Installation of a stoker-coal preparation plant in Krakow, Poland. Technical progress report 6, July - September 1995

This report describes the progress made during this reporting period of a project to demonstrate that the air pollution from a traveling- grate stoker being used to heat water at one of MPEC`s central heating plants in Krakow, Poland can be reduced significantly by (1) substituting the unwashed, unsized coal currently being used with a mechanically cleaned, double-sized stoker fuel and by (2) optimizing the operating parameters of the stoker. It is anticipated that these improvements will prove to be cost-effective and hence will be adopted by the other central heating plants in Krakow and, ideally, throughout Eastern European cities where coal continues to be the primary source of fuel. EFH Coal Company has formed a partnership with two Polish institutions -- MPEC, a central heating company in Krakow, and Naftokrak-Naftobudowa, preparation plant designers and fabricators -- for the execution of this effort. The terms of a long- term contract for the procurement of 750,000 tons of 20 mm x 0 raw coal for the new plant have been negotiated with the Katowice Holding Company. This draft contract currently is still under legal review. The negotiated price is near that of the Polish government`s established price of $32/ton. Biprostal, an engineering firm located in Krakow, continued performing the many environmental and permitting activities that are required by the various levels of the Polish government before the plant can be constructed and operated. The search for markets for utilizing surplus production from the new plant continues. Because of the unanticipated delays encountered during the onset of the project with forming the EFH Coal/Polish partnership and in negotiating long-term raw coal supply contracts, a third 90-day, no-cost time extension was requested

Elemental bio-imaging of calcium phosphate crystal deposits in knee samples from arthritic patients

Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA ICP-MS) was employed to image deposits of calcium phosphate based crystals in knee cartilage and synovial fluid from arthritic patients. A reaction/collision cell containing hydrogen minimised plasma interferences on calcium and also improved the image quality without significant sensitivity reduction. Areas of high calcium and phosphorus intensities consistent with crystal deposits were observed for both the cartilage and synovial fluid samples. These areas were also characterised by high magnesium and strontium intensities. Distribution patterns of other elements such as copper and sulfur did not correlate with the crystal deposits. Filtered and non-filtered solutions of calcium phosphate crystals grown in synthetic synovial fluid were also imaged as further evidence of crystal deposits. The crystal deposits were detected in the unfiltered solution, and were absent from the filtered solutions. © 2009 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Reforming state-market relations in rural China 1

Because of the political importance of stable and affordable food prices, governments in transitional economies in Europe and Asia fkequently struggle to balance the desire to maintain state controls in the rural sector with the goal of promoting market development and privatizing or commercializing state agencies involved in rural trade or finance. This paper examines institutional change in China's rural state agencies during the reform period, focusing on the conflict between managerial incentives to maximize profits, on the one hand, and implement policy, on the other. We explain the reasons for changing contractual incentives and authority arrangements over time, assess the effects of new institutional forms on economic performance and policy implementation, and consider reform options.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71599/1/j.1468-0351.1998.tb00059.x.pd

Deciphering interplay between Salmonella invasion effectors

Bacterial pathogens have evolved a specialized type III secretion system (T3SS) to translocate virulence effector proteins directly into eukaryotic target cells. Salmonellae deploy effectors that trigger localized actin reorganization to force their own entry into non-phagocytic host cells. Six effectors (SipC, SipA, SopE/2, SopB, SptP) can individually manipulate actin dynamics at the plasma membrane, which acts as a ‘signaling hub’ during Salmonella invasion. The extent of crosstalk between these spatially coincident effectors remains unknown. Here we describe trans and cis binary entry effector interplay (BENEFIT) screens that systematically examine functional associations between effectors following their delivery into the host cell. The results reveal extensive ordered synergistic and antagonistic relationships and their relative potency, and illuminate an unexpectedly sophisticated signaling network evolved through longstanding pathogen–host interaction

The impact of pay-for-percentile incentive on low-achieving students in rural China

In some accountability regimes, teachers pay more attention to higher achieving students at the expense of lower achieving students. The overall goal of this study is to examine, in this type of accountability regime, the impacts of a pay-for-percentile type scheme in which incentives exist for all students but which are larger for improving the achievement of lower achieving students. Analyzing data from a large-scale randomized experiment in rural China, we find that incentives improve average achievement by 0.10 SDs and the achievement of low-achieving students by 0.15 SDs. We find parallel changes in teacher behavior and curricular coverage. Taken together, the results demonstrate that incentive schemes can effectively address teacher neglect of low-achieving students

Epidemiology, causes, clinical manifestation and diagnosis, prevention and control of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during the early outbreak period

__Background:__ The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China beginning in December 2019. As of 31 January 2020, this epidemic had spread to 19 countries with 11 791 confirmed cases, including 213 deaths. The World Health Organization has declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. __Methods:__ A scoping review was conducted following the methodological framework suggested by Arksey and O'Malley. In this scoping review, 65 research articles published before 31 January 2020 were analyzed and discussed to better understand the epidemiology, causes, clinical diagnosis, prevention and control of this virus. The research domains, dates of publication, journal language, authors' affiliations, and methodological characteristics were included in the analysis. All the findings and statements in this review regarding the outbreak are based on published information as listed in the references. __Results:__ Most of the publications were written using the English language (89.2%). The largest proportion of published articles were related to causes (38.5%) and a majority (67.7%) were published by Chinese scholars. Research articles initially focused on causes, but over time there was an increase of the articles related to prevention and control. Studies thus far have shown that the virus' origination is in connection to a seafood market in Wuhan, but specific animal associations have not been confirmed. Reported symptoms include fever, cough, fatigue, pneumonia, headache, diarrhea, hemoptysis, and dyspnea. Preventive measures such as masks, hand hygiene practices, avoidance of public contact, case detection, contact tracing, and quarantines have been discussed as

Tracking the effects of COVID-19 in rural China over time

Background: China issued strict nationwide guidelines to combat the COVID-19 outbreak in January 2020 and gradually loosened the restrictions on movement in early March. Little is known about how these disease control measures affected the 600 million people who live in rural China. The goal of this paper is to document the quarantine measures implemented in rural China outside the epicenter of Hubei Province and to assess the socioeconomic effect of the measures on rural communities over time. Methods: We conducted three rounds of interviews with informants from 726 villages in seven provinces, accounting for over 25% of China’s overall rural population. The survey collected data on rural quarantine implementation; COVID-19 infections and deaths in the survey villages; and effects of the quarantine on employment, income, education, health care, and government policies to address any negative impacts. The empirical findings of the work established that strict quarantine measures were implemented in rural villages throughout China in February. Results: There was little spread of COVID-19 in rural communities: an infection rate of 0.001% and zero deaths reported in our sample. However, there were negative social and economic outcomes, including high rates of unemployment, falling household income, rising prices, and disrupted student learning. Health care was generally accessible, but many delayed their non-COVID-19 health care due to the quarantine measures. Only 20% of villagers received any form of local government aid, and only 11% of villages received financial subsidies. There were no reports of national government aid programs that targeted rural villagers in the sample areas. Conclusions: By examining the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 restrictions in rural communities, this study will help to guide other middle- and low-income countries in their containment and restorative processes. Without consideration for economically vulnerable populations, economic hardships and poverty will likely continue to have a negative impact on the most susceptible communities

PIP5KIβ Selectively Modulates Apical Endocytosis in Polarized Renal Epithelial Cells

Localized synthesis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate [PtdIns(4,5)P2] at clathrin coated pits (CCPs) is crucial for the recruitment of adaptors and other components of the internalization machinery, as well as for regulating actin dynamics during endocytosis. PtdIns(4,5)P2 is synthesized from phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate by any of three phosphatidylinositol 5-kinase type I (PIP5KI) isoforms (α, β or γ). PIP5KIβ localizes almost exclusively to the apical surface in polarized mouse cortical collecting duct cells, whereas the other isoforms have a less polarized membrane distribution. We therefore investigated the role of PIP5KI isoforms in endocytosis at the apical and basolateral domains. Endocytosis at the apical surface is known to occur more slowly than at the basolateral surface. Apical endocytosis was selectively stimulated by overexpression of PIP5KIβ whereas the other isoforms had no effect on either apical or basolateral internalization. We found no difference in the affinity for PtdIns(4,5)P2-containing liposomes of the PtdIns(4,5)P2 binding domains of epsin and Dab2, consistent with a generic effect of elevated PtdIns(4,5)P2 on apical endocytosis. Additionally, using apical total internal reflection fluorescence imaging and electron microscopy we found that cells overexpressing PIP5KIβ have fewer apical CCPs but more internalized coated structures than control cells, consistent with enhanced maturation of apical CCPs. Together, our results suggest that synthesis of PtdIns(4,5)P2 mediated by PIP5KIβ is rate limiting for apical but not basolateral endocytosis in polarized kidney cells. PtdIns(4,5)P2 may be required to overcome specific structural constraints that limit the efficiency of apical endocytosis. © 2013 Szalinski et al