Implementation and performance of SIBYLS: a dual endstation small-angle X-ray scattering and macromolecular crystallography beamline at the Advanced Light Source.

The SIBYLS beamline (12.3.1) of the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, supported by the US Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health, is optimized for both small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and macromolecular crystallography (MX), making it unique among the world's mostly SAXS or MX dedicated beamlines. Since SIBYLS was commissioned, assessments of the limitations and advantages of a combined SAXS and MX beamline have suggested new strategies for integration and optimal data collection methods and have led to additional hardware and software enhancements. Features described include a dual mode monochromator [containing both Si(111) crystals and Mo/B(4)C multilayer elements], rapid beamline optics conversion between SAXS and MX modes, active beam stabilization, sample-loading robotics, and mail-in and remote data collection. These features allow users to gain valuable insights from both dynamic solution scattering and high-resolution atomic diffraction experiments performed at a single synchrotron beamline. Key practical issues considered for data collection and analysis include radiation damage, structural ensembles, alternative conformers and flexibility. SIBYLS develops and applies efficient combined MX and SAXS methods that deliver high-impact results by providing robust cost-effective routes to connect structures to biology and by performing experiments that aid beamline designs for next generation light sources

Effect of toroidal field ripple on plasma rotation in JET

Dedicated experiments on TF ripple effects on the performance of tokamak plasmas have been carried out at JET. The TF ripple was found to have a profound effect on the plasma rotation. The central Mach number, M, defined as the ratio of the rotation velocity and the thermal velocity, was found to drop as a function of TF ripple amplitude (3) from an average value of M = 0.40-0.55 for operations at the standard JET ripple of 6 = 0.08% to M = 0.25-0.40 for 6 = 0.5% and M = 0.1-0.3 for delta = 1%. TF ripple effects should be considered when estimating the plasma rotation in ITER. With standard co-current injection of neutral beam injection (NBI), plasmas were found to rotate in the co-current direction. However, for higher TF ripple amplitudes (delta similar to 1%) an area of counter rotation developed at the edge of the plasma, while the core kept its co-rotation. The edge counter rotation was found to depend, besides on the TF ripple amplitude, on the edge temperature. The observed reduction of toroidal plasma rotation with increasing TF ripple could partly be explained by TF ripple induced losses of energetic ions, injected by NBI. However, the calculated torque due to these losses was insufficient to explain the observed counter rotation and its scaling with edge parameters. It is suggested that additional TF ripple induced losses of thermal ions contribute to this effect

Multilevel examination of diabetes in modernising China: what elements of urbanisation are most associated with diabetes?

Aims/hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between urbanisation-related factors and diabetes prevalence in China. Methods: Anthropometry, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and community-level data were collected for 7,741 adults (18–90 years) across 217 communities and nine provinces in the 2009 China Health and Nutrition Survey to examine diabetes (FBG ≥7.0 mmol/l or doctor diagnosis). Sex-stratified multilevel models, clustered at the community and province levels and controlling for individual-level age and household income were used to examine the association between diabetes and: (1) a multicomponent urbanisation measure reflecting overall modernisation and (2) 12 separate components of urbanisation (e.g., population density, employment, markets, infrastructure and social factors). Results: Prevalent diabetes was higher in more-urbanised (men 12%; women 9%) vs less-urbanised (men 6%; women 5%) areas. In sex-stratified multilevel models adjusting for residential community and province, age and household income, there was a twofold higher diabetes prevalence in urban vs rural areas (men OR 2.02, 95% CI 1.47, 2.78; women, OR 1.94, 95% CI 1.35, 2.79). All urbanisation components were positively associated with diabetes, with variation across components (e.g. men, economic and income diversity, OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.20, 1.66; women, transportation infrastructure, OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.06, 1.32). Community-level variation in diabetes was comparatively greater for women (intraclass correlation [ICC] 0.03–0.05) vs men (ICC ≤0.01); province-level variation was greater for men (men 0.03–0.04; women 0.02). Conclusions/interpretation: Diabetes prevention and treatment efforts are needed particularly in urbanised areas of China. Community economic factors, modern markets, communications and transportation infrastructure might present opportunities for such efforts. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00125-012-2697-8) contains peer-reviewed but unedited supplementary material, which is available to authorised users

Genetic Effect on Body Mass Index and Cardiovascular Disease Across Generations

BACKGROUND: Whether genetics contribute to the rising prevalence of obesity or its cardiovascular consequences in today\u27s obesogenic environment remains unclear. We sought to determine whether the effects of a higher aggregate genetic burden of obesity risk on body mass index (BMI) or cardiovascular disease (CVD) differed by birth year. METHODS: We split the FHS (Framingham Heart Study) into 4 equally sized birth cohorts (birth year before 1932, 1932 to 1946, 1947 to 1959, and after 1960). We modeled a genetic predisposition to obesity using an additive genetic risk score (GRS) of 941 BMI-associated variants and tested for GRS-birth year interaction on log-BMI (outcome) when participants were around 50 years old (N=7693). We repeated the analysis using a GRS of 109 BMI-associated variants that increased CVD risk factors (type 2 diabetes, blood pressure, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein) in addition to BMI. We then evaluated whether the effects of the BMI GRSs on CVD risk differed by birth cohort when participants were around 60 years old (N=5493). RESULTS: Compared with participants born before 1932 (mean age, 50.8 yrs [2.4]), those born after 1960 (mean age, 43.3 years [4.5]) had higher BMI (median, 25.4 [23.3-28.0] kg/m CONCLUSIONS: The significant GRS-birth year interactions indicate that common genetic variants have larger effects on middle-age BMI and CVD risk in people born more recently. These findings suggest that the increasingly obesogenic environment may amplify the impact of genetics on the risk of obesity and possibly its cardiovascular consequences

Rationale for the H-19 and H-11 tracer tests at the WIPP site

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a repository for transuranic wastes constructed in bedded Permian-age halite in the Delaware Basin, a sedimentary basin in southeastern New Mexico, USA. A drilling scenario has been identified during performance assessment (PA) that could lead to the release of radionuclides to the Culebra Dolomite Member of the Rustler Formation, the most transmissive water-saturated unit above the repository horizon. Were this to occur, the radionuclides would need to be largely contained within the Culebra (or neighboring strata) within the WIPP-site boundary through the period lasting for 10,000 years after repository closure for WIPP to remain in compliance with applicable regulations on allowable releases. Thus, processes affecting transport of radionuclides within the Culebra are of importance to PA

Experimental distinction of the molecularly induced Balmer emission contribution and its application for inferring molecular divertor density with 2D filtered camera measurements during detachment in JET L-mode plasmas

A previously presented model for generating 2D estimates of the divertor plasma conditions at JET from deuterium Balmer line intensity ratios, obtained from tomographic reconstructions of divertor camera images, was amended to consider also the Balmer emission arising from molecular processes. Utilizing the AMJUEL and H2VIBR atomic and molecular databases of EIRENE enabled also inference of the molecular divertor density from the distinguished molecularly induced emission. Analysis of a JET L-mode density scan suggests the molecularly induced emission accounting for up to 60%-70% and 10%-20% of the Balmer D-alpha and D-gamma intensities, respectively, at the onset of detachment, while electron-ion recombination becomes increasingly dominant with deepening detachment. Similar observations were made by post-processing EDGE2D-EIRENE simulations, which indicated significant roles of molecular D-2(+) ions and vibrational excitation of the D-2 molecules as precursors for the molecularly induced emission. The experimentally inferred molecular density at the outer strike point was found to increase monotonously with decreasing strike point temperature, reaching approximately 30%-50% of the local electron density at n(mol,osp) = 1-2 x10(20) m(-3) at T-e,T-osp approximate to 0.7 eV. A further steep increase by a factor of 3-5 was observed with decrease of T-e,T-osp to 0.5 eV. The observations are in qualitative and reasonable quantitative agreement with EDGE2D-EIRENE predictions of n(mol,osp) within the uncertainties of the experimental data.Peer reviewe

Diabetes Risk Perception and Intention to Adopt Healthy Lifest yles Among Primary Care Patients

OBJECTIVE—To examine perceived risk of developing diabetes in primary care patients. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We recruited 150 nondiabetic primary care patients. We made standard clinical measurements, collected fasting blood samples, and used the validated Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes questionnaire. RESULTS—Patients with high perceived risk were more likely than those with low perceived risk to have a family history of diabetes (68 vs. 18%; P < 0.0001) and to have metabolic syndrome (53 vs. 35%; P = 0.04). However, patients with high perceived risk were not more likely to have intentions to adopt healthier lifestyle in the coming year (high 26.0% vs. low 29.2%; P = 0.69). CONCLUSIONS—Primary care patients with higher perceived risk of diabetes were at higher actual risk but did not express greater intention to adopt healthier lifestyles. Aspects of health behavior theory other than perceived risk need to be explored to help target efforts in the primary prevention of diabetes