Modal test of the Viking orbiter

A modal test of the Orbiter Development Test Modal (ODTM) has been conducted to verify, or update, the mathematical model used for load analysis. The approach used to assure the quality and validity of the experimental data is defined, the modal test is described, and test results are presented and compared with analysis results. Good correlation between the analyses and the test data assures an acceptable model for incorporation into the mathematical model of the launch system

Workshop on computer applications in water management: proceedings of the 1995 workshop

Compiled and edited by L. Ahuja, J. Leppert, K. Rojas, E. Seely.Also published as: Great Plains Agricultural Council publication, no. 154.Includes bibliographical references.Presented at the Workshop on computer applications in water management: proceedings of the 1995 workshop held on May 23-25, 1995 at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado

Psychosomatic complaints and sense of coherence among adolescents in a county in Sweden: a cross-sectional school survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Over the last five to ten years there has been an increase in psychosomatic complaints (PSC) in Swedish children. The objective of the study was to examine the relation between PSC and sense of coherence (SOC).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cross-sectional school survey in the county of Västmanland, Sweden. All 16- and 19-year old adolescents present at school on the day of the survey were asked to complete a questionnaire in their classrooms during a one-lesson hour session under the supervision of their teachers. Totally 3,998 students in both private and public schools, studying in ninth grade elementary school or third grade secondary school participated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The results from our study show that there is a statistically significant relation between PSC and SOC among adolescents. It also shows that adolescents with a weak SOC score have more symptoms of PSC.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our study indicates that SOC can help the adolescents to choose a coping strategy that is appropriate for the situation and thereby may prevent them from developing PSC. However, additional studies are needed to confirm our findings.</p

Coordination-driven magnetic-to-nonmagnetic transition in manganese doped silicon clusters

The interaction of a single manganese impurity with silicon is analyzed in a combined experimental and theoretical study of the electronic, magnetic, and structural properties of manganese-doped silicon clusters. The structural transition from exohedral to endohedral doping coincides with a quenching of high-spin states. For all geometric structures investigated, we find a similar dependence of the magnetic moment on the manganese coordination number and nearest neighbor distance. This observation can be generalized to manganese point defects in bulk silicon, whose magnetic moments fall within the observed magnetic-to-nonmagnetic transition, and which therefore react very sensitively to changes in the local geometry. The results indicate that high spin states in manganese-doped silicon could be stabilized by an appropriate lattice expansion

Functional Movement Screen Scores in High School Football Players

Please refer to the pdf version of the abstract located adjacent to the title

Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMP)-8 and MMP-9 in Cerebrospinal Fluid during Bacterial Meningitis: Association with Blood-Brain Barrier Damage and Neurological Sequelae

To evaluate the spectrum and regulation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in bacterial meningitis (BM), concentrations of MMP-2, MMP-3, MMP-8, and MMP-9 and endogenous inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMP-1 and TIMP-2) were measured in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 27 children with BM. MMP-8 and MMP-9 were detected in 91% and 97%, respectively, of CSF speci-mens from patients but were not detected in control patients. CSF levels of MMP-9 were higher (P <.05) in 5 patients who developed hearing impairment or secondary epilepsy than in those who recovered without neurological deficits. Levels of MMP-9 correlated with concentrations of TIMP-1 (P <.001) and tumor necrosis factor-α (P =.03). Repeated lumbar punctures showed that levels of MMP-8 and MMP-9 were regulated independently and did not correlate with the CSF cell count. Therefore, MMPs may derive not only from granulocytes infiltrating the CSF space but also from parenchymal cells of the meninges and brain. High concentrations of MMP-9 are a risk factor for the development of postmeningitidal neurological sequela

Pain Management in Patients with Cancer: Focus on Opioid Analgesics

Cancer pain is generally treated with pharmacological measures, relying on using opioids alone or in combination with adjuvant analgesics. Weak opioids are used for mild-to-moderate pain as monotherapy or in a combination with nonopioids. For patients with moderate-to-severe pain, strong opioids are recommended as initial therapy rather than beginning treatment with weak opioids. Adjunctive therapy plays an important role in the treatment of cancer pain not fully responsive to opioids administered alone (ie, neuropathic, bone, and visceral colicky pain). Supportive drugs should be used wisely to prevent and treat opioids’ adverse effects. Understanding the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, interactions, and cautions with commonly used opioids can help determine appropriate opioid selection for individual cancer patients

Detection and quantification of γ-H2AX using a dissociation enhanced lanthanide fluorescence immunoassay

Phosphorylation of the histone protein H2AX to form γ-H2AX foci directly represents DNA double-strand break formation. Traditional γ-H2AX detection involves counting individual foci within individual nuclei. The novelty of this work is the application of a time-resolved fluorescence assay using dissociation-enhanced lanthanide fluorescence immunoassay for quantitative measurements of γ-H2AX. For comparison, standard fluorescence detection was employed and analyzed either by bulk fluorescent measurements or by direct foci counting using BioTek Spot Count algorithm and Gen 5 software. Etoposide induced DNA damage in A549 carcinoma cells was compared across all test platforms. Time resolved fluorescence detection of europium as a chelated complex enabled quantitative measurement of γ-H2AX foci with nanomolar resolution. Comparative bulk fluorescent signals achieved only micromolar sensitivity. Lanthanide based immunodetection of γ-H2AX offers superior detection and a user-friendly workflow. These approaches have the potential to improve screening of compounds that either enhance DNA damage or protect against its deleterious effects

Investigating attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder traits in the general population:What happens in adult life?

Background. ADHD and ASD are generally considered early-onset disorders so most research has therefore tended to focus on children. Differences between ADHD/ASD in adult life and childhood have been noted, but few population-based studies have examined them in adulthood. Furthermore, interpretation of findings is hampered by changes in measure and from parent- to self-report. Method. We examined continuous/trait measures of parent- and self-rated ADHD and ASD) in adulthood (age 25 years) in a UK prospective longitudinal sample ALPSAC (the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children), using many of the same measures that parents reported on in childhood (N=6,064). Our aim was to investigate these traits in this population for mean-level sex differences, overlaps with other cognitive, learning and communication problems and their associations with polygenic risk scores (PRS) for neuropsychiatric disorders (ADHD, ASD, schizophrenia, depression and anxiety). Results. ADHD and ASD traits in adulthood, as in childhood, showed associations with childhood cognitive, learning and communication problems and with adult communication/language measures, although less so for self- than parent-ratings. Males had higher ADHD and ASD trait levels, but this was not as marked as in childhood. In adulthood, ADHD (both parent and self -rated) and ASD (parent-rated) symptoms showed associations with ADHD PRS; self-reported ADHD also showed association with depression PRS and self-reported ASD did not show strong PRS associations. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that in young adults, ADHD and ASD symptoms have similar characteristics as they do in in childhood. Associations with other cognitive, learning and communication problems, and with ADHD PRS, were somewhat less pronounced for self-reported adult ADHD and ASD symptoms, sugges

Neurofilament results for the phase II neuroprotection study of phenytoin in optic neuritis

Background: A randomized trial of phenytoin in acute optic neuritis (ON) demonstrated a 30% reduction in retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) loss with phenytoin versus placebo. Here we present the corresponding serum neurofilament analyses. Methods: Eighty-six acute ON cases were randomized to receive phenytoin (4–6 mg/kg/day) or placebo for 3 months, and followed up for 6 months. Serum was collected at baseline, 3 and 6 months for analysis of neurofilament heavy chain (NfH) and neurofilament light chain (NfL). Results: Sixty-four patients had blood sampling. Of these, 58 and 56 were available at 3 months, and 55 and 54 were available at 6 months for NfH and NfL, respectively. There was no significant correlation between serum NfH and NfL at the time points tested. For NfH, the difference in mean placebo – phenytoin was −44 pg/ml at 3 months (P = 0.019) and −27 pg/ml at 6 months (P = 0.234). For NfL, the difference was 1.4 pg/ml at 3 months (P = 0.726) and −1.6 pg/ml at 6 months (P = 0.766). Conclusions: At 3 months, there was a reduction in NfH, but not NFL, in the phenytoin versus placebo group, while differences at 6 months were not statistically significant. This suggests a potential neuroprotective role for phenytoin in acute ON, with the lower NfH at 3 months, when levels secondary to degeneration of the anterior visual pathway are still elevated, but not at 6 months, when levels have normalized