The effects of heat treatment on physical and technological properties and surface roughness of European Hophornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia Scop.) wood

Heat treatment of wood is an effective method to improve the dimensional stability and durability against biodegradation. In this study, the effects of heat treatment on physical properties and surface roughness of European Hophornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia Scop.) wood were examined. Samplesobtained from Alapli-Zonguldak Forest Enterprises, Turkey, were subjected to heat treatment at varying temperatures and for varying durations. The physical properties of heat-treated and control samples were tested, and oven-dry density, air-dry density, and swelling properties were determined. The mechanical properties of heat-treated and control samples were tested, and compression strength parallel to grain, bending strength, modulus of elasticity in bending, Janka-hardness (cross-section,parallel and perpendicular to grain), impact bending strength, and tensile strength perpendicular to grain were determined. A stylus method was employed to evaluate the surface characteristics of the samples. Roughness measurements by the stylus method were made in the direction perpendicular to the fiber. Four main roughness parameters, mean arithmetic deviation of profile (Ra), mean peak-tovalleyheight (Rz), root mean square roughness (Rq), and maximum roughness (Ry) obtained from the surface of wood were used to evaluate the effect of heat treatment on the surface characteristics of the specimens. Significant difference was determined (p = 0.05) between physical and technologicalproperties, and surface roughness parameters (Ra, Rz, Ry, Rq) for three temperatures and three durations of heat treatment. Based on the findings in this study, the results showed that oven-dry density, air-dry density, swelling, compression strength parallel to grain, bending strength, modulus of elasticity in bending, Janka-hardness (cross-section, parallel and perpendicular to grain), impact bending strength, tensile strength perpendicular to grain and surface roughness values decreased withincreasing treatment temperature and treatment times. Increase in temperature and duration further diminished technological strength values of the wood specimens. European Hophornbeam wood could be utilized by using proper heat treatment techniques without any losses in strength values in areas where working, stability, and surface smoothness, such as in window frames, are important factors

Statistical analysis of arthroplasty data: II. Guidelines

It is envisaged that guidelines for statistical analysis and presentation of results will improve the quality and value of research. The Nordic Arthroplasty Register Association (NARA) has therefore developed guidelines for the statistical analysis of arthroplasty register data. The guidelines are divided into two parts, one with an introduction and a discussion of the background to the guidelines (Ranstam et al. 2011a, see pages x-y in this issue), and this one with a more technical statistical discussion on how specific problems can be handled. This second part contains (1) recommendations for the interpretation of methods used to calculate survival, (2) recommendations on howto deal with bilateral observations, and (3) a discussion of problems and pitfalls associated with analysis of factors that influence survival or comparisons between outcomes extracted from different hospitals

Defective Resection at DNA Double-Strand Breaks Leads to De Novo Telomere Formation and Enhances Gene Targeting

The formation of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) at double-strand break (DSB) ends is essential in repair by homologous recombination and is mediated by DNA helicases and nucleases. Here we estimated the length of ssDNA generated during DSB repair and analyzed the consequences of elimination of processive resection pathways mediated by Sgs1 helicase and Exo1 nuclease on DSB repair fidelity. In wild-type cells during allelic gene conversion, an average of 2–4 kb of ssDNA accumulates at each side of the break. Longer ssDNA is formed during ectopic recombination or break-induced replication (BIR), reflecting much slower repair kinetics. This relatively extensive resection may help determine sequences involved in homology search and prevent recombination within short DNA repeats next to the break. In sgs1Δ exo1Δ mutants that form only very short ssDNA, allelic gene conversion decreases 5-fold and DSBs are repaired by BIR or de novo telomere formation resulting in loss of heterozygosity. The absence of the telomerase inhibitor, PIF1, increases de novo telomere pathway usage to about 50%. Accumulation of Cdc13, a protein recruiting telomerase, at the break site increases in sgs1Δ exo1Δ, and the requirement of the Ku complex for new telomere formation is partially bypassed. In contrast to this decreased and alternative DSB repair, the efficiency and accuracy of gene targeting increases dramatically in sgs1Δ exo1Δ cells, suggesting that transformed DNA is very stable in these mutants. Altogether these data establish a new role for processive resection in the fidelity of DSB repair

Nucleotide receptor signalling and the generation of reactive oxygen species

Elevated levels of extracellular nucleotides are present at sites of inflammation, platelet degranulation and cellular damage or lysis. These extracellular nucleotides can lead to the activation of purinergic (nucleotide) receptors on various leukocytes, including monocytes, macrophages, eosinophils, and neutrophils. In turn, nucleotide receptor activation has been linked to increased cellular production and release of multiple inflammatory mediators, including superoxide anion, nitric oxide and other reactive oxygen species (ROS). In the present review, we will summarize the evidence that extracellular nucleotides can facilitate the generation of multiple ROS by leukocytes. In addition, we will discuss several potential mechanisms by which nucleotide-enhanced ROS production may occur. Delineation of these mechanisms is important for understanding the processes associated with nucleotide-induced antimicrobial activities, cell signalling, apoptosis, and pathology

A WIC-Based Curriculum to Enhance Parent Communication with Healthcare Providers

The objectives describe a curriculum to support parent-provider communication about child development, and to demonstrate its impact and effectiveness when delivered by staff from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). A curriculum was developed by a university-WIC partnership for a WIC center-based health education class to teach parents about child development and how to talk to their child's doctor about development. During a 90-min training session, university pediatricians used this curriculum and trained WIC paraprofessionals to conduct a 20-30 min center-based education session. WIC paraprofessionals completed an on-line survey to obtain their demographic characteristics, and their attitudes and perceptions about the training sessions and their experiences teaching the center-based health education session to parents. Approximately 500 WIC paraprofessionals received the 90-min training session across 60 centers in the Public Health Foundation Enterprises WIC Program in Southern California. About 250 WIC paraprofessionals completed the on-line survey and over 80 % of WIC staff reported that they had learned new information about child development as a result of the training, and 87 % of the WIC staff reported that the training was sufficient to feel comfortable teaching the class content to parents. We demonstrated the ability to build WIC paraprofessional capacity to promote parental participation in child developmental surveillance and communication with their child's doctor. With appropriate training, WIC staff are interested in supporting population-based efforts to improve parent-physician communication about child development that can complement WIC's existing maternal and child health topics

Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta

Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990-2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

BACKGROUND: Alcohol use is a leading risk factor for death and disability, but its overall association with health remains complex given the possible protective effects of moderate alcohol consumption on some conditions. With our comprehensive approach to health accounting within the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016, we generated improved estimates of alcohol use and alcohol-attributable deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) for 195 locations from 1990 to 2016, for both sexes and for 5-year age groups between the ages of 15 years and 95 years and older. METHODS: Using 694 data sources of individual and population-level alcohol consumption, along with 592 prospective and retrospective studies on the risk of alcohol use, we produced estimates of the prevalence of current drinking, abstention, the distribution of alcohol consumption among current drinkers in standard drinks daily (defined as 10 g of pure ethyl alcohol), and alcohol-attributable deaths and DALYs. We made several methodological improvements compared with previous estimates: first, we adjusted alcohol sales estimates to take into account tourist and unrecorded consumption; second, we did a new meta-analysis of relative risks for 23 health outcomes associated with alcohol use; and third, we developed a new method to quantify the level of alcohol consumption that minimises the overall risk to individual health. FINDINGS: Globally, alcohol use was the seventh leading risk factor for both deaths and DALYs in 2016, accounting for 2·2% (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 1·5–3·0) of age-standardised female deaths and 6·8% (5·8–8·0) of age-standardised male deaths. Among the population aged 15–49 years, alcohol use was the leading risk factor globally in 2016, with 3·8% (95% UI 3·2–4·3) of female deaths and 12·2% (10·8–13·6) of male deaths attributable to alcohol use. For the population aged 15–49 years, female attributable DALYs were 2·3% (95% UI 2·0–2·6) and male attributable DALYs were 8·9% (7·8–9·9). The three leading causes of attributable deaths in this age group were tuberculosis (1·4% [95% UI 1·0–1·7] of total deaths), road injuries (1·2% [0·7–1·9]), and self-harm (1·1% [0·6–1·5]). For populations aged 50 years and older, cancers accounted for a large proportion of total alcohol-attributable deaths in 2016, constituting 27·1% (95% UI 21·2–33·3) of total alcohol-attributable female deaths and 18·9% (15·3–22·6) of male deaths. The level of alcohol consumption that minimised harm across health outcomes was zero (95% UI 0·0–0·8) standard drinks per week. INTERPRETATION: Alcohol use is a leading risk factor for global disease burden and causes substantial health loss. We found that the risk of all-cause mortality, and of cancers specifically, rises with increasing levels of consumption, and the level of consumption that minimises health loss is zero. These results suggest that alcohol control policies might need to be revised worldwide, refocusing on efforts to lower overall population-level consumption. FUNDING: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation