Induction of morphological aberrations by enzyme inhibition in Drosophila melanogaster

Zusatz zum Futter vonDrosophila melanogaster von 5-Fluoro-2-deoxyuridin oder Aminopterin induziert überzählige Skutellar- und Dorsozentralborsten sowie gekerbte Flügel. Diese Modifikationen wurden als Konsequenz von Enzymhemmung interpretiert

Van stikstofproefbedrijven naar duurzame melkveebedrijven

In dit artikel worden de belangrijke functies die de stikstofproefbedrijven hadden en de overgang naar duurzame melkveebedrijven nader belicht

In situ infrared absorption spectroscopy of dusty plasmas

International audienceIn situ, time-resolved Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to study particulate formation in rf discharges in mixtures of silane, argon, and nitrogen. The spectra were taken at a maximum rate of 20 Hz. The discharge conditions were chosen such that previous calibrations of the time evolutions of particle size and density could be used. The measurements indicate that the onset of the solid-state vibrational absorptions of the SiH and SiH 2 bands only takes place after the nucleation and coagulation phase have finished; it coincides with the previously predicted start of the deposition of amorphous hydrogenated silicon on the particles. The dissociation of the silane feed gas is found to be in the range of 30%, and its time development suggests that also the large-scale dissociation of silane only starts after the coagulation phase. This is in agreement with previously observed trends for the electron temperature. If silicon partilces are grown in the plasma, and the silane flow is stopped, the Si particles stay trapped in the glow. The infrared measurements, however, show that they almost completely oxidize: the SiH/SiH 2 vibrations disappear and a strong SiO vibration appears. If nitrogen gas is allowed into the plasma, the SiO vibration is replaced by a SiN vibration

Factors associated with physiotherapy provision in a population of elderly nursing home residents; a cross sectional study

BACKGROUND: Although physiotherapy (PT) plays an important role in improving activities of daily living (ADL functioning) and discharge rates, it is unclear how many nursing home residents receive treatment. Furthermore, there is a lack of insight into the determinants that influence the decision for treatment. In this study, we investigated how many nursing home residents receive PT. In addition, we analysed the factors that contribute to the variation in the provision of PT both between nursing homes and between residents. METHODS: A random sample of 600 elderly residents was taken from a random sample of 15 nursing homes. Residents had to be admitted for rehabilitation or for long-term care. Data were collected through interviews with the nursing home physician and the physiotherapist. Multilevel analysis was used to define the variation in the provision of PT and the factors that are associated with the question whether a resident receives PT or not. Furthermore the amount of PT provided was analysed and the factors that are associated with this. RESULTS: On average 69% of the residents received PT. The percentage of patients receiving treatment differed significantly across nursing homes, and especially the number of physiotherapists available, explained this difference between nursing homes. Residents admitted to a somatic ward for rehabilitation, and male residents in general, were most likely to receive PT. Residents who were treated by a physiotherapist received on average 55 minutes (sd 41) treatment a week. Residents admitted for rehabilitation received more PT a week, as were residents with a status after a total hip replacement. CONCLUSION: PT is most likely to be provided to residents on a somatic ward, recently admitted for rehabilitation to a nursing home, which has a relatively large number of physiotherapists. This suggests a potential under-use of PT for long-term residents with cognitive problems. It is recommended that physiotherapists reconsider which residents may benefit from treatment. This may require a shift in the focus of physiotherapists from 'recovery and discharge' to 'quality of life and well-being'

Price-based control of ancillary services for power balancing

A reliable and an efficient power system is a necessity for any industrialized society. Governments have to enforce regulations to guarantee that such a power system, in spite of many competing stakeholders, participants, companies, and regulating agencies can be operational. This paper analyzes the present arrangements and the future requirements to be posed on incentives and regulation for ancillary services (AS) for power balancing. The paper proposes companies to assess their own needs for AS. A two-sided market for AS is being described to replace the existing arrangements for secondary control. The proposed solution guarantees a reliable and efficient operation of power systems in a market environment with responsive, reliable, and accountable but also competing prosumers, a large penetration of less-predictable renewables and continent-spanning transmission networks

Soil aggregate stability governs field greenhouse gas fluxes in agricultural soils

Agriculture is responsible for 30–50% of the yearly CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions. Soils have an important role in the production and consumption of these greenhouse gases (GHGs), with soil aggregates and the inhabiting microbes proposed to function as biogeochemical reactors, processing these gases. Here we studied, for the first time, the relationship between GHG fluxes and aggregate stability as determined via laser diffraction analysis (LDA) of agricultural soils, as well as the effect of sustainable agricultural management strategies thereon. Using the static chamber method, all soils were found to be sinks for CH4 and sources for CO2 and N2O. The application of organic amendments did not have a conclusive effect on soil GHG fluxes, but tilled soils emitted more CO2. LDA was a useful and improved method for assessing soil aggregate stability, as it allows for the determination of multiple classes of aggregates and their structural composition, thereby overcoming limitations of traditional wet sieving. Organic matter content was the main steering factor of aggregate stability. The presence of persistent stable aggregates and the disintegration coefficient of stable aggregates were improved in organic-amended and no-tilled soils. Predictive modelling showed that, especially in these soils, aggregate stability was a governing factor of GHG fluxes. Higher soil CH4 uptake rates were associated with higher aggregate stability, while CO2 and N2O emissions increased with higher aggregate stability. Altogether, it was shown that sustainable agricultural management strategies can be used to steer the soil's aggregate stability and, both consequently and outright, the soil GHG fluxes, thereby creating a potential to contribute to the mitigation of agricultural GHG emissions.</p

Improved stability regions for ground states of the extended Hubbard model

The ground state phase diagram of the extended Hubbard model containing nearest and next-to-nearest neighbor interactions is investigated in the thermodynamic limit using an exact method. It is found that taking into account local correlations and adding next-to-nearest neighbor interactions both have significant effects on the position of the phase boundaries. Improved stability domains for the $\eta$-pairing state and for the fully saturated ferromagnetic state at half filling have been constructed. The results show that these states are the ground states for model Hamiltonians with realistic values of the interaction parameters.Comment: 21 pages (10 figures are included) Revtex, revised version. To be published in Phys. Rev. B. E-mail: [email protected]

The course of problematic social media use in young adolescents: A latent class growth analysis

Using four waves of longitudinal data collected in 2015-2019 from 1419 Dutch adolescents (Mage = 12.5, 45.9% female, 21.9% immigrant), this study identified trajectories of problematic social media use (SMU) in parallel with trajectories of SMU frequency. Latent class growth analysis identified two subgroups with relatively high levels of problematic SMU over time: One showed high (24.7%) and one showed average SMU frequency (15.8%). Also, two subgroups with persistently low levels of problematic SMU were identified: One reported low (22.4%) and one reported high SMU frequency (37.1%). Although both subgroups with high levels of problematic SMU reported low subjective well-being, the group with high SMU frequency showed low self-control, whereas the group with average SMU frequency reported poor social competencies

Association of high-level MCL-1 expression with in vitro and in vivo prednisone resistance in MLL-rearranged infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Abstract MLL-rearranged acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) represents an unfavorable type of leukemia that often is highly resistant to glucocorticoids such as prednisone and dexamethasone. Because response to prednisone largely determines clinical outcome of pediatric patients with ALL, overcoming resistance to this drug may be an important step toward improving prognosis. Here, we show how gene expression profiling identifies high-level MCL-1 expression to be associated with prednisolone resistance in MLL-rearranged infant ALL, as well as in more favorable types of childhood ALL. To validate this observation, we determined MCL-1 expression with quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction in a cohort of MLL-rearranged infant ALL and pediatric noninfant ALL samples and confirmed that high-level MCL-1 expression is associated with prednisolone resistance in vitro. In addition, MCL-1 expression appeared to be significantly higher in MLL-rearranged infant patients who showed a poor response to prednisone in vivo compared with prednisone good responders. Finally, down-regulation of MCL-1 in prednisolone-resistant MLL-rearranged leukemia cells by RNA interference, to some extent, led to prednisolone sensitization. Collectively, our findings suggest a potential role for MCL-1 in glucocorticoid resistance in MLL-rearranged infant ALL, but at the same time strongly imply that high-level MCL-1 expression is not the sole mechanism providing resistance to these drugs