A Frequency-Independent Method for Computing the Physical Optics-Based Electromagnetic Fields Scattered From a Hyperbolic Surface

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Isolation and Characterization of Batatasin III and 3,4’- Dihydroxy-5-methoxybibenzyl: A Pair of Positional Isomers from Sunipia scariosa

Purpose: To isolate and characterize chemical compounds of biological importance from the whole plant of Sunipia scariosa.Methods: The whole plant of Sunipia scariosa was extracted with methanol (MeOH) and chromatographed on silica gel and sephadex LH-20 to afford the pure isolates. High perfomance liquild chromatography (HPLC) was used for further purification of the isolated compounds. Characterization ofthe isolated compounds was achieved by 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS).Results: Batatasin III (3,3’-dihydroxy-5-methoxybibenzyl) and  3,4’-dihydroxy-5-methoxybibenzyl, a pair of positional isomers, were isolated from the whole plant of Sunipia scariosa. The yields of the two isomers were 60 and 40 %, respectively, from the mixture of two  compounds.Conclusion: Batatasin III and 3,4’-dihydroxy-5-methoxybibenzyl, a pair of positional isomers were successfully isolated from the whole plant of Sunipia scariosa for the first time.Keywords: Sunipia scariosa, Batatasin III, 3,4’-Dihydroxy-5-methoxybibenzyl, Isomer

A pan-Asian survey of risk perception, attitudes and practices associated with live animal markets.

Key Messages 1. Causal attributions for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) of the H5N1 virus among live poultry, consumers, retailers and breeders in Vietnam, Thailand, Guangzhou and Hong Kong were studied. 2. Three main themes embodying lay explanation for the causes of H5N1 HPAI emerged: viruses, husbandry-related factors, and vulnerability factors. 3. A deeper understanding of the perceptions of risks, biases, causal attributions, and both the facilitators and barriers to change is needed for planning effective changes in health related behaviour.published_or_final_versio

Synthesis, characterization and structure of the dimmer complex [ni（tssb）（phen）h2o]·c2h5oh·0.5h2o

2005-2006 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe

A unified Hamiltonian solution to Maxwell-Schrodinger equations for modeling electromagnetic field-particle interaction

A novel unified Hamiltonian approach is proposed to solve Maxwell–Schrödinger equation for modeling the interaction between classical electromagnetic (EM) fields and particles. Based on the Hamiltonian of electromagnetics and quantum mechanics, a unified Maxwell–Schrödinger system is derived by the variational principle. The coupled system is well-posed and symplectic, which ensures energy conserving property during the time evolution. However, due to the disparity of wavelengths of EM waves and that of electron waves, a numerical implementation of the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method to the multiscale coupled system is extremely challenging. To overcome this difficulty, a reduced eigenmode expansion technique is first applied to represent the wave function of the particle. Then, a set of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) governing the time evolution of the slowly-varying expansion coefficients are derived to replace the original Schrödinger equation. Finally, Maxwell’s equations represented by the vector potential with a Coulomb gauge, together with the ODEs, are solved self-consistently. For numerical examples, the interaction between EM fields and a particle is investigated for both the closed, open and inhomogeneous electromagnetic systems. The proposed approach not only captures the Rabi oscillation phenomenon in the closed cavity but also captures the effects of radiative decay and shift in the open free space. After comparing with the existing theoretical approximate models, it is found that the approximate models break down in certain cases where a rigorous self-consistent approach is needed. This work is helpful for the EM simulation of emerging nanodevices or next-generation quantum electrodynamic systems

Utilization of Benchtop Next Generation Sequencing Platforms Ion Torrent PGM and MiSeq in Noninvasive Prenatal Testing for Chromosome 21 Trisomy and Testing of Impact of In Silico and Physical Size Selection on Its Analytical Performance

OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to test the utility of benchtop NGS platforms for NIPT for trisomy 21 using previously published z score calculation methods and to optimize the sample preparation and data analysis with use of in silico and physical size selection methods. METHODS: Samples from 130 pregnant women were analyzed by whole genome sequencing on benchtop NGS systems Ion Torrent PGM and MiSeq. The targeted yield of 3 million raw reads on each platform was used for z score calculation. The impact of in silico and physical size selection on analytical performance of the test was studied. RESULTS: Using a z score value of 3 as the cut-off, 98.11% - 100% (104-106/106) specificity and 100% (24/24) sensitivity and 99.06% - 100% (105-106/106) specificity and 100% (24/24) sensitivity were observed for Ion Torrent PGM and MiSeq, respectively. After in silico based size selection both platforms reached 100% specificity and sensitivity. Following the physical size selection z scores of tested trisomic samples increased significantly-p = 0.0141 and p = 0.025 for Ion Torrent PGM and MiSeq, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Noninvasive prenatal testing for chromosome 21 trisomy with the utilization of benchtop NGS systems led to results equivalent to previously published studies performed on high-to-ultrahigh throughput NGS systems. The in silico size selection led to higher specificity of the test. Physical size selection performed on isolated DNA led to significant increase in z scores. The observed results could represent a basis for increasing of cost effectiveness of the test and thus help with its penetration worldwide

Associations of Toenail Arsenic, Cadmium, Mercury, Manganese, and Lead with Blood Pressure in the Normative Aging Study

Background: Arsenic, cadmium, mercury, and lead are associated with cardiovascular disease in epidemiologic research. These associations may be mediated by direct effects of the metals on blood pressure (BP) elevation. Manganese is associated with cardiovascular dysfunction and hypotension in occupational cohorts

Monsoon versus Uplift in Southwestern China–Late Pliocene Climate in Yuanmou Basin, Yunnan

Yuanmou Basin of Yunnan, SW China, is a famous locality with hominids, hominoids, mammals and plant fossils. Based on the published megaflora and palynoflora data from Yuanmou Basin, the climate of Late Pliocene is reconstructed using the Coexistence Approach. The results indicate a warm and humid subtropical climate with a mean annual temperature of ca. 16–17°C and a mean annual precipitation of ca. 1500–1600 mm in the Late Pliocene rather than a dry, hot climate today, which may be due to the local tectonic change and gradual intensification of India monsoon. The comparison of Late Pliocene climate in Eryuan, Yangyi, Longling, and Yuanmou Basin of Yunnan Province suggests that the mean annual temperatures generally show a latitudinal gradient and fit well with their geographic position, while the mean annual precipitations seem to be related to the different geometries of the valleys under the same monsoon system

Fusion of Color Doppler and Magnetic Resonance Images of the Heart

This study was designed to establish and analyze color Doppler and magnetic resonance fusion images of the heart, an approach for simultaneous testing of cardiac pathological alterations, performance, and hemodynamics. Ten volunteers were tested in this study. The echocardiographic images were produced by Philips IE33 system and the magnetic resonance images were generated from Philips 3.0-T system. The fusion application was implemented on MATLAB platform utilizing image processing technology. The fusion image was generated from the following steps: (1) color Doppler blood flow segmentation, (2) image registration of color Doppler and magnetic resonance imaging, and (3) image fusion of different image types. The fusion images of color Doppler blood flow and magnetic resonance images were implemented by MATLAB programming in our laboratory. Images and videos were displayed and saved as AVI and JPG. The present study shows that the method we have developed can be used to fuse color flow Doppler and magnetic resonance images of the heart. We believe that the method has the potential to: fill in information missing from the ultrasound or MRI alone, show structures outside the field of view of the ultrasound through MR imaging, and obtain complementary information through the fusion of the two imaging methods (structure from MRI and function from ultrasound)