Developmental studies on Malpighian tubule structure and function in Spodoptera Littoralis

A study has been made on Malpighian tubule structure and function in Spodoptera littoralis. The concentrations of the main ions present in insect haemolymph were determined and a Ringer solution developed on the basis of this information. In vitro preparations of the medial region of the Malpighian tubules were set up to characterise fluid secretion using this normal' Ringer solution. Ion substitution experiments, involving varying concentrations of K+, Na+ and CI(^-) in the bathing media indicated that K+ and CI(^-) were necessary for normal fluid secretion rates to be maintained. Incubation in media containing high K+ (and zero Na+) yielded the maximum rate of fluid secretion in vitro, whereas high Na+ (and zero K+) resulted in a rate of fluid secretion lower than that of the control. CI(^-) substitution with gluconate resulted in reduced rates of fluid secretion .The agonists, 5-HT (10-3 m) and cAMP (10-3 M), both effected stimulation of fluid secretion; the maximal observed level of stimulation being 267.4% and 148.7%, respectively. In contrast, synthetic Manduca sexta diuretic peptide had no significant effect on the rate of fluid secretion by medial tubules of Spodoptera. The effects of known inhibitors of specific ion transport processes (ouabain; furosemide and NEM) on urine secretion was investigated. These three inhibitors inhibited fluid secretion significantly. NEM was the most effective inhibitor used; secretion being totally inhibited at 10(^-5) M NEM. Maximal inhibition with ouabain (1mM) and furosemide (10-(^3)m) was 94.6% and 80.3%, respectively. These results were taken as evidence for Na+/K+ ATPase , Na+/K+ /2C1(^-) co-transport and a V-type ATPase being involved in the transport of ions across tubule cells. Cytochemical localization studies showed the presence of Na+/K+ ATPase activity on the basal membrane of the proximal but not of the medial tubules. The apparent anomaly between this latter observation and die fact that fluid secretion by medial tubules was inhibited by ouabain is discussed. A hypothetical model has been constructed to explain ion and fluid secretion by the medial tubules of Spodoptera littoralis and its endocrine control. The rate of fluid secretion in vitro was studied at different ages throughout the 4th, 5th, 6th larval stages, the prepupae, the pupae and into adult life. It was shown that the rate of fluid secretion varied throughout development; both within each instar and between stadia. Fluid secretion ceased in the prepupal and pupal stages and started again following eclosion of the adult. Morphological studies on the relationship between the Malpighian tubules and the alimentary tract were carried out on last instar larvae, prepupae, pupae and adults; six tubules were present in all these stages. Each tubule consisted of several distinct regions; proximal, medial, iliac plexus, rectal leads and a cryptonephridial arrangement (larvae only). Electron microscopical studies on Malpighian tubules of 5th and 6th instar larvae and adults showed that one cell type was present in each region (the cryptonephridium was excluded from the E-M study). However, differences in cellular fine structure were apparent between regions. In the proximal region, the basal membrane foldings created a labyrinth and the apical membrane formed microvilli which were relatively short, loosely packed and contained mitochondria. In the medial and distal regions, which were similar in fine structure, the basal membrane was much infolded and extended further into the cytoplasm than in the proximal tubules. The apical microvilli of the medial region were considerably longer and more densely packed than in the proximal region and the apical surface was folded so that canaliculi were formed. Ultrastructural studies throughout development of the last larval instar revealed that the basic ultrastructure of the cells of the different regions of Malpighian tubules changed little. The major change seen during development from the last laraval stage to the adult was seen in the prepupal Malpighian tubules where the basal membrane foldings became very narrow and the apical microvilli were also very thin and their mitochondria were withdrawn into the cytoplasm. This change in the ultra structure was associated with cessation of fluid secretion. The tubule cells in the adult, unlike in the larva, contain numerous clear vacuoles and mineralized concretions. In addition the apical membrane of adult Malpighian tubule cells contained stalks which extend into the tubule lumen. The latter were only seen in larvae following treatment with die juvenile hormone analogue, methoprene

Full and Modified Glasgow-Blatchford Bleeding Score in Predicting the Outcome of Patients with Acute Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding; a Diagnostic Accuracy Study

Introduction: Screening of high risk patients and accelerating their treatment measures can reduce the burden of the disease caused by acute upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding. This study aimed to compare the full and modified Glasgow-Blatchford Bleeding Score (GBS and mGBS) in prediction of in-hospital outcomes of upper GI bleeding.Methods: In the present retrospective cross-sectional study, the accuracy of GBS and mGBS models were compared in predicting the outcome of patients over 18 years of age with acute upper GI bleeding confirmed via endoscopy, presenting to the emergency departments of 3 teaching hospitals during 4 years.Results: 330 cases with the mean age of 59.07 ± 19.00 years entered the study (63.60% male). Area under the curve of GBS and mGBS scoring systems were 0.691 and 0.703, respectively, in prediction of re-bleeding (p = 0.219), 0.562 and 0.563 regarding need for surgery (p = 0.978), 0.549 and 0.542 for endoscopic intervention (p = 0.505), and 0.767 and 0.770 regarding blood transfusion (p = 0.753). Area under the ROC curve of GBS scoring system regarding need for hospitalization in intensive care unit (0.589 vs. 0.563; p = 0.035) and mortality (0.597 vs. 0.564; p = 0.011) was better but the superiority was not clinically significant.Conclusion: GBS and mGBS scoring systems have similar accuracy in prediction of the probability of re-bleeding, need for blood transfusion, surgery and endoscopic intervention, hospitalization in intensive care unit, and mortality of patients with acute upper GI bleeding

Stochastic Mortality Modelling with Levy Processes based on GLM’s and Applications

Mortality rates have shown a gradual and steady decline over the last decades. In this thesis, we propose a stochastic process for the force of mortality. Similarly to Renshaw et al. (1996), the force of mortality will be defined using an exponential function of Legendre polynomials. In order to model perturbations in the force of mortality, we use the approach of Ballotta and Haberman (2006) and add a stochastic process which follows a one-dimensional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. We show how Generalized Linear Models can be used to estimate coefficients of the explanatory variables as well as the value of the coefficient of the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. For this purpose, the estimator of this coefficient is obtained by minimizing the residual deviance. Next we change the structure of the perturbed term in the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process by replacing Brownian motion with Levy processes. We give some examples to clarify the fitting process and show the advantages of using stochastic forces of mortality. Predictions of the probabilities of death will be investigated to show how the model can be used in actuarial applications. Life annuities are then priced and compared using the proposed model based on Levy processes and the model in Renshaw et al. (1996). In this thesis, we also reconsider the two-factor stochastic mortality model introduced by Cairns, Blake and Dowd (2006). We first show that the underlying normality assumption of the error terms does not hold for the considered data set. We suggest to model the error terms using bivariate Generalized Hyperbolic distribution that includes four non-Gaussian, fat-tailed distributions. Our empirical analysis shows how the model can provide a better fit for the considered data. In addition, we try to model age adjusted death rates embedded in the Swiss Re mortality bond using generalized least squares approach. We use the variable length Markov chains (VLMC) model proposed by Machler and Buhlmann (2004) to model the incidence of catastrophic events. The proposed model is compared to the current recognized models in the literature. Finally, we perform a simulation study to estimate the market price of risk that can be used to fairly price the Swiss Re bond

Comparative cervical cytology and conception rate in postpartum dairy cows

During the early postpartum period, multiple bacterial species invade the uterus of cows. Phagocytosis by polymorphonuclear cells is a primary mechanism involved in the elimination of bacteria and improvement of conception rate. Therefore, a relationship could exist between endometrial cytology and conception rate of postpartum dairy cows. In this study 50 postpartum healthy Holstein Frisian dairy cows were selected. They had a normal parturition history and had no mucopurulent discharge from vulva or abnormality in rectal palpation. Cervical mucosal discharge was collected from all cows on days 25 to 30 and 55 to 60 postpartum. Blood progesterone levels were determined in all cows by radioimmunoassay (RIA). Differential cellular counts were carried out from a Giemsa-stained smear of the mucosa. Data were analyzed by Independent T test, one-way ANOVA, and Duncan’s multiple range tests. There was no significant difference between cell percentages at different times or in number of postpartum artificial inseminations (P≥0.05). However, when cows were divided into two groups to progesterone above 1 ng/mL and below 1 ng/mL, there were significant differences (P<0.05) between neutrophil percentages at different times after parturition and artificial insemination number (1 and 2 or 3). The result of this study showed that cytological evaluation of cervical smear is helpful for diagnosis and treatment of subclinical endometritis and prognosis of postpartum fertility

Movement Optimization of Robotic Arms for Energy and Time Reduction using Evolutionary Algorithms

Trajectory optimization of a robot manipulator consists of both optimization of the robot movement as well as optimization of the robot end-effector path. This paper aims to find optimum movement parameters including movement type, speed, and acceleration to minimize robot energy. Trajectory optimization by minimizing the energy would increase the longevity of robotic manipulators. We utilized the particle swarm optimization method to find the movement parameters leading to minimum energy consumption. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated on different trajectories. Experimental results show that 49% efficiency was obtained using a UR5 robotic arm

Ocena skali ABCD2 u pacjentów z napadem przemijającego niedokrwienia mózgu lub udarem mózgu

Background and purpose Stroke risk prediction scores have been designed to stratify risk of recurrent cerebrovascular events in patients with transient ischaemic attack (TIA) or minor ischaemic stroke (MIS). Material and methods Consecutive patients with TIA or MIS referring to Ghaem Hospital, Mashhad presenting within 24 hours from the onset of symptoms were recruited to the prospective cohort study between 2010 and 2011. MIS was defined as an ischaemic stroke with National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score &lt; 4. The end-point of the study was a new ischaemic cerebrovascular event or vascular death at 90 days and, additionally, at 3 days after the index TIA or MIS. The decision to admit and of method of treatment in each case was left to the discretion of the stroke neurologist. The predictive accuracy of the ABCD2 scoring system for recurrent stroke or TIA was quantified by the area under the curve (AUC), using the c-statistics. Results The study included 393 patients with TIA (238 males, 155 females) and 118 patients with MIS (77 males, 41 females). Among 511 patients with minor ischaemic events, 117 strokes (23.2%), 99 TIAs (19.6%), and 11 vascular deaths (2.2%) occurred within 3 months after the index event. The ABCD2 score had a weak predictive value for 3-month and 3-day recurrent stroke in patients with TIA (AUC = 0.599 and 0.591, respectively), but a high predictive value for 3-month and 3-day recurrent stroke in patients with MIS (AUC = 0.727 and 0.728, respectively). Conclusions The ABCD2 score is highly predictive for short-term recurrent stroke in patients with MIS but not in patients with TIA, although it was originally designed for patients with TIA.Wstęp i cel pracy Punktację oceny ryzyka wystąpienia udaru mózgu opracowano w celu stratyfikacji ryzyka nawrotowego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu u pacjentów z napadem przemijającego niedokrwienia mózgu (transient ischaemic attack – TIA) lub niewielkim udarem niedokrwiennym mózgu (minor ischaemic stroke – MIS). Materiał i metody Do badania włączono kolejnych chorych zgłaszających się w latach 2010–2011 do szpitala Ghaem w Mashad w ciągu 24 godzin od wystąpienia TIA lub MIS. Niewielki udar niedokrwienny mózgu definiowano jako udar niedokrwienny mózgu powodujący ubytkowe objawy neurologiczne ocenione w skali National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) na &lt; 4 pkt. Punktem końcowym badania było wystąpienie kolejnego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu lub zgon w ciągu 90 dni, a dodatkowo również w ciągu 3 dni od pierwszego zachorowania. Decyzję o przyjęciu do szpitala i o sposobie leczenia podejmował neurolog specjalizujący się w chorobach naczyniowych mózgu. Dokładność rokowniczą skali ABCD2 w przewidywaniu wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu lub TIA oceniono liczbowo i określono ilościowo metodą pola pod krzywą (area under the curve – AUC) z użyciem statystyki c. Wyniki W badaniu wzięło udział 393 chorych na TIA (238 mężczyzn i 155 kobiet) oraz 118 chorych na MIS (77 mężczyzn i 41 kobiet). W grupie obejmującej łącznie 511 chorych z lekkimi incydentami naczyniowymi mózgu w okresie 3 miesięcy od wystąpienia pierwszego incydentu naczyniowego mózgu wystąpiło 117 udarów mózgu (23,2%), 99 TIA (19,6%) i 11 zgonów z przyczyn naczyniowych (2,2%). Wartość predykcyjna punktacji ABCD2 w odniesieniu do wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu w okresie 3 miesięcy lub 3 dni po pierwotnym incydencie naczyniowym była niewielka u pacjentów z TIA (wartość AUC odpowiednio 0,599 i 0,591), a duża u pacjentów z MIS (wartość AUC odpowiednio 0,727 i 0,728). Wniosek Punktacja ABCD2 ma dużą wartość predykcyjną wczesnego wystąpienia nawrotowego udaru mózgu u pacjentów z MIS, ale nie z TIA, chociaż pierwotnie została zaprojektowana do użycia w drugiej z tych populacji

A Novel Model for Driver Lane Change Prediction in Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control Systems

Accurate lane change prediction can reduce potential accidents and contribute to higher road safety. Adaptive cruise control (ACC), lane departure avoidance (LDA), and lane keeping assistance (LKA) are some conventional modules in advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Thanks to vehicle-to-vehicle communication (V2V), vehicles can share traffic information with surrounding vehicles, enabling cooperative adaptive cruise control (CACC). While ACC relies on the vehicle's sensors to obtain the position and velocity of the leading vehicle, CACC also has access to the acceleration of multiple vehicles through V2V communication. This paper compares the type of information (position, velocity, acceleration) and the number of surrounding vehicles for driver lane change prediction. We trained an LSTM (Long Short-Term Memory) on the HighD dataset to predict lane change intention. Results indicate a significant improvement in accuracy with an increase in the number of surrounding vehicles and the information received from them. Specifically, the proposed model can predict the ego vehicle lane change with 59.15% and 92.43% accuracy in ACC and CACC scenarios, respectively

Association of helicobacter pylori infection with serum magnesium in kidney transplant patients.

INTRODUCTION Few studies are available regarding the various promoting factors of H. pylori infection in kidney disease patients especially renal transplant individuals. OBJECTIVES This study was therefore conducted to examine the association of serum magnesium with H. pylori infection among kidney transplant patients. This cross-sectional investigation was conducted on a group of stable kidney transplant patients. Peripheral venous blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis after an overnight fast, Also urea breath test (UBT) was conducted for patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS A total of 50 cases was enrolled to the study. Mean serum magnesium value of the patients was 1.98 ± 0.62 mg/dl. Serum magnesium level in positive H. pylori patients was more than negative H. pylori patients (p=0.0005). In this study population, there was no significant difference in serum intact PTH, calcium, alkaline phosphatase, albumin levels and body mass index (BMI) between males and females or H. pylori positive and H. pylori negative subjects (p>0.5). CONCLUSION It is possible that, magnesium aggravates H. pylori infection in kidney transplant patients through the mechanisms like hemodialysis, which we had reported previously. However, more studies are necessary to prove the association of magnesium with H. pylori infection in renal transplant patients and finding the clinical relevance of our findings

Comparison of Glasgow Coma Scale with Physiologic Scoring Scales in Prediction of In-Hospital Outcome of Trauma Patients; a Diagnostic Accuracy Study

Introduction:&nbsp;Limitations of Glasgow coma scale (GCS) led the researchers to designing new physiologic scoring systems such as revised trauma score (RTS), rapid acute physiology score (RAPS) and rapid emergency medicine score (REMS), and worthing physiological scoring system (WPSS).&nbsp;However, it is not yet known&nbsp;whether these models have&nbsp;any advantage over GCS.&nbsp;Objective: The present study attempted to compare the values of 4 physiologic scoring systems including RTS, RAPS, REMS and WPSS with GCS in predicting in-hospital mortality of trauma patients.&nbsp;Methods: The present diagnostic accuracy study was performed on trauma patients presenting to emergency departments of 4 hospitals in Iran throughout 2017. Patients were clinically evaluated and were followed until discharge from hospital. Finally, the status of patients regarding mortality and poor outcome (death, vegetative status, severe disability, and moderate disability) was recorded and predictive value of GCS was compared with physiologic scales.&nbsp;Results: Area under the ROC curve of GCS in prediction of in-hospital mortality was not significantly different from that of REMS (0.89 vs. 0.91; p=0.298), RAPS (0.89 vs. 0.88; p=0.657), and WPSS (0.89 vs 0.91; p=0.168) but was significantly more than RTS (0.89 vs. 0.85; p=0.002). In addition, area under the ROC curves of GCS, REMS, RAPS, WPSS and RTS in prediction of poor outcome were 0.89, 0.88, 0.88, 0.91, and 0.81, respectively. Area under the ROC curve of GCS in prediction of poor outcome did not differ from area under the ROC curves of REMS (0.89 vs. 0.88; p=0.887), RAPS (0.89 vs. 0.88; p=0.601) and WPSS (0.89 vs. 0.91; p=0.113) but was significantly higher than RTS (0.89 vs. 0.81; p&lt;0.0001).&nbsp;Conclusions: Findings of the present study indicated that GCS is still the best method for evaluating injury severity and trauma patients’ outcome in the emergency department; because it is easier to calculate and assess than many physiologic scales and it has a better performance in predicting in-hospital mortality and poor outcome compared to RTS