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A facile and general synthesis of various N-substituted cyanamides was accomplished by the Tiemann rearrangement of amidoximes with benzenesulfonyl chlorides (TsCl or o-NsCl) and DIPEA.

This paper presents a multivariable self-tuning proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller based on wavelet fuzzy neural networks (WFNNs) for a class of nonlinear systems. A mathematic model using WFNN is constructed for the controlled nonlinear multivariable system, and the self-tuning PID controller is derived via a generalized predictive performance criterion. Numerical simulations exhibit that the proposed multivariable self-tuning PID control law gives satisfactory tracking and disturbance rejection performances.

A 48-year-old man presented with headache and extreme hypertension. Computed tomography showed diffuse brain stem hypodensity. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed diffuse brain stem vasogenic edema. Hypertensive brain stem encephalopathy is an uncommon manifestation of hypertensive encephalopathy, which classically occurs at parietooccipital white matter. Because of its atypical location, the diagnosis can be challenging. Moreover, the coexistence of hypertension and brain stem edema could also direct clinicians toward a diagnosis of ischemic infarction, leading to a completely contradictory treatment goal.

Refractory cardiogenic shock (RCS) represents the extremely-ill patients with STEMI, whose mortality rate was >60%. Despite the efforts to decrease door-to-balloon (D2B) time in the past decade, recent studies reported little progress on mortality of these patients. Meanwhile, early mechanical

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this article was to assess the usefulness of procalcitonin (PCT) as a marker for predicting dilating (grades III-V) vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) in young children with a first febrile urinary tract infection. METHODS: Children ≤2 years of age with a first febrile urinary tract infection were prospectively evaluated. Serum samples were tested for PCT at the time of admission to a tertiary hospital. All children underwent renal ultrasonography (US), Tc-dimercaptosuccinic acid renal scan, and voiding cystourethrography. The diagnostic characteristics of PCT test for acute pyelonephritis and dilating VUR were calculated. RESULTS: Of 272 children analyzed (168 boys and 104 girls; median age, 5 months), 169 (62.1%) had acute pyelonephritis. There was VUR demonstrated in 97 (35.7%), including 70 (25.7%) with dilating VUR. The median PCT value was significantly higher in children with VUR than in those without (P < 0.001). Using a PCT cutoff value of ≥1.0 ng/mL, the sensitivity and negative predictive value for predicting dilating VUR were 94.3% and 95.4%, respectively, for PCT, and 97.1% and 97.8%, respectively, for the combined PCT and US studies, whereas the positive and negative likelihood ratios were 2.03 and 0.107, respectively, for PCT, and 1.72 and 0.067, respectively, for the combined studies. By multivariate analysis, high PCT values and abnormalities on US were independent predictors of dilating VUR. CONCLUSIONS: PCT is useful for diagnosing acute pyelonephritis and predicting dilating VUR in young children with a first febrile urinary tract infection. A voiding cystourethrography is indicated only in children with high PCT values (≥1.0 ng/mL) and/or abnormalities found on a US.

The photosystem II (PSII) subunit S (PsbS) plays a key role in nonphotochemical quenching, a photoprotective mechanism for dissipation of excess excitation energy in plants. The precise function of PsbS in nonphotochemical quenching is unknown. By reconstituting PsbS together with the major light-harvesting complex of PSII (LHC-II) and the xanthophyll zeaxanthin (Zea) into proteoliposomes, we have tested the individual contributions of PSII complexes and Zea to chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence quenching in a membrane environment. We demonstrate that PsbS is stable in the absence of pigments in vitro. Significant Chl fluorescence quenching of reconstituted LHC-II was observed in the presence of PsbS and Zea, although neither Zea nor PsbS alone was sufficient to induce the same quenching. Coreconstitution with PsbS resulted in the formation of LHC-II/PsbS heterodimers, indicating their direct interaction in the lipid bilayer. Two-photon excitation measurements on liposomes containing LHC-II, PsbS, and Zea showed an increase of electronic interactions between carotenoid S 1 and Chl states, , that correlated directly with Chl fluorescence quenching. These findings are in agreement with a carotenoid-dependent Chl fluorescence quenching by direct interactions of LHCs of PSII with PsbS monomers.

This paper presents an approach to work sampling involving a mixture of fixed and random sampling. Fixed-interval sampling is more efficient in terms of providing more precise information for the same number of observations. Random sampling avoids the possibilities of sampling times being anticipated and the sampling schedule coinciding with some rhythm in the sampled process. Using a mixture of fixed and random sampling provides a smooth transition from fixed to random sampling and allows the practitioner to select a mixture level appropriate for his or her purposes. The efficiency of the mixture sampling method is analyzed by using an alternating Poisson process model for the sampled process. The mixture sampling method eliminates the observation-free period after every observation that was provided by the previously proposed delayed-sampling method. Although the mixture sampling method is slightly less efficient than the delayed-sampling method, its advantage is clear when anticipation of observation times is a concern, and it is always more efficient than random sampling.

The clinical utility of leukocytosis in risk assessment for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is still unclear. We aim to demonstrate the prognostic value of leukocyte counts independent from traditional risk factors and the TIMI risk score (TRS) for STEMI and to propose a practical model comprising leukocyte count for early triage in STEMI undergoing primary angioplasty. A prospective database (n = 796) of consecutive STEMI cases receiving primary angioplasty at a tertiary medical center was retrospectively analyzed in the period from February 1, 2007 through December 31, 2012. Primary endpoints were 30-day and 1-year mortality. Propensity score-adjusted Cox regression models and subdivision analysis were performed. Leukocytosis group (n = 306) had higher 30-day mortality (5.9% vs 3.1%, P = 0.048) and 1-year mortality (9.2% vs 5.1%, P = 0.022). After adjustment by propensity score and TRS, leukocyte count (per 103/μL) was an independent predictor of 1-year mortality (HR: 1.086, 95% CI: 1.034–1.140, P = 0.001). Subdivision analysis demonstrated the correlation between leukocytosis and higher 1-year mortality within both high and low TRS strata (divided by 4, the median of TRS). Additionally, 24% (191 out of 796) of patients were characterized by nonleukocytosis and TRS

In two recent studies, energy transfer was reported in certain phthalocyanine-carotenoid dyads between the optically forbidden first excited state of carotenoids (Car S(1)) and phthalocyanines (Pcs) in the direction Pc → Car S(1) (Kloz et al., J Am Chem Soc 133:7007-7015, 2011) as well as in the direction Car S(1) → Pc (Liao et al., J Phys Chem A 115:4082-4091, 2011). In this article, we show that the extent of this energy transfer in both directions is closely correlated in these dyads. This correlation and the additional observation that Car S(1) is instantaneously populated after Pc excitation provides evidence that in these compounds excitonic interactions can occur. Besides pure energy transfer and electron transfer, this is the third type of tetrapyrrole-carotenoid interaction that has been shown to occur in these model compounds and that has previously been proposed as a photosynthetic regulation mechanism. We discuss the implications of these models for photosynthetic regulation. The findings are also discussed in the context of a model in which both electronic states are disordered and in which the strength of the electronic coupling determines whether energy transfer, excitonic coupling, or electron transfer occurs.

The efficiency of mixture distributions for sampling an alternating Poisson process (0,1 observations) is evaluated by the inverse ratio of the variance of the proportion estimate, p, to the binomial variance. The variance ratio presented by D.R.Cox (in Renewal Theory) for fixed interval sampling is generalized to accommodate a mixture of fixed interval and random sampling. The result is a sampling design tool allowing for quantifications of the effect of various spacings between observations and various mixtures. Direct application is made to the field of work sampling where the mixture model appears to be more practical than the fixed interval delay followe by random interval model previously presented by Pape.

Electronic interactions between the first excited states (S(1)) of carotenoids (Car) of different conjugation lengths (8-11 double bonds) and phthalocyanines (Pc) in different Car-Pc dyad molecules were investigated by two-photon spectroscopy and compared with Car S(1)-chlorophyll (Chl) interactions in photosynthetic light harvesting complexes (LHCs). The observation of Chl/Pc fluorescence after selective two-photon excitation of the Car S(1) state allowed sensitive monitoring of the flow of energy between Car S(1) and Pc or Chl. It is found that two-photon excitation excites to about 80% to 100% exclusively the carotenoid state Car S(1) and that only a small fraction of direct tetrapyrrole two-photon excitation occurs. Amide-linked Car-Pc dyads in tetrahydrofuran demonstrate a molecular gear shift mechanism in that effective Car S(1) → Pc energy transfer is observed in a dyad with 9 double bonds in the carotenoid, whereas in similar dyads with 11 double bonds in the carotenoid, the Pc fluorescence is strongly quenched by Pc → Car S(1) energy transfer. In phenylamino-linked Car-Pc dyads in toluene extremely large electronic interactions between the Car S(1) state and Pc were observed, particularly in the case of a dyad in which the carotenoid contained 10 double bonds. This observation together with previous findings in the same system provides strong evidence for excitonic Car S(1)-Pc Q(y) interactions. Very similar results were observed with photosynthetic LHC II complexes in the past, supporting an important role of such interactions in photosynthetic down-regulation.

Nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) is the fundamental process by which plants exposed to high light intensities dissipate the potentially harmful excess energy as heat. Recently, it has been shown that efficient energy dissipation can be induced in the major light-harvesting complexes of photosystem II (LHCII) in the absence of protein-protein interactions. Spectroscopic measurements on these samples (LHCII gels) in the quenched state revealed specific alterations in the absorption and circular dichroism bands assigned to neoxanthin and lutein 1 molecules. In this work, we investigate the changes in conformation of the pigments involved in NPQ using resonance Raman spectroscopy. By selective excitation we show that, as well as the twisting of neoxanthin that has been reported previously, the lutein 1 pigment also undergoes a significant change in conformation when LHCII switches to the energy dissipative state. Selective two-photon excitation of carotenoid (Car) dark states (Car S(1)) performed on LHCII gels shows that the extent of electronic interactions between Car S(1) and chlorophyll states correlates linearly with chlorophyll fluorescence quenching, as observed previously for isolated LHCII (aggregated versus trimeric) and whole plants (with versus without NPQ).

A modified grating-slit test is shown to measure the full-field aberration at multi fields simultaneously by adding a slit-lens matching array. Experimental results shows sensitivity to observe changing off-axis aberration of a tilt lens.

Selective 2-photon excitation (TPE) of carotenoid dark states, Car S 1 , shows that in the major light-harvesting complex of photosystem II (LHCII), the extent of electronic interactions between carotenoid dark states (Car S 1 ) and chlorophyll (Chl) states, φ Coupling Car S 1 −Chl , correlates linearly with chlorophyll fluorescence quenching under different experimental conditions. Simultaneously, a linear correlation between both Chl fluorescence quenching and φ Coupling Car S 1 −Chl with the intensity of red-shifted bands in the Chl Q y and carotenoid absorption was also observed. These results suggest quenching excitonic Car S 1 −Chl states as origin for the observed effects. Furthermore, real time measurements of the light-dependent down- and up-regulation of the photosynthetic activity and φ Coupling Car S 1 −Chl in wild-type and mutant ( npq1 , npq2 , npq4 , lut2 and WT + PsbS ) Arabidopsis thaliana plants reveal that also in vivo the quenching parameter NPQ correlates always linearly with the extent of electronic Car S 1 –Chl interactions in any adaptation status. Our in vivo measurements with Arabidopsis variants show that during high light illumination, φ Coupling Car S 1 −Chl depends on the presence of PsbS and zeaxanthin (Zea) in an almost identical way as NPQ. In summary, these results provide clear evidence for a very close link between electronic Car S 1 –Chl interactions and the regulation of photosynthesis. These findings support a photophysical mechanism in which short-living, low excitonic carotenoid–chlorophyll states serve as traps and dissipation valves for excess excitation energy.

Objectives: This before–after study investigated the association between an audit program and door-to-balloon times in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and explored other factors associated with the door-to-balloon time. Methods: An audit program that collected time data for essential time intervals in acute STEMI was developed with data feedback to both the Department of Emergency Medicine and the Department of Cardiology. The door-to-balloon times for 76 consecutive acute STEMI patients were collected from February 16, 2007, through October 31, 2007, after the implementation of the audit program, as the intervention group. The control group was defined by 104 consecutive acute STEMI patients presenting from April 1, 2006, through February 15, 2007, before the audit was applied. A multivariate linear regression model was used for analysis of factors associated with the door-to-balloon time. Results: The geometric mean 95% CI of the door-to-balloon time decreased from 164.9 (150.3, 180.9) minutes to 141.9 (127.4, 158.2) minutes (p = 0.039) in the intervention phase. The median door-to-balloon time was 147.5 minutes in the control group and 136.0 minutes in the intervention group (p = 0.09). In the multivariate regression model, the audit program was associated with a shortening of the door-to-balloon time by 35.5 minutes (160.4 minutes vs. 195.9 minutes, p = 0.004); female gender was associated with a mean delay of 58.4 minutes (208.9 minutes vs. 150.5 minutes; p = 0.001); posterolateral wall infarction was associated with a mean delay of 70.5 minutes compared to anterior wall infarction (215.4 minutes vs. 144.9 minutes; p = 0.037) and a mean delay of 69.5 minutes compared to inferior wall infarction (215.4 minutes vs. 145.9 minutes; p = 0.044). The use of a glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor was associated with a 46.1 minutes mean shortening of door-to-balloon time (155.7 minutes vs. 201.8 minutes; p

The lost profit from lost business is quite difficult to be estimated for the queuing systems with cyclic demands. My previous work presented a creative and effective approach to formulate waiting cost as balking loss plus reneging loss. Using the estimation of waiting cost may allow decision makers to have the capability to determine the optimal number of servers for each planning period. Unfortunately, some queuing systems have trouble in extending the number of servers to earn more profit. Hence, an alternative way, the optimal pricing strategy, can be used to solve this capacity constraint problem. In this paper, the balking index and reneging index are introduced and formulated with discount level as three key parameters on maximizing the total profit.

Acute organophosphate (OP) poisoning causing alteration in acid-base equilibrium was reported before. Hence, different acid-base statuses may present in patients with acute poisoning due to OP exposure. This study aims to determine the impact of acid-base interpretation in patients with acute OP poisoning before hospitalization in medical care units and to describe the pattern of mortality with different acid-base statuses.Over a 9-year retrospective study, from July 1996 to August 2005, a total of 82 consecutive patients with acute OP poisoning were admitted to the China Medical University Hospital (Taichung, Taiwan) within 24 hours after exposure to OP and were enrolled into this study.Patients with acute OP poisoning were divided into 4 groups: without acidosis, metabolic acidosis, respiratory acidosis, and mixed acidosis. Overall survival (Kaplan-Meier curves) among groups was statistically significant (P.0001). The mortality rate of acute OP poisoned patients with metabolic acidosis was 25%, and 75% of those patients died of cardiovascular failure. The mortality rate of acute OP poisoning with respiratory acidosis was 50%, and 50% of those patients died of respiratory failure.Acid-base interpretation can be effective in quick diagnosis and prediction of the outcome of patients with acute OP poisoning (without acidosismetabolic acidosisrespiratory acidosismixed acidosis) before hospitalization. Major causes of death are different between the respiratory acidosis and metabolic acidosis groups of patients with acute OP poisoning.

Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8) has been consistently linked to Kaposi’s sarcoma and many hematological diseases such as pleural effusion lymphoma, multicentric Castleman’s disease, some lymphoproliferative diseases and posttransplantation bone marrow failure. However, whether patients with hematological disorders are at a higher risk of HHV8 infection has not been determined. In this study, indirect immunofluorescence was used to detect antibodies against lytic antigens of HHV8 in 265 patients with hematological disorders. Our data showed that 24.5% of patients (65/265) were seropositive for HHV8 IgG antibody, which was significantly higher than in our general population (p < 0.001). A significantly higher seropositive rate can be found in patients with lymphoma, leukemia, autoimmune cytopenias and myeloproliferative disorders, but not in patients with myeloma or aplastic anemia. No difference in the seropositive rate is associated with gender or age. We conclude that some patients with hematological disorders are at a higher risk of HHV8 infection.

Current trading strategy learning models often proceed in three separate phases, i.e., training, validation, and application (testing). After a specific time span of application, a new learning process is started to adapt the trading strategy to the new environment states. The time span of application is usually fixed and determined according to experiences. This may result in earning losses as compared to the perfect trading strategy which trades at each turning point of the stock price movement. Some learning methods, such as neural networks, are hard to explain intuitively and unstable in some dynamic environment states. Other learning models like simple genetic algorithms result in a single trading rule which is applied for a specific time span without being adapted even when the environment has changed. This paper adopts learning classifier systems (LCSs) technique to provide a dynamic trading strategy learning model (DTSLM), which makes continuous and instant learning while executing real prediction and produces a trading rule set to deal with different environment states. The simulation results show that this model could get a remarkable trading profit.

In this paper, a prototyping system for dial-up remote access image database is proposed. As a videotex system, the system includes Information Customer, Information Provider, Communication Server, Public Switch Telephone Networks, and a database server containing an image database. Because the color natural image is included in the database, the high resolution visual medium are given and many possible applications can be provided. Currently, a color image with a resolution of 400 by 400 can be accessed in about 25 seconds by using JPEG compression and high-speed modem. The system can be employed on many applications, such as home-shopping, remote education, etc. Also, it can be a pioneer system to provide teleservice in Integrated Serve Digital Network.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

This paper presents a queuing model for estimating business loss, although business loss is quite difficult to estimate. Balking index and reneging rate are used in the model to represent different configurations of balking behaviour and reneging behaviour respectively for different queuing systems. Using balking index and reneging rate enables decision makers to have the capability to estimate the incurred business loss for different values of balking index, reneging rate and service level. This model is an effective tool for linking the phases of operations management and perceptions management. With this linkage, managers can decide how to utilise these management techniques to reduce business loss and enhance customer satisfaction.

Although the profit loss from business resulting from queueing systems is quite difficult to estimate, this paper presents a creative and effective approach to formulating balking loss as waiting cost. The number of balking customers is estimated as the balking index θ multiplied by the expected queue length Lq and the mean arrival rate in that planning period λ. Estimating balking loss enables the decision maker to determine the optimal number of servers by minimising total cost, including service cost and balking loss. The practicality and the incurred benefits of this approach were analysed by using collected data from a fast food restaurant, using the SIPP M/M/S:(FCFS/∞/∞) queueing model. The results showed that this approach is an effective tool for aiding managers in formulating the optimal staffing policies of service systems.

not available at time of printing. Poster Sessions 1: Heart Failure/Myocardial Diseases P-1 Remodeling of Myocardial Gap Junctions and its Correlation with Cardiac Contractility in Diabetic Rats Dong-Feng Yeih1, Pen-Chih Liao1, Ho-Tsung Hsin1, Kuo-Chin Chen1, Ai-Hsian Li1, Yung-Zu Tseng2. 1Department of Cardiology, Far-Eastern Memorial Hospital, Taiwan, 2Department of Cardiology, National Taiwan University, Taiwan Introduction: Gap junctions play an essential role in coupling adjacent cardiomyocytes, ensuring organized propagation of action potential and synchronizing beating in cardiomyocytes. However, it remains unclear that temporal remodeling of myocardial gap junctions and its relation to cardiac contractility in diabetic rats. Methods: Male Wistar rats, weighing 250 to 300 grams, were randomized to injection with either vehicle or streptozotocin (50mg, IP). Invasive hemodynamic studies with simultaneous recordings of left ventricular pressure and aortic flow signals were done at 4, 8 and 12 weeks after injection. Maximal systolic elastance (Emax) and maximum theoretical flow (Qmax) were assessed by curve fitting techniques; protein expression of non-phosphorylated Cx43 (P0) and total amount of Cx43 (T) in the left ventricle by western blotting analysis. Results: Emax was significantly lower in diabetic rats than in controls and Emax was significantly depressed with time in diabetic groups. On the other hand, Qmax was preserved and cardiac output was maintained in diabetic rats. Protein expression of total Cx43 was persistently attenuated in diabetic groups, while P0 was enhanced at 8 and 12 weeks after injection. The ratio of P0 to T was significantly increased with time, which correlated well with the declines in Emax in diabetic rats. Conclusions: Temporal remodeling of myocardial gap junctions, with persistently lower total Cx43 and gradually increased non-phosphorylated Cx43 and the ratio of P0 to T, occurred in the evolution of systolic dysfunction in diabetic rats. P-2 Quantification of Left Ventricular Diastolic Dynamics in Normal and Diseased Myocardium by Speckle-Tracking Echocardiography Kaoru Dohi1, Katsuya Onishi2, Takeshi Takamura1, Emiyo Sugiura1, Hiroshi Nakajima1, Kazuhide Ichikawa1, Masaki Tanabe1, Hiroya Tamada1, Masatoshi Miyahara1, Mashio Nakamura1, Masaaki Ito1. 1Department of Cardiology, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan, 2Department of Molecular and Laboratory Medicine, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan Background: The present study aimed to quantify left ventricular (LV) diastolic dynamics and to elucidate their relations to systolic properties in normal and diseased myocardium. Methods: 50 patients with hypertensive LV hypertrophy (LVH: EF 61±8%, QRS 96±16ms), 50 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM: EF 31±10%, QRS 121±32ms), and 50 normal controls (Control: EF 5±6%, QRS 89±9ms) had echo-study with speckle-tracking strain and strain rate imaging. To quantify LV diastolic relaxation and segmental synchrony, global peak relaxation rate (PRR) during early diastole and standard deviation (SD) of the 18 segmental time-to-PRR (TPRR-SD) were calculated from apical 4-, 2-, and long axis views. To elucidate the relations between diastolic and systolic properties, global peak systolic strain (PSS) and SD of the segmental time-to-peak PSS (TPSS-SD) were also evaluated. Results: LV relaxation and diastolic synchrony were significantly impaired in LVH and was more prominent in DCM (PRR: 0.8±0.3* 1/s in LVH, 0.5±0.2*# 1/s in DCM, and 1.2±0.3 1/s in Control, TPRR-SD: 55±16*ms in LVH, 79±35*# ms in DCM, and 42±13ms in Control, *p < 0.05 vs. Control and #p < 0.05 vs. LVH, respectively). There were strong correlations between PSS and PRR, and TPRR-SD and TPSS-SD (r = 0.83 and r = 0.83, p < 0.05, respectively). Conclusion: Speckle-tracking echocardiography quantified LV diastolic dynamics and exhibited the strong relation to systolic properties.