COMPUTERIZED DESIGN METHOD FOR REFLECTOR SYSTEMS

The demand for concentrating light or thermal radiation, or for changing the path of a light beam according to a desired pattern arises in various engineering applications. Reflective type optical elements (mirrors) offer a cheap, lightweight solution for these tasks with a minimal loss of radiation energy. The traditional approach composes optical systems for a given application from mirrors of simple geometry (spherical, paraboloid or ellipsoid surfaces). In several applications image formation is not required; so non-imaging mirrors can be advantageously applied. The computerized design program determines the path of rays and the intensity distribution on a receiving surface. The system can be composed of mirrors of arbitrary number and shape. The geometry of mirrors can be defined by closed form equations or by giving the supporting points of a spline function. Mirrors can have reflective properties on one or on both sides. Radiation sources can be modelled by defining a pure parallel beam of light, a single point source or a system of point sources. Real light sources like an electrical resistance IR heater can be described as a system of point sources. Each individual mirror has its own reflectance data during the intensity computation. The results for a two dimensional plane or axisymmetric configurations can be presented easily in graphical form. The application of the method is illustrated by the examples of: - pyrhliometer - solar concentrator - light guide - IR line heater design

Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Features of Iris Racemose Hemangioma in 4 Cases.

Importance: Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) allows visualization of iris racemose hemangioma course and its relation to the normal iris microvasculature. Objective: To describe OCTA features of iris racemose hemangioma. Design, Setting, and Participants: Descriptive, noncomparative case series at a tertiary referral center (Ocular Oncology Service of Wills Eye Hospital). Patients diagnosed with unilateral iris racemose hemangioma were included in the study. Main Outcomes and Measures: Features of iris racemose hemangioma on OCTA. Results: Four eyes of 4 patients with unilateral iris racemose hemangioma were included in the study. Mean patient age was 50 years, all patients were white, and Snellen visual acuity was 20/20 in each case. All eyes had sectoral iris racemose hemangioma without associated iris or ciliary body solid tumor on clinical examination and ultrasound biomicroscopy. By anterior segment OCT, the racemose hemangioma was partially visualized in all cases. By OCTA, the hemangioma was clearly visualized as a uniform large-caliber vascular tortuous loop with intense flow characteristics superimposed over small-caliber radial iris vessels against a background of low-signal iris stroma. The vascular course on OCTA resembled a light bulb filament (filament sign), arising from the peripheral iris (base of light bulb) and forming a tortuous loop on reaching its peak (midfilament) near the pupil (n = 3) or midzonal iris (n = 1), before returning to the peripheral iris (base of light bulb). Intravenous fluorescein angiography performed in 1 eye depicted the iris hemangioma; however, small-caliber radial iris vessels were more distinct on OCTA than intravenous fluorescein angiography. Conclusions and Relevance: Optical coherence tomography angiography is a noninvasive vascular imaging modality that clearly depicts the looping course of iris racemose hemangioma. Optical coherence tomography angiography depicted fine details of radial iris vessels, not distinct on intravenous fluorescein angiography

Detection of double-stranded RNA in Mucor ramannianus

Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) molecules have been found in numerous fungal species and are considered to be indicators of the presence of virus-like particles (VLPs) in the cells (Hollings 1978 Adv. Virus Res. 22:1-53; Buck ed., 1986 Fungal Virology, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL). Such mycoviruses have been found mainly from studies of the nucleic acids of different strains. In this respect, fungal species belonging to the Zygomycetes are rarely screened. We have investigated the nucleic acids of 30 Mucor strains representing ten different species. The presence of dsRNA molecules was detected in only one of the two Mucor ramannianus strains examined

Temporal-spatial Patterns of Noctuinae Communities (Lep. Noctuidae) in Hungarian Apple Orchards (Apple Ecosystem Research)

In our present study we aimed to recognize the temporal and spatial patterns of Noctuinae communities (Lep.Noctuidae) of four differently managed apple orchards laying in different localities of Hungary. Data were obtained by light trap collection. The quantitative data resulting from our investigations were analyzed by multivariate methods and were also analyzed by their diversity characteristics.As a result connections were found regarding the diversities of species and individuals, the patterns of occurrence and phenological properties. The studies were based on 8497 individuals of 39 species

Optical Coherence Tomography of Retinal and Choroidal Tumors

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) has revolutionized the field of ophthalmology since its introduction 20 years ago. Originally intended primarily for retina specialists to image the macula, it has found its role in other subspecialties that include glaucoma, cornea, and ocular oncology. In ocular oncology, OCT provides axial resolution to approximately 7 microns with cross-sectional images of the retina, delivering valuable information on the effects of intraocular tumors on the retinal architecture. Some effects include retinal edema, subretinal fluid, retinal atrophy, photoreceptor loss, outer retinal thinning, and retinal pigment epithelial detachment. With more advanced technology, OCT now provides imaging deeper into the choroid using a technique called enhanced depth imaging. This allows characterization of the thickness and reflective quality of small (<3 mm thick) choroidal lesions including choroidal nevus and melanoma. Future improvements in image resolution and depth will allow better understanding of the mechanisms of visual loss, tumor growth, and tumor management

Human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16, 18, 31, 45 DNA loads and HPV-16 integration in persistent and transient infections in young women

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>HPV burden is a predictor for high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cancer. The natural history of HPV load in young women being recently exposed to HPV is described in this paper.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 636 female university students were followed for 2 years. Cervical specimens with HPV-16, -18, -31, or -45 DNA by consensus PCR were further evaluated with type-specific and β-globin real-time PCR assays. Proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) of infection clearance. Generalized estimating equations assessed whether HPV loads was predictive of HPV infection at the subsequent visit.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>HPV loads were consistently higher among women <25 years old, and those who had multiple sex partners, multiple HPV type infections and smokers. HPV-16 integration was encountered only in one sample. Infection clearance was faster among women at lower tertiles of HPV-16 (HR = 2.8, 95%CI: 1.0-8.1), HPV-18 (HR = 3.5, 95%CI: 1.1-11.2) or combined (HR = 2.4, 95%CI: 1.8-6.2) DNA loads. The relationship between HPV-16 and HPV-18 DNA loads and infection clearance followed a clear dose-response pattern, after adjusting for age and number of sexual partners. GEE Odds Ratios for HPV persistence of the middle and upper tertiles relative to the lower tertile were 2.7 and 3.0 for HPV-16 and 3.8 and 39.1 for HPV-18, respectively. There was no association between HPV-31 or -45 DNA loads and persistence.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The association between HPV load and persistence is not uniform across high-risk genital genotypes. HPV-16 integration was only rarely demonstrated in young women.</p

The role of ligand efficiency metrics in drug discovery

The judicious application of ligand or binding efficiencies, which quantify the molecular properties required to gain binding affinity for a drug target, is gaining traction in the selection and optimisation of fragments, hits, and leads. Retrospective analysis of recently marketed oral drugs shows that they frequently have highly optimised ligand efficiency values for their target. Optimising ligand efficiencies based on both molecular size and lipophilicity, when set in the context of the specific target, has the potential to ameliorate the molecular inflation that pervades current practice in medicinal chemistry, and to increase the developability of drug candidates