680 research outputs found
Innovative molecular diagnosis of Trichinella species based on β-carbonic anhydrase genomic sequence
Trichinellosis is a helminthic infection where different species of Trichinella nematodes are the causative agents. Several molecular assays have been designed to aid diagnostics of trichinellosis. These assays are mostly complex and expensive. The genomes of Trichinella species contain certain parasite-specific genes, which can be detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods. We selected -carbonic anhydrase (-CA) gene as a target, because it is present in many parasites genomes but absent in vertebrates. We developed a novel -CA gene-based method for detection of Trichinella larvae in biological samples. We first identified a -CA protein sequence from Trichinella spiralis by bioinformatic tools using -CAs from Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster. Thereafter, 16 sets of designed primers were tested to detect -CA genomic sequences from three species of Trichinella, including T.spiralis, Trichinellapseudospiralis and Trichinellanativa. Among all 16 sets of designed primers, the primer set No. 2 efficiently amplified -CA genomic sequences from T.spiralis, T.pseudospiralis and T.nativa without any false-positive amplicons from other parasite samples including Toxoplasma gondii, Toxocara cati and Parascaris equorum. This robust and straightforward method could be useful for meat inspection in slaughterhouses, quality control by food authorities and medical laboratories.Peer reviewe
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Formation of Easy-To-Remove Supports in Laser Powder Bed Fusion through Selective Doping
Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) is a popular Additive Manufacturing
(AM) technique used c01m11only for metals. Metal paiis formed by LPBF
generally require supports connecting the part to the print bed to hold up the
strncture, remove heat, and minimize deformation due to solidification
shrinkage. Because of these suppo1is, finished parts must be cut away from
the build plate, and generally require additional machining to achieve the
desired geometry. In this study, a carbon suspension was deposited in the
3 l 6L stainless steel powder bed at the interface between the support and the
finished part. The added carbon reduces the co1Tosion resistance of the
3 l 6L. This allows full fusion of the support material to provide heat transfer
and mechanical support during printing, while allowing the supports to etch
preferentially by electrolytic etching. This causes the finished part to etch
or break free from the supports without any need for machining, simplifying
post-processing.Mechanical Engineerin
Ab-initio density functional studies of stepped TaC surfaces
We report on density functional total energy calculations of the step
formation and interaction energies for vicinal TaC(001) surfaces. Our
calculations show that double and triple-height steps are favored over
single-height steps for a given vicinal orientation, which is in agreement with
recent experimental observations. We provide a description of steps in terms of
atomic displacements and charge localization and predict an experimentally
observable rumpled structure of the step-edges, where the Ta atoms undergo
larger displacements compared to the C atoms.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Ising model with periodic pinning of mobile defects
A two-dimensional Ising model with short-range interactions and mobile
defects describing the formation and thermal destruction of defect stripes is
studied. In particular, the effect of a local pinning of the defects at the
sites of straight equidistant lines is analysed using Monte Carlo simulations
and the transfer matrix method. The pinning leads to a long-range ordered
magnetic phase at low temperatures. The dependence of the phase transition
temperature, at which the defect stripes are destabilized, on the pinning
strength is determined. The transition seems to be of first order, with and
without pinning.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure
Generation Gap and the Impact of the Web on Goods Quality Perceptions
This study explores how age and general online shopping experience affect consumer perceptions on product quality uncertainty. Using the survey data collected from 549 consumers, we investigated how they perceive the uncertainty of product quality on six search, experience and credence goods. The ANOVA results show that age and the Web shopping experience of consumers are significant factors. A generation gap is indeed seen for all but one experience good. Web shopping experience is not a significant factor for search goods but is for experience and credence goods. There is an interaction effect between age and Web shopping experience for one credence good. Implications of these results are discussed
Vortex Solid-Liquid Transition in BiSrCaCuO with a High Density of Strong Pins
The introduction of a large density of columnar defects in %underdoped
BiSrCaCuO crystals does not, at sufficiently low
vortex densities, increase the irreversibility line beyond the first order
transition (FOT) field of pristine crystals. At such low fields, the flux line
wandering length behaves as in pristine
%BiSrCaCuO crystals. Next, vortex positional
correlations along the --axis in the vortex Bose glass at fields above the
FOT are smaller than in the low--field vortex solid. Third, the
Bose-glass-to-vortex liquid transition is signaled by a rapid decrease in
c-axis phase correlations. These observations are understood in terms of the
``discrete superconductor'' model.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures Submitted to Phys. Rev. B Rapid Comm. 16-1-2004
Revised version 18-3-200
Randomly Crosslinked Macromolecular Systems: Vulcanisation Transition to and Properties of the Amorphous Solid State
As Charles Goodyear discovered in 1839, when he first vulcanised rubber, a
macromolecular liquid is transformed into a solid when a sufficient density of
permanent crosslinks is introduced at random. At this continuous equi- librium
phase transition, the liquid state, in which all macromolecules are
delocalised, is transformed into a solid state, in which a nonzero fraction of
macromolecules have spontaneously become localised. This solid state is a most
unusual one: localisation occurs about mean positions that are distributed
homogeneously and randomly, and to an extent that varies randomly from monomer
to monomer. Thus, the solid state emerging at the vulcanisation transition is
an equilibrium amorphous solid state: it is properly viewed as a solid state
that bears the same relationship to the liquid and crystalline states as the
spin glass state of certain magnetic systems bears to the paramagnetic and
ferromagnetic states, in the sense that, like the spin glass state, it is
diagnosed by a subtle order parameter.
In this review we give a detailed exposition of a theoretical approach to the
physical properties of systems of randomly, permanently crosslinked
macromolecules. Our primary focus is on the equilibrium properties of such
systems, especially in the regime of Goodyear's vulcanisation transition.Comment: Review Article, REVTEX, 58 pages, 3 PostScript figure
Universality and scaling study of the critical behavior of the two-dimensional Blume-Capel model in short-time dynamics
In this paper we study the short-time behavior of the Blume-Capel model at
the tricritical point as well as along the second order critical line. Dynamic
and static exponents are estimated by exploring scaling relations for the
magnetization and its moments at early stage of the dynamic evolution. Our
estimates for the dynamic exponents, at the tricritical point, are and .Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure
Combining Clinical With Cognitive or Magnetic Resonance Imaging Data for Predicting Transition to Psychosis in Ultra High-Risk Patients:Data From the PACE 400 Cohort
Background: Multimodal modeling that combines biological and clinical data shows promise in predicting transition to psychosis in individuals who are at ultra-high risk. Individuals who transition to psychosis are known to have deficits at baseline in cognitive function and reductions in gray matter volume in multiple brain regions identified by magnetic resonance imaging.Methods: In this study, we used Cox proportional hazards regression models to assess the additive predictive value of each modality—cognition, cortical structure information, and the neuroanatomical measure of brain age gap—to a previously developed clinical model using functioning and duration of symptoms prior to service entry as predictors in the Personal Assessment and Crisis Evaluation (PACE) 400 cohort. The PACE 400 study is a well-characterized cohort of Australian youths who were identified as ultra-high risk of transitioning to psychosis using the Comprehensive Assessment of At Risk Mental States (CAARMS) and followed for up to 18 years; it contains clinical data (from N = 416 participants), cognitive data (n = 213), and magnetic resonance imaging cortical parameters extracted using FreeSurfer (n = 231).Results: The results showed that neuroimaging, brain age gap, and cognition added marginal predictive information to the previously developed clinical model (fraction of new information: neuroimaging 0%–12%, brain age gap 7%, cognition 0%–16%).Conclusions: In summary, adding a second modality to a clinical risk model predicting the onset of a psychotic disorder in the PACE 400 cohort showed little improvement in the fit of the model for long-term prediction of transition to psychosis
MMN and Differential Waveform
A mismatch negativity response (MMN) and a new differential waveform were derived in an effort to evaluate a neural refractory or recovery effect in adult listeners. The MMN was elicited using oddball test runs in which the standard and deviant stimuli differed in frequency. To derive the differential waveform, the same standard and deviant stimuli were presented alone. MMN responses were obtained by subtracting the averaged responses to standards from the deviants. The differential waveforms were obtained by subtracting the averaged responses to standards presented alone from deviants presented alone. Scalp topography for the MMN and differential waveforms were similar. A significant (p < .05) positive and negative correlation was found between the earlier and later components of the bimodal MMN and the N1 and P2 component of the differential waveform, respectively. Further, N1 and P2 of the differential waveform were significant (p < .05) predictor variables of early and late peak amplitudes of the MMN. These results suggest that refractory effects may overlay/modify the morphology of the MMN waveform
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