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Objective Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) impacts fertility in women by affecting the menstrual cycle and embryonic development. We aimed to determine the reproductive toxicity of Escherichia coli (E. coli)-derived recombinant human BMP-2 (rhBMP-2) by measuring changes in the reproductive performance and organs in rhBMP-2-treated rats. Methods Overall, 88 male and female rats each were categorized into one control and three experimental groups. rhBMP-2 was intravenously administered to the experimental groups at 0.05, 0.15, and 0.50 mg/kg/day, respectively. The male rats were administered rhBMP-2 daily, starting from 28 days before mating until the day of necropsy (48 days), after which they were euthanized and necropsied. The female rats were administered rhBMP-2 daily, starting from 14 days before mating until 7 days after fertilization (22–36 days), after which they were necropsied 13 days after fertilization. Results No rhBMP-2-related death occurred throughout the study period. All rhBMP-2-treated groups showed swelling in the tail at the site of rhBMP-2 administration. In the high-dose rhBMP-2 group, the male rats showed a slight reduction in body weight and food consumption, whereas the female rats showed a reduction in the weights of the ovary and oviduct. Examining the fertilization status and necropsy showed no effect of rhBMP-2 on fertility and early embryonic development. The no-observed-adverse-effect level of rhBMP-2 was 0.50 mg/kg/day in all rats. Conclusion rhBMP-2 had no reproductive toxicity on the reproductive performance and organs in female and male rats. Therefore, these results provide new toxicology information on E. coli-derived rhBMP-2 as a therapeutic protein.

Four different bacteria capable of degrading butachlor, as well as five different syntrophic pairs of bacteria able to break down butachlor, were isolated from rice paddy soils in Korea. Genetic and phenotypic analyses were conducted to better understand their characteristics and behavior. All single isolates and syntrophic pairs were able to utilize butachlor as a sole carbon and energy source. Analysis of the 16S rRNA sequence showed that the isolates were related to members of the genus Rhodococcus and a new type of butachlor-degrading genus Sphingobium. The chromosomal DNA fingerprinting patterns of the butachlor-degrading bacteria and syntrophic pairs were analyzed using a technique called repetitive-sequence-based PCR (REP-PCR). The results showed that there were two different REP-PCR patterns found among the four independent butachlor-degrading bacteria, and ten strains of five different syntrophic pairs produced a total of eight distinct DNA fingerprints. Through the use of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis, it was observed that the syntrophic pair was capable of breaking down butachlor using various chemical pathways, such as 2-chloro-N-(2,6-diethylphenyl) acetamide (CDEPA), 2,6-diethylphenyl isocyanate, 2,6-diethylaniline (DEA), and 2-ethylaniline.

Cordyceps militaris, an entomopathogenic Cordyceps mushroom, is a crucial ethnopharmacological agricultural product with applications in traditional oriental remedies in East Asia. Since lipases are reported to serve as key enzymatic equipment for entomopathogenic fungi during the host infection, the presence of various lipases with different biochemical features in C. militaris was elucidated. Three lipases from C. militaris (CML) of 60-70 kDa were isolated according to protein hydrophobicity; isoform relationships were identified by peptide mapping using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry. The CML isoforms exhibited distinct substrate specificities, which were related to the hydrophobicity of each isoform. Furthermore, the integral stereoselectivity of each lipase towards trioleoylglycerol diverged into two classes (sn-1,3 and sn-2 regioselectivity) that are rare in canonical fungal lipases. Overall, our results demonstrate that C. militaris secretes lipase isoforms with cocktail-like enzyme functions that may contribute to the entomopathogenic life cycle of C. militaris. Each CML isoform has distinct advantages for biocatalyst applications in the food and oleochemical industries.

In recent years, analysis of financial time series has focused largely on data related to market trading activity. Apart from modelling the conditional variance of returns within the GARCH family of models, presently attention has also been devoted to other market variables, especially volumes, number of trades and durations. The financial econometrics literature has focused on Multiplicative Error Models (MEMs), which are considered particularly suited for modelling certain financial variables. The paper establishes an econometric specification approach for MEMs. In the literature, several procedures are available to perform specification testing for MEMs, but the proposed specification testing method is particularly useful within the context of the MEMs of financial duration. The paper makes a number of important theoretical contributions. Both the proposed specification testing method and the associated theory are established and evaluated through simulations and real data examples.

The kinase Aurora B forms the chromosomal passenger complex (CPC) together with Borealin, INCENP, and Survivin to mediate chromosome condensation, the correction of erroneous spindle-kinetochore attachments, and cytokinesis. Phosphorylation of histone H3 Thr3 by Haspin kinase and of histone H2A Thr120 by Bub1 concentrates the CPC at the centromere. However, how the CPC is recruited to chromosome arms upon mitotic entry is unknown. Here, we show that asymmetric dimethylation at Arg2 on histone H3 (H3R2me2a) by protein arginine methyltransferase 6 (PRMT6) recruits the CPC to chromosome arms and facilitates histone H3S10 phosphorylation by Aurora B for chromosome condensation. Furthermore, in vitro assays show that Aurora B preferentially binds to the H3 peptide containing H3R2me2a and phosphorylates H3S10. Our findings indicate that the long-awaited key histone mark for CPC recruitment onto mitotic chromosomes is H3R2me2a, which is indispensable for maintaining appropriate CPC levels in dynamic translocation throughout mitosis., The proteins of the chromosomal passenger complex help chromosomes condense before cell division, but how this complex arrives at chromosomes was not known. Here the authors show that PRMT6 methylates histone H3 to recruit the chromosomal passenger complex.

Cranioplasty for recovering skull defects carries the risk for a number of complications. Various materials are used, including autologous bone graft, metallic materials, and non-metallic materials, each of which has advantages and disadvantages. If the use of autologous bone is not feasible, those artificial materials also have constraints in the case of complex anatomy and/or irregular defects. This study used metal 3D-printing technology to overcome these existing drawbacks and analyze the clinical and mechanical performance requirements. To find an optimal structure that satisfied the structural and mechanical stability requirements, we evaluated biomechanical stability using finite element analysis (FEA) and mechanical testing. To ensure clinical applicability, the model was subjected to histological evaluation. Each specimen was implanted in the femur of a rabbit and was evaluated using histological measurements and push-out test. We believe that our data will provide the basis for future applications of a variety of unit structures and further clinical trials and research, as well as the direction for the study of other patient-specific implants.

Objectives This paper describes an evaluation study on the effectiveness of developing an in-hospital medical device safety information reporting system for managing safety information, including adverse incident data related to medical devices, following the enactment of the Medical Device Act in Korea. Methods Medical device safety information reports were analyzed for 190 cases that took place prior to the application of a medical device safety information reporting system and during a period when the reporting system was used. Also, questionnaires were used to measure the effectiveness of the medical device safety information reporting system. The analysis was based on the questionnaire responses of 15 reporters who submitted reports in both the pre- and post-reporting system periods. Results Sixty-two reports were submitted in paper form, but after the system was set up, this number more than doubled to 128 reports in electronic form. In terms of itemized reporting, a total of 45 items were reported. Before the system was used, 23 items had been reported, but this increased to 32 items after the system was put to use. All survey variables of satisfaction received a mean of over 3 points, while positive attitude, potential benefits, and positive benefits all exceeded 4 points, each receiving 4.20, 4.20, and 4.13, respectively. Among the variables, time-consuming and decision-making had the lowest mean values, each receiving 3.53. Satisfaction was found to be high for system quality and user satisfaction, but relatively low for time-consuming and decision-making. Conclusions We were able to verify that effective reporting and monitoring of adverse incidents and the safety of medical devices can be implemented through the establishment of an in-hospital medical device safety information reporting system that can enhance patient safety and medical device risk management.

In this study, we presented the role of 14-3-3σ to activate CK2-Hsp90β-PXR-MDR1 pathway on rifampin and paclitaxel treated LS174T cells and in vivo LS174T cell-xenografted nude mouse model. Following several in vitro and in vivo experiments, rifampin and paclitaxel were found to be stimulated the CK2-Hsp90β-PXR-MDR1 pathway. Of the proteins in this pathway, Pregnane X receptor (PXR) is a representative transcription factor of multidrug resistance protein 1 (MDR1). We constructed FLAG-PXR-LS174T stable cell lines and discovered 22 proteins that interacted with PXR on rifampin treatment. Among them, Hsp90β and 14-3-3σ were isolated for further study. Both the proteins were found to be localized in cytoplasm on rifampin treatment by using confocal microscopy. On the other hand, PXR was found to be localized in nucleus after rifampin and paclitaxel treatment by using cell fractionation assay. In Western blot analysis, rifampin did not influence the expression of 14-3-3σ protein. Transient transfection of 14-3-3σ into LS174T cells induced overexpression of PXR; however, P-glycoprotein (P-gp) was not changed significantly. P-gp overexpression was induced only when 14-3-3σ transfected LS174T cells were treated with rifampin and paclitaxel, whereas 14-3-3σ inhibition by nonpeptidic inhibitor, BV02 and 14-3-3σ siRNA reduced rifampin induced PXR and P-gp expression. Cell survival rates were much higher at 14-3-3σ-LS174T stable cell lines than LS174T cells following paclitaxel and vincristine treatment. This data indicates that 14-3-3σ contributes to P-gp overexpression through interaction with PXR with rifampin and paclitaxel treatment.

In recent years, analysis of financial time series focuses largely on data related to market trading activity. Apart from modeling of the conditional variance of returns within the generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) family of models, presently attention is also devoted to that of other market variables, for instance volumes, number of trades or financial durations. To this end, a large group of researchers focus their studies on a class of model that is referred to in the literature as the multiplicative error model (MEM), which is considered particularly for modeling non-negative time series processes. The goal of the current paper is to establish an alternative misspecification test for the MEM of non-negative time series processes. In the literature, although several procedures are available to perform hypothesis testing for the MEM, the newly proposed testing procedure is particularly useful in the context of the MEM of waiting times between financial events since its outcomes have a number of important implications on the fundamental concept of point processes. Finally, the current paper makes a number of statistical contributions, especially in making a head way into nonparametric hypothesis testing of unobservable variables.

Recently, a novel method for carbon capture and storage has been proposed, which converts gaseous CO2 into aqueous bicarbonate ions (HCO3−), allowing it to be deposited into the ocean. This alkalinization method could be used to dispose large amounts of CO2 without acidifying seawater pH, but there is no information on the potential adverse effects of consequently elevated HCO3− concentrations on marine organisms. In this study, we evaluated the ecotoxicological effects of elevated concentrations of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) (max 193 mM) on 10 marine organisms. We found species-specific ecotoxicological effects of elevated DIC on marine organisms, with EC50-DIC (causing 50% inhibition) of 11–85 mM. The tentative criteria for protecting 80% of individuals of marine organisms are suggested to be pH 7.8 and 11 mM DIC, based on acidification data previously documented and alkalinization data newly obtained from this study. Overall, the results of this study are useful for providing baseline information on ecotoxicological effects of elevated DIC on marine organisms. More complementary studies are needed on the alkalinization method to determine DIC effects on seawater chemistry and marine organisms.

In this paper, the important (but so far unrevealed) usefulness of the extended generalized partially linear single-index (EGPLSI) model introduced by Xia et al. (1999) in its ability to model a flexible shape-invariant specification is elaborated. More importantly, a control function approach is proposed to address the potential endogeneity problems in the EGPLSI model in order to enhance its applicability to empirical studies. In the process, it is shown that the attractive asymptotic features of the single-index type of a semiparametric model are still valid in our proposed estimation procedure given intrinsic generated covariates. Our newly developed method is then applied to address the endogeneity of expenditure in the semiparametric analysis of a system of empirical Engel curves by using the British data, highlights the convenient applicability of our proposed method.

Forty-five fenobucarb-degrading bacteria were isolated from rice paddy soils, and their genetic and phenotypic characteristics were investigated. The isolates were able to utilize fenobucarb as a sole source of carbon and energy. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that all the isolates were related to members of the genera Sphingobium and Novosphingobium. Among 45 isolates, 21 different chromosomal DNA fingerprinting patterns were obtained. All these strains exhibited similar growth and degradation patterns on fenobucarb. 2-sec-butylphenol was identified as an intermediate during fenobucarb degradation by HPLC analysis. All of the isolates were able to degrade another carbamate insecticide, carbaryl, and 2-sec-butylphenol, but not other fenobucarb related compounds such as aldicarb and fenoxycarb. Representative strains of the different repetitive extragenic palindromic sequence PCR fingerprint types had one to six plasmids. The plasmid-cured strains lost their degradation abilities, suggesting that fenobucarb degradative genes were on their plasmid DNAs in these strains. When analyzed with PCR amplification using the primers targeting for the previously reported carbamate hydrolase genes, most of the isolates did not exhibit any positive signals for different genes involved in carbamate degradation such as mcd, cahA and cehA genes. This is the first report that microorganisms involved in the degradation of fenobucarb have been isolated and the intermediate of fenobucarb biodegradation was identified.

In this study, we investigate the molecular mechanism by which protein arginine methyltransferase 6 (PRMT6) exerts anti-invasiveness effect against breast cancer cells and prostate cancer cells. PRMT6 has been known to be responsible for asymmetric dimethylation of histone H3 at R2 (H3R2me2a). To investigate the biological role of PRMT6, we first established stable cell lines expressing GFP-PRMT6 with MCF7 and PC3 cells. Growth rates and colony forming abilities of PRMT6-overexpressing cells were significantly retarded compared to control GFP expressing cells. This growth retardation seems to be associated with p21(WAF1) induction. In addition, our data show that migration and invasion of prostate cancer cells was strongly suppressed by PRMT6 overexpression. In parallel, the levels of thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1), a potent natural inhibitor of angiogenesis, were highly up-regulated in both PRMT6-overexpressing cells. Furthermore, this suppression of migration and invasion by PRMT6 overexpression was significantly rescued by specific knock-down of TSP-1. Concomitantly, down-regulations of MMP-2 and -9 were observed in PRMT6-overexpressing cells. Taken together, our data demonstrate that PRMT6 overexpression is associated with regulation of motility and invasion through up-regulation of TSP-1 and down-regulation of MMPs in human cancer cells.

In order to estimate risk of diabetes by analyzing dietary patterns, we examined prevalence of diabetes and impaired fasting glucose among Korean adults who are similar in food frequency to diabetes and impaired fasting glucose. The mean of food frequency of diabetes and impaired fasting glucose was calculated for analyzing the prevalence using the food frequency data from 2007, 2008 and 2009 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey(KNHANES). Also the most frequent food was estimated for each group by using the mean difference of food frequency. As the results shows that the similar food frequency groups have significant prevalence rate, we expect that this study will contribute to the relations between dietary intakes and prevalence of diabetes.

The hetero junction on dielectrics and ferrite for LTCC was prepared by using NiCuZn ferrite. The shrinkage behaviour of ferrite tapes in combination with a dielectric tape was investigated. The characteristics of NiCuZn ferrite were investigated using XRD (X-ray diffractometer), Dilatometer, FE-SEM (Field emission scanning electron microscope), EDS (Energy dispersive spectrometer). NiCuZn ferrite calcined at had a good apparent density and initial permeability of magnetic properties. The shrinkage rate of the NCZF700 ferrite and dielectric material was similar. The multilayer revealed dense, uniform morphologies with excellent interface quality. Diffusion of hetero junction such as dielectric and ferrite was not occuring at .

The simplest and the most important distribution in survival analysis is exponential distribution. Koziol and Green (1976) derived Cramr-von Mises statistic's randomly censored version based on the Kaplan-Meier product limit estimate of the distribution function; however, it could not be practical for a real data set since the statistic is for testing a simple goodness of fit hypothesis. We generalized it to the composite hypothesis for exponentiality with an unknown scale parameter. We also considered the classical Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic and generalized it by the exact same way. The two statistics are compared through a simulation study. As a result, we can see that the generalized Koziol-Green statistic has better power in most of the alternative distributions considered.

The purpose of this study suggests a personalized algorithm of physical activity energy expenditure prediction through comparison and analysis of individual physical activity. The research for a 3-axial accelerometer sensor has increased the role of physical activity in promoting health and preventing chronic disease has long been established. Estimating algorithm of physical activity energy expenditure was implemented by using a tri-axial accelerometer motion detector of the SVM(Signal Vector Magnitude) of 3-axis(x, y, z). A total of 10 participants(5 males and 5 females aged between 20 and 30 years). The activities protocol consisted of three types on treadmill; participants performed three treadmill activity at three speeds(3, 5, 8 km/h). These activities were repeated four weeks.

The research has increased the role of physical activity in promoting health and preventing chronic disease. Estimating algorithm of physical activity energy expenditure was implemented by using a tri-axial accelerometer motion detector of the SVM(Signal Vector Magnitude) of 3-axis(x, y, z). COUNT method has been proven through experiments of validity Freedson, Hendelman, Leenders, Yngve was implemented by applying the SVM method. A total of 10 participants(5 males and 5 females aged between 20 and 30 years). The activity protocol consisted of three types on treadmill; participants performed three treadmill activity at three speeds(3, 5, 8 km/h). These activities were repeated four weeks. Customized estimating algorithm for energy expenditure of physical activities were implemented with COUNT and SVM correlation between the data.

For survival data we sometimes want to test a log normality hypothesis that can be changed into normality by transforming the survival data. Hence the Shapiro-Wilk type statistic for normality is generalized to randomly censored data based on the Kaplan-Meier product limit estimate of the distribution function. Koziol and Green (1976) derived Cramr-von Mises statistic's randomly censored version under the simpl hypothesis. These two test statistics are compared through a simulation study. As for the distribution of censoring variables, we consider Koziol and Green (1976)'s model and other similar models. Through the simulation results, we can see that the power of the proposed statistic is higher than that of Koziol-Green statistic and that the proportion of the censored observations (rather than the distribution of censoring variables) has a strong influence on the power of the proposed statistic.

This paper develops a goodness of fit test statistic to test if the progressively Type II censored sample comes from an exponential distribution with origin known. The test is based on normalizing spacings and Stephens (1978)' modified Shapiro and Wilk (1972) test for exponentiality. The modification is for the case where the origin is known. We applied the same modification to Kim (2001a)'s statistic, which is based on the ratio of two asymptotically efficient estimates of scale. The simulation results show that Kim (2001a)'s statistic has higher power than Stephens' modified Shapiro and Wilk statistic for almost all cases.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to review an implementation of u-Severance information system with focus on electronic hospital records (EHR) and to suggest future improvements. Methods: Clinical Data Repository (CDR) of uSeverance involved implementing electronic medical records (EMR) as the basis of EHR and the management of individual health records. EHR were implemented with service enhancements extending to the clinical decision support system (CDSS) and expanding the knowledge base for research with a repository for clinical data and medical care information. Results: The EMR system of Yonsei University Health Systems (YUHS) consists of HP integrity superdome servers using MS SQL as a database management system and MS Windows as its operating system. Conclusions: YUHS is a high-performing medical institution with regards to efficient management and customer satisfaction; however, after 5 years of implementation of uSeverance system, several limitations with regards to expandability and security have been identified.

With the number of cellular phone users rapidly increasing, there is a considerable amount of public concern regarding the effects that electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from cellular phones have on health. People with self-attributed electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) complain of subjective symptoms such as headaches, insomnia, and memory loss, and attribute these symptoms to radio frequency (RF) radiation from cellular phones and/or base stations. However, EHS is difficult to diagnose because it relies on a person's subjective judgment. Various provocation studies have been conducted on EHS caused by Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) phones in which heart rate and blood pressure or subjective symptoms were investigated. However, there have been few sham-controlled provocation studies on EHS with Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) phones where physiological parameters, subjective symptoms, and perception of RF radiation for EHS and non-EHS groups were simultaneously investigated. In this study, two volunteer groups of 18 self-reported EHS and 19 non-EHS persons were tested for both sham and real RF exposure from CDMA cellular phones with a 300 mW maximum exposure that lasted half an hour. We investigated not only the physiological parameters such as heart rate, respiration rate, and heart rate variability (HRV), but also various subjective symptoms and the perception of EMF. In conclusion, RF exposure did not have any effects on physiological parameters or subjective symptoms in either group. As for EMF perception, there was no evidence that the EHS group better perceived EMF than the non-EHS group.

HL7 (Health Level 7) is a standard developed for exchanging incompatible healthcare information generated from programs or devices among heterogenous medical information systems. At present, HL7 is growing as a global standard. However, the HL7 standard does not support effective methods for treating data from various medical sensors, especially from mobile sensors. As ubiquitous systems are growing, HL7 must communicate with various medical transducers. In the area of sensor fields, IEEE 1451 is a group of standards for controlling transducers and for communicating data from/to various transducers. In this paper, we present the possibility of interoperability between the two standards, i.e., HL7 and IEEE 1451. After we present a method to integrate them and show the preliminary results of this approach.

A 23-year-old male whose medical history included tuberculous spondylitis presented with a kyphotic deformity and incomplete paraplegia of twenty days duration. Preoperative radiographs demonstrated a T12-L4 kyphotic Cobb's angle of 100 degrees with a complete block showing on the lumbar myelogram at L4-5. The patient underwent anterior osteotomy and release. After the operation, a halo-pelvic apparatus was fit onto the patient, and distraction was begun. After distraction for 2 months, posterior osteotomy and release was performed for final correction, and distraction was maintained for another three weeks. Finally, the kyphotic deformity was corrected to a Cobb's angle of 62 degrees from T12 to L4. Supplementary anterior fusion was done, and the apparatus was removed after consolidation of the fusion mass.Even twenty years after correction of a tuberculous kyphosis, he had no neurological deterioration, and could work as a farmer using agricultural machines. Correction angle and sagittal balance were well maintained.

Microtubules are a proven target for anticancer drug development because they are critical for mitotic spindle formation and the separation of chromosomes at mitosis. We here report a novel synthetic microtubule inhibitor 7-diethylamino-3(2′-benzoxazolyl)-coumarin (DBC). DBC causes destabilization of microtubules, leading to a cell cycle arrest at G 2 /M stage. In addition, human cancer cells are more sensitive to DBC (IC 50 44.8–475.2 nM) than human normal fibroblast (IC 50 7.9 μM), and DBC induces apoptotic cell death of cancer cells. Furthermore, our data show that DBC is a poor substrate of drug efflux pumps and effective against multidrug resistant (MDR) cancer cells. Taken together, these results describe a novel pharmacological property of DBC as a microtubule inhibitor, which may make it an attractive new agent for treatment of MDR cancer.

Although histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors are appreciated as a promising class of anticancer drugs, recent reports show that P-glycoprotein (P-gp) is induced by HDAC inhibitor treatment in cancer cells, resulting in multidrug resistance of cancer cells to other chemotherapeutic agents. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanism of HDAC inhibitor induction of P-gp expression. HDAC inhibitor treatment causes cell type–specific induction of P-gp expression without changes in the CpG methylation status of the promoter region. In addition, our data show that HDAC inhibitor does not alter the DNA binding activity of Sp1 but facilitates both the recruitment of a coactivator complex that includes CAAT/enhancer binding protein β and pCAF and the dissociation of the repressive complex, HDAC1, to the Sp1 binding region. Subsequently, the hyperacetylated histone H3 becomes enriched in the promoter region, leading to RNA polymerase II recruitment to activate P-gp gene transcription. Furthermore, specific down-regulation of HDAC1, but not HDAC2, by RNA silencing was enough to induce P-gp expression in HeLa cells, strongly supporting the essential role of HDAC1 in HDAC inhibitor induction of P-gp. Concomitantly, cell type–specific induction of P-gp expression seems to be dependent on phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase activity. Taken together, our findings show that HDAC inhibitor treatment leads to an increase in P-gp expression through dynamic changes in chromatin structure and transcription factor association within the promoter region. (Mol Cancer Res 2009;7(5):735–44)

Kim (2001a) presented a modification of the Shapiro and Wilk (1972) test for exponentiality based on the ratio of two asymptotically efficient estimates of scale. In this paper we modify this test statistic when the sample is censored. We use the normalized spacings based on the sample data, which was used in Samanta and Schwarz (1988) to modify the Shapiro and Wilk (1972) statistic to the censored data. As a result the modified statistics have the same null distribution as the uncensored case with a corresponding reduction in sample size. Through a simulation study it is found that the proposed statistic has higher power than Samanta and Schwarz (1988) statistic especially for the alternatives with the coefficient of variation greater than or equal to 1.

In this study, we investigate the ability of reversine to stimulate adipocyte differentiation and its effect on cellular signaling pathways associated with adipocyte differentiation. Our data show that reversine treatment of 3T3-L1 cells under differentiation conditions synergistically enhances adipocyte differentiation and the expression of adipogenic marker genes such as aP2, PPAR-gamma, resistin, C/EBPalpha, and adiponectin. In parallel, reversine treatment leads to a selective downregulation of Akt and p70(s6k) signaling pathways, but not the ERK pathway. Furthermore, reversine stimulation of adipocyte differentiation seems to be quite different from troglitazone's action, because reversine treatment does not induce the transcriptional activation of PPAR-gamma and troglitazone does not affect the Akt and p70(s6k) signaling pathways. Taken together, our data clearly demonstrate the ability of reversine to stimulate adipocyte differentiation, which is independent of the Akt and p70(s6k) signaling pathways.

We propose to apply –norm regularization to address the problem of weak and/or many instruments. We observe that the presence of weak instruments, or weak and many instruments is translated into a nearly singular problem in a control function representation. Hence, we show that mean squares error-optimal -norm regularization with a small sample size reduces the bias and variance of the regularized 2SLS estimators with the presence of weak and/or many instruments. A number of different strategies for choosing a regularization parameter are introduced and compared in a Monte Carlo study.

Biomolecule patterning by photolithographic methods has considerable advantages because a large number of different biomolecules can be assembled on a spatial area by a combinatorial method and complex biomolecule patterning can be created in situ in closed environments such as microfluidic channels. Here, a photobiotin was used as the photoactivatable reagent to create patterned arrays of biomolecules. The variability of photobiotin deposition on glass substrates modified with a variety of materials having carboxyl, lysine, aldehyde, amine groups, and BSA (bovine serum albumin) was characterized by subsequent derivatization with Cy3-labeled streptavidin. The fluorescence images of the photobiotin patterned glass surfaces showed that the BSA/aldehyde-coated glass could be considered as the most appropriate substrate to immobilize photobiotin, in view of the homogeneous immobilization of biomolecules with high density in defined regions and the reduction of nonspecific binding to the surface. In streptavidin equilibrium adsorption assays, the maximum amount of streptavidin-Cy3 bound to the BSA/aldehyde-coated glass surface continued to rise with increasing streptavidin-Cy3 concentration until 12.0 microg/mL was reached and the surface then became saturated. Also, a line array of biotin-labeled single-strand probe DNAs was created on the BSA/aldehyde-coated glass by photolysis of photobiotin through a slit-type mask and biotin/streptavidin/biotin chemistry, extended to a quantitative measurement of the concentrations of target DNA. The results of target DNA analysis showed linearity over a wide range from 0.5 ng/mL to 5 microg/mL and were reproducible.

This paper presents a general framework based on lifting technique for sampled-data systems with input time delays. By analyzing the properties of operator-valued matrices of lifted systems with input time delays, an extended lifting technique is obtained. It is then shown that, with the proposed lifting technique, the complex behavior of the system can be illustrated by two simple lifted systems, which construct the extended lifted system. The extended lifted system has the same induced norm as that of the original system with an input time delay, since the proposed lifting technique is an isometric isomorphism. Through applying the proposed lifting technique to sampled-data systems with input time delays, the time-invariant discrete-time system with infinite-dimensional input and output spaces is obtained. The equivalent discrete-time system, which is derived from the extended lifted system, can satisfy the problem of H2 sampled-data control systems with input time delays. Simulation results are given to show that the proposed method can guarantee a more stable system response than the conventional H2 sampled-data controller for the sampled-data systems with the various input time delays.

Shapiro and Wilk(1972) developed a test for exponentiality with origin and scale unknown. The procedure consists of comparing the generalized least squares estimate of scale with the estimate of scale given by the sample variance. However the test based on the statistic is inconsistent. Kim(2001a) proposed a modified Shapiro-Wilk`s test statistic using the ratio of two asymptotically efficient estimators of scale. In this paper, we study the consistency of the proposed test.