Connections between propulsive efficiency and wake structure via modal decomposition

We present experiments on oscillating hydrofoils undergoing combined heaving and pitching motions, paying particular attention to connections between propulsive efficiency and coherent wake features extracted using modal analysis. Time-averaged forces and particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements of the flow field downstream of the foil are presented for a Reynolds number of Re=11$\times$10$^3$ and Strouhal numbers in the range St=0.16-0.35. These conditions produce 2S and 2P wake patterns, as well as a near-momentumless wake structure. A triple decomposition using the optimized dynamic mode decomposition (opt-DMD) method is employed to identify dominant modal components (or coherent structures) in the wake. These structures can be connected to wake instabilities predicted using spatial stability analyses. Examining the modal components of the wake provides insightful explanations into the transition from drag to thrust production, and conditions that lead to peak propulsive efficiency. In particular, we find modes that correspond to the primary vortex development in the wakes. Other modal components capture elements of bluff body shedding at Strouhal numbers below the optimum for peak propulsive efficiency and characteristics of separation for Strouhal numbers higher than the optimum.Comment: 28 pages, 14 figure

Elevated Baseline Serum Fibrinogen: Effect on 2-Year Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

BackgroundElevated fibrinogen is associated with short-term major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) after percutaneous coronary intervention, but the relation with late MACE is unknown.Methods and resultsBaseline demographics and 2-year MACE were recorded among subjects undergoing nonemergent percutaneous coronary intervention. A total of 332 subjects (66.6±19.5 years, 69.9% male, 25.3% acute coronary syndrome) were enrolled. Two-year MACE (periprocedural myocardial infarction 9.0%, rehospitalization 6.3%, revascularization 12.7%, non-periprocedural myocardial infarction 4.5%, stent thrombosis 0.9%, stroke 1.8%, and death 0.6%) were associated with higher fibrinogen (352.8±123.4 mg/dL versus 301.6±110.8 mg/dL; P<0.001), longer total stent length (40.1±25.3 mm versus 32.1±19.3 mm; P=0.004), acute coronary syndrome indication (38.7% versus 17.8%; P<0.001), number of bare-metal stents (0.5±1.1 versus 0.2±0.5; P=0.002), and stent diameter ≤2.5 mm (55.8% versus 38.4%, P=0.003). No relation between platelet reactivity and 2-year MACE was observed. Fibrinogen ≥280 mg/dL (odds ratio [OR] 3.0, confidence interval [CI], 1.6-5.4, P<0.001), total stent length ≥32 mm (OR 2.2, CI, 1.3-3.8, P<0.001), acute coronary syndrome indication (OR 4.1, CI, 2.3-7.5, P<0.001), any bare-metal stents (OR 3.2, CI, 1.6-6.1, P<0.001), and stent diameter ≤2.5 mm (OR 2.0, CI, 1.2-3.5, P=0.010) were independently associated with 2-year MACE. Following a landmark analysis excluding periprocedural myocardial infarction, fibrinogen ≥280 mg/dL remained strongly associated with 2-year MACE (37.0% versus 17.4%, log-rank P<0.001).ConclusionsElevated baseline fibrinogen level is associated with 2-year MACE after percutaneous coronary intervention. Acute coronary syndrome indication for percutaneous coronary intervention, total stent length implanted, and use of bare-metal stents or smaller-diameter stents are also independently associated with 2-year MACE, while measures of on-thienopyridine platelet reactivity are not

TMJ ankylosis: Management with reconstruction and interpositional arthroplasty

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) ankylosis is a very desolating structural condition that involves fusion of the 1 mandibular condyle to the base of the skull. It causes difficulty in mastication and breathing.Trauma and Infections are usually responsible.If trauma occurs in young age,it leads to disturbance in growth & facial asymmetry.Treatment of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) ankylosis usually requires adequate excision of the involved ankylotic 2 block (arthroplasty)or interpositional arthroplasty using autogenous or alloplastic materials. Early mobilization, 3 physiotherapy & strict follow up are essential to prevent postop adhesions.In our cases fascia lata was used as an interpositional grafting material. One case was treated bygap arthroplasty, second case by costochondral graft & third case was managed with titanium condylar prosthesis.Keywords: Temporomandibular joint ankylosis, costochondral graft, titanium condylar prosthesis, gap arthroplast

Preliminary evidence for the phosphodiesterase type-4 inhibitor, roflumilast, in ameliorating cognitive flexibility deficits in patients with schizophrenia

Background: Cognitive flexibility deficits are present in patients with schizophrenia and are strong predictors of functional outcome but, as yet, have no pharmacological treatments. Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the phosphodiesterase type-4 inhibitor, roflumilast, can improve cognitive flexibility performance and functional brain activity in patients with schizophrenia. Methods: This was a within-subject, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, three-period crossover study using a version of the Intradimensional/Extradimensional (ID/ED) task, optimised for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), in 10 patients with schizophrenia who were scanned after receiving placebo, 100 µg or 250 µg roflumilast for 8 consecutive days. Data from an additional fMRI ID/ED study of 18 healthy participants on placebo was included to contextualise the schizophrenia-related performance and activations. The fMRI analyses included a priori driven region of interest (ROI) analysis of the dorsal frontoparietal attention network. Results: Patients on placebo demonstrated broad deficits in task performance compared to the healthy comparison group, accompanied by preserved network activity for solution search, but reduced activity in left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) and posterior parietal cortex for attentional set-shifting and reduced activity in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) for reversal learning. These ROI deficits were ameliorated by 250 µg roflumilast, whereas during solution search 100 µg roflumilast reduced activity in the left orbitofrontal cortex, right DLPFC and bilateral PPC, which was associated with an improvement in formation of attentional sets. Conclusions: The results suggest roflumilast has dose-dependent cognitive enhancing effects on the ID/ED task in patients with schizophrenia, and provides sufficient support for larger studies to test roflumilast’s role in improving cognitive flexibility deficits in this clinical population

Contemplation on new drug approvals by U.S. FDA, 2011-2015

Background: The U.S Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) is the world's leading drug regulatory authority. There are reports of more product pipelines in oncology therapy area. The objective of this study was to see the overall trends of new drug approvals by the U.S. FDA in last 5 years and find the therapeutic areas with higher new drug approvals.Methods: New drug approvals data obtained from publicly available databases of the U.S. FDA from 2011 through 2015. For the drug products identified, the drugs were classified into fourteen main Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) groups, single or combination products, New Drug Application (NDA) chemical types, review classification and approval date.Results: There were 182 new drugs approved from 2011 through 2015 by the U.S. FDA with a mean of 36.4 approvals per year. Out of these 182 new drug approvals, 149 (81.87%) approvals were for new molecular entity (NME) and 33 (18.13%) for biologics license application (BLA). There were more number of new drug approvals in antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents (L) ATC group (n=66; 36.26% of total new drug approvals).Conclusions: For new drugs approved between 2011 and 2015, the U.S. FDA was first to approve majority of new drugs. There was upward trend of new drug approvals in antineoplastic therapeutic area

Comparison of new drug approval by regulatory agencies of US, EU and India

Background: As per World Trade Organisation (WTO), from the year 2005, India granted product patent recognition to all new chemical entities (NCEs). This may affect the new drug approvals in India. The purpose of this study was to compare the new drug approvals in India with the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) regions.Methods: We obtained information about regulatory approval of new drugs in the US, EU, or India of last 5 years (from 2011 through 2015) from the publicly accessible databases of three regulatory agencies. For the drug products identified, the drugs were classified into fourteen main Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) groups, review classification and approval date.Results: There were 509 new drugs approved from 2011 through 2015 by one or more of the three regulatory agencies. Total 182 new drugs were approved in US during the period of 2011 to 2015, with an average of 36.4 new drugs approved per year. For the same period a total of 257 new drugs were approved in the EU, with an average of 51.4 new drugs approved per year and in India a total of 70 new drugs were approved, with an average of 14 new drugs approved per year. There were more number of new drug approvals in antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents (L) ATC group in all the three regions (US= 66; EU= 61 and India= 17).Conclusions: For new drugs approved between 2011 and 2015, India has lagged behind the US and the EU in approval of new drugs. There was no difference in the patterns of new drug approvals with respect to the therapeutic areas

Drug lag for antineoplastic and immunomodulating agent approvals in India compared with the US and EU approvals

Background: There is a tremendous amount of research being conducted on development of new drugs for cancer therapies. The drug development of cancer therapies has dramatically increased over the past few decades. The present study was undertaken to assess the drug lag for new antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents in India compared with that in the United States (US) or European Union (EU).Methods: The new drugs approved in the US, EU and India between 2011 and 2015 were identified and information was gathered primarily from the websites of regulatory agencies of the three regions. For the drug products identified, the drugs were classified into fourteen main Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) groups, review classification and approval date. We assessed the absolute and relative drug lag for new antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents approved in the three regions (with the ATC code L).Results: Of the 67 new antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents, 63 (94.02%) were approved in the United States, 58 (86.56%) in the European Union and 18 (26.86%) in India. The US was the first to approve 59 (88.05%) out of the 67 new antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents, the EU was the first to approve 7 (10.44%) and India was the first to approve 1 (1.49%). The median approval lag for India (18.36 months) was higher as compared to the United States (0 month) and European Union (6.02 months).Conclusions: This study confirms that India lag behind the US and EU regions in terms of total number of new drug approvals for antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents. There is a substantial approval delay in India compared to the US and EU regions. Further detailed analyses are necessary to find the reasons and impacts of drug lag for new antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents in India

The suitability of lightfield camera depth maps for coordinate measurement applications

Plenoptic cameras can capture 3D information in one exposure without the need for structured illumination, allowing grey scale depth maps of the captured image to be created. The Lytro, a consumer grade plenoptic camera, provides a cost effective method of measuring depth of multiple objects under controlled lightning conditions. In this research, camera control variables, environmental sensitivity, image distortion characteristics, and the effective working range of two Lytro first generation cameras were evaluated. In addition, a calibration process has been created, for the Lytro cameras, to deliver three dimensional output depth maps represented in SI units (metre). The novel results show depth accuracy and repeatability of +10.0 mm to -20.0 mm, and 0.5 mm respectively. For the lateral X and Y coordinates, the accuracy was +1.56 m to −2.59 m and the repeatability was 0.25 µm

Unsupplemented Artemia Diet Results in Reduced Growth and Jaw Dysmorphogenesis in Zebrafish

The number of laboratories using zebrafish as an experimental animal model has risen tremendously over the past two decades (Craig et al., 2006). As a result, the number of zebrafish facilities around the world has dramatically increased to meet the elevated demand for proper animal care and maintenance. In order to meet this demand, aquaculture facilities must employ husbandry protocols designed to produce a constant supply of healthy, viable eggs. Surprisingly, many husbandry strategies, particularly feeding protocols, are frequently passed down from members of one lab to another in a colloquial fashion without rigorous experimental validation. An ideal diet should consist of a minimal variety of foodstuffs designed to be nutritionally complete, simple to prepare, non-fouling, and cost-effective. Previous studies aimed at streamlining adult zebrafish feeding strategies in large aquaculture facilities have emphasized cost-effective, single-food models, but such diets lead to diminished survivorship and reproductive capacity (Goolish et al., 1999; Meinelt et al., 1999; Barnard & Bagatto, 2002), suggesting that these diets are lacking in some key nutritional component(s). Restricting adult fish diets to single foodstuffs, while desirable from a time and cost perspective, may not provide the trace mineral balance needed for adequate hormone and enzyme production, proper skeletal formation, and other biochemical or physiological needs. Nonetheless, given the intense breeding schedules many facilities are forced to adopt to meet research needs, a sin

Cooperative Behavior in the Ultimatum Game and Prisoner's Dilemma Depends on Players' Contributions.

Economic games such as the Ultimatum Game (UG) and Prisoner's Dilemma (PD) are widely used paradigms for studying fairness and cooperation. Monetary versions of these games involve two players splitting an arbitrary sum of money. In real life, however, people's propensity to engage in cooperative behavior depends on their effort and contribution; factors that are well known to affect perceptions of fairness. We therefore sought to explore the impact of relative monetary contributions by players in the UG and PD. Adapted computerized UG and PD games, in which relative contributions from each player were manipulated, were administered to 200 participants aged 18-50 years old (50% female). We found that players' contribution had large effects on cooperative behavior. Specifically, cooperation was greater amongst participants when their opponent had contributed more to joint earnings. This was manifested as higher acceptance rates and higher offers in the UG; and fewer defects in the PD compared to when the participant contributed more. Interestingly, equal contributions elicited the greatest sensitivity to fairness in the UG, and least frequent defection in the PD. Acceptance rates correlated positively with anxiety and sex differences were found in defection behavior. This study highlights the feasibility of computerized games to assess cooperative behavior and the importance of considering cooperation within the context of effortful contribution