Incoherent scattering functions of iron, copper, zirconium, tin, tantalum, tungsten, gold and lead, in the momentum range 2Å−1⩽q⩽46Å−1 at 661.6keV photon energy

The incoherent scattering functions were calculated from the measured differential incoherent scattering cross sections for 661.6keV photons with a hyper pure germanium detector in the angular range of 5–120° covering the momentum range 2Å−1⩽q⩽46Å−1 for iron, copper, zirconium, tin, tantalum, tungsten, gold and lead. The measured incoherent scattering functions were compared with the NRHF values, recent DHFR values and other measured values

Studies on effective atomic numbers and electron densities in amino acids and sugars in the energy range 30–1333keV

The effective atomic numbers and electron densities of the amino acids glycine, alanine, serine, valine, threonine, leucine, isoleucine, aspartic acid, lysine, glutamic acid, histidine, phenylalanine, arginine, tyrosine, tryptophane and the sugars arabinose, ribose, glucose, galactose, mannose, fructose, rhamnose, maltose, melibiose, melezitose and raffinose at the energies 30.8, 35.0, 81.0, 145, 276.4, 302.9, 356, 383.9, 661.6, 1173 and 1332.5keV were calculated by using the measured total attenuation cross-sections. The interpolations of total attenuation cross-sections for photons of energy E in elements of atomic number Z was performed using the logarithmic regression analysis of the XCOM data in the photon energy region 30–1500keV. The best-fit coefficients obtained by a piece wise interpolation method were used to find the effective atomic number and electron density of the compounds. These values are found to be in good agreement with the theoretical values calculated based on XCOM data

Measurement of K-shell fluorescence yields for the elements in the range 22⩽Z⩽52 excited by 14.4 and 122keV photons

K-shell fluorescence yields were measured for the elements Ti, V, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Sr, Y, Zr, Mo, Ag, Cd, In, Sn and Te excited by 14.4 and 122keV photons from a 57Co source. A high resolution Si–PIN diode detector was used to detect the X-ray intensity. The measured values were compared with the theoretical, semi-empirical and other available experimental results. Good agreement with the theoretical, semi-empirical and other available measured values were observed within the experimental errors of 4. In few cases a deviation up to 10 have been observed as compared to earlier measurements

Incoherent scattering of 137Cs gamma rays in the rare earth elements Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy, Er and Yb

The differential incoherent scattering cross sections for 661.6keV photons have been measured with an HPGe detector in the momentum range 4⩽x⩽46Å-1 for the rare earth elements Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy, Er and Yb. The incoherent scattering functions were evaluated from the measured cross sections and compared with the NRHF values of Hubbel et al. 1975, J. Phys. Chem. Ref. Data 4, 471, the recent DHFR values of Kahane 1998, At. Data Nucl. Data Tables 68, 323 and other measured values. The present experimental values are systematically lower than the theoretical predictions, but show a good agreement within the experimental errors except for the momentum transfers of 30.59, 34.29 and 37.72Å−1 for Nd, 43.69Å−1 for Gd and 22.54 and 26.66Å−1 for Dy, which show deviations at the two sigma level

X-ray fluorescence in some rare earth and high Z elements excited by 661.6 keV γ-rays

The K-shell X-ray fluorescence cross sections are determined experimentally for 10 elements such as Pb, Hg, Ir, W, Lu, Tm, Dy, Tb, Gd and Nd at excitation energy of 661.6 keV associated with γ-rays of 137Cs radioisotope. The technique employed involves the measurement of total intensity of fluorescent K X-rays that follow the photoeffect absorption of a known flux of γ-rays using a well type Nal(Tl) detector. The obtained results are compared with the available theoretical values and other measured values

Higher maternal plasma folate but not vitamin B-12 concentrations during pregnancy are associated with better cognitive function scores in 9-10 year old children in south-india.

Folate and vitamin B-12 are essential for normal brain development. Few studies have examined the relationship of maternal folate and vitamin B-12 status during pregnancy and offspring cognitive function. To test the hypothesis that lower maternal plasma folate and vitamin B-12 concentrations and higher plasma homocysteine concentrations during pregnancy are associated with poorer neurodevelopment, 536 children (aged 9–10 y) from the Mysore Parthenon birth cohort underwent cognitive function assessment during 2007–2008 using 3 core tests from the Kaufman Assessment Battery, and additional tests measuring learning, long-term storage/retrieval, attention and concentration, and visuo-spatial and verbal abilities. Maternal folate, vitamin B-12, and homocysteine concentrations were measured at 30 ± 2 wk gestation. During pregnancy, 4% of mothers had low folate concentrations (<7 nmol/L), 42.5% had low vitamin B-12 concentrations (<150 pmol/L), and 3% had hyperhomocysteinemia (>10 µmol/L). The children's cognitive test scores increased by 0.1–0.2 SD per SD increase across the entire range of maternal folate concentrations (P < 0.001 for all), with no apparent associations at the deficiency level. The associations with learning, long-term storage/retrieval, visuo-spatial ability, attention, and concentration were independent of the parents' education, socioeconomic status, religion, and the child's sex, age, current size, and folate and vitamin B-12 concentrations. There were no consistent associations of maternal vitamin B-12 and homocysteine concentrations with childhood cognitive performance. In this Indian population, higher maternal folate, but not vitamin B-12, concentrations during pregnancy predicted better childhood cognitive ability. It also suggests that, in terms of neurodevelopment, the concentration used to define folate deficiency may be set too low