Extraction of proteins from yeast cell wall

The proteins from yeast cell wall were extracted by autolysis and depositing in turn. The results show that the change of pH value greatly affects the yield of the final product. The content of obtained crude proteins is maximal (more than 66%) when the autolysis time is 3 h, and pH value is 6 - 7. The extracted proteins can be of social and economic benefits

Global IT and IT-enabled services

Several topics that were covered during the IEEE Symposium on Advanced Management of Information for Globalized Enterprises (AMIGE) held in September 2008, in Tianjin, China, are presented. The symposium focused on the globalized information management, a multidisciplinary covering such fields as computer science, industrial engineering, information systems, management science and engineering, and operations management. The research in global IT and IT-enabled services covers a wide spectrum of topics that include business processes and management in a global setting, such as global workflow technologies and applications, global information system integration and interaction, and global knowledge management. One of the topics focused on the importance of business process modeling technologies and security requirements in order to derive a trust federation from formally described business process models.published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201

Nadph oxidase upregulated by AT1 receptor mediates chronic intermittent hypoxia-induced oxidative stress and inflammation in rat adrenal medulla

Poster PresentationOur previous study found that chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) associated with recurrent apnea induced oxidative stress and inflammation in rat adrenal medulla. However, the underline mechanism was not clear. We hypothesized that, under CIH, the up-regulation of NADPH oxidase mediated by renin-angiotensin system (RAS) via an activation of angiotensin II receptor 1 (AT1) might take part in the oxidative stress and local inflammation in the adrenal medulla. Adult male SD rats were exposed to air (normoxic) control or CIH treatment (8 hours/day) which mimicked a severe recurrent sleep apneic condition for 14 days. Oral feeding of Telmisartan (10 mg/kg), a specific AT1 receptor blocker, or an intraperitoneal injection of apocynin (25 mg/kg i.p.), an inhibitor of NADPH oxidase, or vehicle was performed before the daily hypoxic treatment. The adrenal medulla was harvested for the measurement of markers for oxidative stress (MDA and NTR), macrophages infiltration (ED1), apoptosis, and inflammation (pro-inflammatory mediators) using TUNEL assay, real-time PCR, ELISA and Western blot. Levels of MDA and NTR were significantly increased in the hypoxic (CIH) group when compared with the normoxic control, but were normalized in the hypoxic groups treated with apocynin (AIH) or telmisartan (TIH). The expression levels of macrophage marker ED1-immunoreactivity and the pro-inflammatory mediators (TNFa, IL6) were also elevated in the CIH group, but were significantly ameliorated by the apocynin or telmisartan treatment. In addition, the amount of apoptotic cells in the CIH group was significantly higher than that of the AIH and TIH groups. Moreover, the mRNA levels of NADPH oxidase subunits (Nox2, Nox4) were increased significantly in the CIH group when compared with that of the AIH and TIH groups. Also, the protein expression of RAS components (AGT, AT1) was also increased in the CIH group. In conclusion, we showed that an up-regulation of NADPH oxidase via AT1 receptor activation mediates CIH-induced oxidative stress and inflammation in rat adrenal medulla.published_or_final_versio

A Compact and Simply-Constructed All-metal Circularly Polarized Ridge-Waveguide Slotted Antenna Array for Vehicle Mounted Satcom on the Move (SOTM) Communication Application

In this paper, a novel circularly polarized (CP) ridge-waveguide slotted antenna array is proposed for vehicle used Satcom on the Move (SOTM) applications. The antenna array is designed closely following the required factors for generating the circular polarization. The proposed antenna array is constructed on a symmetrical single-ridge slotted waveguide. Each antenna element consists of a pair of inclined slots opened on the narrow walls, and longitudinal slots opened on the bottom of the U-shaped wall of the waveguide. The inclined slots and the longitudinal slots are able to radiate orthogonal electric-fields independently with a phase-difference of 90°. After a vector superposition in the far-field by using this design, the circular polarization could be realized with extremely low axial ratio theoretically. Several essential parameters affecting the CP performance are also studied in this paper. To verify the feasibility of the proposed approach, a four-element CP antenna array is simulated, fabricated and measured. Results show that the obtained prototype achieves a measured impedance bandwidth of 14.74% from 9.24 GHz to 10.71 GHz with S11 < -10 dB, and a 3-dB axial ratio bandwidth of 19.1% from 9.0 GHz to 10.9 GHz

Intertrial Variability in the Premotor Cortex Accounts for Individual Differences in Peripersonal Space

We live in a dynamic environment, constantly confronted with approaching objects that we may either avoid or be forced to address. A multisensory and sensorimotor interface, the peripersonal space (PPS), mediates every physical interaction between our body and the environment. Behavioral investigations show high variability in the extension of PPS across individuals, but there is a lack of evidence on the neural underpinnings of these large individual differences. Here, we used approaching auditory stimuli and fMRI to capture the individual boundary of PPS and examine its neural underpinnings. Precisely, we tested the hypothesis that intertrial variability (ITV) in brain regions coding PPS predicts individual differences of its boundary at the behavioral level. Selectively in the premotor cortex, we found that ITV, rather than trial-averaged amplitude, of BOLD responses to far rather than near dynamic stimuli predicts the individual extension of PPS. Our results provide the first empirical support for the relevance of ITV of brain responses for individual differences in human behavior

Modelling the effects of beverage substitution during adolescence on later obesity outcomes in early adulthood: results from the Raine study

High sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption has been linked with obesity. The present study examined the associations between adolescent SSB intake and body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and overweight status in early adulthood, and modelled the association of alternative beverage substitution with BMI and WC. Data of offspring from the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort (Raine) Study at ages 14 and 22 years were used (n = 667). SSB intake at 14 years (100 g/day) was associated with higher BMI (β = 0.19 kg/m2, 95% CI 0.04, 0.33), WC (β = 0.41cm, 95% CI 0.04, 0.78), and being overweight at 22 years (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.02, 1.18). Every 100g modelled substitution of SSB with milk at age 14 years was associated with lower BMI (-0.19 kg/m2) and WC (-0.52 cm) at age 22 years. Replacement of SSB with diet drink was associated with higher BMI and WC. No association was found for substitutions of SSB with water, tea/coffee, or 100% fruit juice with BMI or WC. SSB intake during adolescence was associated with higher BMI, WC, and being overweight in early adulthood. Milk as an alternative to SSB was associated with less adiposity. Caution is necessary in recommending diet drinks as a SSB alternative

Socio-economic difference in purchases of ultra-processed foods in Australia: an analysis of a nationally representative household grocery purchasing panel

Background: Consumption of ultra-processed foods is associated with increased risk of obesity and non-communicable diseases. Little is known about current patterns of ultra-processed foods intake in Australia. The aim of this study was to examine the amount and type of ultra-processed foods purchased by Australian households in 2019 and determine whether purchases differed by socio-economic status (SES). We also assessed whether purchases of ultra-processed foods changed between 2015 and 2019. Methods: We used grocery purchase data from a nationally representative consumer panel in Australia to assess packaged and unpackaged grocery purchases that were brought home between 2015 to 2019. Ultra-processed foods were identified according to the NOVA system, which classifies foods according to the nature, extent and purpose of industrial food processing. Purchases of ultra-processed foods were calculated per capita, using two outcomes: grams/day and percent of total energy. The top food categories contributing to purchases of ultra-processed foods in 2019 were identified, and differences in ultra-processed food purchases by SES (Index of Relative Social Advantage and Disadvantage) were assessed using survey-weighted linear regression. Changes in purchases of ultra-processed foods between 2015 to 2019 were examined overall and by SES using mixed linear models. Results: In 2019, the mean ± SD total grocery purchases made by Australian households was 881.1 ± 511.9 g/d per capita. Of this, 424.2 ± 319.0 g/d per capita was attributable to purchases of ultra-processed foods, which represented 56.4% of total energy purchased. The largest food categories contributing to total energy purchased included mass-produced, packaged breads (8.2% of total energy purchased), chocolate and sweets (5.7%), biscuits and crackers (5.7%) and ice-cream and edible ices (4.3%). In 2019, purchases of ultra-processed foods were significantly higher for the lowest SES households compared to all other SES quintiles (P < 0.001). There were no major changes in purchases of ultra-processed foods overall or by SES over the five-year period. Conclusions: Between 2015 and 2019, ultra-processed foods have consistently made up the majority of groceries purchased by Australians, particularly for the lowest SES households. Policies that reduce ultra-processed food consumption may reduce diet-related health inequalities

Separation between coherent and turbulent fluctuations. What can we learn from the Empirical Mode Decomposition?

The performances of a new data processing technique, namely the Empirical Mode Decomposition, are evaluated on a fully developed turbulent velocity signal perturbed by a numerical forcing which mimics a long-period flapping. First, we introduce a "resemblance" criterion to discriminate between the polluted and the unpolluted modes extracted from the perturbed velocity signal by means of the Empirical Mode Decomposition algorithm. A rejection procedure, playing, somehow, the role of a high-pass filter, is then designed in order to infer the original velocity signal from the perturbed one. The quality of this recovering procedure is extensively evaluated in the case of a "mono-component" perturbation (sine wave) by varying both the amplitude and the frequency of the perturbation. An excellent agreement between the recovered and the reference velocity signals is found, even though some discrepancies are observed when the perturbation frequency overlaps the frequency range corresponding to the energy-containing eddies as emphasized by both the energy spectrum and the structure functions. Finally, our recovering procedure is successfully performed on a time-dependent perturbation (linear chirp) covering a broad range of frequencies.Comment: 23 pages, 13 figures, submitted to Experiments in Fluid