Antiviral activity of Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronquist extracts grown in Tunisia

Ethyl acetate, chloroform, butanol and methanol extracts of the aerial parts of Conyza Canadensis L. Cronquist were investigated for their antiviral activity against human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) AD-169 and Cox-B3 viruses by modification of the widely used shell-vial assay. The results showed that butanol and methanol extracts had the most potent antiviral activity against HCMV and Cox-B3 viruses.Key words: Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronquist, antiviral activity, human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), Coxsackie B virus type 3 (CoxB-3)

Reperfusion therapy in renal dysfunction patients presenting with STEMI: Which is better in the Tunisian context?

BackgroundPatients with renal insufficiency experience worse prognosis after STEMI. Current guidelines do not clearly draw specific strategies for renal dysfunction (RD) patients, and most clinical trials exclude them from the study population.Aim of the studyTo compare primary PCI (PPCI) and thrombolysis (using Strepokinase) results as well as in-hospital mortality after successful reperfusion between patients with or without RD.MethodsFrom January 1995 to October 2011, 1388 patients admitted for STEMI were enrolled in the MIRAMI (MonastIR’s Acute Myocardial Infarction) registry. Two reperfusion groups were identified: PPCI (315 patients) and thrombolysis (379 patients). Patients who underwent rescue PCI were excluded. Due to lacking clearance data, we used a serum creatinine level >130μmol/l to define RD patients. We compared in each reperfusion group: (1) The success of revascularization (TIMI III flow restoring with <20% residual stenosis after PPCI, pain relief with ST regression >50% 60min after thrombolysis) and (2) the in-hospital mortality rate after reperfusion success between the RD patients (RD+) and normal renal function patients (RD−).ResultsNinety patients (13%) had RD, 50% of which underwent PPCI, and 50% received thrombolytics. Among RD+ and RD- groups, baseline characteristics were similar between the two reperfusion groups.In the PPCI group, although TIMI flow was similar before angioplasty (p=0.82), TIMI III restoring was significantly lower in the RD+ group (78.6% vs 91.8%, p=0.013). Suboptimal result was also higher in the RD+ group (13.6% vs 2.7%, p<0.001), but ST regression after TIMI III achievement was similar in the 2 groups (p=0.43) reflecting probably no microvascular damage.In the thrombolysis group, successful reperfusion was also significantly lower when RD exists (58% vs 74%, p=0.03).After successful reperfusion, in-hospital mortality is higher among RD+ patients in the PPCI group (33.3% vs 4.3%, p<0.001), whereas it is similar after successful thrombolysis (2.6% vs 0%, p=0.42).ConclusionRD reduces either PPCI or thrombolysis success, with no proven microvascular damage after PPCI. In-hospital prognosis is however worse in RD group only after successful PPCI, but not after successful Streptokinase thrombolysis

Experiments and modelling in N2-H2 capacitively coupled radio-frequency discharges at low pressure

This work uses experiments and simulations to analyze the modifications induced in pure N2 capacitively coupled radio-frequency discharges, running at low pressure (0.6–1.2 mbar) and low power (5–20 W), by the addition of small amounts of H2 (up to 5%). Simulations use a hybrid code coupling a two-dimensional time-dependent fluid module, describing the dynamics of the charged particles, to a zero-dimensional kinetic module, describing the production and destruction of nitrogen and hydrogen neutral species. The discussion is particularly focused on the results obtained for the electron density and the radiative transition intensities with nitrogen species. Model predictions are in qualitative agreement with measurements, for the evolution of these quantities with changes in both the gas pressure and the hydrogen percentage in the gas mixture.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Minimally Disruptive Cooperative Lane-change Maneuvers

A lane-change maneuver on a congested highway could be severely disruptive or even infeasible without the cooperation of neighboring cars. However, cooperation with other vehicles does not guarantee that the performed maneuver will not have a negative impact on traffic flow unless it is explicitly considered in the cooperative controller design. In this letter, we present a socially compliant framework for cooperative lane-change maneuvers for an arbitrary number of CAVs on highways that aims to interrupt traffic flow as minimally as possible. Moreover, we explicitly impose feasibility constraints in the optimization formulation by using reachability set theory, leading to a unified design that removes the need for an iterative procedure used in prior work. We quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of our framework and compare it against previously offered approaches in terms of maneuver time and incurred throughput disruption.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figure

Vorticity Banding During the Lamellar-to-Onion Transition in a Lyotropic Surfactant Solution in Shear Flow

We report on the rheology of a lamellar lyotropic surfactant solution (SDS/dodecane/pentanol/water), and identify a discontinuous transition between two shear thinning regimes which correspond to the low stress lamellar phase and the more viscous shear induced multi-lamellar vesicle, or ``onion'' phase. We study in detail the flow curve, stress as a function of shear rate, during the transition region, and present evidence that the region consists of a shear banded phase where the material has macroscopically separated into bands of lamellae and onions stacked in the vorticity direction. We infer very slow and irregular transformations from lamellae to onions as the stress is increased through the two phase region, and identify distinct events consistent with the nucleation of small fractions of onions that coexist with sheared lamellae.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figure

Use of the linear absorption coefficient for absolute comparison of plasma films in the mid-IR range

In this work, we present the mid-infrared analysis of analogues of Titan's aerosols produced in a radio frequency capacitively coupled plasma (RF-CCP). The influence of the gas mixture on aerosols spectra is also studied through the analysis of the carbonaceous bands of the spectra, and its Gaussian deconvolution.Представлен анализ в среднем инфракрасном диапазоне аналогов титановых аэрозолей, которые производятся в радиочастотных источниках плазмы с емкостной связью (РЧ-ЕСС). Также изучено влияние газовой смеси на спектры аэрозолей с помощью анализа углеродсодержащих полос спектра и ее гауссовой деконволюции (обратная свертка).Представлено аналіз у середньому інфрачервоному діапазоні аналогів титанових аерозолів, які проводяться в радіочастотних джерелах плазми з ємнісним зв'язком (РЧ-ЕСС). Також вивчено вплив газової суміші на спектри аерозолів за допомогою аналізу вуглецевмісних смуг спектра і її гауссової деконволюції (зворотня згортка)

Use of the linear absorption coefficient for absolute comparison of plasma films in the mid-IR range

In this work, we present the mid-infrared analysis of analogues of Titan's aerosols produced in a radio frequency capacitively coupled plasma (RF-CCP). The influence of the gas mixture on aerosols spectra is also studied through the analysis of the carbonaceous bands of the spectra, and its Gaussian deconvolution.Представлен анализ в среднем инфракрасном диапазоне аналогов титановых аэрозолей, которые производятся в радиочастотных источниках плазмы с емкостной связью (РЧ-ЕСС). Также изучено влияние газовой смеси на спектры аэрозолей с помощью анализа углеродсодержащих полос спектра и ее гауссовой деконволюции (обратная свертка).Представлено аналіз у середньому інфрачервоному діапазоні аналогів титанових аерозолів, які проводяться в радіочастотних джерелах плазми з ємнісним зв'язком (РЧ-ЕСС). Також вивчено вплив газової суміші на спектри аерозолів за допомогою аналізу вуглецевмісних смуг спектра і її гауссової деконволюції (зворотня згортка)

Phylogenetic Analysis of the Neks Reveals Early Diversification of Ciliary-Cell Cycle Kinases

NIMA-related kinases (Neks) have been studied in diverse eukaryotes, including the fungus Aspergillus and the ciliate Tetrahymena. In the former, a single Nek plays an essential role in cell cycle regulation; in the latter, which has more than 30 Neks in its genome, multiple Neks regulate ciliary length. Mammalian genomes encode an intermediate number of Neks, several of which are reported to play roles in cell cycle regulation and/or localize to centrosomes. Previously, we reported that organisms with cilia typically have more Neks than organisms without cilia, but were unable to establish the evolutionary history of the gene family