6,092 research outputs found
Multiple mechanisms of spiral wave breakup in a model of cardiac electrical activity
It has become widely accepted that the most dangerous cardiac arrhythmias are
due to re- entrant waves, i.e., electrical wave(s) that re-circulate repeatedly
throughout the tissue at a higher frequency than the waves produced by the
heart's natural pacemaker (sinoatrial node). However, the complicated structure
of cardiac tissue, as well as the complex ionic currents in the cell, has made
it extremely difficult to pinpoint the detailed mechanisms of these
life-threatening reentrant arrhythmias. A simplified ionic model of the cardiac
action potential (AP), which can be fitted to a wide variety of experimentally
and numerically obtained mesoscopic characteristics of cardiac tissue such as
AP shape and restitution of AP duration and conduction velocity, is used to
explain many different mechanisms of spiral wave breakup which in principle can
occur in cardiac tissue. Some, but not all, of these mechanisms have been
observed before using other models; therefore, the purpose of this paper is to
demonstrate them using just one framework model and to explain the different
parameter regimes or physiological properties necessary for each mechanism
(such as high or low excitability, corresponding to normal or ischemic tissue,
spiral tip trajectory types, and tissue structures such as rotational
anisotropy and periodic boundary conditions). Each mechanism is compared with
data from other ionic models or experiments to illustrate that they are not
model-specific phenomena. The fact that many different breakup mechanisms exist
has important implications for antiarrhythmic drug design and for comparisons
of fibrillation experiments using different species, electromechanical
uncoupling drugs, and initiation protocols.Comment: 128 pages, 42 figures (29 color, 13 b&w
The Cataclysmic Variable CW 1045+525: A Secondary-Dominated Dwarf Nova?
We present spectroscopic and photometric observations of the cataclysmic variable CW 1045+525. Both the optical spectrum and the photometric lightcurve show a strong contribution of a K5V–M0V secondary. We derive an orbital period Porb = 0.271278(1) d by measuring the radial velocities of the absorption lines of the secondary. The period and spectral type of the secondary suggest a distance of 350–700 pc. There is evidence for additional sources of line- and continuum emission, but no direct evidence of an accretion disc. We discuss several scenarios for the nature of CW 1045+525 on the basis of our results, finding a dwarf nova classification to be the most probable, although not completely satisfying, explanation for the observed characteristics
Investigating the relationship between HIV testing and risk behaviour in Britain: National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles 2000.
OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of, and identify factors associated with, HIV testing in Britain. DESIGN: A large, stratified probability sample survey of sexual attitudes and lifestyles. METHODS: A total of 12,110 16-44 year olds completed a computer-assisted face-to-face interview and self-interview. Self-reports of HIV testing, i.e. the timing, reasons for and location of testing, were included. RESULTS: A total of 32.4% of men and 31.7% of women reported ever having had an HIV test, the majority of whom were tested through blood donation. When screening for blood donation and pregnancy were excluded, 9.0% of men and 4.6% of women had had a voluntary confidential HIV test (VCT) in the past 5 years. However, one third of injecting drug users and men who have sex with men had a VCT in the past 5 years. VCT in the past 5 years was significantly associated with age, residence, ethnicity, self-perceived HIV risk, reporting greater numbers of sexual partners, new sexual partners from abroad, previous sexually transmitted infection diagnosis, and injecting non-prescribed drugs for men and women, and same-sex partners (men only). Whereas sexually transmitted disease clinics were important sites for VCT, general practice accounted for almost a quarter of VCT. CONCLUSION: HIV testing is relatively common in Britain; however, it remains largely associated with population-based blood donation and antenatal screening programmes. In contrast, VCT remains highly associated with high-risk (sexual or drug-injecting) behaviours or population sub-groups at high risk. Strategies to reduce undiagnosed prevalent HIV infection will require further normalization and wider uptake of HIV testing
Cardiac cell modelling: Observations from the heart of the cardiac physiome project
In this manuscript we review the state of cardiac cell modelling in the context of international initiatives such as the IUPS Physiome and Virtual Physiological Human Projects, which aim to integrate computational models across scales and physics. In particular we focus on the relationship between experimental data and model parameterisation across a range of model types and cellular physiological systems. Finally, in the context of parameter identification and model reuse within the Cardiac Physiome, we suggest some future priority areas for this field
Increasing prevalence of male homosexual partnerships and practices in Britain 1990-2000: evidence from national probability surveys.
OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence and timing of homosexual experience among British men; to explore the patterns of sexual practices and partnerships in 2000, and behavioural and attitudinal changes between 1990 and 2000 among men who have sex with men (MSM). DESIGN: Two large, stratified probability sample surveys of the general population. METHODS: Trained interviewers administered a combination of face-to-face and self-completion questionnaires to men aged 16 to 44 years resident in Britain (n = 6000 in 1990 and n = 4762 in 2000). RESULTS: In 2000, 2.8% of British men reported sex with men in the past 5 years. 46.0% of MSM reported five or more partners in the past 5 years, and 59.8% reported unprotected anal intercourse in the past year. A total of 33.0% of MSM reported one or more female partner(s) in the past year. In comparison with 1990, there was a significant increase in the proportion of MSM in the population in 2000, and among these men, in the proportion reporting receptive anal intercourse in the past year [age-adjusted odds ratio (OR), 2.08; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.08-4.00], but no significant change in self-perceived HIV-risk (age-adjusted OR, 1.11; 95% CI, 0.49-2.51) or HIV testing in past 5 years (age-adjusted OR, 1.14; 95% CI, 0.57-2.25). CONCLUSIONS: Evidence of increasing prevalence of homosexual intercourse among the British male population coupled with increases in some HIV-risk behaviours among MSM suggests overall increasing numbers at risk in the population. Although these changes may partly reflect an increased willingness to report these behaviours, our results are consistent with increasing incidence of sexually transmitted infections and behavioural surveillance data
Reconstructing Cardiac Electrical Excitations from Optical Mapping Recordings
The reconstruction of electrical excitation patterns through the unobserved
depth of the tissue is essential to realizing the potential of computational
models in cardiac medicine. We have utilized experimental optical-mapping
recordings of cardiac electrical excitation on the epicardial and endocardial
surfaces of a canine ventricle as observations directing a local ensemble
transform Kalman Filter (LETKF) data assimilation scheme. We demonstrate that
the inclusion of explicit information about the stimulation protocol can
marginally improve the confidence of the ensemble reconstruction and the
reliability of the assimilation over time. Likewise, we consider the efficacy
of stochastic modeling additions to the assimilation scheme in the context of
experimentally derived observation sets. Approximation error is addressed at
both the observation and modeling stages, through the uncertainty of
observations and the specification of the model used in the assimilation
ensemble. We find that perturbative modifications to the observations have
marginal to deleterious effects on the accuracy and robustness of the state
reconstruction. Further, we find that incorporating additional information from
the observations into the model itself (in the case of stimulus and stochastic
currents) has a marginal improvement on the reconstruction accuracy over a
fully autonomous model, while complicating the model itself and thus
introducing potential for new types of model error. That the inclusion of
explicit modeling information has negligible to negative effects on the
reconstruction implies the need for new avenues for optimization of data
assimilation schemes applied to cardiac electrical excitation.Comment: main text: 18 pages, 10 figures; supplement: 5 pages, 9 figures, 2
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Spectroscopy of Seven Cataclysmic Variables with Periods Above Five Hours
We present spectroscopy of seven cataclysmic variable stars with orbital
periods P(orb) greater than 5 hours, all but one of which are known to be dwarf
novae. Using radial velocity measurements we improve on previous orbital period
determinations, or derive periods for the first time. The stars and their
periods are
TT Crt, 0.2683522(5) d;
EZ Del, 0.2234(5) d;
LL Lyr, 0.249069(4) d;
UY Pup, 0.479269(7) d;
RY Ser, 0.3009(4) d;
CH UMa, 0.3431843(6) d; and
SDSS J081321+452809, 0.2890(4) d.
For each of the systems we detect the spectrum of the secondary star,
estimate its spectral type, and derive a distance based on the surface
brightness and Roche lobe constraints. In five systems we also measure the
radial velocity curve of the secondary star, estimate orbital inclinations, and
where possible estimate distances based on the MV(max) vs.P(orb) relation found
by Warner. In concordance with previous studies, we find that all the secondary
stars have, to varying degrees, cooler spectral types than would be expected if
they were on the main sequence at the measured orbital period.Comment: 25 pages, 2 figures, accepted for Publications of the Astronomical
Society of the Pacifi
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