Measurement of UNILAC and SIS18 proton performance

On July 16th 2016 the UNILAC and SIS18 proton performance has been measured. Due to scheduled maintenance works of the UNILAC's rf-system, the post-stripper energy was restricted to 5.9~MeV and accordingly the beam quality suffered considerably from the interruption of the periodic focusing system. This limitation will not be any longer in future beam times. Six single-gap resonators were used for acceleration to 10.7~MeV. After an optimization of the multi-turn injection $\pmb{1.2\cdot10^{11}}$ protons were extracted form the SIS18

In vitro, Alternative Methods to the Biological Control of the Aphids by Entomopathogenic Fungi Beauveria bassiana Isolates from Gaza Strip

Sustainable vegetable production it depends mainly on yield and quality, if not properly managed, pests and diseases can dramatically reduce crop yield, quality and subsequent returns. Plant diseases need to be controlled to maintain the quality and abundance of food, feed, and fiber produced by growers around the world (Pal and Gardener, 2006). Disease control is an essential component of crop management for increase yield potential. A low disease loss in your fields in the recent past does not ensure disease losses will remain low (Tobacco disease management (2015). Every year gardeners confront many insect pests feasting on fruits and vegetables (Jackman, 1998). Plants have many pests, such as aphids and mites. Aphids are important herbivores of both wild and cultivated plants that feed on the phloem of vascular plants (Züst and Agrawal, 2016). Most vegetables crops attached by this pest and also it can stunt and distort the growth of plants and cause wilting and bud drop, resulting in poor flowering and fruit set. Synthetic pesticides have played a central role for control plant pathogen (Chandler et al., 2011; El-Wakeil, 2013). In the recent years, the negative effects on health and the environment as a result of the indiscriminate use of pesticides have led the EU to the prohibition of many synthetic pesticides (D'Addabbo et al., 2014). Consequently

‘Paris with snakes’? The future of communication is/as ‘Cultural Science’

What if communication has been pursuing the wrong kind of science? This article argues that the physics-based or ‘transmission’ model derived from Claude Shannon and criticised by James Carey does not explain how communication works. We argue instead for a model derived from the evolutionary and complexity sciences. Here, communication is based on dynamic systems of meaning (not individual ‘particles’ of information), and relations among knowledge-producing agents in culture-made groups. We call this sign-based evolutionary and systems model of communication ‘cultural science’ (Hartley and Potts, 2014), and invite communication scholars to assist in its development as a ‘modern synthesis’ for communication, along the lines of Huxley’s synthesis of botany and zoology as evolutionary bioscience

Right pulmonary artery agenesis presenting with uncontrolled asthma in an adult: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Unilateral absence of the pulmonary artery (UAPA) or pulmonary artery agenesis is a rare congenital disorder presenting with a wide spectrum of symptoms. The clinical presentation is variable and many patients can be asymptomatic for many years and even throughout their lives.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a 53-year-old African-American woman who was diagnosed with right pulmonary artery agenesis after presenting with uncontrolled asthma and recurrent bronchopulmonary infections.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In an unexplained case of recurrent respiratory infections and shortness of breath, the possibility of a rare congenital anomaly like UAPA should be considered and an appropriate evaluation should be done.</p

LIPID MEDIATORS IN IMMUNE REGULATION AND RESOLUTION

We are all too familiar with the events that follow a bee sting – heat, redness, swelling and pain. These are Celsus’ four cardinal signs of inflammation that are driven by very well defined signals and hormones; in fact targeting the factors that drive this onset phase is the basis upon which most current anti‐inflammatory therapies were developed. We are also very well aware that within a few hours these cardinal signs normally disappear. In other words, inflammation resolves. When it does not, inflammation persists resulting in damaging chronic conditions. While inflammatory onset is actively driven so also is its resolution – years of research has identified novel internal counter‐regulatory signals that work together to switch off inflammation. Among these signals, lipids are potent signaling molecules that regulate an array of immune responses including vascular hyper reactivity and pain as well as leukocyte trafficking and clearance, so‐called resolution. Here, we collate bioactive lipid research to date and summarise the major pathways involved in their biosynthesis and their role in inflammation as well as resolution

Circulating Progenitor Cells Identify Peripheral Arterial Disease in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease

RATIONALE: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a clinical manifestation of extracoronary atherosclerosis. Despite sharing the same risk factors, only 20% to 30% of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) develop PAD. Decline in the number of bone marrow–derived circulating progenitor cells (PCs) is thought to contribute to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Whether specific changes in PCs differentiate patients with both PAD and CAD from those with CAD alone is unknown. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether differences exist in PCs counts of CAD patients with and without known PAD. METHODS AND RESULTS: 1497 patients (mean age: 65 years; 62% men) with known CAD were identified in the Emory Cardiovascular Biobank. Presence of PAD (n=308) was determined by history, review of medical records, or imaging and was classified as carotid (53%), lower extremity (41%), upper extremity (3%), and aortic disease (33%). Circulating PCs were enumerated by flow cytometry. Patients with CAD and PAD had significantly lower PC counts compared with those with only CAD. In multivariable analysis, a 50% decrease in cluster of differentiation 34 (CD34+) or CD34+/vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR2+) counts was associated with a 31% (P=0.032) and 183% (P=0.002) increase in the odds of having PAD, respectively. CD34+ and CD34+/VEGFR2+ counts significantly improved risk prediction metrics for prevalent PAD. Low CD34+/VEGFR2+ counts were associated with a 1.40-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.03–1.91) and a 1.64-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.07–2.50) increases in the risk of mortality and PAD-related events, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: PAD is associated with low CD34+ and CD34+/VEGFR2+ PC counts. Whether low PC counts are useful in screening for PAD needs to be investigated

In silico analysis of alpha1-antitrypsin variants: The effects of a novel mutation

Alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT) is a highly polymorphic protein with more than 120 variants that are classified as normal (normal protein secretion), deficient (reduced circulating AAT level caused by defective secretion) or null (no protein secretion). Alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency, one of the most common genetic disorders, predisposes adults to pulmonary emphysema and, to a lesser extent, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. In this report, we provide additional sequence data for alpha1-antitrypsin based on the characterization of a novel variant detected in a 53-year-old heterozygous patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The mutation occurred on a PI*M2 base allele and was characterized by a T → C transition at nt 97 in exon II that led to the replacement of phenylalanine by leucine (F33L). Since the mutation was found in the heterozygous state with the expression of a normally secreted variant (PI*M1) it was not possible to assess the pattern of F33L secretion. However, computational analyses based on evolutionary, structural and functional information indicated a reduction of 23 Å 3 in the side chain volume and the creation of a cavity in the protein hydrophobic core that likely disturbed the tridimensional structure and folding of AAT. The accuracy of the in silico prediction was confirmed by testing known mutations

Privatization and State Capacity in Postcommunist Society

Economists have used cross-national regression analysis to argue that postcommunist economic failure is the result of inadequate adherence liberal economic policies. Sociologists have relied on case study data to show that postcommunist economic failure is the outcome of too close adherence to liberal policy recommendations, which has led to an erosion of state effectiveness, and thus produced poor economic performance. The present paper advances a version of this statist theory based on a quantitative analysis of mass privatization programs in the postcommunist world. We argue that rapid large-scale privatization creates severe supply and demand shocks for enterprises, thereby inducing firm failure. The resulting erosion of tax revenues leads to a fiscal crisis for the state, and severely weakens its capacity and bureaucratic character. This, in turn, reacts back on the enterprise sector, as the state can no longer support the institutions necessary for the effective functioning of a modern economy, thus resulting in deindustrialization. Using cross-national regression techniques we find that the implementation of mass privatization programs negatively impacts measures of economic growth, state capacity and the security of property rights.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/40192/3/wp806.pd