Multidetector computed tomography findings of an asymptomatic levoatrial cardinal vein with an interatrial course

A 57-year-old female patient with a family history of coronary artery diseaseadmitted to our hospital for the coronary check-up. A coronary angiographywas performed with ECG-gated 128 slice dual source computed tomography.Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) showed, in addition to the normalcoronary arteries, a persistent levoatrial cardinal vein (LCV) draining into vena cavasuperior. ECG-gated cardiac MDCT is a useful tool showing the origin, course, anddrainage site of LCV

A Chemoattractant Role for NT-3 in Proprioceptive Axon Guidance

Neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) is required for proprioceptive neuron survival. Deletion of the proapoptotic gene Bax in NT-3 knockout mice rescues these neurons and allows for examination of their axon growth in the absence of NT-3 signaling. TrkC-positive peripheral and central axons from dorsal root ganglia follow proper trajectories and arrive in close proximity to their targets but fail to innervate them. Peripherally, muscle spindles are absent and TrkC-positive axons do not enter their target muscles. Centrally, proprioceptive axons branch in ectopic regions of the spinal cord, even crossing the midline. In vitro assays reveal chemoattractant effects of NT-3 on dorsal root ganglion axons. Our results show that survival factor NT-3 acts as a short-distance axon guidance molecule for muscle sensory afferents as they approach their proper targets

Which shape representation is the best for real-time hand interface system?

Hand is a very convenient interface for immersive human-computer interaction. Users can give commands to a computer by hand signs (hand postures, hand shapes) or hand movements (hand gestures). Such a hand interface system can be realized by using cameras as input devices, and software for analyzing the images. In this hand interface system, commands are recognized by analyzing the hand shapes and its trajectories in the images. Therefore, success of the recognition of hand shape is vital and depends on the discriminative power of the hand shape representation. There are many shape representation techniques in the literature. However, none of them are working properly for all shapes. While a representation leads to a good result for a set of shapes, it may fail in another one. Therefore, our aim is to find the most appropriate shape representation technique for hand shapes to be used in hand interfaces. Our candidate representations are Fourier Descriptors, Hu Moment Invariant, Shape Descriptors and Orientation Histogram. Based on widely-used hand shapes for an interface, we compared the representations in terms of their discriminative power and speed. © 2009 Springer-Verlag

The onset of convection in horizontally partitioned porous layers

In this paper, the onset of convection in a horizontally partitioned porous layer is investigated. Two identical sublayers are separated by a thin impermeable barrier. There exists a background horizontal flow in one of the layers or, equivalently, flows of half that strength in each sublayer but in opposite directions. A linearised stability analysis is performed where the horizontal component of the disturbance is factored into separate Fourier modes, leaving an ordinary differential eigenvalue problem for the critical Darcy-Rayleigh number as a function of the wavenumber. The dispersion relation is derived and the neutral stability curves are obtained for a wide range of horizontal flow rates. The presence of the horizontal flow alters the morphology of the neutral curves from that which occurs when there is no flow and travelling modes may arise. We also determine the condition under which the most dangerous disturbance changes from a stationary mode to travelling mode. Some three-dimensional aspects are also considered. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3589864

Children's Foreign Language Anxiety Scale: Preliminary Tests of Reliability and Validity

Foreign language anxiety (FLA), which constitutes a serious problem in the foreign language learning process, has been mainly seen as a research issue regarding adult language learners, while it has been overlooked in children. This is because there is a lack of appropriate tools to measure FLA among children, whereas there are many studies on the scales that aim to measure anxiety levels among adult learners. Thus, the current study aims to conduct the preliminary tests of reliability and validity of the Children's Foreign Language Anxiety Scale (CFLAS) and to report on the pilot examination of reliability, validity and factor structure of the CFLAS. The findings of the pilot study show that CFLAS is a reliable and valid tool to measure FLA levels among children who learn English as a foreign language (EFL) within the age range of 7-12 in a Turkish EFL context

Occurrence of anthrax in Kars district, Turkey.

The aims of the study were to determine the prevalence of anthrax by bacteriologic methods in cattle and sheep between January 2000 and September 2001 and to determine the distribution of this zoonotic disease in humans in Kars district, Turkey. Bacillus anthracis was isolated and identified in 34 out of 38 (91%) cattle and 11 out of 17 (64%) sheep samples obtained from organs suspected of anthrax. The records of the Governmental Health Branch showed that 89 cases of cutaneous anthrax were diagnosed in humans during the study periods in the same district

Influence of cadmium and copper on tissue element levels of pregnant rats

In the current study, we examined the effects of Cd on Cd, Cu, Zn and Fe levels in placenta and maternal and fetal plasma and tissues, the placental weight, total fetal and maternal body weights, and fetal and maternal tissue weights during pregnancy. A total of 21 adult female rats were treated during gestation with drinking water containing one of the following: 70 mg/L of CdCl2, a combination of 70 mg/L of CdCl2 and 70 mg/L of CuSO4, or no addition (control). Placenta Cu and Fe levels, fetal liver and kidney Cu levels, and fetal liver tissue weights were lower in the group administered Cd than in the control group. Also, Cd levels in the placenta, maternal and fetal liver, and maternal kidney were higher in the group treated with Cd than in controls. In the group administered both Cd and Cu, fetal body and tissue weights did not change, but Cd levels in the placenta, maternal and fetal liver, and maternal kidneys were higher than in controls. Zn and Fe levels in the maternal kidney and fetal liver were also lower in this group. Cd exposure during pregnancy resulted in Cd accumulation in maternal and fetal tissues during pregnancy and a decrease in the total weight of fetuses, and the combination of Cd and Cu caused some changes in the both maternal and fetal levels of Cu, Zn, and Fe, but it did not cause changes in the total fetal body weight or the weights of individual tissues. © 2007 Versita Warsaw and Springer-Verlag