Advanced data acquisition system implementation for the ITER Neutron Diagnostic use case using EPICS and FlexRIO technology on a PXIe platform

In the framework of the ITER Control Breakdown Structure (CBS), Plant System Instrumentation & Control (I&C) defines the hardware and software required to control one or more plant systems [1]. For diagnostics, most of the complex Plant System I&C are to be delivered by ITER Domestic Agencies (DAs). As an example for the DAs, ITER Organization (IO) has developed several use cases for diagnostics Plant System I&C that fully comply with guidelines presented in the Plant Control Design Handbook (PCDH) [2]. One such use case is for neutron diagnostics, specifically the Fission Chamber (FC), which is responsible for delivering time-resolved measurements of neutron source strength and fusion power to aid in assessing the functional performance of ITER [3]. ITER will deploy four Fission Chamber units, each consisting of three individual FC detectors. Two of these detectors contain Uranium 235 for Neutron detection, while a third "dummy" detector will provide gamma and noise detection. The neutron flux from each MFC is measured by the three methods: . Counting Mode: measures the number of individual pulses and their location in the record. Pulse parameters (threshold and width) are user configurable. . Campbelling Mode (Mean Square Voltage): measures the RMS deviation in signal amplitude from its average value. .Current Mode: integrates the signal amplitude over the measurement perio

Elastin Peptides Signaling Relies on Neuraminidase-1-Dependent Lactosylceramide Generation

The sialidase activity of neuraminidase-1 (Neu-1) is responsible for ERK 1/2 pathway activation following binding of elastin peptide on the elastin receptor complex. In this work, we demonstrate that the receptor and lipid rafts colocalize at the plasma membrane. We also show that the disruption of these microdomains as well as their depletion in glycolipids blocks the receptor signaling. Following elastin peptide treatment, the cellular GM3 level decreases while lactosylceramide (LacCer) content increases consistently with a GM3/LacCer conversion. The use of lactose or Neu-1 siRNA blocks this process suggesting that the elastin receptor complex is responsible for this lipid conversion. Flow cytometry analysis confirms this elastin peptide-driven LacCer generation. Further, the use of a monoclonal anti-GM3 blocking antibody shows that GM3 is required for signaling. In conclusion, our data strongly suggest that Neu-1-dependent GM3/LacCer conversion is the key event leading to signaling by the elastin receptor complex. As a consequence, we propose that LacCer is an early messenger for this receptor

Measuring Central Bank Independence: Ordering, Ranking, or Scoring?

Central bank independence (CBI)as an area for international comparison and for study by international political economists has been around for approximately two decades, spurred on by the work of Bade and Parkin (1982). It probably reached its full fruition with the work of Cukierman and others, centering on work done at the World Bank. There are others too, and we should not ignore them, but since the mid-1990s most of the work done has centered on the Cukierman-type model. Interest in the CBI intensified after models of monetary policy found the likelihood of an inflationary bias in monetary policy operated by democratic governments. That analysis turned on the potential for monetary surprises being perpetrated by governments seeking electoral advantage. Later analysis found that if such incentives were fully anticipated by the public, inflation rates in democracies are higher than they would be if somehow government could make a credible commitment to price stability. The search began for how to establish monetary institutions that can be viewed as credible commitments. Delegation of monetary policy to an independent central bank was one strand of that exploration

Retention of Memory through Metamorphosis: Can a Moth Remember What It Learned As a Caterpillar?

Insects that undergo complete metamorphosis experience enormous changes in both morphology and lifestyle. The current study examines whether larval experience can persist through pupation into adulthood in Lepidoptera, and assesses two possible mechanisms that could underlie such behavior: exposure of emerging adults to chemicals from the larval environment, or associative learning transferred to adulthood via maintenance of intact synaptic connections. Fifth instar Manduca sexta caterpillars received an electrical shock associatively paired with a specific odor in order to create a conditioned odor aversion, and were assayed for learning in a Y choice apparatus as larvae and again as adult moths. We show that larvae learned to avoid the training odor, and that this aversion was still present in the adults. The adult aversion did not result from carryover of chemicals from the larval environment, as neither applying odorants to naïve pupae nor washing the pupae of trained caterpillars resulted in a change in behavior. In addition, we report that larvae trained at third instar still showed odor aversion after two molts, as fifth instars, but did not avoid the odor as adults, consistent with the idea that post-metamorphic recall involves regions of the brain that are not produced until later in larval development. The present study, the first to demonstrate conclusively that associative memory survives metamorphosis in Lepidoptera, provokes intriguing new questions about the organization and persistence of the central nervous system during metamorphosis. Our results have both ecological and evolutionary implications, as retention of memory through metamorphosis could influence host choice by polyphagous insects, shape habitat selection, and lead to eventual sympatric speciation

Hydrolyzed eggshell membrane immobilized on phosphorylcholine polymer supplies extracellular matrix environment for human dermal fibroblasts

We have found that a water-soluble alkaline-digested form of eggshell membrane (ASESM) can provide an extracellular matrix (ECM) environment for human dermal fibroblast cells (HDF) in vitro. Avian eggshell membrane (ESM) has a fibrous-meshwork structure and has long been utilized as a Chinese medicine for recovery from burn injuries and wounds in Asian countries. Therefore, ESM is expected to provide an excellent natural material for biomedical use. However, such applications have been hampered by the insolubility of ESM proteins. We have used a recently developed artificial cell membrane biointerface, 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine polymer (PMBN) to immobilize ASESM proteins. The surface shows a fibrous structure under the atomic force microscope, and adhesion of HDF to ASESM is ASESM-dose-dependent. Quantitative mRNA analysis has revealed that the expression of type III collagen, matrix metalloproteinase-2, and decorin mRNAs is more than two-fold higher when HDF come into contact with a lower dose ASESM proteins immobilized on PMBN surface. A particle-exclusion assay with fixed erythrocytes has visualized secreted water-binding molecules around the cells. Thus, HDF seems to possess an ECM environment on the newly designed PMBN-ASESM surface, and future applications of the ASESM-PMBN system for biomedical use should be of great interest