Sexual dimorphism, asymmetry, and the effect of reproduction on pelvis bone in the bank vole, Myodesglareolus

Sexual dimorphism in anatomical traits has been widely studied in animals. Although pelvis dimorphism was mostly studied in humans, it occurs also in many other mammalian species. Here, we investigated sexual dimorphism in the pelvis of the bank vole Myodes glareolus using individuals with known sex and reproductive status of females (parous vs nulliparous). The analyses revealed that the size and shape of pelvis differed significantly between sexes, as well as between nulliparous and parous females. In comparison with males, females had a significantly longer pelvis and pubis bones and a longer obturator foramen length, but a smaller pubis width. Interestingly, the difference between parous and nulliparous females resembles that between females and males: parous females had bigger pelvis, which probably resulted from changes during pregnancy and after birth. Left bones were on average larger than right ones, but the magnitude of directional asymmetry was not different between sex and reproduction group. Moreover, we noticed that fluctuating asymmetry of pelvis and pubis length was higher in females than in males and higher in parous than in nulliparous females, what is presumably associated with locomotor performance. A discriminant function analysis performed for the four bone size traits showed that the traits can be effectively used for a nearly perfect recognition of sexes and also a quite reliable recognition of the reproductive status of females

Nurses' perceptions of aids and obstacles to the provision of optimal end of life care in ICU

Contains fulltext : 172380.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Organic Viscosity Modifiers for Controlling Rheology of Ceramic Slurries Used in the Investment Casting

score: 0collation: 102-10

Effect of Strain Range and Hold Time on High Temperature Fatigue Life of G17CRMOV5-10 Cast Alloy Steel

In this work, cast steel G17CrMoV5-10 was investigated. The material subject to investigation as part of this study is commonly used to manufacture steam turbine casings. Modern steam turbines operate under elevated temperature and complex oscillated loads. Thus, the focus of this study was to investigate material under behavior during low cycle fatigue (LCF) test performance at 500°C with and without hold time in tension. During all types of test, cyclic softening of cast steel was noticed. Increasing of total strain rate and applying hold time significantly reduce fatigue life. During hold time, due to temperature and tension the material creep what is confirmed by increasing inelastic stain accommodation

Corrosion Resistance of Titanium Aluminide Layers on Two Phase (α+β) Ti6Al4V Titanium Alloy

score: 0collation: 92-9

Characterization of Single-Crystal Dendrite Structure and Porosity in Nickel-Based Superalloys Using X-Ray Micro-Computed Tomography

score: 0collation: 66-7

MALDI-TOF-MS Analysis in the Identification of Urine Proteomic Patterns of Gestational Trophoblastic Disease

Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) is a group of highly aggressive, rare tumors. Human chorionic gonadotropin is a common biomarker used in the diagnosis and monitoring of GTD. To improve our knowledge of the pathology of GTD, we performed protein-peptide profiling on the urine of patients affected with gestational trophoblastic neoplasm (GTN). We analyzed urine samples from patients diagnosed with GTN (n = 26) and from healthy pregnant and non-pregnant controls (n = 17) using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). Ions were examined in a linear mode over a m/z range of 1000⁻10,000. All GTN urine samples were analyzed before and after treatment and compared with those of the controls. The statistical analyses included multivariate classification algorithms as well as ROC curves. Urine sample analyses revealed there were significant differences in the composition of the ions between the evaluated groups. Comparing the pre-treatment and group with the pregnant controls, we identified two discriminatory proteins: hemoglobin subunit α (m/z = 1951.81) and complement C4A (m/z = 1895.43). Then, comparing urine samples from the post-treatment cases with those from the non-pregnant controls, we identified the peptides uromodulin fragments (m/z = 1682.34 and 1913.54) and complement C4A (m/z = 1895.43)

Microstructure of Haynes\uae 282\uae Superalloy after Vacuum Induction Melting and Investment Casting of Thin-Walled Components

Abstract: The aim of this work was to characterize the microstructure of the as-cast Haynes\uae 282\uae alloy. Observations and analyses were carried out using techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), wave length dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (WDS), auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and electron energy-loss spectrometry (EELS). The phases identified in the as-cast alloy include: γ (gamma matrix), γʹ (matrix strengthening phase), (TiMoCr)C (primary carbide), TiN (primary nitride), σ (sigma-TCP phase), (TiMo)2SC (carbosulphide) and a lamellar constituent consisting of molybdenum and chromium rich secondary carbide phase together with γ phase. Within the dendrites the γʹ appears mostly in the form of spherical, nanometric precipitates (74 nm), while coarser (113 nm) cubic γʹ precipitates are present in the interdendritic areas. Volume fraction content of the γʹ precipitates in the dendrites and interdendritic areas are 9.6% and 8.5%, respectively. Primary nitrides metallic nitrides (MN), are homogeneously dispersed in the as-cast microstructure, while primary carbides metallic carbides (MC), preferentially precipitate in interdendritic areas. Such preference is also observed in the case of globular σ phase. Lamellar constituents characterized as secondary carbides/γ phases were together with (TiMo)2SC phase always observed adjacent to σ phase precipitates. Crystallographic relations were established in-between the MC, σ, secondary carbides and γ/γʹ matrix

Microstructure of Haynes ® 282 ® Superalloy after Vacuum Induction Melting and Investment Casting of Thin-Walled Components

material