Investigation of Changing Volt-Ampere Characteristics of AlGaInP Heterostructures with Multiple Quantum Wells under Ionizing Radiation

The results of research into degradation of volt-ampere characteristics of light emitting diodes produced on the base of AlGaInP heterostructures with multiple quantum wells are presented on the example of light emitting diodes (emission wavelengths 623 nm and 590 nm) under gamma quantum and fast neutron radiation in passive powering mode. The shifts of volt-ampere characteristics into the higher voltage range have been observed in conditions of increasing neutron fluence and radiation dose. The observed increase in the resistance of ohmic contacts is caused by the rising resistance of adjacent area, which in its turn results from the changing mobility of charge carriers. The latter varies with the growth of introduced defects under irradiation. Two different areas of current generation have been identified. A mechanism of current generation depends on injected charge carriers in the range of mid-level electron injection. Moreover, the range of high electron injection is distinguished by changing resistance of light emitting diode cores alongside with current generation conditioned by charge carrier injection

A new low-complexity patch-based image super-resolution

In this study, a novel single image super-resolution (SR) method, which uses a generated dictionary from pairs of high-resolution (HR) images and their corresponding low-resolution (LR) representations, is proposed. First, HR and LR dictionaries are created by dividing HR and LR images into patches Afterwards, when performing SR, the distance between every patch of the input LR image and those of available LR patches in the LR dictionary are calculated. The minimum distance between the input LR patch and those in the LR dictionary is taken, and its counterpart from the HR dictionary will be passed through an illumination enhancement process resulting in consistency of illumination between neighbour patches. This process is applied to all patches of the LR image. Finally, in order to remove the blocking effect caused by merging the patches, an average of the obtained HR image and the interpolated image is calculated. Furthermore, it is shown that the stabe of dictionaries is reducible to a great degree. The speed of the system is improved by 62.5%. The quantitative and qualitative analyses of the experimental results show the superiority of the proposed technique over the conventional and state-of-the-art methods

Improved interpolation kernels for super resolution algorithms

Super resolution (SR) algorithms are widely used in forensics investigations to enhance the resolution of images captured by surveillance cameras. Such algorithms usually use a common interpolation algorithm to generate an initial guess for the desired high resolution (HR) image. This initial guess is usually tuned through different methods, like learning-based or fusion-based methods, to converge the initial guess towards the desired HR output. In this work, it is shown that SR algorithms can result in better performance if more sophisticated kernels than the simple conventional ones are used for producing the initial guess. The contribution of this work is to introduce such a set of kernels which can be used in the context of SR. The quantitative and qualitative results on many natural, facial and iris images show the superiority of the generated HR images over two state-of-the-art SR algorithms when their original interpolation kernel is replaced by the ones introduced in this work

Effect of EMIC waves on relativistic and ultrarelativistic electron populations: Ground-based and Van Allen Probes observations

Abstract We study the effect of electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves on the loss and pitch angle scattering of relativistic and ultrarelativistic electrons during the recovery phase of a moderate geomagnetic storm on 11 October 2012. The EMIC wave activity was observed in situ on the Van Allen Probes and conjugately on the ground across the Canadian Array for Real-time Investigations of Magnetic Activity throughout an extended 18 h interval. However, neither enhanced precipitation of \u3e0.7 MeV electrons nor reductions in Van Allen Probe 90° pitch angle ultrarelativistic electron flux were observed. Computed radiation belt electron pitch angle diffusion rates demonstrate that rapid pitch angle diffusion is confined to low pitch angles and cannot reach 90°. For the first time, from both observational and modeling perspectives, we show evidence of EMIC waves triggering ultrarelativistic (~2-8 MeV) electron loss but which is confined to pitch angles below around 45° and not affecting the core distribution. Key Points EMIC wave activity is not associated with precipitation of MeV electrons EMIC waves do not deplete the ultra-relativistic belt down to 90° EMIC waves cause loss of low pitch angle electrons with energies ~2-8 MeV

Neutrophils: Innate Effectors of TB Resistance?

Certain individuals are able to resist Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection despite persistent and intense exposure. These persons do not exhibit adaptive immune priming as measured by tuberculin skin test (TST) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) release assay (IGRA) responses, nor do they develop active tuberculosis (TB). Genetic investigation of individuals who are able to resist M. tuberculosis infection shows there are likely a combination of genetic variants that contribute to the phenotype. The contribution of the innate immune system and the exact cells involved in this phenotype remain incompletely elucidated. Neutrophils are prominent candidates for possible involvement as primers for microbial clearance. Significant variability is observed in neutrophil gene expression and DNA methylation. Furthermore, inter-individual variability is seen between the mycobactericidal capacities of donor neutrophils. Clearance of M. tuberculosis infection is favored by the mycobactericidal activity of neutrophils, apoptosis, effective clearance of cells by macrophages, and resolution of inflammation. In this review we will discuss the different mechanisms neutrophils utilize to clear M. tuberculosis infection. We discuss the duality between neutrophils' ability to clear infection and how increasing numbers of neutrophils contribute to active TB severity and mortality. Further investigation into the potential role of neutrophils in innate immune-mediated M. tuberculosis infection resistance is warranted since it may reveal clinically important activities for prevention as well as vaccine and treatment development

Exposure of Nuclear Track Emulsion to a Mixed Beam of Relativistic 12^{12}N, 10^{10}C, and 7^7Be Nuclei

A nuclear track emulsion was exposed to a mixed beam of relativistic $^{12}$N, $^{10}$C, and $^7$Be nuclei having a momentum of 2 GeV/$c$ per nucleon. The beam was formed upon charge exchange processes involving $^{12}$C primary nuclei and their fragmentation. An analysis indicates that $^{10}$C nuclei are dominant in the beam and that $^{12}$N nuclei are present in it. The charge topology of relativistic fragments in the coherent dissociation of these nuclei is presented.Comment: ISSN 1063-7788, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 201

Activation of Autophagy in a Rat Model of Retinal Ischemia following High Intraocular Pressure

Acute primary open angle glaucoma is an optic neuropathy characterized by the elevation of intraocular pressure, which causes retinal ischemia and neuronal death. Rat ischemia/reperfusion enhances endocytosis of both horseradish peroxidase (HRP) or fluorescent dextran into ganglion cell layer (GCL) neurons 24 h after the insult. We investigated the activation of autophagy in GCL-neurons following ischemia/reperfusion, using acid phosphatase (AP) histochemistry and immunofluorescence against LC3 and LAMP1. Retinal I/R lead to the appearance of AP-positive granules and LAMP1-positive vesicles 12 and 24 h after the insult, and LC3 labelling at 24 h, and induced a consistent retinal neuron death. At 48 h the retina was negative for autophagic markers. In addition, Western Blot analysis revealed an increase of LC3 levels after damage: the increase in the conjugated, LC3-II isoform is suggestive of autophagic activity. Inhibition of autophagy by 3-methyladenine partially prevented death of neurons and reduces apoptotic markers, 24 h post-lesion. The number of neurons in the GCL decreased significantly following I/R (I/R 12.21±1.13 vs controls 19.23±1.12 cells/500 µm); this decrease was partially prevented by 3-methyladenine (17.08±1.42 cells/500 µm), which potently inhibits maturation of autophagosomes. Treatment also prevented the increase in glial fibrillary acid protein immunoreactivity elicited by I/R. Therefore, targeting autophagy could represent a novel and promising treatment for glaucoma and retinal ischemia

Алгоритм инфузионно-трансфузионной терапии и нутриционной поддержки пострадавших с тяжелой термической травмой

The use of the authors’ algorithm of infusion-and-transfusion therapy in combination with nutritive support in victims with shock-induced burn injury within the first 24 hours of severe thermal injury ameliorates the signs of hypermetabolism, prevents protein depletion, provides a positive nitrogen balance, and promotes a rapider healing of burn wounds.Применение с первых суток тяжелой термической травмы предлагаемого алгоритма инфузионно-трансфузионной терапии в комплексе с нутриционной поддержкой у пострадавших с шокогенной ожоговой травмой позволяет снизить проявления гиперметаболизма, предотвратить белковое истощение, добиться положительного азотистого баланса и способствует более быстрому заживлению ожоговых ран

Клинико-морфологические особенности нейроэндокринных опухолей: опыт собственных исследований

Currently, treatment and diagnostics of neuroendocrine tumors are associated with a number of problems, including absence of a registry for these diseases. The article considers the main approaches and problems of immunohistochemical diagnostics of neuroendocrine tumors.В настоящее время существует ряд проблем в диагностике и лечении нейроэндокринных опухолей, а также отсутствует общий регистр по данным заболеваниям. В статье освещены основные подходы и проблемы иммуногистохимической диагностики нейроэндокринных опухолей