Chemistry of Metal (Benzylidene) Picramate-Part III Benzylidene Picramates of Zinc Cadmium and Mercury

Benzylidene picramates of zinc, cadmium and mercury have been prepared by treating the corresponding aqueous sulphate and chloride solutions with sodium salt of 4'-dimethylaminobenzylidence-2-hydroxy-3, 5-dinitroaniline. A metal: ligand ratio of 1:2 has been established in all these cases. I.R. spectral studies of metal benzylidene picramates show N-M coordination (where M is zinc, cadmium or mercury). Explosive properties of these benzylidene picramates have also been studied and it was found that the thermal stability increases as the atomic radius decreases or ionization potential increases

Urocortin 2 Gene Transfer Improves Glycemic Control and Reduces Retinopathy and Mortality in Murine Insulin Deficiency.

Type 1 diabetes affects 20 million patients worldwide. Insulin is the primary and commonly the sole therapy for type 1 diabetes. However, only a minority of patients attain the targeted glucose control and reduced adverse events. We tested urocortin 2 gene transfer as single-agent therapy for insulin deficiency using two mouse models. Urocortin 2 gene transfer reduced blood glucose for months after a single intravenous injection, through increased skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity, increased insulin release in response to glucose stimulation, and increased plasma insulin levels before and during euglycemic clamp. The combined increases in both insulin availability and sensitivity resulted in improved glycemic indices-events that were not anticipated in these insulin-deficient models. In addition, urocortin 2 gene transfer reduced ocular manifestations of long-standing insulin deficiency such as vascular leak and improved retinal function. Finally, mortality was reduced by urocortin 2 gene transfer. The mechanisms for these beneficial effects included increased activities of AMP-activated protein kinase and Akt (protein kinase B) in skeletal muscle, increased skeletal muscle glucose uptake, and increased insulin release. These data suggest that urocortin 2 gene transfer may be a viable therapy for new onset type 1 diabetes and might reduce insulin needs in later stage disease

Statistical methodologies to pool across multiple intervention studies

Combining and analyzing data from heterogeneous randomized controlled trials of complex multiple-component intervention studies, or discussing them in a systematic review, is not straightforward. The present article describes certain issues to be considered when combining data across studies, based on discussions in an NIH-sponsored workshop on pooling issues across studies in consortia (see Belle et al. in Psychol Aging, 18(3):396-405, 2003). Several statistical methodologies are described and their advantages and limitations are explored. Whether weighting the different studies data differently, or via employing random effects, one must recognize that different pooling methodologies may yield different results. Pooling can be used for comprehensive exploratory analyses of data from RCTs and should not be viewed as replacing the standard analysis plan for each study. Pooling may help to identify intervention components that may be more effective especially for subsets of participants with certain behavioral characteristics. Pooling, when supported by statistical tests, can allow exploratory investigation of potential hypotheses and for the design of future interventions

Deformational temperatures across the Lesser Himalayan Sequence in eastern Bhutan and their implications for the deformation history of the Main Central Thrust

We postulate that the inverted metamorphic sequence in the Lesser Himalayan Sequence of the Himalayan orogen is a finite product of its deformation and temperature history. To explain the formation of this inverted metamorphic sequence across the Lesser Himalayan Sequence with a focus on the Main Central Thrust (MCT) in eastern Bhutan, we determined the metamorphic peak temperatures by Raman spectroscopy of carbonaceous material and established the deformation temperatures by Ti-in-quartz thermobarometry and quartz c axis textures. These data were combined with thermochronology, including new and published Ar-40/Ar-39 ages of muscovite and published apatite fission track, and apatite and zircon (U-Th)/He ages. To obtain accurate metamorphic, deformation, and closure temperatures of thermochronological systems, pressures and cooling rates for the period of interest were derived by inverse modeling of multiple thermochronological data sets, and temperatures were determined by iterative calculations. The Raman spectroscopy of carbonaceous material results indicate two temperature sequences separated by a thrust. In the external sequence, peak temperatures are constant across the structural strike, consistent with the observed hinterland-dipping duplex system. In the internal temperature sequence associated with the MCT shear zone, each geothermometer yields an apparent inverted temperature gradient although with different temperature ranges, and all temperatures appear to be retrograde. These observations are consistent with the quartz microfabrics. Further, all thermochronometers indicate upward younging across the MCT. We interpret our data as a composite peak and deformation temperature sequence that formed successively and reflects the broadening and narrowing of the MCT shear zone in which the ductile deformation lasted until similar to 11 Ma.Peer reviewe

Prevalence of HIV Drug Resistance Mutations in HIV Type 1 Isolates in Antiretroviral Therapy Naïve Population from Northern India

Objective. The increased use of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has reduced the morbidity and mortality associated with HIV, adversely leading to the emergence of HIV drug resistance (HIVDR). In this study we aim to evaluate the prevalence of HIVDR mutations in ART-naive HIV-1 infected patients from northern India. Design. Analysis was performed using Viroseq genotyping system based on sequencing of entire protease and two-thirds of the Reverse Transcriptase (RT) region of pol gene. Results. Seventy three chronic HIV-1 infected ART naïve patients eligible for first line ART were enrolled from April 2006 to August 2008. In 68 patients DNA was successfully amplified and sequencing was done. 97% of HIV-1 strains belonged to subtype C, and one each to subtype A1 and subtype B. The overall prevalence of primary DRMs was 2.9% [2/68, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.3%–10.2%]. One patient had a major RT mutation M184V, known to confer resistance to lamivudine, and another had a major protease inhibitor (PI) mutation D30N that imparts resistance to nelfinavir. Conclusion. Our study shows that primary HIVDR mutations have a prevalence of 2.9% among ART-naive chronic HIV-1 infected individuals

Logarithmic perturbation theory for radial Klein-Gordon equation with screened Coulomb potentials via ℏ\hbar expansions

The explicit semiclassical treatment of logarithmic perturbation theory for the bound-state problem within the framework of the radial Klein-Gordon equation with attractive real-analytic screened Coulomb potentials, contained time-component of a Lorentz four-vector and a Lorentz-scalar term, is developed. Based upon $\hbar$-expansions and suitable quantization conditions a new procedure for deriving perturbation expansions is offered. Avoiding disadvantages of the standard approach, new handy recursion formulae with the same simple form both for ground and excited states have been obtained. As an example, the perturbation expansions for the energy eigenvalues for the Hulth\'en potential containing the vector part as well as the scalar component are considered.Comment: 14 pages, to be submitted to Journal of Physics

Effects of the Template Composition and Coating on the Photoluminescence Properties of ZnS:Mn Nanoparticles

Mn-doped ZnS nanocrystals based on low dopant concentrations (0–2%) and coated with a shell of Zn(OH)2 have been prepared via soft template and precipitation reaction. The results indicate that the ZnS:Mn nanocrystal is cubic zinc blende structure and its diameter is 3.02 nm as demonstrated by XRD. Measured by TEM, the morphology of nanocrystals is a spherical shape, and their particle size (3–5 nm) is similar to that of XRD results. Photoluminescence spectra under ultraviolet region shows that the volume ratio of alcohol to water in the template has a great effect on the luminescence properties of ZnS:Mn particles. Compared with unpassivated ZnS:Mn nanocrystals, ZnS:Mn/Zn(OH)2 core/shell nanocrystal exhibits much improved luminescence and higher absolute quantum efficiency. Meanwhile, we simply explore the formation mechanism of ZnS:Mn nanocrystals in alcohol and water system and analyze the reason why alcohol and water cluster structures can affect the luminescent properties of nanoparticle

Response of stone wool-insulated building barriers under severe heating exposures

This article presents the experimental results of stone wool-layered sandwich constructions, with either steel or gypsum claddings, tested under four different heating exposures: 7kW/m(2) incident radiant heat flux exposure, 60kW/m(2) incident radiant heat flux exposure, parametric time-temperature curve exposure and ISO 834 standard time-temperature exposure. The test apparatus used were a movable radiant panel system, a mid-scale furnace (1.5m(3)) and a large-scale furnace (15m(3)). The results show that reduced-scale tests are capable of reproducing the heat transferred through the construction at large scale provided there is limited mechanical degradation. The results indicate that the availability of oxygen is fundamental to the fire behaviour of the sandwich composites tested. Reactions occurring in stone wool micro-scale testing, such as oxidative combustion of the binder or crystallisation of the fibres, have a limited effect on the temperature increase when wool is protected from air entrainment