follow closely the trends of the experimental results. The three dimensionality of grooves was examined using appropriate finite element models. It was found that grooves shorter than about 8D constitute local imperfections and accurate prediction of their effect on collapse pressure requires fully 3-D modeling. By contrast, grooves 10D long or longer behave essentially as “long” grooves and can be analyzed using 2-D models.