Cyclooxygenase inhibitors acetylsalicylic acid and indomethacin do not affect capsaicin-induced neurogenic inflammation in human skin

Neurogenic inflammation is evoked by neuropeptides released from primary afferent terminals and, presumably, by other secondarily released inflammatory mediators. This study examines whether prostaglandins might participate in the development of neurogenic inflammation in humans and whether cyclooxygenase inhibitors have any anti-inflammatory effect on this type of inflammation. In healthy volunteers, neurogenic inflammation was elicited by epicutaneously applied capsaicin (1 %), after systemic pretreatment with acetylsalicylic acid, or topically applied indomethacin compared to pretreatment with saline or vehicle, respectively. The extent of neurogenic inflammation was quantified by planimetry of visible flare size and recording the increase of superficial cutaneous blood flow (SCBF) with a laser Doppler flowmeter. Capsaicin-induced flare sizes and outside SCBF (both representing neurogenically evoked inflammation) were unaffected by acetylsalicylic acid or indomethacin. Only the capsaicin-induced increase; of inside SCBF was attenuated by local pretreatment with indomethacin, reflecting the participation of prostaglandins in the inflammatory response of those areas which were in direct contact with capsaicin

Dynamic instabilities of fracture under biaxial strain using a phase field model

We present a phase field model of the propagation of fracture under plane strain. This model, based on simple physical considerations, is able to accurately reproduce the different behavior of cracks (the principle of local symmetry, the Griffith and Irwin criteria, and mode-I branching). In addition, we test our model against recent experimental findings showing the presence of oscillating cracks under bi-axial load. Our model again reproduces well observed supercritical Hopf bifurcation, and is therefore the first simulation which does so

Gallium Arsenide preparation and QE Lifetime Studies using the ALICE Photocathode Preparation Facility

In recent years, Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) type photocathodes have become widely used as electron sources in modern Energy Recovery Linac based light sources such as the Accelerators and Lasers in Combined Experiments (ALICE) at Daresbury Laboratory and as polarised electron source for the proposed International Linear Collider (ILC). Once activated to a Low Electron Affinity (LEA) state and illuminated by a laser, these materials can be used as a high-brightness source of both polarised and un-polarised electrons. This paper presents an effective multi-stage preparation procedure including heat cleaning, atomic hydrogen cleaning and the activation process for a GaAs photocathode. The stability of quantum efficiency (QE) and lifetime of activated to LEA state GaAs photocathode have been studied in the ALICE load-lock photocathode preparation facility which has a base pressure in the order of 10^-11 mbar. These studies are supported by further experimental evidence from surface science techniques such as X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) to demonstrate the processes at the atomic level.Comment: Presented at First International Particle Accelerator Conference, IPAC'10, Kyoto, Japan, from 23 to 28 May 201

On the motion of hairy black holes in Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton theories

Starting from the static, spherically symmetric black hole solutions in massless Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton (EMD) theories, we build a "skeleton" action, that is, we phenomenologically replace black holes by an appropriate effective point particle action, which is well suited to the formal treatment of the many-body problem in EMD theories. We find that, depending crucially on the value of their scalar cosmological environment, black holes can undergo steep "scalarization" transitions, inducing large deviations to the general relativistic two-body dynamics, as shown, for example, when computing the first post-Keplerian Lagrangian of EMD theories

Analysis of Student and Teachers Perspective using Hybrid e-Learning Method

The technological development also enhances the usage in the educational world. The subpar performance of traditional classroom learning has raised significant concerns within the realm of teaching and learning. This conventional approach, characterized by the age-old "chalk and talk" method, has been replaced by the adoption of pure online learning, often referred to as e-learning. This educational method, which has its roots in distance education, has garnered substantial attention from public universities. However, for e-learning to be truly effective, it must be integrated with other forms of learning, including face-to-face instruction. This amalgamation of different learning modalities gives rise to a novel approach known as blended learning, which has proven to be the most efficient and effective educational system. Many enduring insights from this technology have been influenced by the rhetorical works of the past. As society propels itself deeper into the information age, the importance of blended learning in higher education is becoming increasingly prominent. Higher education institutions stand on the brink of a significant paradigm shift in the way knowledge and truth are disseminated. To comprehend this transition to new computer-mediated methods of knowledge delivery through blended learning experiences, it is crucial to grasp the perceptions held by both instructors and students. In this quantitative research study, a survey questionnaire was employed to gather feedback from faculty and students at a private institute. The survey aimed to capture their perceptions regarding the use, frequency, readiness, and satisfaction with web-based technology in a blended learning environment. To gain deeper insights into these perceptions, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected through an online survey distributed to faculty and students during the spring semester

Canonical Formulation of pp-waves

We construct a Hamiltonian formulation for the class of plane-fronted gravitational waves with parallel rays (pp-waves). Because of the existence of a light-like Killing vector, the dynamics is effectively reduced to a 2+1 evolution with "time" chosen to be light-like. In spite of the vanishing action this allows us to geometrically identify a symplectic form as well as dynamical Hamiltonian, thus casting the system into canonical form.Comment: To appear in the "Obregon Festschrift

Региональные рудоконтролирующие структуры Урала

One of the most challenging requirements for the next generation EUV lithography is an extremely low amount of critically sized defects on mask blanks. Fast and reliable inspection of mask blanks is still a challenge. Here we present the current status of the development of our actinic Schwarzschild objective based microscope operating in dark field with EUV discharge produced plasma source. For characterization of the microscope performance, several programmed defect structures - artificial pits and bumps were created on top of multilayer mirror (ML) surfaces and investigated both with EUV microscope and atomic force microscope (AFM). Defect size sensitivity of actinic inspection in dark field mode without resolving the defects is under study. The dependency between defect shape, size and position in relation to the ML surface and its scattering signal will be discussed. Furthermore, first results of a defect mapping algorithm are presented

Studies of the performance of different front-end systems for flat-panel multi-anode PMTs with CsI(Tl) scintillator arrays

We have studied the performance of two different types of front-end systems for our gamma camera based on Hamamatsu H8500 (flat-panel 64 channels multi-anode PSPMT) with a CsI(Tl) scintillator array. The array consists of 64 pixels of $6\times6\times20{\rm mm}^3$ which corresponds to the anode pixels of H8500. One of the system is based on commercial ASIC chips in order to readout every anode. The others are based on resistive charge divider network between anodes to reduce readout channels. In both systems, each pixel (6mm) was clearly resolved by flood field irradiation of $^{137}$Cs. We also investigated the energy resolution of these systems and showed the performance of the cascade connection of resistive network between some PMTs for large area detectors.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, proceedings of the 7th International Workshop on Radiation Imaging Detectors (IWORID7), submitted to NIM