Self-representation of suicidal adolescents

This study focused on the self-representations of suicidal adolescent. Twenty-six Israeli suicidal inpatients, 24 nonsuicidal inpatients, and 24 control participants completed scales on suicidal tendencies, the hedonic value of self-representations, the complexity (differentiation, integration) of these self-representations, and the discrepancies among self domains (actual, ideal, ought). Suicidal adolescents showed more negative self-representations, a less differentiated and less integrated organization of self-attributes, and more discrepancies between the 3 assessed domains of the self than did control participants. In addition, compared with psychiatric nonsuicidal participants, suicidal adolescents showed a less complex organization of self-attributes and a higher discrepancy between ideal self and ought self. Results were discussed in terms of the vulnerable self of suicidal adolescents, characterized by uneven processing of positive and negative information, confusion, and simplicity.     

Structural investigation of PEG-fibrinogen conjugates

Controllable bio-synthetic polymeric hydrogels made from fibrinogen-poly(ethylene glycol) adducts have been successfully employed in tissue engineering. The structural consequences of PEG conjugation to fibrinogen (i.e., PEGylation) in such a hydrogel network are not fully understood. The current investigation details the structural alterations caused to the reduced fibrinogen polypeptides by the covalent attachment of linear or branched PEG chains. The structure of PEGylated fibrinogen polypeptides were comprehensively characterized using small angle X-ray scattering, light scattering, and cryo-transmission electron microscopy. These characterizations concur that the bio-synthetic hybrids self-assemble into elongated objects, having a protein core of about 50 Å in diameter decorated with multiple PEG chains. Conjugates with branched PEG chains were shorter, and have lower average molecular weight compared to conjugates with linear chains. The diameter of the protein core of both samples was similar, suggesting a tail-to-head aggregation of the PEGylated fibrinogen polypeptide. A more complete understanding of this unique structural arrangement can provide further insight into the full extent of biofunctional accessibility in a biomaterial that combines the advantages of synthetic polymers with bioactive proteins.     

A bacteriophage reagent for Salmonella: molecular studies on Felix 01

Felix 01 (F01) is a bacteriophage originally isolated by Felix and Callow which lyses almost all Salmonella strains and has been widely used as a diagnostic test for this genus. Molecular information about this phage is entirely lacking. In the present study, the DNA of the phage was found to be a double-stranded linear molecule of about 80 kb. 11.5 kb has been sequenced and in this region A + T content is 60%. There are relatively few restriction endonuclease cleavage sites in the native genome and clones show this is due to their absence rather than modification. A restriction map of the genome has been constructed. The ends of the molecule cannot be ligated although they contain 5' phosphates. At least 60% of the genome must encode proteins. In the sequenced portion, many open reading frames exist and these are tightly packed together. These have been examined for homology to published proteins but only 1 to 17 shows similarity to known proteins. F01 is therefore the prototype of a new phage family. On the basis of restriction sites, codon usage and the distribution of nonsense codons in the unused reading frames, a strong case can be made for natural selection that reacts to mRNA structure and function.     

Optimal and suboptimal control policies for a solar collector system

An optimal control problem to maximize the net energy gathered by a flat-plate solar collector system by controlling the collector fluid flow rate is investigated. The problem is formulated in terms of a distributed parameter system and solved using the method of characteristics. It is shown that if the pump of the collector loop is such that its pumping power is greater than a linear function of the fluid velocity, then the optimal control policy is one in which the fluid flow is instantly switched between zero and maximum rates. Necessary conditions that determine the optimal switching times are derived. Because the resultant switching function of the optimal policy is shown to be decomposable into two parts, one that depends on the state of the system and another that requires a priori knowledge of the solar intensity over the entire period of operation, a suboptimal control policy that can be implemented by an on/off feedback controller with hysteresis is proposed. When this suboptimal policy is compared with the optimal policy, it is shown that on a clear day with sufficient solar insolation to dictate a two-switch optimal policy, the two policies are identical. Under other weather conditions, the feedback suboptimal controller will keep the pump off for a slightly shorter period of time than the time dictated by the optimal control.     

Optimal control of a solar collector loop using a distributed-lumped model

This paper considers the optimal control of a solar collector loop described by a bilinear distributed parameter model for the collector fluid temperature and a bilinear lumped parameter model for the storage fluid temperature. The objective is to control the collector fluid velocity so as to maximize the net energy collected over a fixed time period. Necessary conditions for optimality, given by a set of equations whose solution yields the optimal control, are derived. It is shown that the optimal control is an open-loop, bang-bang control which depends on two terms: a measurable quantity which depends on the state of the collector fluid, and a quantity which depends on a future knowledge of the weather data. It is also shown that for the case in which only two switches occur during the period of operation, the optimal control depends only on the temperature difference across the collector. Thus, one can construct a feedback on/off controller for the system provided that it is known a priori that only two switches will occur during the time interval under consideration.     

Transport of testosterone and estrogen from dairy-farm waste lagoons to groundwater

Although concentrated animal feeding operations constantly generate physiologically active steroidal hormones, little is known of their environmental fate. Estrogen and testosterone concentrations in groundwater and their distribution in sediments below a dairy-farm wastewater lagoon were therefore determined and compared to a reference site located upgradient of the farm. Forward simulations of flow as well as estrogen and testosterone transport were conducted based on data from the sediment profile obtained during drilling of a monitoring well belowthe dairy-farm waste lagoon. Testosterone and estrogen were detected in sediments to depths of 45 and 32 m, respectively. Groundwater samples were directly impacted by the dairy farm, as evidenced by elevated concentrations of nitrate, chloride, testosterone, and estrogen as compared to the reference site. Modeling potential transport of hormones in the vadose zone via advection, dispersion, and sorption could not explain the depths at which estrogen and testosterone were found, suggesting that other transport mechanisms influence hormone transport under field conditions. These mechanisms may involve interactions between hormones and manure as well as preferential flow paths, leading to enhanced transport rates. These types of interactions should be further investigated to understand the processes regulating hormone transport in the subsurface environment and parametrized to forecast long-term fate and transport of steroidal hormones.     

Solid-phase immune electron microscopy (SPIEM) for rapid viral diagnosis

Immune electron microscopy (IEM) is one of the fastest and most sensitive methods for the detection and diagnosis of viruses. This technique is based on formation of immune complexes of the virus with its corresponding antibody. In IEM optimal precipitation depends on a correct ratio, and there is a prozone effect. These problems can be overcome by using the solid-phase immune electron microscopic (SPIEM) technique. In this technique the antibody is attached to a particle which is used for 'fishing' the virus to be examined out of the suspension. After low speed centrifugation the preparation is treated either for observation in the transmission electron microscope or in the scanning electron microscope. In 'positive' samples the virus is seen attached to the surface of the particle. We report here results with S. aureus as the solid phase for the detection of Sindbis virus. The anti-Sindbis gamma globulins are attached to the bacteria by means of protein A present on their surface.