Survey and analysis of the usefulness of the social studies guide for New Hampshire elementary schools

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Síndrome de Cushing durante el embarazo: manifestaciones cutáneas secundarias a un tumor suprarrenal

El síndrome de Cushing secundario a tumor suprarrenal es una patología infrecuente en el embarazo. Su presencia se traduce en un aumento significativo de la morbimortalidad materna y fetal. Muchas de sus características clínicas son enmascaradas por los cambios propios de una gestación fisiológica, lo que dificulta el diagnóstico. En este contexto las manifestaciones dermatológicas pueden ser de gran utilidad en la sospecha clínica precoz. Se presenta el caso de una paciente de 26 años de edad que en el segundo trimestre de embarazo inicia un cuadro caracterizado por acné inflamatorio severo e hirsutismo. La gestación se interrumpe a las 35 semanas por síndrome hipertensivo del embarazo y rotura prematura de membranas. Durante el puerperio consulta al dermatólogo presentando aún las lesiones descritas, además de estrías violáceas gruesas en abdomen, facie de luna, obesidad centrípeta y máculas purpúricas en zonas de presión. Se diagnóstica síndrome de Cushing. El estudio confirmatorio y etiológico dirigido evidenció un adenoma de corteza suparrenal. El diagnóstico de laboratorio es difícil debido a los cambios físicos y de laboratorio habituales del embarazo que pueden mimetizar los hallazgos propios de la enfermedad. Los hallazgos dermatológicos pueden ser de gran valor para un diagnóstico y tratamiento precoz. Las lesiones dermatológicas secundarias al hipercortisolismo fueron de difícil manejo

Classifying supersymmetric solutions in 3D maximal supergravity

The work of MS was supported in part by Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) 24740159 from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) 10.13039/501100001691. This work is part of the research programme of the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM) 10.13039/ 501100003404, which is part of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).The work of MS was supported in part by Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) 24740159 from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) 10.13039/501100001691. This work is part of the research programme of the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM) 10.13039/ 501100003404, which is part of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).The work of MS was supported in part by Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) 24740159 from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) 10.13039/501100001691. This work is part of the research programme of the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM) 10.13039/ 501100003404, which is part of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO

D3-D7 Quark-Gluon Plasmas at Finite Baryon Density

We present the string dual to SU(Nc) N=4 SYM, coupled to Nf massless fundamental flavors, at finite temperature and baryon density. The solution is determined by two dimensionless parameters, both depending on the 't Hooft coupling $\lambda_h$ at the scale set by the temperature T: $\epsilon_h\sim\lambda_h Nf/Nc$, weighting the backreaction of the flavor fields and $\tilde\delta\sim\lambda_h^{-1/2}nb/(Nf T^3)$, where $nb$ is the baryon density. For small values of these two parameters the solution is given analytically up to second order. We study the thermodynamics of the system in the canonical and grand-canonical ensembles. We then analyze the energy loss of partons moving through the plasma, computing the jet quenching parameter and studying its dependence on the baryon density. Finally, we analyze certain "optical" properties of the plasma. The whole setup is generalized to non abelian strongly coupled plasmas engineered on D3-D7 systems with D3-branes placed at the tip of a generic singular Calabi-Yau cone. In all the cases, fundamental matter fields are introduced by means of homogeneously smeared D7-branes and the flavor symmetry group is thus a product of abelian factors.Comment: 27 pages; v2: 29 pages, 1 (new) figure, new section 4.4 on optical properties, references, comments added; v3: eq. (3.19), comments and a reference adde

Holographic Duals of Quark Gluon Plasmas with Unquenched Flavors

We review the construction of gravitational solutions holographically dual to N=1 quiver gauge theories with dynamical flavor multiplets. We focus on the D3-D7 construction and consider the finite temperature, finite quark chemical potential case where there is a charged black hole in the dual solution. Discussed physical outputs of the model include its thermodynamics (with susceptibilities) and general hydrodynamic properties.Comment: Lecture presented at the Workshop "AdS/CFT and Novel Approaches to Hadron and Heavy Ion Physics", Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics (KITPC), Beijing, China, 13 October 2010. Review article to be published in Communications in Theoretical Physics. 27 pages, 2 figure

Crude Oil-Degradation and Plasmid Profile of Nitrifying Bacteria Isolated from Oil-Impacted Mangrove Sediment in the Niger Delta of Nigeria

The crude oil degradability and plasmid profile of autotrophic nitrifying bacteria, Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter species, isolated from mangrove sediment in the Niger Delta of Nigeria were studied. The effects of temperature, pH and optical density on the utilization of different carbon sources by the bacteria were also investigated. Results showed that nitrifying bacteria could utilize kerosene, diesel oil, jet fuel and engine oil as carbon sources. None utilized hexane and xylene but moderate growth was observed in benzene, phenol and toluene. However, their ability to utilized crude oil varied both in rates of utilization and in growth profiles. Mixed culture of the isolates degrades 52 % of crude oil introduced into the medium followed by Nitrosomonas sp. with 40 % degradation. The least was Nitrobacter sp. with 20 % degradation. The ability of the autotrophs to degrade crude oil was found to be plasmid-mediated through curing experiment and electrophoresis. The size of the plasmid involved was estimated to be 23 kb. The high crude oil utilization of the mixed culture implies that nitrifying bacteria isolated from contaminated ecosystem are excellent crude oil degraders and can be harnessed for bioremediation purposes

Inter-observer reproducibility of measurements of range of motion in patients with shoulder pain using a digital inclinometer

BACKGROUND: Reproducible measurements of the range of motion are an important prerequisite for the interpretation of study results. The digital inclinometer is considered to be a useful instrument because it is inexpensive and easy to use. No previous study assessed inter-observer reproducibility of range of motion measurements with a digital inclinometer by physical therapists in a large sample of patients. METHODS: Two physical therapists independently measured the passive range of motion of the glenohumeral abduction and the external rotation in 155 patients with shoulder pain. Agreement was quantified by calculation of the mean differences between the observers and the standard deviation (SD) of this difference and the limits of agreement, defined as the mean difference ± 1.96*SD of this difference. Reliability was quantified by means of the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). RESULTS: The limits of agreement were 0.8 ± 19.6 for glenohumeral abduction and -4.6 ± 18.8 for external rotation (affected side) and quite similar for the contralateral side and the differences between sides. The percentage agreement within 10° for these measurements were 72% and 70% respectively. The ICC ranged from 0.28 to 0.90 (0.83 and 0.90 for the affected side). CONCLUSIONS: The inter-observer agreement was found to be poor. If individual patients are assessed by two different observers, differences in range of motion of less than 20–25 degrees can not be distuinguished from measurement error. In contrast, acceptable reliability was found for the inclinometric measurements of the affected side and the differences between the sides, indicating that the inclimeter can be used in studies in which groups are compared

Insulin resistance, lipotoxicity, type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis: the missing links. The Claude Bernard Lecture 2009

Insulin resistance is a hallmark of type 2 diabetes mellitus and is associated with a metabolic and cardiovascular cluster of disorders (dyslipidaemia, hypertension, obesity [especially visceral], glucose intolerance, endothelial dysfunction), each of which is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Multiple prospective studies have documented an association between insulin resistance and accelerated CVD in patients with type 2 diabetes, as well as in non-diabetic individuals. The molecular causes of insulin resistance, i.e. impaired insulin signalling through the phosphoinositol-3 kinase pathway with intact signalling through the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, are responsible for the impairment in insulin-stimulated glucose metabolism and contribute to the accelerated rate of CVD in type 2 diabetes patients. The current epidemic of diabetes is being driven by the obesity epidemic, which represents a state of tissue fat overload. Accumulation of toxic lipid metabolites (fatty acyl CoA, diacylglycerol, ceramide) in muscle, liver, adipocytes, beta cells and arterial tissues contributes to insulin resistance, beta cell dysfunction and accelerated atherosclerosis, respectively, in type 2 diabetes. Treatment with thiazolidinediones mobilises fat out of tissues, leading to enhanced insulin sensitivity, improved beta cell function and decreased atherogenesis. Insulin resistance and lipotoxicity represent the missing links (beyond the classical cardiovascular risk factors) that help explain the accelerated rate of CVD in type 2 diabetic patients

Recombinant Human Growth Hormone and Rosiglitazone for Abdominal Fat Accumulation in HIV- Infected Patients with Insulin Resistance: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Factorial Trial

Background: Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) reduces visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume in HIV-infected patients but can worsen glucose homeostasis and lipoatrophy. We aimed to determine if adding rosiglitazone to rhGH would abrogate the adverse effects of rhGH on insulin sensitivity (SI) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) volume. Methodology/Principal Findings: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial using a 262 factorial design in which HIV-infected subjects with abdominal obesity and insulin resistance were randomized to rhGH 3 mg daily, rosiglitazone 4 mg twice daily, combination rhGH + rosiglitazone, or double placebo (control) for 12 weeks. The primary endpoint was change in SI by frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test from entry to week 12. Body composition was assessed by whole body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and dual Xray absorptiometry (DEXA). Seventy-seven subjects were randomized of whom 72 initiated study drugs. Change in SI from entry to week 12 differed across the 4 arms by 1-way ANCOVA (P = 0.02); by pair-wise comparisons, only rhGH (decreasing SI; P = 0.03) differed significantly from control. Changes from entry to week 12 in fasting glucose and glucose area under the curve on 2- hour oral glucose tolerance test differed across arms (1-way ANCOVA P = 0.004), increasing in the rhGH arm relative to control. VAT decreased significantly in the rhGH arms (217.5% in rhGH/rosiglitazone and 222.7% in rhGH) but not in the rosiglitazone alone (22.5%) or control arms (21.9%). SAT did not change significantly in any arm. DEXA results were consistent with the MRI data. There was no significant rhGH x rosiglitazone interaction for any body composition parameter. Conclusions/Significance: The addition of rosiglitazone abrogated the adverse effects of rhGH on insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance while not significantly modifying the lowering effect of rhGH on VAT