Report from the Maryland Epidemiology Schizophrenia Linkage Study: no evidence for linkage between schizophrenia and a number of candidate and other genomic regions using a complex dominant model

Our collaborative group has undertaken a linkage study of schizophrenia, using a systematic sample of patients admitted to Maryland hospitals. An initial sample of 39 families, each having two or more affecteds, was available for genotyping candidate genes, candidate regions, and highly polymorphic markers randomly distributed throughout the genome. We used a single complex dominant model (with a disease gene frequency of 0.005 and age-dependent penetrance for affected phenotype: for under 35, penetrance = .45; for 35 and older, penetrance = .85). We report here 130 markers, which met the exclusion criteria of LOD score < -2.00 at theta > 0.01 in at least 10 informative families, and no evidence for heterogeneity. We also report here markers that were tested as candidates for linkage to the schizophrenic phenotype. They were selected based on the following criteria: a) proximity to reported chromosomal rearrangements (both 5q and 11q), b) suggestions of linkage from other families (5q), or c) presence of a candidate gene (5q, 11q, 3q: Dopamine receptors 1, 2, and 3, respectively). We also tested for mutations of codon 717 in exon 17 of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) gene and were unable to detect the C to T substitution in our schizophrenic group.     

DC System Resonance Analysis

DC filters and dc smoothing reactors are primarily designed to meet performance requirements with regard to telephone interference levels and commutation failure frequency. Other factors, however, place constraints on the size of the dc filter capacitance and the smoothing reactor inductance. The principal constraint is the avoidance of resonance conditions on the dc side at a low order harmonic of the commutating voltage. This paper discusses the factors which must be considered when analyzing dc side resonance. Specific considerations for the Intermountain Power Project are given.     

Pharmacologic management of patients with diseases of the endocrine system

Endocrine disorders are commonly seen in the general population. This article discusses the physiology, pathogenesis, and the medical and dental management of patients with thyroid, parathyroid, and pituitary gland disorders. In addition, the pharmacologic treatment, common side effects, and dental drug interactions of concern are discussed.     

Amount of training and cue-evoked taste-reactivity responding in reinforcer devaluation.

In two experiments, rats received minimal (16) pairings of one auditory conditioned stimulus (CS) cue with a sucrose reinforcer, and extensive (112) pairings of another auditory CS with that reinforcer. After sucrose was devalued by pairing it with lithium chloride in some rats (Devalue groups) but not others (Maintain groups), taste reactivity (TR) and other responses to unflavored water were assessed in the presence of the auditory CSs alone. The minimally trained CS controlled substantially more evaluative TR responses than the extensively trained CS. Those TR responses were hedonic (positive) in the Maintain groups, but aversive (negative) in the Devalue groups. By contrast, food cup entry and other responses thought not to reflect evaluative taste processing were controlled more by the extensively trained cue. These responses were reduced by sucrose devaluation comparably, regardless of the amount of training. The results suggest rapid changes in the content of learning as conditioning proceeds. Early in training, CSs may be capable of activating preevaluative processing of an absent food reinforcer that includes information about its palatability, but that capability is lost as training proceeds. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Power oscillation damping control strategies for FACTS devicesusing locally measurable quantities

This paper presents a way to derive power oscillation damping control strategies for flexible AC transmission system (FACTS) devices, and derives these laws for the four major types of FACTS devices using an energy function (Lyapunov) method. All controls rely only on locally measurable information, and are independent of system topology, implying structural uncertainty need not affect power oscillation damping control strategies     

Use of mine ventilation exhaust as combustion air in gas-firedturbo-electric generators

Methane liberated in coal mines is a potential safety hazard, because it is explosive at relatively low concentrations (5%-15%) in air. To manage methane, underground mines are ventilated with large quantities of air and, in some cases, the gas is also drained with gob wells and predrained with vertical and horizontal wells. The ventilation air is used to dilute methane emissions to levels well below the explosive limit, and the diluted stream is discharged to the atmosphere. Unfortunately, this waste stream may contain as much as 60% of the total gas energy that was originally in the coal. Also, methane is considered by some to be 24.5 times more detrimental than CO₂ in contributing to the greenhouse effect. The volume of the waste stream, the high electric power demands of a mine and the greenhouse effect of methane provide a strong incentive for converting the waste-methane chemical energy to the electrical or mechanical equivalent. A preliminary economic assessment of a proposed test-turbine installation at the Jim Walter Resources Blue Creek Mine Number 5 (JWR No. 5) shows that such a project makes good sense economically, even without considering the emission-reduction benefits. This unit could produce enough power to drive a ventilation fan, provide a profitable rate of return and produce a 2% reduction in emissions. A market study indicates that there is the potential to generate 706-816 MW of power from mine ventilation gas in the US. Worldwide, if only 10% of the estimated mine ventilation emissions can be used for power generation, this technology has potential for the generation of 1689-1953 MW of capacity, with a commensurate reduction in emissions     

DNA-modified nanocrystalline diamond thin-films as stable,biologically active substrates

Diamond, because of its electrical and chemical properties, may be a suitable material for integrated sensing and signal processing. But methods to control chemical or biological modifications on diamond surfaces have not been established. Here, we show that nanocrystalline diamond thin-films covalently modified with DNA oligonucleotides provide an extremely stable, highly selective platform in subsequent surface hybridization processes. We used a photochemical modification scheme to chemically modify clean, H-terminated nanocrystalline diamond surfaces grown on silicon substrates, producing a homogeneous layer of amine groups that serve as sites for DNA attachment. After linking DNA to the amine groups, hybridization reactions with fluorescently tagged complementary and non-complementary oligonucleotides showed no detectable non-specific adsorption, with extremely good selectivity between matched and mismatched sequences. Comparison of DNA-modified ultra-nanocrystalline diamond films with other commonly used surfaces for biological modification, such as gold, silicon, glass and glassy carbon, showed that diamond is unique in its ability to achieve very high stability and sensitivity while also being compatible with microelectronics processing technologies. These results suggest that diamond thin-films may be a nearly ideal substrate for integration of microelectronics with biological modification and sensing.     

ONE- AND TWO-PHASE FLOW IN NETWORK MODELS OF POROUS MEDIA

We discuss the low Reynolds number flow of one or two immiscible Newtonian fluids in network models of microscopically random porous media. For the case of a single fluid, we reduce the flow problem to an analog random electrical resistor problem and use an 'effective medium theory' to express the permeability of such networks in terms of the pore space geometry. For the flow of two fluids we use the Washburn approximation to incorporate capillary pressure differences, and show that this problem may also be formulated as a random electrical network. In this case, the capillary menisci correspond to moving batteries, and we follow the motion of the fluid-fluid interface (the ensemble of analog batteries) by a time-step procedure. We study the time evolution of the interface and the dynamics of blobs of one fluid contained in the other, as a function of the network geometry.'     

Dynamic response of power conditioning systems for superconductivemagnetic energy storage

The dynamic response of two power conditioning systems for superconductive magnetic energy storage (SMES) are presented. One power conditioning system is based on a hybrid current sourced inverter (CSI), the second is a combination of a DC chopper with a voltage sourced inverter (VSI). The response of both systems to a load change, a three phase fault, and start-up is presented     

Characterizing and improving performance properties of thin solid films produced by weatherable water-borne colloidal suspensions on bronze substrates

While the development and application for transparent protective coatings for metals continues and broadens, the use of these coatings on high-value outdoor bronze objects, such as statues and architectural elements, requires extensive testing before use. Recent efforts in coatings technology have produced high-performance water-borne latex dispersions containing polyacrylics and poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) targeting extended coating lifetimes and improved UV resistance. Our studies show that a two-layer polymer film with a solvent based primer (Paraloid™ B-44) and a high performance water-borne topcoat (Kynar Aquatec™ RC-10206) exhibits high impedance as measured by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Upon annealing, those films further increased in impedance, suggesting improved corrosion protection compared to unannealed films. When soaking in water, films that contained high loading levels of coalescing agent (Dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether, DPM) in the topcoat formulation resulted in a visible whitening of the basecoat and a decrease in coating resistance. Characterization of the whitened layer by FT-IR indicated the presence of coalescent in the basecoat, suggesting that coalescent migrated from the topcoat into the primer basecoat. Annealing studies were performed to reduce uptake and reverse or inhibit water whitening.