Processing, microstructure and mechanical properties of bimodal size SiCp reinforced AZ31B magnesium matrix composites

AbstractThe bimodal size SiC particulates (SiCp) reinforced magnesium matrix composites with different ratios of micron SiCp and nano SiCp (M-SiCp:N-SiCp = 14.5:0.5, 14:1, and 13.5:1.5) were prepared by semisolid stirring assisted ultrasonic vibration method. The AZ31B alloy and all as-cast SiCp/AZ31B composites were extruded at 350 °C with the ratio of 12:1. Microstructural characterization of the extruded M14 + N1 (M-SiCp:N-SiCp = 14:1) composite revealed the uniform distribution of bimodal size SiCp and significant grain refinement. Optical Microscopy(OM) observation showed that, compared with the M14.5 + N0.5 (M-SiCp:N-SiCp = 14.5:0.5) composite, there are more recrystallized grains in M14 + N1 (M-SiCp:N-SiCp = 14:1) and M13.5 + N1.5 (M-SiCp:N-SiCp = 13.5:1.5) composites, but in comparison to the M13.5 + N1.5 composite, the average grain size of the M14 + N1 composite is slightly decreased. The evaluation of mechanical properties indicated that the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of the M14 + N1 composite were obviously increased compared with other composites

Bound states of Θ+\Theta^+ in nuclei

We study the binding energy and the width of the $\Theta^+$ in nuclei, associated to the $K N$ and $K \pi N$ components. The first one leads to negligible contributions while the second one leads to a sizeable attraction, enough to bind the $\Theta^+$ in nuclei. Pauli blocking and binding effects on the $K N$ decay reduce considerably the $\Theta^+$ decay width in nuclei and medium effects associated to the $K \pi N$ component also lead to a very small width, as a consequence of which one finds separation between the bound levels considerably larger than the width of the states.Comment: Presentation in the 10th International Baryon Conference BARYON0

Consistent response to guselkumab treatment between Hispanic and non-Hispanic patients with psoriasis : an analysis from VOYAGE 1 and VOYAGE 2

Altres ajuts: Janssen Research and Development (JRD)Introduction: In VOYAGE 1 (NCT02207231) and VOYAGE 2 (NCT02207244), guselkumab, an interleukin-23 blocker, was safe and effective in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Methods: Patients who self-identified as Hispanic (n = 117) or non-Hispanic (n = 1686) were randomized to guselkumab, placebo, or adalimumab. Efficacy assessments included Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), Investigator's Global Assessment (IGA), and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI). Results: At week 16, treatment differences for guselkumab versus placebo in the Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations were 67.4 (95% confidence interval 50.4, 84.4) and 77.2 (73.5, 80.8) percentage points for IGA 0/1 and 59.2 (41.9, 76.4) and 69.2 (65.7, 72.7) percentage points for PASI 90, respectively. Treatment differences for guselkumab versus adalimumab were 25.9 (6.5, 45.3) and 17.5 (12.8, 22.3) percentage points for IGA 0/1 and 21.4 (-0.1, 42.9) and 23.5 (18.2, 28.9) percentage points for PASI 90, respectively. Week 24 results were similar. Adverse event frequency was greater in adalimumab- versus guselkumab-treated patients in the Hispanic population only through weeks 16 and 28. In both populations, DLQI 0/1 responses were greater in guselkumab-treated versus placebo- and adalimumab-treated patients at week 16 and versus adalimumab-treated patients at week 24. Conclusions: Guselkumab safety and efficacy were consistent between Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations

Evaluation of a social determinants of health screening questionnaire and workflow pilot within an adult ambulatory clinic

Background There is increased recognition in clinical settings of the importance of documenting, understanding, and addressing patients’ social determinants of health (SDOH) to improve health and address health inequities. This study evaluated a pilot of a standardized SDOH screening questionnaire and workflow in an ambulatory clinic within a large integrated health network in Northern California. Methods The pilot screened for SDOH needs using an 11-question Epic-compatible paper questionnaire assessing eight SDOH and health behavior domains: financial resource, transportation, stress, depression, intimate partner violence, social connections, physical activity, and alcohol consumption. Eligible patients for the pilot receiving a Medicare wellness, adult annual, or new patient visits during a five-week period (February-March, 2020), and a comparison group from the same time period in 2019 were identified. Sociodemographic data (age, sex, race/ethnicity, and payment type), visit type, length of visit, and responses to SDOH questions were extracted from electronic health records, and a staff experience survey was administered. The evaluation was guided by the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework. Results Two-hundred eighty-nine patients were eligible for SDOH screening. Responsiveness by domain ranged from 55 to 67%, except for depression. Half of patients had at least one identified social need, the most common being stress (33%), physical activity (22%), alcohol (12%), and social connections (6%). Physical activity needs were identified more in females (81% vs. 19% in males, p \u3c .01) and at new patient/transfer visits (48% vs. 13% at Medicare wellness and 38% at adult wellness visits, p \u3c .05). Average length of visit was 39.8 min, which was 1.7 min longer than that in 2019. Visit lengths were longer among patients 65+ (43.4 min) and patients having public insurance (43.6 min). Most staff agreed that collecting SDOH data was relevant and accepted the SDOH questionnaire and workflow but highlighted opportunities for improvement in training and connecting patients to resources. Conclusion Use of evidence-based SDOH screening questions and associated workflow was effective in gathering patient SDOH information and identifying social needs in an ambulatory setting. Future studies should use qualitative data to understand patient and staff experiences with collecting SDOH information in healthcare settings

Identifying sulphate-reducing and magnetotactic bacteria in a hyperalkaline cave system

Sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) are two special groups of prokaryotes that emerged early in Earth’s history. These extremotolerant bacterial groups have rarely been identified or studied within cave and karst environments, especially hyperalkaline cave systems (pH > 9), such as Poole’s Cavern in Derbyshire, England. In this study, we identify the sulphate-reducing MTB Desulfovibrio magneticus, within this hyperalkaline cave system. It appears to survive in a diverse range of environments including soil, stalactites and cave sediments. Additionally, we identify various extremotolerant SRB in similar Poole’s Cavern environments. We show that these SRB and MTB can move successfully into subsurface environments and adapt concomitantly to the anomalous pH, saline, and relatively nutrient-poor conditions found in Poole’s Cavern. These findings are significant to our understanding of microorganisms on early Earth because it is believed, but not proven, that underground environments might have been hot spots for early microbial life. We expect that these early bacteria would have been able to adopt similar adaptation strategies, transferring and acclimatizing to underground environments, in ways comparable to the SRB and MTB identified in this study

Dynamics and Berry phase of two-species Bose-Einstein condensates

In terms of exact solutions of the time-dependent Schrodinger equation for an effective giant spin modeled from a coupled two-mode Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) with adiabatic and cyclic time-varying Raman coupling between two hyperfine states of the BEC, we obtain analytic time-evolution formulas of the population imbalance and relative phase between two components with various initial states, especially the SU(2)coherent state. We find the Berry phase depending on the number parity of atoms, and particle number dependence of the collapse revival of population-imbalance oscillation. It is shown that self-trapping and phase locking can be achieved from initial SU(2) coherent states with proper parameters.Comment: 18 pages,5 figure

Influence of Gap Extrema on the Tunneling Conductance Near an Impurity in an Anisotropic Superconductor

Changes: figures added in postscript form, Eq. (7) and various typos corrected. We examine the effect of an impurity on the nearby tunneling conductance in an anisotropically-gapped superconductor. The variation of the conductance has pronounced spatial dependence which depends strongly on the Fermi surface location of gap extrema. In particular, different gap symmetries produce profoundly different spatial features in the conductance. These effects may be detectable with an STM measurement on the surface of a high-temperature superconductor.Comment: 12 pages (revtex) + 3 figures (included - postscript), NSF-ITP-93-8

New lanostanes and naphthoquinones isolated from Antrodia salmonea and their antioxidative burst activity in human leukocytes

Four new compounds were isolated from the basidiomata of the fungus Antrodia salmonea, a newly identified species of Antrodia (Aphyllophorales) in Taiwan. These new compounds are named as lanosta-8,24-diene-3 beta,15 alpha,21-triol (1), 24-methylenelanost-8-ene-3 beta,15 alpha,21-triol (2), 2,3-dimethoxy-5-(2',5'-dimethoxy-3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-7-methyl-[1,4]-naphthoquinone (3), and 2,3-dimethoxy-6-(2,5'-dimethoxy-3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-7-methyl-[1,4]-naphthoquinone (4), respectively. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods. An in vitro cellular functional assay was performed to evaluate their anti-oxidative burst activity in human leukocytes. They showed inhibitory effects against phorbol 12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA), a direct protein kinase C activator, induced oxidative burst in neutrophils (PMN) and mononuclear cells (MNC) with 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) ranging from 3.5 to 25.8 mu M. The potency order of these compounds in PMA-activated leukocytes was as 1 > 3 > 4 > 2. They were relatively less effective in formyl-Met-Leu-Phe (fMLP), a G-protein coupled receptor agonist, induced oxidative burst, except for compounds 3 and 4 in fMLP-activated PMN. These results indicated that three (1, 3, and 4) of these four newly identified compounds displayed antioxidative effect in human leukocytes with different potency and might confer anti-inflammatory activity to these drugs

A novel HIV vaccine adjuvanted by IC31 induces robust and persistent humoral and cellular immunity.

The HIV vaccine strategy that, to date, generated immune protection consisted of a prime-boost regimen using a canarypox vector and an HIV envelope protein with alum, as shown in the RV144 trial. Since the efficacy was weak, and previous HIV vaccine trials designed to generate antibody responses failed, we hypothesized that generation of T cell responses would result in improved protection. Thus, we tested the immunogenicity of a similar envelope-based vaccine using a mouse model, with two modifications: a clade C CN54gp140 HIV envelope protein was adjuvanted by the TLR9 agonist IC31®, and the viral vector was the vaccinia strain NYVAC-CN54 expressing HIV envelope gp120. The use of IC31® facilitated immunoglobulin isotype switching, leading to the production of Env-specific IgG2a, as compared to protein with alum alone. Boosting with NYVAC-CN54 resulted in the generation of more robust Th1 T cell responses. Moreover, gp140 prime with IC31® and alum followed by NYVAC-CN54 boost resulted in the formation and persistence of central and effector memory populations in the spleen and an effector memory population in the gut. Our data suggest that this regimen is promising and could improve the protection rate by eliciting strong and long-lasting humoral and cellular immune responses

Observations of Coronal Mass Ejections with the Coronal Multichannel Polarimeter

The Coronal Multichannel Polarimeter (CoMP) measures not only the polarization of coronal emission, but also the full radiance profiles of coronal emission lines. For the first time, CoMP observations provide high-cadence image sequences of the coronal line intensity, Doppler shift and line width simultaneously in a large field of view. By studying the Doppler shift and line width we may explore more of the physical processes of CME initiation and propagation. Here we identify a list of CMEs observed by CoMP and present the first results of these observations. Our preliminary analysis shows that CMEs are usually associated with greatly increased Doppler shift and enhanced line width. These new observations provide not only valuable information to constrain CME models and probe various processes during the initial propagation of CMEs in the low corona, but also offer a possible cost-effective and low-risk means of space weather monitoring.Comment: 6 figures. Will appear in the special issue of Coronal Magnetism, Sol. Phy