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The ^{13}C(α,n)^{16}O reaction is the main neutron source for the slow-neutron-capture process in asymptotic giant branch stars and for the intermediate process. Direct measurements at astrophysical energies in above-ground laboratories are hindered by the extremely small cross sections and vast cosmic-ray-induced background. We performed the first consistent direct measurement in the range of E_{c.m.}=0.24 to 1.9 MeV using the accelerators at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory and Sichuan University. Our measurement covers almost the entire intermediate process Gamow window in which the large uncertainty of the previous experiments has been reduced from 60% down to 15%, eliminates the large systematic uncertainty in the extrapolation arising from the inconsistency of existing datasets, and provides a more reliable reaction rate for the studies of the slow-neutron-capture and intermediate processes along with the first direct determination of the alpha strength for the near-threshold state.

Immunotherapy drugs have effects on the activity and efficacy of T cells in cancer therapy. However, the selection of personalized medicines in the clinic is difficult. Therefore, how to simplify the process is an important issue. This study presented a three-dimensional culture in a microfluidic device. Cancer cells were cultured in the center with GelMA (Gelatin methacryloyl) to mimic the tumor tissue, while microchannels were used to mimic immune cells in peripheral blood in this chip. The T-cell infiltration into the simulated tumor environment in the chip was observed by an imaging system. In addition, a reduction in the viability of cancer cells following T-cell infiltration was also observed. Moreover, the mortality rate of cancer cells increased after cancer cells were treated with atezolizumab or pembrolizumab. In conclusion, these results demonstrate the potential of our chip for cancer research and clinical drug efficacy.

Fluorine is one of the most interesting elements in nuclear astrophysics, where the ^{19}F(p,α)^{16}O reaction is of crucial importance for Galactic ^{19}F abundances and CNO cycle loss in first generation Population III stars. As a day-one campaign at the Jinping Underground Nuclear Astrophysics experimental facility, we report direct measurements of the essential ^{19}F(p,αγ)^{16}O reaction channel. The γ-ray yields were measured over E_{c.m.}=72.4-344 keV, covering the Gamow window; our energy of 72.4 keV is unprecedentedly low, reported here for the first time. The experiment was performed under the extremely low cosmic-ray-induced background environment of the China JinPing Underground Laboratory, one of the deepest underground laboratories in the world. The present low-energy S factors deviate significantly from previous theoretical predictions, and the uncertainties are significantly reduced. The thermonuclear ^{19}F(p,αγ)^{16}O reaction rate has been determined directly at the relevant astrophysical energies.

Fluorine is one of the most interesting elements in nuclear astrophysics, where the ^{19}F(p,α)^{16}O reaction is of crucial importance for Galactic ^{19}F abundances and CNO cycle loss in first generation Population III stars. As a day-one campaign at the Jinping Underground Nuclear Astrophysics experimental facility, we report direct measurements of the essential ^{19}F(p,αγ)^{16}O reaction channel. The γ-ray yields were measured over E_{c.m.}=72.4-344 keV, covering the Gamow window; our energy of 72.4 keV is unprecedentedly low, reported here for the first time. The experiment was performed under the extremely low cosmic-ray-induced background environment of the China JinPing Underground Laboratory, one of the deepest underground laboratories in the world. The present low-energy S factors deviate significantly from previous theoretical predictions, and the uncertainties are significantly reduced. The thermonuclear ^{19}F(p,αγ)^{16}O reaction rate has been determined directly at the relevant astrophysical energies.

Concerns have been raised that patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) are still infectious with a re-positive nucleic acid test of the pharyngeal swab after hospital discharge. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical relevance of induced sputum as an additional indicator for the current clinical discharge criteria of COVID-19 patients to prevent virus recurrence.Twenty-one COVID-19 patients who met the national clinical discharge criteria were discharged from the hospital and tested daily for the presence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) nucleic acid in their pharyngeal swabs and every other day for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in their induced sputum. Once the patient's induced sputum was negative after two consecutive tests, testing was discontinued.Among 21 discharged patients from COVID-19, the first pharyngeal swab and induced sputum tests for viral nucleic acid were positive in 3 (14.3%) and 8 (38.1%) patients respectively. Induced sputum was significantly more positive than pharyngeal swab (p0.05). In our cohort, all pharyngeal swabs became negative at day 7, and all induced sputa turned negative at day 11 after discharge. Interestingly, patients with negative pharyngeal swabs experienced viral relapse, whereas patients with negative induced sputum did not revert to positivity.The detection rate of positive viral nucleic acid in induced sputum was high. Patients with negative induced sputum nucleic acid tests did not have a relapse of SARS-COV-2, indicating that viral nucleic acid testing of induced sputum should be used as an additional criterion for patients with national clinical discharge criteria COVID-19.

Generally, the default Self-Modification Parameters (SMPs) values, rather than the proper SMPs parameters group, has been applied in the SLEUTH model. However, various pre-setting of SMPs will simulate different morphology and structure of urban sprawl. The study is intended to propose a practical tool for the quantification response to model input variables on modelling complex urban systems. In this research, the parameter weight sorting job has been carried out to provide an adjusting priority experience. Besides, the model output imagery indices were used to describe the morphology, distribution of the urban prediction sprawl and the correlationship with urban road network effectively. Finally, the adjusting factors have been calculated with AHP method. The work helps geographers to determine how to make further use of the inner forward transmission mechanism on the SLEUTH model for further improving it in performance.

重度牙周炎患者多伴有后牙区的垂直性骨吸收，传统观念认为采用引导组织再生术可以取得较好的治疗效果，但是容易忽略创伤性▉力的作用。本文报道1例下颌磨牙垂直型骨吸收的重度牙周炎患者，采用牙周翻瓣清创术联合正畸的多学科治疗，取得了一定疗效，提示在重度牙周炎患者中消除局部刺激因素，也能获得稳定的骨再生。.

Advances in modeling of casting processes using smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) are described. Three-dimensional simulations of high-pressure die casting (HPDC) are presented for a realistic die. Developments needed for both visualization of these systems and for their simulation are described. Comparison of SPH simulations with experimental results from polishing plate is made for HPDC. The SPH comparisons are particularly good, with the method able to capture the fine details of the free surface motion, including plume shape, frequency and phase of oscillation and the correct relative heights of all the free surfaces. And these results together combine to demonstrate that SPH modeling of HPDC has now reached a level where the design of mold can be performed in a reasonable computation time for large-scale automotive castings and provide a high degree of predictive accuracy.

To study the regulatory effect of long non-coding ribonucleic acid (lncRNA) HOX transcript antisense RNA (HOTAIR) on acute kidney injury (AKI) in sepsis rats and its regulatory mechanism.The sepsis-induced AKI model was established in Sprague-Dawley (SD) male rats through cecal ligation puncture. A total of 30 SD rats were randomly divided into the control group, model group and lncRNA HOTAIR mimic group, with 10 rats in each group. Relative levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in kidney tissues were detected via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Apoptosis of kidney tissues was detected via terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining. Moreover, the target gene of miR-34a was searched using the miRNA online database. The messenger RNA (mRNA) expression levels of miR-34a and B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) were detected via Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR).Compared with those in the control group, the rats in the model group showed injured pathological morphology of kidney, elevated contents of TNF-α and IL-1β, and apoptosis in kidney tissues. The target gene of miR-34a was Bcl-2, according to the miRNA online database. MiR-34a level in kidney tissues was upregulated, while the mRNA level of Bcl-2 significantly decreased in the model group. Compared with those in the model group, the pathological morphology of kidney tissues was improved, the content of TNF-α and IL-1β markedly declined, and the apoptotic rate of kidney tissues also reduced in lncRNA HOTAIR mimic group. The miR-34a level in kidney tissues decreased, while the Bcl-2 mRNA level remarkably increased in lncRNA HOTAIR mimic group.LncRNA HOTAIR overexpression can alleviate AKI in sepsis rats by inhibiting the apoptosis of kidney tissues by downregulating the miR-34a/Bcl-2 signaling pathway.

The filling and solidification processes of an A356 aluminum alloy polishing plate in diecasting were simulated using Pro-Cast software, to forecast the position of the defects during the aluminum casting process and optimize the process of die mold design. Using simulations, orthogonal experiments and diecasting experiment, the results show that when the first shot speed is 3 m/s, casting temperature is 670 °C (1238 °F), and mold temperature is 280 °C (536 °F), the casting can be completely filled and the shrinkage defects decrease (and the interaction of technology parameters have been analyzed in detail). Furthermore, the performance requirements of diecasting have improved.

The study aims to investigate whether Long non-coding RNA (LncRNA)-UCA1 can regulate the progression of Parkinson's disease (PD) by mediating a-synuclein (SNCA) expression.PD mouse model was first constructed by intraperitoneal injection of MPTP. SH-SY5Y cells were treated with MPP+ for inducing in vitro PD model. Expression levels of lncRNA-UCA1 and SNCA in brain tissues extracted from PD mice and MPP+-induced SH-SY5Y cells were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Protein expression of SNCA was accessed by Western blot. After transfection of pcDNA-NC+DMSO, pcDNA-UCA1+DMSO, pcDNA-NC+α-amantin or pcDNA-UCA1+α-amanitin in SH-SY5Y cells, SNCA expression was detected. Cell viability and SNCA expression were determined after UCA1 overexpression or knockdown in SH-SY5Y cells. Neuronal apoptosis in MPP+-induced SH-SY5Y cells was detected by flow cytometry after the UCA1 knockdown.UCA1 and SNCA were highly expressed in brain tissues extracted from PD mice and MPP+-induced SH-SY5Y cells. UCA1 overexpression remarkably upregulated mRNA and protein expressions of SNCA in SH-SY5Y cells. Higher viability was seen after the UCA1 knockdown in MPP+-induced SH-SY5Y cells. UCA1 knockdown remarkably inhibited caspase-3 activity and decreased MPP+-induced neuronal apoptosis in SH-SY5Y cells.LncRNA-UCA1 promotes the occurrence and progression of PD by upregulating SNCA expression.

This study was conducted to determine the effects of residual superdoses of phytase on growth performance, tibia mineralization, and relative organ weight in ducks fed phosphorus-deficient diets. In Exp. 1, 4 kinds of commercial phytase were used to determine retention rate of phyatse with the phytase C being the highest via both high water-bath temperature (90%) and pelleting (50%), followed by phytase A, B, and D. In Exp. 2, a total of 560 male ducks were blocked based on body weight, and then allocated randomly to 7 treatments (5 replicates with 16 birds per replicate). Treatments included a maize-soybean meal-based diet with recommended calcium and 4.0 g non-phytate phosphorus (nPP)/kg starter diet or 3.8 g nPP/kg grower diet (positive control; PC), an nPP-deficient diet with 1.3 g nPP/kg starter diet or 1.1 g nPP/kg grower diet (negative control; NC), NC diets with increasing levels of residual phytase C (500, 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, and 4,000 units/kg feed) after pelleting. Birds fed NC diets had lower (P < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) throughout the experiment compared with those fed PC diet. Supplementing NC diet with increasing residual superdoses of phytase improved (P < 0.05) ADG and ADFI quadratically in the entire experiment, while reduced feed-to-gain ratio (P < 0.05) quadratically during day 0 to 14. On day 14 and 35, birds fed NC diet had lower (P < 0.05) tibia length, weight, ash, calcium, phosphorus, and manganese contents than those fed PC diet. Increasing residual superdoses of phytase in NC diet increased (P < 0.05) tibia weight and ash, calcium, phosphorus contents quadratically on day 14 and 35. NC treatment increased (P < 0.05) the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and cecum index compared with other treatments on day 14 and 35. Taken together, feeding increasing residual superdoses of phytase could counteract or exceed the negative effects of NC diet on growth performance, tibia mineralization, and relative organ weight in ducks.

Lignocellulose represents a key sustainable source of biomass for transformation into biofuels and bio-based products. Unfortunately, the recalcitrance of lignocellulosic biomass poses a major challenge for its sustainable and cost-effective utilization. Overcoming the recalcitrance is therefore an important priority for the development of the lignocellulosic biorefinery. In this work, the ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate, was selected from five ionic liquid candidates for treating rice straw and the potential of accelerating enzymatic hydrolysis. The yield of reducing sugars from rice straw pretreated with this ionic liquid at 120°C for 12 h reached 70.5% after being hydrolyzed enzymatically for 48 h, which was 7-fold higher than that of untreated rice straw and the 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate could still be recyclable. The chemical structure and crystalline form of rice straw before and after dissolution were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction...

In lignocellulosic materials, the presence of lignin and hemicellulose makes the access of enzymes to cellulose difficult, thus reducing the efficiency of the hydrolysis. To improve the substrate hydrolysis for ethanol production, and to decrease the ethanol cost, rice straw was pretreated by a sequence of dilute acid and dilute alkali to remove lignin and hemicellulose, and then the production of bio-ethanol from the pretreated rice straw using simultaneous saccharification and fermentation at high dry content was investigated. After the complex pretreatment, the cellulose content in rice straw increased from 41.5 to 88.5%. Complex method and dilute acid pretreatment of rice straw result in glucose concentrations of 101.7 and 50.2 g/L, respectively. As a result, ethanol concentration of 58.7 g/L was obtained by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of rice straw pretreated using a sequence of dilute acid and dilute alkali at a substrate concentration of 160 g/L; the ethanol yield was 73.4% based...

Summary The effect of different dietary protein levels and DL-methionine (Met) supplementation on hair growth and the resulting pelt quality in mink was studied. Four groups of male mink were fed with four isocaloric diets containing 32% (P32), 24% (P24), 16% (P16) or P24+Met (0.8%) crude protein of dry matter (DM) from September to December. Skin biopsies were taken at the pelting. Histological techniques and computer-assisted light microscopy were used to determine the ratio of activity (ROA) of under hairs and guard hairs respectively. The results showed that when the dietary protein level reduced from 32% to 16%, body length, number and diameter of under hairs and guard hairs of minks declined, and pelt length and pelt weight of minks decreased significantly (p 0.05). The hair follicle density of the winter coat was not influenced by the dietary protein levels and Met supplementation (p > 0.05). Low-protein diets content led to a reduction of hair follicle developing to next phase. It was documented that 24% crude protein of DM with Met supplementation during growing-furring period was sufficient for minks to express their genetic capacity to develop hair follicles and achieve the prime fur characteristics. Overall this study demonstrated that hair growth and hair properties in pelts are very dependent on the dietary protein and Met supply in the growing-furring period of minks.

One-body density matrix based on shell model is introduced into single folding model to replace that given by a local approximation, expecting to have better description of single particle states. The eect of this local approximation on the folding potential is discussed. By using the folding potential as the real part and combining with a phenomenological imaginary part, a semi-microscopic proton optical potential is constructed with signicant decrease of the number of potential parameters. This potential is applied to the analysis of proton elastic scattering data for the mass range of A = 28 { 90 at incident energies up to 200 MeV. The results show good agreement with available experimental data and are consistent with those of JLM model and Koning-Delaroche potential.

Using the Keldysh nonequilibrium Green function and the equation-of-motion technique, we investigate spin-dependent transport through an Aharonov–Bohm ring with a quantum dot coupled to ferromagnetic leads. We analyze the conductance and the tunneling magnetoresistance of this system for various values of the magnetic flux and the spin-polarization strength and obtain some new results. Our results show that this system is provided with an excellent spin filtering property, and a large tunneling magnetoresistance and a negative tunneling magnetoresistance can arise by adjusting relative parameters, which indicates that this system is a possible candidate for spin-valve transistors and is of importance for applications in spintronics. (© 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

When the interactions of the two coupling transitions from an excited level to two nearly degenerate ground levels with the same vacuum occur in a four-level tripod-scheme atomic system, vacuum-induced coherence (VIC) results from the quantum interference between the two spontaneous transitions. We investigate the effects of VIC and the relative phase between the two coupling fields on the probe absorption and dispersion properties as well as the group velocity of the probe field. We find that by adjusting the incoherent pumping field and VIC as well as the relative phase, the central absorption peak in the double transparency spectrum reduces, even develops into a gain dip, and the probe field propagates at a velocity from superluminal to subluminal. It is particularly pointed out that the subluminal light propagation with gain without inversion can be realized in such a system. The physical interpretation of the phenomena has been given.

When the intermediate level in a ladder-type atom is coupled with a higher-excited and a ground levels by two control fields, there appear double electromagnetically induced transparency windows in the two-photon absorption spectra. The effects of the Rabi frequencies and the detunings for the control fields on the two-photon absorption spectra are also investigated. Finally, the explanations of these phenomena and the conditions of the absorption minimums are given by using the dressed states.

Bisphenol A is widely used for the production of epoxy resins and polycarbonate plastics, and it has been found in many wastewaters or surface waters. Adsorption of bisphenol A on sediments sampled from several representative hydrologic stations of the Yellow River was studied, and some factors that may affect the sorption of bisphenol A were analyzed using the LC-MS/MS following solid-phase extraction. The results show that neither linear nor Freundlich isotherms is fit to the experimental data due to the high carbonate content in sediments. Bisphenol A has greater adsorption after the elimination of the carbonate in the sediment, and the adsorption of bisphenol A on the treated sediment can be described by both the linear and the Freundlich isotherms. The adsorption amount of bisphenol A is related to both the total organic carbon and dissolved organic carbon of sediments. The effects of Ca2 + and K+ on the adsorption of bisphenol A were also studied. It is found that Ca2+ and K+ showed different effects on the adsorption of bisphenol A because of their different valences.

We consider the one- and two-photon absorption spectra of a four-level Y-type atom with the two highest lying levels driven by a microwave field. We found that in the one-photon absorption case, the microwave field can lead to the probe gain, and the absorption and gain spectral structures depend strongly on the microwave field amplitude. For the two-photon absorption case, the strong microwave field can enhance the absorption. When the microwave field amplitude is reduced to a certain value, the single absorption peak in the two-photon spectrum changes into a structure of two-peak structure with different magnitudes. Moreover, the one- and two-photon absorption spectra can be modulated by the phase of the microwave field which produces a closed-loop configuration. Finally, we use the analytic solutions in terms of dressed-state basis to explain the results from our numerical calculation.

We have explored the dynamical algebraic structure of the dissipative two-mode system. On the basis of the algebraic structure, we have obtained the exact eigensolutions of the Liouvillian superoperator of its master equation by using an algebraic dynamical method. Then we investigate the Berry phase of the system within the density-matrix formalism.

The properties of the ground state of a series-coupled double quantum dot embedded in a mesoscopic ring in the Kondo regime are studied theoretically by means of a two-impurity Anderson Hamiltonian. The Hamiltonian is solved by means of the slave-boson mean-field theory. It is shown that two dots can be coupled coherently, which is reflected in the appearance of parity effects and the complex current–phase relation in this system. So this system might be a possible candidate for future device applications. (© 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

The properties of the ground state of a closed dot-ring system with a magnetic flux in the Kondo regime are studied theoretically by means of a one-impurity Anderson Hamiltonian. The Hamiltonian is solved by means of the slave-boson mean-field theory. It is shown that at T= 0, a suppressed Kondo effect exists in this system even when the mean level spacing of electrons in the ring is larger than the bulk Kondo temperature; the physical quantities of this system depend sensitively on both the parity of the system and the size of the ring; the rich physical behavior of this system can attributed to the coexistence of both the finite-size effect and the Kondo screening effect in this system. It is also possible to detect the Kondo screening cloud by measuring the PC or the zero field impurity susceptibility χ imp directly in future experiments.

Wetland degradation is frequently observed in some river estuaries of China due to the imbalance of soil nutrient. In order to improve the soil nutrient and promote the restoration of plant, the microbial fertilizer containing the phosphorus-dissolving strain Pseudomonas plecoglossicida and potassium-dissolving strain Bacillus aryabhattai was developed to stimulate the growth of plant and increase soil nutrient in this study. Results showed that microbial fertilizer was more effective in increasing the contents of total N, P and K in soil and the activities of soil sucrase and urease. Compared with the control, the height and dry weight of reeds were increased 53.13% and 59.31%; the activities of soil sucrase and urease were improved 41.25% and 39.57%. Illumina Miseq sequencing showed that Pseudomonas spp. were the most predominant in microbial fertilizer treated soil but other treatments were quite different. Hence, the microbial fertilizer significantly promoted the growth of reed, increased soil nutrient and enzyme activity. It consequently revealed a promising application in improving the wetland soil nutrients and ecological restoration.

During chronic pain states, peripheral nociceptive stimulation can induce long-term potentiation (LTP) in the spinal dorsal horn, but it is not clear how quickly spinal LTP develops after peripheral noxious stimulation. Furthermore, transient receptor potential vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1) receptors are abundant in spinal cord dorsal horn, especially in the superficial layers, and are thought to be involved in synaptic plasticity. In this study, we investigated the time frame of LTP induction after inflammatory insult and electrical stimulation and the involvement of TRPV1 receptors. By using extracellular recordings of C-fiber-evoked field potentials in the superficial spinal dorsal horn and teased fiber recording in vivo, we found that subcutaneous injection of complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) or 5% formalin induced low-frequency, irregular discharges of C-fibers and LTP of the C-fiber-evoked field potentials in the spinal dorsal horn within 3h. Topical application of the TRPV1 receptor antagonist capsazepine onto the spinal cord inhibited the induction of spinal LTP by CFA or formalin. Furthermore, capsazepine and another TRPV1 antagonist, (E)-3-(4-t-butylphenyl)-N-(2,3-dihydrobenzo[b][1,4]dioxin-6-yl)acrylamide, partially or completely blocked the LTP induced by conditioning stimulation with high- and low-frequency electrical stimulation. These results suggest that acute peripheral inflammatory stimulation by CFA or 5% formalin can induce spinal LTP very early after stimulation onset and that TRPV1 receptors in the spinal dorsal horn might contribute to this LTP induction.

The human genome is thought to harbor 50,000 to 100,000 genes, of which about half have been sampled to date in the form of expressed sequence tags. An international consortium was organized to develop and map gene-based sequence tagged site markers on a set of two radiation hybrid panels and a yeast artificial chromosome library. More than 16,000 human genes have been mapped relative to a framework map that contains about 1000 polymorphic genetic markers. The gene map unifies the existing genetic and physical maps with the nucleotide and protein sequence databases in a fashion that should speed the discovery of genes underlying inherited human disease. The integrated resource is available through a site on the World Wide Web at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/SCIENCE96/.

An experiment was carried out to examine the effects of low-protein diets supplemented with different levels of DL-methionine (Met) and Lysine (Lys) on growth performance of growing-furring blue foxes in order to find the optimal dietary supplementation levels of Met and Lys. For two protein levels, conventional 27 % (P27) and low 19 % (P19) on dry matter basis, respectively, and the low-protein diets were supplemented with Met (0.3 %, 0.5 %, 0.7 %) and Lys (0.4 %, 0.6 %, 0.8 %). An entirely random experimental design was adopted with two factors (3 × 3) and totally 10 groups (P27, L1M1, L1M2, L1M3, L2M1, L2M2, L2M3, L3M1, L3M2 and L3M3). From mid-September to pelting, based on the average daily gain, daily N retention, N retention ratio and the performance of blue foxes in different groups, 0.6 % Met supplementation in low-protein diet was optimum; based on the daily N retention, N biological value and the quality of the fur, 0.3 % and 0.5 % Lys supplementation were optimum; based on the N apparent digestibility and daily N output, 0.3 % Lys supplementation was optimum. In this experiment, the performance of blue foxes in L1M2 0.3 % Lys × 0.6 % Met group was better than that in the other groups, which indicates that low-protein diets supplemented with DL-methionine and lysine for blue foxes can be beneficial to reduce feed expenses and nitrogen emission to the environment.

Tuberculosis cutis orificialis is a rare manifestation of cutaneous tuberculosis which occurs in the oral, perianal and adjacent mucosa. The most frequent orificial lesion location is the tongue. We report a case of a 35-year-old female with tuberculosis cutis orificialis with gingival involvement. She had a six-month history of a moderately painful gingival ulceration. Histopathological examination showed granulomatous infiltrates composed of epithelioid cells, Langhans giant cells and caseating necrosis. A purified protein derivative test was positive. Sputum culture was positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Chest X-ray and high resolution computed tomography showed active pulmonary tuberculosis in both upper lung zones. The gingival specimen was positive for M. tuberculosis polymerase chain reaction. A complete resolution was achieved after six months of anti-tuberculosis therapy. Dental identification of M. tuberculosis may serve as an important aid in the first line of control of this dangerous infectious disease.

A global dispersive coupled-channel optical model potential is used to analyze the proton elastic/inelastic analyzing power data and (p,n) data in order to investigate the prediction power of this potential. The numerical calculations show good agreement with available experimental data for proton elastic data and overall agreement for proton inelastic data. The results also showed that present global potential is approximately Lane-consistent, and can predict well the (p,n) cross sections.

When a four-level Y-type atom with two highest nearly degenerate lying levels interacts with the same vacuum radiation field, its excited levels have vacuum-induced coherence due to the quantum interference between the spontaneous decay channels. We consider the effects of the vacuum-induced coherence on the electromagnetically induced transparency against single- and two-photon absorption in the atomic system. We find that the vacuum-induced coherence can lead to probe gain without incoherent pumping. On the other hand, the coherence can suppress the two-photon transparency, even in some cases where it can enhance the two-photon absorption. Another important result is the finding of the crucial role played by the relative phase between the probe and coupling fields: the two-photon transparency and the probe gain spectra can be modulated by this phase.

The human genome is thought to harbor 50,000 to 100,000 genes, of which about half have been sampled to date in the form of expressed sequence tags. An international consortium was organized to develop and map gene-based sequence tagged site markers on a set of two radiation hybrid panels and a yeast artificial chromosome library. More than 16,000 human genes have been mapped relative to a framework map that contains about 1000 polymorphic genetic markers. The gene map unifies the existing genetic and physical maps with the nucleotide and protein sequence databases in a fashion that should speed the discovery of genes underlying inherited human disease. The integrated resource is available through a site on the World Wide Web at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/SCIENCE96/.

This paper reports the DHE substitution clinical trial in 38 heroin addicts. The CINA (Clinical Institute Narcotic Assessment) scale was used to assess physical dependence potential. The CINA scale contains 10 opioid withdrawal signs (nausea, vomiting, gooseflesh, sweating, restlessness, tremor, larcrimation, nasal congestion, yawning, changes in heart rate and systolic blood pressure) and 3 opiate withdrawal symptoms (abdominal pain, muscle pain and feeling hot or cold). For each subject admitted to the Drug Detoxification and Treatment Center his (her) status on each of the 13 items of CINA were immediately rated. Then, naloxone 0.4 mg was injected iv to precipitate withdrawal symptoms and at 5, 10, 15 min after the naloxone injection, the CINA score of each patient was rated again. The differences among the scores of pre- and post-naloxone injection is a measurement of the degree of withdrawal symptoms. Then, a single dose of DHE was administered sublingually to each patient, all withdrawal symptoms disappeared. These results show that DHE can compete with naloxone for opioid receptors. A good dose-response relationship was found between the 100% suppressive withdrawal sign doses of DHE and the degree of withdrawal sign in heroin addicts. The physical dependence potential of DHE given to heroin addicts sublingually was probably more than that of methadone given to heroin addicts orally by making reference to the report of Dr. Peachy.

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a glycoprotein hormone secreted by human kidney cells. Human EPO was induced from human embryo kidney cells, isolated and purified from medium by biochemical method in our laboratory. The hypoproliferative anemia in chronic renal failure (CRF) has been assumed to be the result of decreased EPO production by the damaged kidney and of the shortening of the survival of erythrocytes. In this study, CRF anemia was formed 9 weeks after the removal of five-sixths of the renal mass of rats. These anemic rats were divided into 6 groups: treated with different dosages of EPO or physiological saline. The results indicate that EPO has apparent effects on anemia in rats with CRF. It may stimulate erythropoiesis and improve the anemia state of rats with CRF. Hematological parameters (RBC, Hb, PLT, Ht and Rt) may be reverted to normal levels (P less than 0.001). The level of BUN and Cr were significantly decreased. The optimum dose of EPO was 1000 U/kg. All these results show that injection of EPO has therapeutic effect on anemia in rats with CRF. EPO showed no effect on normal rats.