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Summary Over the last few years, novel synthetic nematicides, such as Salibro™ nematicide (a.s. fluazaindolizine - Reklemel™ active), Velum Prime® (a.s. fluopyram) or Nimitz® (a.s. fluensulfone), have been commercialised in various regions around the world. Whilst considerable scientific information exists on their field efficacy against plant-parasitic nematodes, very little has been published on their bio-compatibility with beneficial soil fungi. In this paper in vitro studies are presented with various nematophagous (Athrobotrys, Monacrosporium, Harposporium, Purpureocillium), entomoparasitic (Beauveria, Isaria) and disease-suppressive (Trichoderma) fungi that were exposed to these nematicides under laboratory conditions. Assessments were made on their impact on radial growth and sporulation of those fungi. Clear differences in sensitivity to the nematicides were seen between the different fungi. Intrinsically, fluopyram showed the strongest adverse effects on the tested fungi that often became already visible at a concentration of 5 ppm (a.s.). Negative effects were significant at higher concentrations of 50 ppm. Fluensulfone showed limited adverse impacts on the tested fungi at 5 ppm (a.s.) but clearly inhibited most of the fungi at 50 ppm (a.s.). Fluazaindolizine had the least impact of the novel nematicides, with no adverse effects recorded on any species at 5 ppm (a.s.), and very minor growth reductions at 50 ppm (a.s.). Even when tested at 250 ppm (a.s.) fluazaindolizine still showed no impact on Purpureocillium lilacinum, as well as only a weak impact on some Trichoderma species. Vydate (a.s. oxamyl), which was often included as a traditional carbamate nematicide in the test, also showed excellent bio-compatibility with the tested fungi at concentrations of from 5 to 50 ppm (a.s.). Overall, the studies showed that beneficial soil fungi differ in their intrinsic sensitivity to these modern nematicides. These interactions may be considered when designing integrated nematode management programmes that leverage endemic or introduced biocontrol agents. However, it should be noted that additional studies under field conditions with recommended label rates of the products are needed to confirm the trends seen in these laboratory data.

It is unclear whether physiological recordings containing high numbers of ectopic heartbeats can be used to measure the cerebral autoregulation (CA) of blood flow. This study evaluated the utility of such data for assessing dynamic CA capacity. Physiological recordings of cerebral blood flow velocity, heart rate, end-tidal CO2 and beat-to-beat blood pressure from acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients (n = 46) containing ectopic heartbeats of varying number (0.2 to 25 occurrences per minute) were analysed. Dynamic CA was determined using the autoregulation index (ARI) and the normalised mean square error (NMSE) was used to evaluate the fitting of the step response between BP and CBFV to Tiecks' model. We fitted linear mixed models on the CA variables incorporating ectopic burden, age, sex and hemisphere as predictor variables. Ectopic activity demonstrated an association with mean coherence (p = 0.006) but not with ARI (p = 0.162), impaired CA based on dichotomised ARI (p = 0.859) or NMSE (p = 0.671). Dynamic CA could be reliably assessed in AIS patients using physiological recordings with high rates of cardiac ectopic activity. This provides supportive data for future studies evaluating CA capability in AIS patients, with the potential to develop more individualised treatment strategies. Graphical Abstract.

The little fire ant (LFA), Wasmannia auropunctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is native to the neotropics, but has become one of the world’s most widespread and destructive invasive ants. In Hawaii, LFA was first discovered in 1999 on the Big Island and since then has rapidly spread to neighboring islands, causing ecological and economic damage. LFA can develop fully functional nests on the ground and arboreally, and their foraging and retrieval of food resources is facilitated by a well-developed recruitment system. LFA were found to form recruitment trails on epiphytic moss growing on macadamia nut trees. As a first step to identify LFA recruitment pheromone components, we tested the LFA worker trail-following response to naturally marked epiphytic moss trails. Significantly more LFA workers placed on a natural trail followed the trail and made 90° turns to continue following the trail compared to when they were placed on a fake trail that had no trail marking substance(s). In laboratory choice assays using hexane extracts of moss with and without LFA trail, LFA workers preferred to follow a trail drawn with a hexane extract of moss that had a recruitment trail over a trail drawn with a hexane extract of moss only. Our results confirm that LFA workers readily follow a trail marking substance(s) laid down on epiphytic moss.

Background: Ischaemic stroke (IS) is a devastating neurological disease. It is a significant global public health problem, placing enormous burden on patients, relatives, the health care system, and society as a whole. It is generally accepted that cerebral haemodynamics, and associated parameters, are impaired following ischaemic stroke (IS). Recently, a wide range of cerebral perfusion strategies have been introduced. These aim to improve perfusion to the ischaemic penumbra and to restore cerebral blood flow, thereby enhancing neurological and functional recovery. Understanding how these strategies affect cerebral haemodynamics may give us the necessary understanding to optimise individualised stroke management, aiming to prevent secondary perfusion-related injury and to minimise its potential devastating impacts.Objectives: This thesis aimed to determine how non-pharmacological (head positioning changes) and pharmacological (pressor therapy and intravenous thrombolysis) affect cerebralhaemodynamic and associated parameters, specifically cerebral autoregulation, in acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients, and whether such changes are associated withneurological and functional improvements.Methods: This dissertation presents a systematic review and four inter-related studies, as follows:1) The systematic review synthesises findings from twenty studies which examined the feasibility, safety and clinical effectiveness of using pressor agents as induced hypertension therapy in AIS (Chapter 3);2) A reproducibility study on how gradual changes in head positioning (GHP) affect cerebrovascular physiology in healthy older subjects (Chapter 5);3) A prospective observational study on how GHP affect systemic and cerebral haemodynamic parameters in healthy controls and patients with AIS, up to 90 days post stroke symptom onset (Chapter 6);4) A prospective observational study on using rapid head positioning (RHP) as a new dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) paradigm, in both healthy controls and patients with AIS (Chapter 7);5) A feasibility study evaluating changes in systemic and cerebral haemodynamic parameters during, and immediately after, intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) and up to 90 days post stroke symptom onset in AIS patients who received IVT (Chapter 8).Conclusions: This PhD thesis carefully scrutinised various pharmacological and non-pharmacological perfusion strategies used in AIS, their impact on cerebral haemodynamics and associated parameters change. It also demonstrated beautifully how AIS patients act differently when compare to controls in different paradigm measurements. The heterogeneous nature of CA impairment and recovery, and the time course of CA changes in AIS, provide valuable information in facilitating personalised post-stroke recovery plan. Further largescale, prospective studies are needed in order to translate such important information into day-to-day clinical setting.

(1) Background: Larger blood pressure variability (BPv) in the first 3 h post-stroke onset increases pathophysiological effects such as infarct size, and leads to greater risk of disability, comorbidities and mortality at 90 days. However, there is limited information on the relationship between systemic and cerebral haemodynamic and variability parameters. (2) Objectives: This study determined the effect of a gradual change in head position (GHP) on cerebral blood flow velocity variability (CBFVv) and mean arterial blood pressure variability (MABPv), in healthy controls and acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients. Methods: CBFVv and MABPv were expressed as standard deviation (SD) and coefficient of variation. A total of 16 healthy controls (mean age 57 ± 16 years) were assessed over two visits, 12 ± 8 days apart, and 15 AIS patients (mean age 69 ± 8.5 years) were assessed over three visits (V1: 13.3 ± 6.9 h, V2: 4.9 ± 3.2 days and V3: 93.9 ± 11.5 days post-stroke). (3) Results: In response to GHP, MABPv does not initially increase, but over time MABPv showed a significant increase in response to GHP in AIS (visits 2 and 3) and controls (visit 2). Additionally, in response to GHP in AIS, CBFVv increased in the affected hemisphere. Lastly, in AIS, a significant correlation between CBFVv and MABPv, assessed by SD, was seen in the unaffected hemisphere, whereas this relationship was not demonstrated in the affected hemisphere. (4) Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to analyse the relationship between CBFVv and MABPv. Shedding light on the effect of head position on the relationship between cerebral blood flow and blood pressure is important to improve our understanding of the underlying effects of cerebral autoregulation impairment. This early mechanistic study provides evidence supporting supine head positioning in healthy controls and stroke patients, through demonstration of a reduction of MABPv and increase in CBFVv.

We hypothesized that knowledge of cerebral autoregulation (CA) status during recanalization therapies could guide further studies aimed at neuroprotection targeting penumbral tissue, especially in patients that do not respond to therapy. Thus, we assessed CA status of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) during intravenous r-tPA therapy and associated CA with response to therapy. AIS patients eligible for intravenous r-tPA therapy were recruited. Cerebral blood flow velocities (transcranial Doppler) from middle cerebral artery and blood pressure (Finometer) were recorded to calculate the autoregulation index (ARI, as surrogate for CA). National Institute of Health Stroke Score was assessed and used to define responders to therapy (improvement of ≥ 4 points on NIHSS measured 24–48 h after therapy). CA was considered impaired if ARI p = 0.03) and more likely to have impaired CA (32% vs. 62%, p = 0.02) during thrombolysis. In conclusion, CA during thrombolysis was impaired in patients who did not respond to therapy. This variable should be investigated as a predictor of the response to therapy and to subsequent neurological outcome.

OBJECTIVE It is unclear whether the duration of recordings influences estimates of dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA). Therefore, we performed a retrospective study of the effects of reducing recording durations on dCA estimates; with the potential to inform recording duration for reliable estimates in challenging clinical populations. APPROACH Seventy-eight healthy control subjects and 79 acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients were included. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) velocity was recorded with transcranial Doppler (TCD) and continuous blood pressure (BP) with a Finapres device. The autoregulation index (ARI), derived with transfer function analysis (TFA), was calculated for recording durations at one-minute intervals between 1 and 5 min using the same starting point of each recording. MAIN RESULTS Though recording duration did not affect the overall ARI value, when compared to control subjects, AIS patients had significantly lower ARI values for durations between 3 and 5 min (p

It is generally agreed that optimal head positioning is an important consideration in acute stroke management regime. However, there is limited literature investigating the effect of head positioning changes on cerebrovascular physiology in acute ischemic stroke (AIS). We aim to assess cerebral autoregulation (CA) and associated hemodynamic responses during gradual head positioning (GHP) changes, between AIS and controls.Cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV, transcranial Doppler), blood pressure (BP, Finometer) and end-tidal COAIS patients were significantly hypertensive (p = 0.005), hypocapnic (p 0.001), and had lower CBFV (p = 0.02) compared to controls, in both head positions. When comparing 5-min FLAT to SIT head position, reductions in BP (both AIS and controls, p 0.001) and CBFV (controls only: dominant hemisphere p = 0.001 and non-dominant hemisphere p = 0.05) were demonstrated. Of note, a reduction in autoregulation index was observed in AIS, after 5-min SIT head positioning, at all 3 visits (p = 0.018).Key hemodynamic changes were demonstrated when the head position changes from 5-min FLAT to SIT head position (GHP) in mildly affected stroke patients. Importantly, these were associated with non-significant changes in CBFV but reduced measures of CA following AIS, which may be relevant in determining the optimal head position and the ideal timing of mobilisation. Clinical Trial Registration - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique Identifier: NCT02932540.

The ideal technique for dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) assessment in critically ill patients should provide considerable variability in blood pressure (BP) but without the need for patient cooperation. We proposed using rapid head positioning (RHP) over spontaneous BP fluctuations for dCA assessment in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Cerebral blood velocity (transcranial Doppler), beat-to-beat BP (Finometer), and end-tidal CO2 (capnography) were recorded during 5-min baseline and RHP in 16 controls (8 women and 8 men, mean age: 57 ± 16 yr) and 15 patients with AIS (7 women and 8 men, mean age: 69 ± 8 yr) at two (12 ± 8 days) and three visits (13.3 ± 6.9 h, 4.8 ± 3.2 days, and 93.9 ± 11.5 days from the symptom onset), respectively. All participants were able to complete the RHP protocol without difficulty. Compared with controls, patients with AIS were hypocapnic (all visits, P < 0.0024) and hypertensive ( visit 1, P = 0.011), although BP gradually reduced after the acute phase. RHP demonstrated greater beat-to-beat BP variability (BPV) in controls ( visits 1 and 2, P < 0.001) but not in patients with AIS at any visit. Compared with controls, a reduced autoregulation index (ARI) was demonstrated in patients with AIS, at visit 2 for the baseline recording but not at other visits or during RHP. The area under the receiver-operating curve was 0.53 and 0.54 for baseline and RHP, respectively. The RHP paradigm required minimal patient cooperation and could be considered a feasible alternative for assessing dCA, mainly in conditions leading to increased BPV. The lack of BPV increase in AIS with RHP deserves further investigation. NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study used rapid head positioning (RHP) to enhance blood pressure (BP) variability (BPV) to improve BP signal-to-noise ratio and reliability of dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA). RHP was well accepted by controls and acute ischemic stroke (AIS); the increased BPV induced in controls was not observed in AIS, suggesting BPV at rest was already elevated. RHP did not improve detection of impaired CA in AIS; further work is needed to understand the different responses observed.

Background: Acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients often show impaired cerebral autoregulation (CA). We tested the hypothesis that CA impairment and other alterations in cerebral haemodynamics are associated with stroke subtype and severity. Methods: AIS patients (n = 143) were amalgamated from similar studies. Data from baseline (< 48 h stroke onset) physiological recordings (beat-to-beat blood pressure [BP], cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) from bilateral insonation of the middle cerebral arteries) were calculated for mean values and autoregulation index (ARI). Differences were assessed between stroke subtype (Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project [OCSP] classification) and severity (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS] score < 5 and 5–25). Correlation coefficients assessed associations between NIHSS and physiological measurements. Results: Thirty-two percent of AIS patients had impaired CA (ARI < 4) in affected hemisphere (AH) that was similar between stroke subtypes and severity. CBFV in AH was comparable between stroke subtype and severity. In unaffected hemisphere (UH), differences existed in mean CBFV between lacunar and total anterior circulation OCSP subtypes (42 vs. 56 cm•s–1, p < 0.01), and mild and moderate-to-severe stroke severity (45 vs. 51 cm•s–1, p = 0.04). NIHSS was associated with peripheral (diastolic and mean arterial BP) and cerebral haemodynamic parameters (CBFV and ARI) in the UH. Conclusions: AIS patients with different OCSP subtypes and severity have homogeneity in CA capability. Cerebral haemodynamic measurements in the UH were distinguishable between stroke subtype and severity, including the association between deteriorating ARI in UH with stroke severity. More studies are needed to determine their clinical significance and to understand the determinants of CA impairment in AIS patients.

Dysregulation of the Axl receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) has been implicated in the development and progression of a variety of malignancies. Axl is known to activate strong anti-apoptotic signaling pathways that promote oncogenesis. However, the role of Axl plays in osteosarcoma (OS) remains elusive. The present study aimed to investigate the clinical significance and function of Axl in human OS. Forty cases of OS and corresponding adjacent non-cancerous tissues (ANCT) were collected. The expression of Axl was assessed using immunohistochemical assay through tissue microarray procedure. A loss-of-function experiment was performed to investigate the effects of small hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediated knockdown of Axl on the expression of p-AKT, poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and Ki-67, the proliferative activities, indicated by MTT assay, and the apoptotic index in OS MG-63 cells. As a result, the expression of Axl was found in OS tissues with higher strong reactivity rate, compared with the ANCT (75.0 percent vs 20.0 percent, P=0.000), but it did not associate with the age, gender, tumor size, TNM staging and distant metastases (each Pgreater than0.05). Furthermore, knockdown of Axl inhibited the proliferative activities and induced apoptosis in MG-63 cells with decreased expression of p-AKT, and Ki-67 and increased expression of PARP. In conclusion, our findings suggest that Axl is highly expressed in most of the OS tissues compared with the ANCT, and knockdown of Axl inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of OS cells possibly through downregulation of the AKT pathway, suggesting that our findings may provide new insights into the potential therapeutic target for cancer.

The feasibility of generating an extended period of linear release of therapeutic proteins from photo-cross-linked, biodegradable elastomer monolithic devices in vitro has been previously demonstrated. The release is driven primarily by the osmotic pressure generated upon the dissolution of the encapsulated particles within the polymer. The osmotic pressure is provided by co-incorporation into the particle of trehalose as an osmotigen. Herein, we demonstrate that the release rate of a therapeutic protein, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), by this osmotic pressure mechanism is the same in vivo as found in vitro . 125 I-VEGF was colyophilized with trehalose and serum albumin and distributed as particles throughout a photo-cross-linked elastomer composed of trimethylene carbonate, e-caprolactone, and d , l -lactide. The release of VEGF from the device was monitored by measuring the decrease in radioactivity within the devices in vitro and within explanted devices that had been implanted subcutaneously in the dorsal area of Wistar rats. The released VEGF remained bioactive in vivo , inducing the formation of blood vessels that contained red blood cells. Furthermore, the released trehalose was well tolerated by the surrounding tissue. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

We studied cerebral blood velocity (CBV), and associated hemodynamic parameters during gradual changes in head positioning in a nonstroke group. CBV (transcranial Doppler ultrasound), beat‐to‐beat blood pressure (BP, Finometer), and end‐tidal carbon dioxide (ETCO 2, capnography) were recorded between lying flat (0°) and sitting up (30°) head positions, in 18 volunteers (10 female, mean age, 57 ± 16 years), at two visits (12 ± 8 days). A significant reduction was found between 5‐min FLAT (0°) and 5‐min SIT (30°) positions in CBV (visit 1: 4.5 ± 3.3%, P = 0.006; visit 2: 4.1 ± 3.5%, P = 0.003), critical closing pressure (CrCP; visit 1: 15.5 ± 14.0%, P = 0.0002; visit 2: 14.1 ± 7.8%, P = 0.009) and BP (visit 1: 8.3 ± 7.4%, P = 0.001; visit 2: 11.0 ± 11.3%, P

Background Antibiotic allergy labels are associated with sub-optimal prescribing patterns and poorer clinical outcomes in non-cancer populations, but the effect of labelling on antimicrobial usage in patients with cancer is unknown. Findings A retrospective review of hospitalized patients admitted to the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre (2010-2012) identified 23 % of cancer patients (n = 198) with an antimicrobial allergy label (AA). Comparison of those with an antimicrobial allergy label to those without demonstrated increased antibiotic use per admission (3 vs. 2, p = 0.01), increased fluoroquinolone use (11 % vs. 6 %, p

BACKGROUND Silicosis is the second commonest notified occupational disease in Hong Kong. AIM To characterize the determinants of spirometric abnormalities in silicosis. METHOD The spirometric patterns of consecutive silicotic patients on confirmation by the Pneumoconiosis Medical Board from 1991 to 2002 were correlated with demographic characteristics, occupational history, smoking history, tuberculosis (TB) history and radiographic features by univariate and multiple regression analyses. RESULTS Of 1576 silicotic patients included, 55.6% showed normal spirometry, 28.5% normal forced vital capacity (FVC>or=80% predicted) but reduced forced expiratory ratio (FER

This paper describes a numerical simulation study for the molten steel in a continuous slab caster under the electromagnetic field imposed by the electromagnetic brake (EMBR). The magnetic field effects on turbulent flow field, heat transfer, and solidification were simulated by solving three-dimensional conservation equations for mass, momentum, energy, and Maxwell equation for the electromagnetic field coupled with a flow field. It was found that the EMBR can effectively damp detrimental local flows such as strong impingement on the mold wall which may cause surface erosion and macrosegregation in steel products. It was also found that the EMBR has a capability to control favorably the overall flow characteristics to help stable shell growth of steel slabs.

The stirred tank reactor is one of the most commonly used devices in industry for achieving mixing and reaction. We consider a combined experimental=computational approach for the simulation of oerent r–z planes phase locked at 0

Objective To evaluate the outcome of three different modes of management of abnormally invasive placenta over a 6-year period. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Tertiary hospital in Hong Kong. Population In 39 757 deliveries, 25 cases of abnormally invasive placenta were identified at cesarean section. Methods Identification of cases by hospital database and review of medical records. Main outcome measures Blood loss, blood transfusion requirement, operative time, duration of hospital stay, secondary postpartum hemorrhage and endometritis. Results Six women were managed by leaving the placenta in situ and by postoperative uterine artery embolization. Ten women were managed by an extirpative approach and nine women with direct cesarean hysterectomy. The success rate of nonremoval of the placenta with uterine artery embolization was 4/6 (67%). The intraoperative blood loss, blood transfusion requirements and operation times were lowest in the group with nonremoval of the placenta, although a higher secondary complication rate and a longer hospital stay followed. Conclusion Nonremoval of an abnormally invasive placenta at cesarean section and prophylactic postoperative uterine artery embolization are an alternative to elective cesarean hysterectomy.

Today, virgin coconut oil (VCO) is becoming valuable oil and is receiving an attractive topic for researchers because of its several biological activities. In cosmetics industry, VCO is excellent material which functions as a skin moisturizer and softener. Therefore, it is important to develop a quantitative analytical method offering a fast and reliable technique. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy with sample handling technique of attenuated total reflectance (ATR) can be successfully used to analyze VCO quantitatively in cream cosmetic preparations. A multivariate analysis using calibration of partial least square (PLS) model revealed the good relationship between actual value and FTIR-predicted value of VCO with coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.998.

Long term in vivo degradation, and tissue response to, cylindrical elastomers made of photo-cross-linked star-poly(e-caprolactone-co-D,L-lactide) triacrylate were investigated through subcutaneous implantation in rats. The elastomers were prepared via UV initiated crosslinking of prepolymers of equimolar amounts of monomers; a high crosslink density elastomer (ELAST 1250) was prepared from a prepolymer of 1250 Da and a low crosslink density elastomer (ELAST 7800) was prepared from a prepolymer of 7800 Da. The elastomers were characterized using cross-polarization magic angle spinning solid state 13C NMR and attenuated total reflectance fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The progress of the in vivo degradation process was followed by employing SEM, uniaxial tensile, mass loss, water uptake, and sol content measurements. The rate of in vivo degradation was faster than the rate of in vitro degradation for both ELAST 1250 and ELAST 7800. Long term in vivo degradation studies indicated that both elastomers undergo bulk hydrolysis along with surface erosion occurring due to the physiological environment. In the case of low cross-link density elastomers, the onset of mass loss was accompanied with an increase in both water uptake and sol content, whereas, in the case of high crosslink density elastomers, only the water uptake increased. This degradation pattern was due to crazing of the high crosslink density elastomers. ELAST 7800 cylinders were totally degraded, and ELAST 1250 cylinders had lost 80% of their mass, within 30 weeks. Aminor host reaction with minimal vascularity and inflammation was invoked, with a milder tissue response observed with more highly crosslinked cylinders. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2010

Objectives: To assess mortality and functional health status of patients at 1 yr following admission to a multidisciplinary intensive care unit (ICU) in Hong Kong. To determine which factors are associated with a poor long-term outcome. Design: Prospective data collection and review. Setting: A 14-bed multidisciplinary ICU in a 1,400-bed tertiary care university hospital. Patients: Data from 2,268 consecutive patients admitted over a 2.5-yr period was analyzed, including follow-up at 1 yr in 853 adult survivors. Interventions: None. Measurements and Main Results: The patients' clinical details and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II scores were recorded on day 2 of admission and reviewed at time of discharge or death. The mean APACHE II score on admission was 18. Survival status at 1 yr was ascertained and the sickness impact profile (SIP) scored as a measure of functional health status for survivors. Sixty-five percent of patients survived to discharge from hospital and 44% of patients were known to survive to 1 yr; 6% of patients could not be traced at 1 yr. Functional health status was assessed in 85% of eligible adult patients. Survivors to 1 yr were younger than nonsurvivors and had lower APACHE II scores. The median SIP score was 5.1, (25th and 75th percentiles: 0 to 15), and 76% of patients had SIP scores ≤15, i.e., normal health to moderate disability. Five percent of the patients were not working or had retired for health-related reasons. Stepwise logistic regression to identify factors associated with poor functional health status defined as a SIP score >15 at 1 yr found increasing age, cardiac/ respiratory arrest, intracranial hemorrhage, and trauma to be associated with poor outcomes. A correlation was found between APACHE II scores and SIP scores (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.13, p

Previously proposed trellis decoding of array codes cannot be applied to simple product codes having any number of rows and columns. A modified scheme is proposed that can be used with all square and rectangular codes. It is illustrated by simulation study, that using soft decision trellis decoding we can correct a number of errors approaching 3 dmin and that even hard decision trellis decoding corrects errors in excess of dmin. The performance curves of a wide range of product codes are presented and compared.

In this paper, we introduce the recent development of cryptologic research in Korea since 1989. Two workshops on information security and cryptology and a symposium on data security have been held. The Korea Institute of Information Security and Cryptology (KIISC) was organized in December 1990. The KIISC is playing a leading role for promoting research activities on cryptology in Korea. Since Japan is very active in the area of cryptologic research and development since 1984, it is worth to include Japanese research activities in this paper. Also, the recent cryptologic research activities in the Republic of China (Taiwan) are introduced.

High-quality thin films were deposited by charged liquid cluster beam (CLCB) method using a strontium carboxylate with a sol-gel processed Ti precursor at substrate temperatures of 400 and 500°C. The film deposited at 400°C was crystallized at 600-700°C to give a granular structure (film I) while the film deposited at 500°C (film II) gave a columnar structure of high crystallinity without postannealing. The grain growth and electric properties, such as dielectric constant, dissipation factor, leakage current density, and breakdown field, of films I and II were compared. © 2004 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.

High-quality barium strontium titanate (BST) thin films were fabricated using charged liquid cluster beam (CLCB) method. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the as-deposited BST films indicated that the perovskite phase appeared at 450°C without any intermediate phase and high film crystallinity was achieved at 500°C. The Ba:Sr:Ti ratio in the precursor solution was transferred to the deposited film without any loss. The crystallinity, dielectric constant, dissipation factor, and leakage current density were measured and compared for the as-deposited films prepared at 500°C and the films deposited at 400°C and postannealed at 700°C.

This theoretical study explores the effects of acoustically driven oscillating flows on the flow behavior around small spherical particles. Its application is in the area of enhancement of combustion of pulverized coal particles and coal water slurry fuel droplets via augmentation of heat and mass transfer to and from these particles that are entrained in the steady mean flow. The particle is 100 μm in diameter. The sound‐pressure levels are between 140–160 dB, resulting in peak acoustic velocities of 2.5–50 m/s. The acoustic Reynolds numbers based on peak acoustic velocity and particle diameter are 16–150. The phenomenon is examined at 50 and 2000 Hz corresponding to Strouhal number 0.0002 and 0.08 in order to investigate the effects of low and high frequencies. The velocity field around the particle, the separation angle, and wall shear stress are calculated by solving the two‐dimensional, unsteady laminar Navier‐Stokes equations with a numerical technique. From the results, it can be seen that at 50 Hz...

Peritrichous bacteria swim in viscous fluids by rotating multiple helical flagellar filaments. As the bacterium swims forward, all its flagella rotate in synchrony behind the cell in a tight helical bundle. When the bacterium changes its direction, the flagellar filaments unbundle and randomly reorient the cell for a short period of time before returning to their bundled state and resuming swimming. This rapid bundling and unbundling is, at its heart, a mechanical process whereby hydrodynamic interactions balance with elasticity to determine the time-varying deformation of the filaments. Inspired by this biophysical problem, we present in this paper what is perhaps the simplest model of bundling whereby two, or more, straight elastic filaments immersed in a viscous fluid rotate about their centreline, inducing rotational flows which tend to bend the filaments around each other. We derive an integro-differential equation governing the shape of the filaments resulting from mechanical balance in a viscous fluid at low Reynolds number. We show that such equation may be evaluated asymptotically analytically in the long-wavelength limit, leading to a local partial differential equation governed by a single dimensionless Bundling number. A numerical study of the dynamics predicted by the model reveals the presence of two configuration instabilities with increasing Bundling numbers: first to a crossing state where filaments touch at one point and then to a bundled state where filaments wrap along each other in a helical fashion. We also consider the case of multiple filaments, and the unbundling dynamics. We next provide an intuitive physical model for the crossing instability and show that it may be used to predict analytically its threshold, and adapted to address the transition to a bundling state. We then use a macro-scale experimental implementation of the two-filament configuration in order to validate our theoretical predictions and obtain excellent agreement. This long-wavelength model of bundling will be applicable to other problems in biological physics and provides the groundwork for further, more realistic, models of flagellar bundling.

Interaction effects of xanthan gum (XG), carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), and locust bean gum (LBG) on the flow properties of oil-in-water emulsions were investigated by a mixture design experiment. Blends of XG, CMC and LBG were prepared according to an augmented simplex-centroid mixture design (10 points) and used at 0.5% (wt/wt) in the emulsion formulations. An appropriate mathematical model was fitted to express each response as a function of the proportions of the blend components that are able to empirically predict the response to any blend of combination of the components. The synergistic interaction effect of the ternary XG:CMC:LBG blends at approximately 33-67% XG levels was shown to be much stronger than that of the binary XG:LBG blend at 50% XG level (p < 0.05). Nevertheless, an antagonistic interaction effect became significant as CMC level in blends was more than 33% (p < 0.05). Yield stress and apparent viscosity (at 10 s-1) responses were successfully fitted with a special quartic model while flow behaviour index and consistency coefficient were fitted with a full quartic model (R2 adjusted ≥ 0.90). This study found that a mixture design approach could serve as a valuable tool in better elucidating and predicting the interaction effects beyond the conventional twocomponent blends., {"references":["P. A. Williams, and G. O. Phillips, \"Introduction to Food\nHydrocolloids\" in Handbook of Hydrocolloids (Phillips, G.O and P.A.\nWilliams, eds). Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, U.K.,\n2001.","J. Higiro, T. J. Herald, S. Alavi, and S. Bean, \"Rheological study of\nxanthan and locust bean gum interaction in dilute solution,\" Food Res\nInt. 2006, vol 39, pp. 163 - 175.","S. Secouard, M. Grisel, and C. Malhiac, \"Flavour release study as a\nway to explain xanthan-galactomannan interactions,\" Food Hydro.\n2007, vol 21, pp. 1237 - 1244.","C. Jouquand, Y. 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The influence of two types of resistant starches (RS2 and RS4) substituted at 10 and 20% in the batter formulation on the water retention capacity of the batter and on the texture, color, fat content and microstructure of the pre-fried and oven cooked breaded black pomfret fillets (Parastromateus niger) were studied. A significant (p

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of breading materials and two different frying oils on the fat up-take in the fish fillets during frying process. Breaded and non-breaded black pomfret (Parastromateus niger) fillets were fried in sunflower oil and palm olein. Fat content by Soxhelet method and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was studied. Results from Soxhelet method showed that fat content in the non-breaded fried fillets was significantly (P