Exercise-Induced Changes in Exhaled NO Differentiates Asthma With or Without Fixed Airway Obstruction From COPD With Dynamic Hyperinflation.

Asthmatic patients with fixed airway obstruction (FAO) and patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) share similarities in terms of irreversible pulmonary function impairment. Exhaled nitric oxide (eNO) has been documented as a marker of airway inflammation in asthma, but not in COPD. To examine whether the basal eNO level and the change after exercise may differentiate asthmatics with FAO from COPD, 27 normal subjects, 60 stable asthmatics, and 62 stable COPD patients were studied. Asthmatics with FAO (n = 29) were defined as showing a postbronchodilator FEV(1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) ≤70% and FEV(1) less than 80% predicted after inhaled salbutamol (400 μg). COPD with dynamic hyperinflation (n = 31) was defined as a decrease in inspiratory capacity (ΔIC%) after a 6 minute walk test (6MWT). Basal levels of eNO were significantly higher in asthmatics and COPD patients compared to normal subjects. The changes in eNO after 6MWT were negatively correlated with the percent change in IC (r = −0.380, n = 29, P = 0.042) in asthmatics with FAO. Their levels of basal eNO correlated with the maximum mid-expiratory flow (MMEF % predicted) before and after 6MWT. In COPD patients with air-trapping, the percent change of eNO was positively correlated to ΔIC% (rs = 0.404, n = 31, P = 0.024). We conclude that asthma with FAO may represent residual inflammation in the airways, while dynamic hyperinflation in COPD may retain NO in the distal airspace. eNO changes after 6MWT may differentiate the subgroups of asthma or COPD patients and will help toward delivery of individualized therapy for airflow obstruction

Memory-built-in quantum teleportation with photonic and atomic qubits

The combination of quantum teleportation and quantum memory of photonic qubits is essential for future implementations of large-scale quantum communication and measurement-based quantum computation. Both steps have been achieved separately in many proof-of-principle experiments, but the demonstration of memory-built-in teleportation of photonic qubits remains an experimental challenge. Here, we demonstrate teleportation between photonic (flying) and atomic (stationary) qubits. In our experiment, an unknown polarization state of a single photon is teleported over 7 m onto a remote atomic qubit that also serves as a quantum memory. The teleported state can be stored and successfully read out for up to 8 micro-second. Besides being of fundamental interest, teleportation between photonic and atomic qubits with the direct inclusion of a readable quantum memory represents a step towards an efficient and scalable quantum network.Comment: 19 pages 3 figures 1 tabl

Stable nondegenerate optical parametric oscillation at degenerate frequencies in Na:KTP

We report the realization of a light source specifically designed for the generation of bright continuous-variable entangled beams and for Heisenberg-limited inteferometry. The source is a nondegenerate, single-mode, continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator in Na:KTP, operated at frequency degeneracy and just above threshold, which is also of interest for the study of critical fluctuations at the transition point. The residual frequency-difference jitter is $\pm$ 150 kHz for a 3 MHz cold cavity half-width at half maximum. We observe 4 dB of photon-number-difference squeezing at 200 kHz. The Na:KTP crystal is noncritically phase-matched for a 532 nm pump and polarization crosstalk is therefore practically nonexistent

Effects of Thyroxine Exposure on Osteogenesis in Mouse Calvarial Pre-Osteoblasts

The incidence of craniosynostosis is one in every 1,800-2500 births. The gene-environment model proposes that if a genetic predisposition is coupled with environmental exposures, the effects can be multiplicative resulting in severely abnormal phenotypes. At present, very little is known about the role of gene-environment interactions in modulating craniosynostosis phenotypes, but prior evidence suggests a role for endocrine factors. Here we provide a report of the effects of thyroid hormone exposure on murine calvaria cells. Murine derived calvaria cells were exposed to critical doses of pharmaceutical thyroxine and analyzed after 3 and 7 days of treatment. Endpoint assays were designed to determine the effects of the hormone exposure on markers of osteogenesis and included, proliferation assay, quantitative ALP activity assay, targeted qPCR for mRNA expression of Runx2, Alp, Ocn, and Twist1, genechip array for 28,853 targets, and targeted osteogenic microarray with qPCR confirmations. Exposure to thyroxine stimulated the cells to express ALP in a dose dependent manner. There were no patterns of difference observed for proliferation. Targeted RNA expression data confirmed expression increases for Alp and Ocn at 7 days in culture. The genechip array suggests substantive expression differences for 46 gene targets and the targeted osteogenesis microarray indicated 23 targets with substantive differences. 11 gene targets were chosen for qPCR confirmation because of their known association with bone or craniosynostosis (Col2a1, Dmp1, Fgf1, 2, Igf1, Mmp9, Phex, Tnf, Htra1, Por, and Dcn). We confirmed substantive increases in mRNA for Phex, FGF1, 2, Tnf, Dmp1, Htra1, Por, Igf1 and Mmp9, and substantive decreases for Dcn. It appears thyroid hormone may exert its effects through increasing osteogenesis. Targets isolated suggest a possible interaction for those gene products associated with calvarial suture growth and homeostasis as well as craniosynostosis. © 2013 Cray et al

Block of NMDA receptor channels by endogenous neurosteroids: implications for the agonist induced conformational states of the channel vestibule

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) mediate synaptic plasticity, and their dysfunction is implicated in multiple brain disorders. NMDARs can be allosterically modulated by numerous compounds, including endogenous neurosteroid pregnanolone sulfate. Here, we identify the molecular basis of the use-dependent and voltage-independent inhibitory effect of neurosteroids on NMDAR responses. The site of action is located at the extracellular vestibule of the receptor's ion channel pore and is accessible after receptor activation. Mutations in the extracellular vestibule in the SYTANLAAF motif disrupt the inhibitory effect of negatively charged steroids. In contrast, positively charged steroids inhibit mutated NMDAR responses in a voltage-dependent manner. These results, in combination with molecular modeling, characterize structure details of the open configuration of the NMDAR channel. Our results provide a unique opportunity for the development of new therapeutic neurosteroid-based ligands to treat diseases associated with dysfunction of the glutamate system

Theory of Kondo lattices and its application to high-temperature superconductivity and pseudo-gaps in cuprate oxides

A theory of Kondo lattices is developed for the t-J model on a square lattice. The spin susceptibility is described in a form consistent with a physical picture of Kondo lattices: Local spin fluctuations at different sites interact with each other by a bare intersite exchange interaction, which is mainly composed of two terms such as the superexchange interaction, which arises from the virtual exchange of spin-channel pair excitations of electrons across the Mott-Hubbard gap, and an exchange interaction arising from that of Gutzwiller's quasi-particles. The bare exchange interaction is enhanced by intersite spin fluctuations developed because of itself. The enhanced exchange interaction is responsible for the development of superconducting fluctuations as well as the Cooper pairing between Gutzwiller's quasi-particles. On the basis of the microscopic theory, we develop a phenomenological theory of low-temperature superconductivity and pseudo-gaps in the under-doped region as well as high-temperature superconductivity in the optimal-doped region. Anisotropic pseudo-gaps open mainly because of d\gamma-wave superconducting low-energy fluctuations: Quasi-particle spectra around (\pm\pi/a,0) and (0,\pm\pi/a), with a the lattice constant, or X points at the chemical potential are swept away by strong inelastic scatterings, and quasi-particles are well defined only around (\pm\pi/2a,\pm\pi/2a) on the Fermi surface or line. As temperatures decrease in the vicinity of superconducting critical temperatures, pseudo-gaps become smaller and the well-defined region is extending toward X points. The condensation of d\gamma-wave Cooper pairs eventually occurs at low enough temperatures when the pair breaking by inelastic scatterings becomes small enough.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figure

In vivo axial loading of the mouse tibia

Noninvasive methods to apply controlled, cyclic loads to the living skeleton are used as anabolic procedures to stimulate new bone formation in adults and enhance bone mass accrual in growing animals. These methods are also invaluable for understanding bone signaling pathways. Our focus here is on a particular loading model: in vivo axial compression of the mouse tibia. An advantage of loading the tibia is that changes are present in both the cancellous envelope of the proximal tibia and the cortical bone of the tibial diaphysis. To load the tibia of the mouse axially in vivo, a cyclic compressive load is applied up to five times a week to a single tibia per mouse for a duration lasting from 1 day to 6 weeks. With the contralateral limb as an internal control, the anabolic response of the skeleton to mechanical stimuli can be studied in a pairwise experimental design. Here, we describe the key parameters that must be considered before beginning an in vivo mouse tibial loading experiment, including methods for in vivo strain gauging of the tibial midshaft, and then we describe general methods for loading the mouse tibia for an experiment lasting multiple days

Study on inform ation service system for ocean d isa ster preven tion and reduction in Ta iwan Stra it ar ea

[摘要]：台湾海峡及其周边海域是我国海洋灾害发生的重点区域, 充分利用我国在该区域投入巨资 构建的海洋动力环境实时立体监测系统所获取的海洋动力参数数据, 构建区域性防灾减灾信息服务 系统具有重要的意义。从台湾海峡海洋动力环境立体监测数据防灾减灾应用和网络服务角度出发, 提出了防灾减灾信息服务的数据服务、信息服务和决策服务等3个层次的划分方法, 研究了基于数 据仓库、XML、中间件和基于地球球体模型的三维可视化等的服务技术实现策略。提出的防灾减灾 信息服务系统构建技术充分考虑了不同用户的应用需求, 并通过工程化实践提升了我国海洋动力环 境立体监测信息的广泛共享和深度应用的层次。[Abstract]:Taiwan Stra it and its c ircumjacent ocean region are main region of ocean disaster occurrence in Ch ina, so substantive fund has been devoted to construct ocean ic dynamic environment stereo rea l2timemon itoring system. Then the construction of information service system for oceanic d isaster prevention and reduction is of great impor2 tance tomak ing the best of the acqu ired data. In this paper, the service content partitionwas put forward firstly ac2 cord ing to the requirement of the ocean disaster prevention and reduction, which includes three aspects, .i e. data service, information service and decision2making service. The service realization technologieswere studied, wh ich includes datawarehouse, XML, middle2ware and three2dimensional visualization based on earth spheremode.l The technology system presented in th is paper upgraded the ocean dynamic environment stereomon itoring data sharing and its app lication level in Ch ina through meeting the requ irement of users and engineer ing app lication practice.国家高新技术研究发展计划( 863 计划)项目资助( 2009AA12Z208

Distinct Steps of Neural Induction Revealed by Asterix, Obelix and TrkC, Genes Induced by Different Signals from the Organizer

The amniote organizer (Hensen's node) can induce a complete nervous system when grafted into a peripheral region of a host embryo. Although BMP inhibition has been implicated in neural induction, non-neural cells cannot respond to BMP antagonists unless previously exposed to a node graft for at least 5 hours before BMP inhibitors. To define signals and responses during the first 5 hours of node signals, a differential screen was conducted. Here we describe three early response genes: two of them, Asterix and Obelix, encode previously undescribed proteins of unknown function but Obelix appears to be a nuclear RNA-binding protein. The third is TrkC, a neurotrophin receptor. All three genes are induced by a node graft within 4–5 hours but they differ in the extent to which they are inducible by FGF: FGF is both necessary and sufficient to induce Asterix, sufficient but not necessary to induce Obelix and neither sufficient nor necessary for induction of TrkC. These genes are also not induced by retinoic acid, Noggin, Chordin, Dkk1, Cerberus, HGF/SF, Somatostatin or ionomycin-mediated Calcium entry. Comparison of the expression and regulation of these genes with other early neural markers reveals three distinct “epochs”, or temporal waves, of gene expression accompanying neural induction by a grafted organizer, which are mirrored by specific stages of normal neural plate development. The results are consistent with neural induction being a cascade of responses elicited by different signals, culminating in the formation of a patterned nervous system

The use of MRI apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) in monitoring the development of brain infarction

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To study the rules that apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) changes with time and space in cerebral infarction, and to provide the evidence in defining the infarction stages.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>117 work-ups in 98 patients with cerebral infarction (12 hyperacute, 43 acute, 29 subacute, 10 steady, and 23 chronic infarctions) were imaged with both conventional MRI and diffusion weighted imaging. The average ADC values, the relative ADC (rADC) values, and the ADC values or rADC values from the center to the periphery of the lesion were calculated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The average ADC values and the rADC values of hyperacute and acute infarction lesion depressed obviously. rADC values in hyperacute and acute stage was minimized, and increased progressively as time passed and appeared as "pseudonormal" values in approximately 8 to 14 days. Thereafter, rADC values became greater than normal in chronic stage. There was positive correlation between rADC values and time (P < 0.01). The ADC values and the rADC values in hyperacute and acute lesions had gradient signs that these lesions increased from the center to the periphery. The ADC values and the rADC values in subacute lesions had adverse gradient signs that these lesions decreased from the center to the periphery.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The ADC values of infarction lesions have evolution rules with time and space. The evolution rules with time and those in space can be helpful to decide the clinical stage, and to provide the evidence in guiding the treatment or judging the prognosis in infarction.</p