The National Disaster Medical System

The Emergency Mobilization Preparedness Board developed plans for improved national preparedness in case of major catastrophic domestic disaster or the possibility of an overseas conventional conflict. Within the health and medical arena, the working group on health developed the concept and system design for the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). A description of NDMS is presented including the purpose, key components, medical response, patient evacuation, definitive medical care, NDMS activation and operations, and summary and benefits

Gamma/X-Ray Refractive Index of Materials Near Nuclear Resonances and Simulated Experiments Using Laser-Compton Sources

Nuclear resonance fluorescence is the process by which atomic nuclei absorb and emit radiation. Around these resonances, the refractive index changes according to the Kramers-Kronig relations. We discuss how to measure such physics using laser-Compton sources

Aplikasi Konsep Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) dengan Social Web

This study discusses the impact of social media to the development of personal knowledge management (PKM). Here the author describeS the factual condition of the company that useS social media as a means of personal knowledge management. Furthermore, these interaction patterns have significant impact on the organization. The purpose of this article is to analyze the application of personal knowledge managementconcept, combined with the social media concept that focuses on social networks with the consideration that they are widespreadly used by the public. Plus the emergence of social networking sites are increasingly new added value to the development of social media. The method used is literature study obtained from the online journals, articles and text books. The result of this study is expected to expand the use of social networking as a means of personal knowledge management in the organization

Gamma/X-Ray Refractive Index of Materials Near Nuclear Resonances and Simulated Experiments Using Laser-Compton Sources

Nuclear resonance fluorescence is the process by which atomic nuclei absorb and emit radiation. Around these resonances, the refractive index changes according to the Kramers-Kronig relations. We discuss how to measure such physics using laser-Compton sources

Bench-to-bedside review: Adenosine receptors – promising targets in acute lung injury?

Acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are life-threatening disorders that have substantial adverse effects on outcomes in critically ill patients. ALI/ARDS develops in response to pulmonary or extrapulmonary injury and is characterized by increased leakage from the pulmonary microvasculature and excessive infiltration of polymorphonuclear cells into the lung. Currently, no therapeutic strategies are available to control these fundamental pathophysiological processes in human ALI/ARDS. In a variety of animal models and experimental settings, the purine nucleoside adenosine has been demonstrated to regulate both endothelial barrier integrity and polymorphonuclear cell trafficking in the lung. Adenosine exerts its effects through four G-protein-coupled receptors (A1, A2A, A2B, and A3) that are expressed on leukocytes and nonhematopoietic cells, including endothelial and epithelial cells. Each type of adenosine receptor (AR) is characterized by a unique pharmacological and physiological profile. The development of selective AR agonists and antagonists, as well as the generation of gene-deficient mice, has contributed to a growing understanding of the cellular and molecular processes that are critically involved in the development of ALI/ARDS. Adenosine-dependent pathways are involved in both protective and proinflammatory effects, highlighting the need for a detailed characterization of the distinct pathways. This review summarizes current experimental observations on the role of adenosine signaling in the development of acute lung injury and illustrates that adenosine and ARs are promising targets that may be exploited in the development of innovative therapeutic strategies

CXCR2 in Acute Lung Injury

In pulmonary inflammation, recruitment of circulating polymorphonuclear leukocytes is essential for host defense and initiates the following specific immune response. One pathological hallmark of acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome is the uncontrolled transmigration of neutrophils into the lung interstitium and alveolar space. Thereby, the extravasation of leukocytes from the vascular system into the tissue is induced by chemokines that are released from the site of inflammation. The most relevant chemokine receptors of neutrophils are CXC chemokine receptor (CXCR) 1 and CXCR2. CXCR2 is of particular interest since several studies implicate a pivotal role of this receptor in development and promotion of numerous inflammatory disorders. CXCR2 gets activated by ELR+ chemokines, including MIP-2, KC (rodents) and IL-8 (human). Since multiple ELR+ CXC chemokines act on both receptors—CXCR1 and CXCR2—a pharmacologic agent blocking both receptors seems to be advantageous. So far, several CXCR1/2 antagonists have been developed and have been tested successfully in experimental studies. A newly designed CXCR1 and CXCR2 antagonist can be orally administered and was for the first time found efficient in humans. This review highlights the role of CXCR2 in acute lung injury and discusses its potential as a therapeutic target

Computational methods for focused arbitrary laser fields in plasma simulations

An open-source code, arbitrary laser fields for particle-in-cell (ALFP), is provided to enable the use of accurately focused arbitrary beam structures in particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, and is used to demonstrate the utility of space-time coupled beams for ion acceleration. ALFP provides significant flexibility for simulating focused beams with complex space, time, and polarization couplings in PIC simulations. This facilitates exploration of laser-matter interactions beyond the standard Gaussian laser pulse interaction. Additionally, polychromatic focusing effects that are often left out of analytic formulations are included. ALFP is first verified against theory, both directly with its computed output field and with 3D PIC simulations. Then ALFP is used to simulate space-time coupled beams in laser-matter interaction 2D PIC simulations, revealing improvements in ion collimation

P2Y₆ receptor inhibition perturbs CCL2-evoked signalling in human monocytic and peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

The chemokine CCL2 serves to target circulating monocytes and other leukocytes to tissue during innate immune responses, and modulates the progression of chronic inflammatory disease through activation of the receptor CCR2. Here, we show that co-activation of the P2Y₆ purinergic receptor (encoded by P2RY₆) occurs when THP-1 cells and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells sense CCL2 through CCR2. Furthermore, P2Y₆ receptor activation accounts for ∼80% of the intracellular Ca²⁺ signal evoked by CCL2. Scavenging extracellular nucleotides with apyrase caused a fourfold reduction in THP-1 sensitivity to CCL2, whereas inhibition of CD39-like ectonucleotidases potentiated CCL2-evoked Ca²⁺ responses. Pharmacological inhibition of P2Y₆ impaired CCL2-evoked Ca²⁺ signalling and chemotaxis in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and THP-1 cells. Furthermore, stable P2Y₆ receptor knockdown (of twofold) in THP-1 cells impaired CCL2-evoked Ca²⁺ signalling, chemotaxis and adhesion to TNFα-treated HUVECs. We demonstrate that THP-1 cells rapidly secrete ATP during signalling downstream of the CCL2-CCR2 axis and suggest this might act as a mechanism for P2Y₆ receptor co-activation following CCL2 activation of the CCR2 receptor. The discovery that P2Y₆ receptor mediates leukocyte responsiveness to CCL2 represents a new mechanism by which to modulate CCL2 signals

Scanning K-edge subtraction (SKES) imaging with laser-compton x-ray sources

Background: K-edge subtraction (KES) imaging is a dual-energy imaging technique that enhances contrast by subtracting images taken with x-rays that are above and below the K-edge energy of a specified contrast agent. The resulting reconstruction spatially identifies where the contrast agent accumulates, even when obscured by complex and heterogeneous distributions of human tissue. This method is most successful when x-ray sources are quasimonoenergetic and tunable, conditions that have traditionally only been met at synchrotrons. Laser-Compton x-ray sources (LCSs) are a compact alternative to synchrotron radiation with a quasimonoenergetic x-ray spectrum. One limitation in the clinical application of KES imaging with LCSs has been the extensive time required to tune the x-ray spectrum to two different energies. Purpose: We introduce an imaging technique called scanning K-edge subtraction (SKES) that leverages the angle-correlated laser-Compton x-ray spectrum in the setting of mammography. The feasibility and utility of this technique will be evaluated through a series of simulation studies. The goal of SKES imaging is to enable rapid K-edge subtraction imaging using a laser-Compton x-ray source. The technique does not rely on the time-consuming process of tuning laser-Compton interaction parameters. Methods: Laser-Compton interaction physics are modeled using conditions based on an X-band linear electron accelerator architecture currently under development using a combination of 3D particle tracking software and Mathematica. The resulting angle-correlated laser-Compton x-ray beam is propagated through digitally compressed breast phantoms containing iodine contrast-enhanced inserts and then to a digital flat-panel detector using a Matlab Monte Carlo propagation software. This scanning acquisition technique is compared to the direct energy tuning method (DET), as well as to a clinically available dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) system. Results: KES imaging in a scanning configuration using an LCS was able to generate a KES image of comparable quality to the direct energy tuning method. SKES was able to detect tumors with iodine contrast concentrations lower than what is clinically available today including lesions that are typically obscured by dense fibroglandular tissue. After normalizing to mean glandular dose, SKES is able to generate a KES image with equal contrast to CEM using only 3% of the dose. Conclusions: By leveraging the unique quasimonochromatic and angle-correlated x-ray spectrum offered by LCSs, a contrast-enhanced subtraction image can be obtained with significantly more contrast and less dose compared to conventional systems, and improve tumor detection in patients with dense breast tissue. The scanning configuration of this technique could accelerate the clinical translation of this technology