Optical fiber coupling method and apparatus

Systems are described for coupling a pair of optical fibers to pass light between them, which enables a coupler to be easily made, and with simple equipment, while closely controlling the characteristics of the coupler. One method includes mounting a pair of optical fibers on a block having a large hole therein, so the fibers extend across the hole while lying adjacent and parallel to one another. The fibers are immersed in an etchant to reduce the thickness of cladding around the fiber core. The fibers are joined together by applying a liquid polymer so the polymer-air interface moves along the length of the fibers to bring the fibers together in a zipper-like manner, and to progressively lay a thin coating of the polymer on the fibers

Acute phase protein levels in dogs with mast cell tumours and sarcomas

<p><b>Context:</b> The acute phase protein response is part of a non-specific and complex host response to inflammation. It occurs shortly after tissue injury and may be induced by a range of different causes, including infectious, inflammatory, neoplastic, traumatic or immunological disease. Although it was conventionally believed that APPs were exclusively hepatocyte derived, there is increasing evidence to support extra-hepatic generation in neoplastic and other disease states. In people, C-reactive protein (CRP) has been shown to be of value in identifying metastatic disease from primary renal tumours as well as showing promise for monitoring rejection of renal transplants. Serum CRP correlates with survival in colorectal cancer and oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma while serum amyloid A (SAA) concentrations correlate with cancer activity, stage and prognosis in gastric tumours. Recent immunohistochemical studies in people with oesophageal carcinoma suggest that tumour tissue may itself elaborate APP with a poorer survival and outcome associated with tumours elaborating higher levels of CRP. A similar association has been seen between alpha-1 acid glycoprotein (AGP) and colorectal tumours and ovarian carcinoma.</p> <p>As yet, studies regarding APP values in neoplastic conditions in dogs are limited, and many are non-specific. In veterinary patients, elevated levels of AGP have been identified in dogs with a range of tumours with localisation to liver and splenic tissue in one study. Another study found higher levels of AGP in dogs with non-specific tumours of grade III-IV based on the WHO Tumour Node Metastasis (TNM) scale and elevated serum AGP has been documented in non-specific tumour-bearing cats. Elevated CRP levels have been documented in both dogs and cats with lymphoma and serum CRP may be used as an indicator of complete remission status in dogs with multicentric lymphoma. Elevated levels of CRP, Haptoglobin (Hp) and SAA have been identified in dogs with mammary tumours, with significant increases over normal in the presence of metastatic disease, primary tumours greater than 5cm in diameter and those with ulceration.</p> <p>In this study we evaluated an APP profile using four APPs (CRP, Hp, SAA and AGP), in dogs with mast cell tumours (MCTs) and sarcomas to assess whether the APP profile would change in reflection of tumour presence; whether the extent of any change would correlate with tumour grade; and whether the changes would differ with tumour type.</p> <p><b>Approach:</b> Patients with naturally occurring MCTs and sarcomas presenting for staging and treatment were included if they met the study criteria. Criteria for inclusion were that the patient was not currently being treated with steroids, did not have a recent history of infectious or inflammatory disease other than the tumour, a definitive histological diagnosis was available and a full staging procedure was completed prior to surgery using standard oncological protocols to identify metastatic disease where present. Following surgical resection each tumour was submitted for full histological evaluation and grading to include assessment of the margins of excision. Cases were only enrolled in the study if blood sampling formed part of the clinical investigation and/or treatment, and where residual blood was available after diagnostic sampling which would otherwise have been disposed of as clinical waste. In brief, the CRP levels were determined by immunoturbidometric assay and Hp by means of haemoglobin binding capacity assay. SAA was measured with a commercial canine ELISA kit (TriDelta Development, Dublin, Ireland) and AGP was measured with a commercial radial immunodiffusion assay (J-Path Inc, Tokyo, Japan).</p> <p><b>Results:</b> All comparisons using continuous data were checked for normality and equality of variances and appropriate statistical tests were employed (student’s t test operationalised as a two-sample Welch’s test for samples of unequal sizes and variances, Mann-Whitney, Chi-square and Fishers exact tests as appropriate). In MCTs, the CRP and AGP were elevated above reference ranges, Hp showed no significant change and SAA dropped relative to the reference range. In sarcoma patients CRP, Hp and AGP were all elevated above reference ranges. None of the tumour grade differences were significant apart from SAA in sarcoma patients where values in grade 2 sarcoma were significantly higher than those in grade 1.</p> <p><b>Interpretation and notes of caution:</b> The numbers in our groups were small which compromises the validity of statistical evaluation so our results must be interpreted with caution. However some interesting relationships have emerged from the initial evaluation which suggests that APP profiles may have potential for screening in patients with neoplastic disease. For patients with MCTs, CRP and AGP levels would be expected to increase, with a concurrent drop in SAA levels. In sarcoma patients CRP, AGP and Hp can all be expected to increase. These initial results need to be evaluated in larger numbers of cases with naturally occurring disease to validate the findings, to assess whether the presence and extent of metastatic disease has a significant effect, and also to confirm whether the values alter after surgical resection of the primary tumour.</p> <p><b>Significance of findings:</b> If there are consistent and specific changes in APP profiles associated with different tumour types in dogs, as is the case with a wide range of cancers in humans, then there may be potential for APP profiles on routine blood samples to be used as indicators of disease, or where monitoring for recurrence. Whether they could also have potential for assessment of the presence of metastatic disease and prognosis as in people is unknown as yet.</p&gt

Ranging system which compares an object reflected component of a light beam to a reference component of the light beam

A system is described for measuring the distance to an object by comparing a first component of a light pulse that is reflected off the object with a second component of the light pulse that passes along a reference path of known length, which provides great accuracy with a relatively simple and rugged design. The reference path can be changed in precise steps so that it has an equivalent length approximately equal to the path length of the light pulse component that is reflected from the object. The resulting small difference in path lengths can be precisely determined by directing the light pulse components into opposite ends of a detector formed of a material that emits a second harmonic light output at the locations where the opposite going pulses past simultaneously across one another

Drama teacher education, partnerships for transforming the future: Exploring the concepts of building a Guild of Drama Educators

Focus: The concept of drama teacher education as catalyst for creating communities of drama educators– drama education as an induction into a community of drama educator

Dimerization-driven interaction of hepatitis C virus core protein with NS3 helicase

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects over 130 million people causing a worldwide epidemic of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular-carcinoma. Because current HCV treatments are only partially effective, molecular mechanisms involved in HCV propagation are actively being pursued as possible drug targets. Here, we report on a new macromolecular interaction between the HCV capsid core protein and the helicase portion of HCV non-structural protein 3 (NS3h), confirmed by four different biochemical methods. The protease portion of NS3 is not required. Interaction between the two proteins could be disrupted by two types of specific inhibitors of core dimerization, the small molecule SL201 and core106, a C-terminally truncated core protein. Cross-linking experiments suggest that the physical interaction with NS3h is probably driven by core oligomerization. Moreover, SL201 blocks the production of infectious virus, but not the production of a subgenomic HCV replicon by hepatoma cells. Time-of-addition experiments confirm that SL201 has no effect on entry of the virus. These data underline the essential role of core as a key organizer of HCV particle assembly, confirm the importance of oligomerization, reveal the interaction with viral helicase and support a new molecular understanding of the formation of the viral particle at the level of the lipid droplets, before its migration to the site of release and budding

Bidirectional lipid droplet velocities are controlled by differential binding strengths of HCV Core DII protein

Host cell lipid droplets (LD) are essential in the hepatitis C virus (HCV) life cycle and are targeted by the viral capsid core protein. Core-coated LDs accumulate in the perinuclear region and facilitate viral particle assembly, but it is unclear how mobility of these LDs is directed by core. Herein we used two-photon fluorescence, differential interference contrast imaging, and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering microscopies, to reveal novel core-mediated changes to LD dynamics. Expression of core protein’s lipid binding domain II (DII-core) induced slower LD speeds, but did not affect directionality of movement on microtubules. Modulating the LD binding strength of DII-core further impacted LD mobility, revealing the temporal effects of LD-bound DII-core. These results for DII-core coated LDs support a model for core-mediated LD localization that involves core slowing down the rate of movement of LDs until localization at the perinuclear region is accomplished where LD movement ceases. The guided localization of LDs by HCV core protein not only is essential to the viral life cycle but also poses an interesting target for the development of antiviral strategies against HCV