640 research outputs found
Immunohistochemical Techniques Applied to Raw and Mildly Heat Treated Meat Systems
Immunohistology was performed with six commercially available antibodies directed against myosins, actins and collagens. The corresponding antigens, appearing on the surface of cryo-sections from meat and meat products heat treated to different end temperatures, were visualized using these antibodies. The meat and meat products were heated from 20 °C to 80 °C. At 80 °C the meat systems were devoid of thermal transitions as judged from differential scanning calorimetric measurements. Our results showed that although reduced binding was the case for systems heated above 60 °C, the signals from the antibody labelling was still sufficiently strong to provide information about specific antigens in meat systems heated to 70-80 °C. Antibodies with a high initial affinity bound to the their respective antigens after the latter had been heated to a few degrees above their denaturation temperature as detected in a scanning calorimeter. This investigation points to the possibility of fmding sufficiently good commercial antibodies to perform immunohistology on meat products heated to temperatures between 70-80 °C. This is important as many commercial meat products are heated to end temperatures in this range. Several examples of the labelling intensity obtained on heated meat and meat products are given. In addition, an example using double labelling with antibodies to collagen III and an antibody to slow myosin in a food product heated to 75 °C is given. Problems related to non-specific staining and to non-specific effects of heat treatment are also briefly discussed
Effective treatment of experimental acute otitis media by application of volatile fluids into the ear canal
To access publisher version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Link fieldTo access full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink "View/Open" at the bottom of this pageEssential oils are volatile and can have good antimicrobial activity. We compared the effects of oil of basil (Ocimum basilicum) and essential oil components (thymol, carvacrol, and salicylaldehyde) to those of a placebo when placed in the ear canal of rats with experimental acute otitis media caused by pneumococci or Haemophilus influenzae. Progress was monitored by otomicroscopic examination and middle ear cultures. The treatment with oil of basil or essential oil components cured or healed 56%-81% of rats infected with H. influenzae and 6%-75% of rats infected with pneumococci, compared with 5.6%-6% of rats in the placebo group. Essential oils or their components placed in the ear canal can provide effective treatment of acute otitis media
Cu-doped ceria: Oxygen vacancy formation made easy
DFT + U calculations of Cu-doped bulk ceria are presented. The first oxygen vacancy in Cu-doped ceria forms almost spontaneously and the second vacancy is also easily created. Whether zero, one or two oxygen vacancies, the Cu dopant is in the form Cu(+II), and prefers to be 4-coordinated in a close to planar structure. Charge compensation, structural relaxation and available CuâO states all play roles in lowering the O vacancy formation energies, but to different degrees when the first and second oxygen vacancies are formed. The Cu-doped ceria(1 1 1) surface system behaves in a similar fashion
The acceleration and storage of radioactive ions for a neutrino factory
The term beta-beam has been coined for the production of a pure beam of
electron neutrinos or their antiparticles through the decay of radioactive ions
circulating in a storage ring. This concept requires radioactive ions to be
accelerated to a Lorentz gamma of 150 for 6He and 60 for 18Ne. The neutrino
source itself consists of a storage ring for this energy range, with long
straight sections in line with the experiment(s). Such a decay ring does not
exist at CERN today, nor does a high-intensity proton source for the production
of the radioactive ions. Nevertheless, the existing CERN accelerator
infrastructure could be used as this would still represent an important saving
for a beta-beam facility. This paper outlines the first study, while some of
the more speculative ideas will need further investigations.Comment: Accepted for publication in proceedings of Nufact02, London, 200
Aspirin and extended-release dipyridamole versus clopidogrel for recurrent stroke
Background
Recurrent stroke is a frequent, disabling event after ischemic stroke. This study compared
the efficacy and safety of two antiplatelet regimens â aspirin plus extendedrelease
dipyridamole (ASAâERDP) versus clopidogrel.
Methods
In this double-blind, 2-by-2 factorial trial, we randomly assigned patients to receive
25 mg of aspirin plus 200 mg of extended-release dipyridamole twice daily or to receive
75 mg of clopidogrel daily. The primary outcome was first recurrence of stroke.
The secondary outcome was a composite of stroke, myocardial infarction, or death
from vascular causes. Sequential statistical testing of noninferiority (margin of 1.075),
followed by superiority testing, was planned.
Results
A total of 20,332 patients were followed for a mean of 2.5 years. Recurrent stroke
occurred in 916 patients (9.0%) receiving ASAâERDP and in 898 patients (8.8%) receiving
clopidogrel (hazard ratio, 1.01; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.92 to 1.11). The
secondary outcome occurred in 1333 patients (13.1%) in each group (hazard ratio for
ASAâERDP, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.92 to 1.07). There were more major hemorrhagic events
among ASAâERDP recipients (419 [4.1%]) than among clopidogrel recipients (365
[3.6%]) (hazard ratio, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.32), including intracranial hemorrhage
(hazard ratio, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.11 to 1.83). The net risk of recurrent stroke or major
hemorrhagic event was similar in the two groups (1194 ASAâERDP recipients [11.7%],
vs. 1156 clopidogrel recipients [11.4%]; hazard ratio, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.95 to 1.11).
Conclusions
The trial did not meet the predefined criteria for noninferiority but showed similar rates
of recurrent stroke with ASAâERDP and with clopidogrel. There is no evidence that either
of the two treatments was superior to the other in the prevention of recurrent
stroke. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00153062.
Transformation kinetics of alloys under non-isothermal conditions
The overall solid-to-solid phase transformation kinetics under non-isothermal
conditions has been modeled by means of a differential equation method. The
method requires provisions for expressions of the fraction of the transformed
phase in equilibrium condition and the relaxation time for transition as
functions of temperature. The thermal history is an input to the model. We have
used the method to calculate the time/temperature variation of the volume
fraction of the favored phase in the alpha-to-beta transition in a zirconium
alloy under heating and cooling, in agreement with experimental results. We
also present a formulation that accounts for both additive and non-additive
phase transformation processes. Moreover, a method based on the concept of path
integral, which considers all the possible paths in thermal histories to reach
the final state, is suggested.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figures. To appear in Modelling Simul. Mater. Sci. En
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