Macrophages in homeostatic immune function

Macrophages are not only involved in inflammatory and anti-infective processes, but also play an important role in maintaining tissue homeostasis. In this review, we summarize recent evidence investigating the role of macrophages in controlling angiogenesis, metabolism as well as salt and water balance. Particularly, we summarize the importance of macrophage tonicity enhancer binding protein (TonEBP, also termed nuclear factor of activated T-cells 5 [NFAT5]) expression in the regulation of salt and water homeostasis. Further understanding of homeostatic macrophage function may lead to new therapeutic approaches to treat ischemia, hypertension and metabolic disorders

Real-time visualization of a sparse parametric mixture model for BTF rendering

Bidirectional Texture Functions (BTF) allow high quality visualization of real world materials exhibiting complex appearance and details that can not be faithfully represented using simpler analytical or parametric representations. Accurate representations of such materials require huge amounts of data, hindering real time rendering. BTFs compress the raw original data, constituting a compromise between visual quality and rendering time. This paper presents an implementation of a state of the art BTF representation on the GPU, allowing interactive high fidelity visualization of complex geometric models textured with multiple BTFs. Scalability with respect to the geometric complexity, amount of lights and number of BTFs is also studied.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi

Physikalische Verfahren zur Behandlung von Saatgut im ökologischen Landbau

A variety of physical treatment methods are able to kill pathogens on and in seeds non-selectively. In all cases, the application of these methods requires optimisation of the relevant treatment parameters such as temperature, treatment time or energy dose. The optimum treatment effect is achieved when the selected parameters induce a maximum reduction of infestation without relevant impairment of germination capac-ity and plant growth. It has been confirmed that different physical measures can be used for the control of seed-borne pathogens. The “classical” hot water treatment method is suitable for a wide range of seeds. Further procedures like the hot air seed treatment method “Thermoseed®”, the vacuum-steam treatment method Steamlab, and others are also suitable

Усовершенствование газодинамических методов исследования скважин на нефтегазоконденсатных месторождениях

Объектом исследования являются газодинамические исследования скважин с помощью различных мобильных установок на нефтегазоконденсатных месторождениях. Цель исследования – анализ методов и технологий промысловых газоконденсатных исследований и влияние результатов данных исследований на дальнейшую разработку месторождения. В процессе исследования были подробно рассмотрены виды газоконденсатных исследований скважин, данные получаемые в ходе этих исследований.The object of research is gas-dynamic studies of wells using various mobile installations at oil and gas condensate fields. The purpose of the study is to analyze methods and technologies of field gas condensate research and the impact of the results of these studies on the further development of the field. In the course of the study, the types of gas condensate well studies, the data obtained during these studies, as well as the prospects for using more advanced installations for well research

Screening of Hydrodynamic Interactions in Semidilute Polymer Solutions: A Computer Simulation Study

We study single-chain motion in semidilute solutions of polymers of length N = 1000 with excluded-volume and hydrodynamic interactions by a novel algorithm. The crossover length of the transition from Zimm (short lengths and times) to Rouse dynamics (larger scales) is proportional to the static screening length. The crossover time is the corresponding Zimm time. Our data indicate Zimm behavior at large lengths but short times. There is no hydrodynamic screening until the chains feel constraints, after which they resist the flow: "Incomplete screening" occurs in the time domain.Comment: 3 figure

Isotope effect in impure high T_c superconductors

The influence of various kinds of impurities on the isotope shift exponent \alpha of high temperature superconductors has been studied. In these materials the dopant impurities, like Sr in La_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4, play different role and usually occupy different sites than impurities like Zn, Fe, Ni {\it etc} intentionally introduced into the system to study its superconducting properties. In the paper the in-plane and out-of-plane impurities present in layered superconductors have been considered. They differently affect the superconducting transition temperature T_c. The relative change of isotope shift coefficient, however, is an universal function of T_c/T_{c0} (T_{c0} reffers to impurity free system) {\it i.e.} for angle independent scattering rate and density of states function it does not depend whether the change of T_c is due to in- or out-of-plane impurities. The role of the anisotropic impurity scattering in changing oxygen isotope coefficient of superconductors with various symmetries of the order parameter is elucidated. The comparison of the calculated and experimental dependence of \alpha/\alpha_0, where \alpha_0 is the clean system isotope shift coefficient, on T_c/T_{c0} is presented for a number of cases studied. The changes of \alpha calculated within stripe model of superconductivity in copper oxides resonably well describe the data on La_{1.8}Sr_{0.2}Cu_{1-x}(Fe,Ni)_xO_4, without any fitting parameters.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, Phys. Rev. B67 (2003) accepte