Recidivism and self-cure of obesity: A test of Schacter's hypothesis in diabetic patients.

Investigated the weight histories of obese diabetic outpatients. Retrospective self-reports of 152 patients indicated that about one-third could be classified as cured of their obesity, and an additional 26%, although still obese, weighed 10% less than they had at their maximum. Medical records of 219 Ss revealed that less than 10% could be considered cured and only another 12% partially cured. Although some support was found for the hypothesized relationship between weight-loss success and time in treatment, it is possible that this reflects a tendency for those initially successful to remain in treatment longer. Finally, maximum weights of at least 30% over ideal were associated with more success, primarily in achieving a 10% weight loss rather than in being cured of obesity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of joint design on mechanical properties of AL7075 weldment

The effects of joint design on the mechanical properties of AL7075-T6 aluminum sheet were studied on the latest automated gas-tungsten arc-welding system. Using ER5356 filler metal, full-penetration welds were made on workpieces with various included joint angles. Testing of the mechanical properties of the joints was done in the as-welded, naturally aged, and postweld heat-treated conditions. The results show that by using crack-resistant filler, and by selecting the proper joint design and postweld heat treatment, strong, dependable welds can be produced on thin AL7075 sheet material. An elasticity model of the weld joint was established to help understand the mechanical behavior of the joints. An undermatched joint design is shown to be capable of achieving a joint strength that matches the strength of the base alloy.     

One-Step Chemical Synthesis of Native Met1-Linked Poly-Ubiquitin Chains

The enzyme-mediated construction of poly-ubiquitin (Ub) chains on target proteins leads to a variety of cellular responses and is involved in processes ranging from protein degradation to cell cycle control and immune responses. This complex post-translational modification system is under intense investigation, but generation of specific Ub chains and tools made thereof is not always trivial. We discovered that native methionine-1-linked polymeric ubiquitin chains can be constructed in a single chemical reaction. We validate correct folding and regioselective attachment of such chains using linkage specific proteases and further demonstrate that these poly-Ub chains can be converted into thioesters by the activating E1-enzyme. Subsequent ligation reactions using these in situ prepared thioesters leads to poly-ubiquitinated peptides.     

Effects of alkyl substitution on the physical properties and gas transport behavior in selected poly(R-phenoxyphosphazenes)

A systematic preparation of alkyl substituted phenoxyphosphazene polymers was performed and their gas transport properties determined. In this study, phosphazenes substituted with 4-methylphenol, 4-ethylphenol, and 4-isopropylphenol are reported. An additional polymer substituted with 4-tert-butylphenoxy-1-ethanol also was synthesized in this work. Data derived for these materials, including chemical, thermal and gas transport characterization, were compared to previous reports discussing poly[bis-phenoxyphosphazene] and its analog with tert-butyl substitution: poly[bis-(4-tert-butylphenoxy)phosphazene]. The tert-butyl moiety influences orderly chain packing, presumably through steric hindrance that can influence aromatic π-stacking. For the new poly[(alkylphenoxy)phosphazenes], semicrystallinity is maintained and the added steric bulk serves to decrease the polymer glass transition temperature (Tg) and increase both permeability and selectivity for the gas pairs: O₂/N₂ and CO₂/CH₄. Removal of the tert-butyl moiety from the immediate vicinity of the backbone through a flexible spacer serves to depress the Tg as compared to poly[bis-(4-tert-butylphenoxy)phosphazene], but provides no performance enhancement for gas transport.     

Coupling metrics for ontology-based system

Measuring system coupling is a commonly accepted software engineering practice associated with producing high-quality software products. Coupling metrics traditionally measure data passed across a module interface to determine couplings between modules in a given system. XML has become common in Internet-based application domains such as business-to-business and business-to-consumer applications, and has formed a basis for service-oriented architectures such as Web services and the Semantic Web. We therefore need new coupling metrics that address these systems' unique requirements. We propose a set of coupling metrics for ontology-based systems represented in OWL: the number of external classes (NEC), reference to external classes (REC), and referenced includes (RI). To collect these metrics, we use a standard XML-based parser. This research reflects a new type of coupling measurement for system development that defines coupling metrics based on ontology data and its structure.     

迷你冷轧--21世纪冷轧技术

21世纪迷你冷轧(Minicold 21^TM)型冷轧厂——体现冷轧高附加值扁平产品的柔性生产概念。为了高效生产冷轧、镀锌以及彩涂扁平产品,达涅利威恩联合公司开发了称为“21世纪迷你冷轧(Minicold 21^TM)”冷轧工艺。其最简单的形式包括1条推拉式酸洗线、1台单机架或双机架可逆冷轧机、批示退火、1台平整机和1台可配置在线彩涂的热浸镀锌。讨论了21世纪迷你冷轧(Minicold 21^TM)型冷轧厂的技术特点并根据预计资本投资和转换成本以及产出产品市场价格进行了经济效益分析。分析说明在大多数情况下大约年产量50万t的冷轧厂能够产生经济效益。     

Consistency of adherence across regimen demands.

Investigated the extent to which adherence to one demand of the diabetic treatment regimen was related to adherence to other regimen demands in 227 diabetic patients (aged 17–80 yrs). Adherence to weight control, urine/blood testing, medication taking, symptom reporting, and safety demands were assessed using (a) patients' report in relation to physician's criteria, (b) patients' report in relation to their own understanding of those criteria, (c) significant others' reports, (d) nurses' ratings, and (e) physicians' ratings. Based on attribution theory, it was proposed that informed others would view patients as more consistent than patients themselves did. Separate intercorrelation matrices created for each method, however, were uniformly low, and mean correlations did not differ significantly between matrices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of treatment variables on mood and social adjustment in adult patients with pituitary disease

The effect of 50 days of streptozotocine-induced diabetes mellitus (blood glucose 20 mmol/l) on contraction and relaxation of isolated renal and intrarenal arteries in rats were examined. Strong and similar contractions were induced by potassium (60 mM), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and endothelin-1 (ET-1) in renal and intrarenal arteries in diabetic and control rats. The vasodilatory reactivity, after precontraction with 5-HT, of neuropeptide Y (NPY) was similar to that of acetylcholine (ACh), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) and was similar in diabetic and control rats. The relaxing effect of NPY was decreased (40%) only in the diabetic group by blockade of nitric oxide synthase with NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (10(-4) M) and by blockade (50%) of NPY with alpha-trinositol (10(-6) M). In conclusion, the present study showed that diabetes mellitus in the rat is associated with normal vasoconstrictive and vasodilatory capacities. However, the vasodilatory response to NPY was largely eliminated by blockade of nitric oxide synthesis only in the diabetic animals. This indicates that the vasodilatory effect of NPY in diabetes mellitus may be dependent on nitric oxide synthesis.