Selective inhibitory synapse loss in chronic cortical slabs: a morphological basis for epileptic susceptibility.

Electron microscopic examination of pyramidal neurones at the edges of chronic slabs of cerebral cortex in the cat revealed a selective loss of inhibitory (symmetric axosomatic) synapses compared with pyramidal neurones in the centers of the slabs. It appears likely that the neurons at the edges, which retain excitatory input (asymmetric axodendritic synapses) in the neurophil, but totally lack the somatic inhibitory input, act as the focus for the prolonged seizure activity which occurs in chronic cortical slabs

An upper bound for the Nevanlinna matrix of an indeterminate moment sequence

The solutions of an indeterminate Hamburger moment problem can be parameterised using the Nevanlinna matrix of the problem. The entries of this matrix are entire functions of minimal exponential type, and any growth less than that can occur. An indeterminate moment problem can be considered as a canonical system in limit circle case by rewriting the three-term recurrence of the problem to a first order vector-valued recurrence. We give a bound for the growth of the Nevanlinna matrix in terms of the parameters of this canonical system. In most situations this bound can be evaluated explicitly. It is sharp in the sense that for well-behaved parameters it coincides with the actual growth of the Nevanlinna matrix up to multiplicative constants

Kapazitätsauslastung von Fußballstadien

Diese Arbeit setzt sich mit der Kapazitätsausauslastung von Fußballstadien österreichischer Bundesligavereine auseinander. Dabei wird untersucht, welche Maßnahmen die handelnden Personen setzen können, um die Kapazitätsauslastung des Stadions zu steigern. Außerdem wird aufgezeigt, wie ein Marketing-Management-Prozess diese Maßnahmen optimieren und unterstützen kann. Im theoretischen Teil der Arbeit wird zuerst ein Überblick zu den aktuellen Zuschauerstatistiken der österreichischen Fußball-Bundesliga gegeben. Anschließend werden die Charakteristika eines Stadions und dessen Besucher, basierend auf soziologischen Erkenntnissen, beschrieben. Weiters werden die wesentlichsten Merkmale eines Fußballunternehmens erläutert und die Thematik des Sportmarketings aufgearbeitet. Die genaue Darstellung des theoretischen Modells des Marketing-Management-Prozesses rundet den Theorieteil ab. Für den empirischen Teil dieser Arbeit wurden vier Experteninterviews mit Marketingverantwortlichen österreichischer Fußball-Bundesligavereine geführt. Anschließend wurden die Auswertungsergebnisse in drei Makroebenen dargestellt. Die Ergebnisse besagen, dass umfassende Maßnahmen in vielen Bereichen durchgeführt werden um die Stadionauslastung zu steigern, jedoch limitieren das sportliche Niveau und die infrastrukturelle Qualität der Stadien eine höhere Auslastung. Die Erstellung eines beispielhaften Marketing-Management-Prozesses für einen österreichischen Bundesligaverein, anhand der ausgearbeiteten Literatur und den Untersuchungsergebnissen, stellt die Beantwortung der Forschungsfragen und den Abschluss der Arbeit dar. Der Prozess zur Beschleunigung der Professionalisierung des Marketings österreichischer Fußballvereine sollte dadurch unterstützt werden.This master thesis deals with the issue of capacity utilization of soccer stadiums of the Austrian soccer league. Thereby, the focus is on the actions which are taken to increase the capacity utilization by marketing managers of soccer clubs of the Austrian league. Moreover this paper points out how a marketing-management-process can optimize those actions. Firstly the theoretical part of this thesis illustrates an overview about the latest attendance statistics of the Austrian soccer league. Afterwards the characteristics of stadiums and attendants based on sociologically knowledge are described in detail. Furthermore the most important characteristics of a soccer club are explicated and the issue of sports marketing is reviewed. The theoretical part is closed with an exactly exposure of the theoretical model of a marketing-management-process. For the empirical part of this scientific paper, four guided interviews with marketing experts of Austrian soccer clubs were recorded. Subsequently the findings of these analyses are showed in three macro levels. The results pointing out that the Austrian soccer clubs are taking many different actions to increase the capacity utilization. However, the sportive level of the Austrian soccer league and the quality of the stadiums are limiting higher capacity utilization. To answer the scientific problem, in the final step an exemplary marketing-management-process for an Austrian soccer club is created. Therefore, the prepared references and the results of the scientific analysis are consulted. The expedition of the professionalism process of the marketing of Austrian soccer clubs should be supported by this master thesis

Increased levels of amino acid neurotransmitters in the inferior colliculus of the genetically epilepsy-prone rat.

Previous studies have shown an increase in the number of GABAergic and total neurons in the inferior colliculus (IC) of the genetically epilepsy-prone rat (GEPR). Amino acid analysis of the central nucleus of the IC, as well as cerebellum, sensorimotor, temporal, and occipital cerebral cortices of GEPRs with high pressure liquid chromatography showed significant increases in the levels of GABA, taurine and glutamate. The IC of GEPR displayed a 2.3-fold increase in GABA as compared to that of non-epileptic rats, a 2.4-fold increase of taurine, and a 1.9-fold increase of glutamate. In addition, taurine and glutamate were increased in the sensorimotor and temporal cortex, respectively. These results are consistent with previous anatomical data on the GABAergic system in the IC and provide additional information. The increase in taurine and glutamate in the IC indicates that other neurotransmitters could be involved in the mechanism of seizure activity

Cyclo­benzaprinium chloride

In the title mol­ecular salt [systematic name: 3-(5H-dibenzo[a,d]cyclo­hepten-5-yl­idene)-N,N-dimethyl­propan­aminium chloride], C20H22N+·Cl−, two cation–anion pairs make up the asymmetric unit. The dihedral angles between the mean planes of the two fused benzene rings of the cation are 49.5 (1) and 50.9 (1)°. The cystal packing is stabilized by N—H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds and weak C—H⋯Cl inter­actions

Cyclo­benzaprinium salicylate

In the title mol­ecular salt [systematic name: 3-(5H-di­benzo[a,d]cyclo­hepten-5-yl­idene)-N,N-dimethyl-1-propanaminium 2-hy­droxy­benzoate], C20H22N+·C7H5O3 −, the benzene rings of the cyclo­benzaprinium cation are inclined with a dihedral angle of 61.66 (7)°. An intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond occurs within the salicylate anion, generating an S(6) ring. In the crystal, the cation and anion are linked by an N—H⋯O inter­action

[3-(5-Hy­droxy-5H-dibenzo[a,d]cyclo­hepten-5-yl)prop­yl]dimethyl­ammonium 3-carboxyprop-2-enoate

In the cation of the title salt, C20H24NO+·C4H3O4 −, the N atom in the dimethyl­ammonium group is protonated. The dihedral angle between the mean planes of the two six-membered rings fused to the cyclo­hepten-5-yl ring is 54.4 (1)°. An intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond occurs in the anion. The crystal packing is stabilized by inter­molecular O—H⋯O and N—H⋯(O,O) hydrogen bonds and weak C—H⋯O inter­actions, forming a two-dimensional network

Advanced producer service firms as strategic networks, global cities as strategic places

Sassen’s identification of global cities as ‘strategic places’ is explored through world city network analysis. This involves searching out advanced producer service (APS) firms that constitute ‘strategic networks’, from whose activities strategic places can be defined. 25 out of 175 APS firms are found to be strategic and from their office networks, 45 cities out of 526 are designated as strategic places. A measure of ‘strategicness’ of cities is devised and individual findings from this are discussed by drawing on existing literature about how APS firms use specific cities. A key finding shows that New York and London have different levels of strategicness and this is related to the former’s innovation prowess and the latter’s role in global consumption of services. Other cases of strategicness discussed in terms of the balance between production and consumption of advanced producer services are: Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai; Palo Alto; Mexico City; Johannesburg; and Dubai and Frankfurt

Hydrogen sulfide attenuates cardiac dysfunction in a rat model of heart failure: a mechanism through cardiac mitochondrial protection

HF (heart failure) after MI (myocardial infarction) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Recent studies have shown that hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has cardioprotective effects. Hence, we aimed to elucidate the potential effects of H2S on HF after MI in rats. The HF model after MI was made by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. HF groups and sham-operated groups of rats were treated with vehicle, sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) or PAG (propagylglycine). Equal volumes of saline, 3.136 mg·kg−1·day−1 NaHS or 37.5 mg·kg−1·day−1 PAG, were intraperitoneally injected into rats for 6 weeks after operation. Survival, lung-to-body weight ratio and left ventricular haemodynamic parameters were measured. The protein and gene expression of Bcl-2, Bax, caspase 3 and cytochrome c were analysed by Western blotting and RT–PCR (reverse transcription–PCR). TUNEL (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling) and EM (electron microscopy) were used to examine apoptosis of heart tissues. NaHS was found to improve the survival and lower the lung-to-body weight ratio. It increased the LVSP (left ventricular systolic pressure) and the maximum rate of pressure and decreased LVEDP (left ventricular end-diastolic pressure). Furthermore, NaHS promoted Bcl-2 protein and mRNA expression and demoted Bax, caspase 3 protein and mRNA expression in HF rats. We also showed that NaHS decreased the leakage of cytochrome c protein from the mitochondria to the cytoplasm. Histological observation by TUNEL and EM proved that NaHS inhibited cardiac apoptosis in HF hearts and improved mitochondrial derangements, but that PAG aggravated those indices. Hence, H2S has protective effects in HF rats