Post-closure performance assessment of waste packages for the Yucca Mountain Project

This report details a system model of some core features of the performance of waste packages for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel at the Yucca Mountain Site. The model is realized in the prototype computer program PANDORA-1.1. The PANDORA system model links processes leading to possible release of radionuclides from the waste package. The PANDORA submodels are being developed for processes and conditions specific to this potential repository site, notably the comparatively dry location in an arid area and well above the groundwater table, and the rock medium of porous partially welded tuff

Performance of the transverse coupled-bunch feedback system in the SRRC

A transverse feedback system has been implemented and commissioned in the SRRC storage ring to suppress transverse coupled-bunch oscillations of the electron beam. The system includes transverse oscillation detectors, notch filter, baseband quadrature processing circuitry, power amplifiers, and kickers. To control a large number of transverse coupled-bunch modes, the system is broad-band, bunch-by- bunch in nature. Because the system is capable of bunch-by-bunch correction, it can also be useful for suppressing instabilities introduced by ions. The sextupole strength was then reduced to improve dynamic aperture and hence lifetime of the storage ring

Molecular Diagnosis of Periprosthetic Joint Infection by Quantitative RT-PCR of Bacterial 16S Ribosomal RNA

The diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infection is sometimes straightforward with purulent discharge from the fistula tract communicating to the joint prosthesis. However it is often difficult to differentiate septic from aseptic loosening of prosthesis because of the high culture-negative rates in conventional microbiologic culture. This study used quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) to amplify bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA in vitro and in 11 clinical samples. The in vitro analysis demonstrated that the RT-qPCR method was highly sensitive with the detection limit of bacterial 16S rRNA being 0.148 pg/μl. Clinical specimens were analyzed using the same protocol. The RT-qPCR was positive for bacterial detection in 8 culture-positive cases (including aerobic, anaerobic, and mycobacteria) and 2 culture-negative cases. It was negative in one case that the final diagnosis was confirmed without infection. The molecular diagnosis of bacterial infection using RT-qPCR to detect bacterial 16S rRNA around a prosthesis correlated well with the clinical findings. Based on the promising clinical results, we were attempting to differentiate bacterial species or drug-resistant strains by using species-specific primers and to detect the persistence of bacteria during the interim period before the second stage reimplantation in a larger scale of clinical subjects

Emerging strengths in Asia Pacific bioinformatics

The 2008 annual conference of the Asia Pacific Bioinformatics Network (APBioNet), Asia's oldest bioinformatics organisation set up in 1998, was organized as the 7th International Conference on Bioinformatics (InCoB), jointly with the Bioinformatics and Systems Biology in Taiwan (BIT 2008) Conference, Oct. 20–23, 2008 at Taipei, Taiwan. Besides bringing together scientists from the field of bioinformatics in this region, InCoB is actively involving researchers from the area of systems biology, to facilitate greater synergy between these two groups. Marking the 10th Anniversary of APBioNet, this InCoB 2008 meeting followed on from a series of successful annual events in Bangkok (Thailand), Penang (Malaysia), Auckland (New Zealand), Busan (South Korea), New Delhi (India) and Hong Kong. Additionally, tutorials and the Workshop on Education in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (WEBCB) immediately prior to the 20th Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists and Molecular Biologists (FAOBMB) Taipei Conference provided ample opportunity for inducting mainstream biochemists and molecular biologists from the region into a greater level of awareness of the importance of bioinformatics in their craft. In this editorial, we provide a brief overview of the peer-reviewed manuscripts accepted for publication herein, grouped into thematic areas. As the regional research expertise in bioinformatics matures, the papers fall into thematic areas, illustrating the specific contributions made by APBioNet to global bioinformatics efforts

Experimental approaches to evaluate activities of cytochromes P450 3A

Cytochrome P450 (CYP) is a heme protein oxidizing various xenobiotics, as well as endogenous substrates. Understanding which CYP enzymes are involved in metabolic activation and/or detoxication of different compounds is important in the assessment of an individual's susceptibility to the toxic action of these substances. Therefore, investigation which of several in vitro experimental models are appropriate to mimic metabolism of xenobiotics in organisms is the major challenge for research of many laboratories. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of different in vitro systems containing individual enzymes of the mixed-function monooxygenase system to oxidize two model substrates of CYP3A enzymes, exogenous and endogenous compounds, α-naphtoflavone (α-NF) and testosterone, respectively. Several different enzymatic systems containing CYP3A enzymes were utilized in the study: (i) human hepatic microsomes rich in CYP3A4, (ii) hepatic microsomes of rabbits treated with a CYP3A6 inducer, rifampicine, (iii) microsomes of Baculovirus transfected insect cells containing recombinant human CYP3A4 and NADPH:CYP reductase with or without cytochrome b5 (Supersomes™), (iv) membranes isolated from of Escherichia coli, containing recombinant human CYP3A4 and cytochrome b5, and (v) purified human CYP3A4 or rabbit CYP3A6 reconstituted with NADPH:CYP reductase with or without cytochrome b5 in liposomes. The most efficient systems oxidizing both compounds were Supersomes™ containing human CYP3A4 and cytochrome b5. The results presented in this study demonstrate the suitability of the supersomal CYP3A4 systems for studies investigating oxidation of testosterone and α-NF in vitro

Diversity among the coat proteins of luteoviruses associated with chickpea stunt disease in India

Chickpea stunt is an important virus disease of chickpea in the Indian subcontinent which is thought to be caused by infection with a luteovirus. Samples of diseased chickpea plants were collected from different chickpea growing regions of India and analysed with a panel of monoclonal antibodies to potato leafroll, beet western yellows and barley yellow dwarf (RPV strain) luteoviruses. The results suggested that more than one luteovirus was present in chickpea crops near ICRISAT Asia Center, Hyderabad. Aphid transmission tests resulted in the separation of two distinct isolates from these samples. One of them (isolate L) was more efficiently transmitted by Myzus persicae than the other (isolate IC). Nucleotide sequence analysis of DNA obtained by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT/PCR) amplification revealed that the amino acid sequence of the coat protein of isolate L was 94% identical to that of beet western yellows virus, whereas the coat protein sequence of isolate IC was 82% identical to that of isolate L and 80% identical or less to those of the coat protein of other luteoviruses. Using newly designed “universal luteovirus primers”, a minor sequence variant of isolate IC, which was 96% identical to it in part of the coat protein gene, was detected in the same location during the next season. Only isolate IC could be detected in samples from other locations by either serological or nucleotide sequence analysi

Cause of Death and Predictors of All-Cause Mortality in Anticoagulated Patients With Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation : Data From ROCKET AF

M. Kaste on työryhmän ROCKET AF Steering Comm jäsen.Background-Atrial fibrillation is associated with higher mortality. Identification of causes of death and contemporary risk factors for all-cause mortality may guide interventions. Methods and Results-In the Rivaroxaban Once Daily Oral Direct Factor Xa Inhibition Compared with Vitamin K Antagonism for Prevention of Stroke and Embolism Trial in Atrial Fibrillation (ROCKET AF) study, patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation were randomized to rivaroxaban or dose-adjusted warfarin. Cox proportional hazards regression with backward elimination identified factors at randomization that were independently associated with all-cause mortality in the 14 171 participants in the intention-to-treat population. The median age was 73 years, and the mean CHADS(2) score was 3.5. Over 1.9 years of median follow-up, 1214 (8.6%) patients died. Kaplan-Meier mortality rates were 4.2% at 1 year and 8.9% at 2 years. The majority of classified deaths (1081) were cardiovascular (72%), whereas only 6% were nonhemorrhagic stroke or systemic embolism. No significant difference in all-cause mortality was observed between the rivaroxaban and warfarin arms (P=0.15). Heart failure (hazard ratio 1.51, 95% CI 1.33-1.70, P= 75 years (hazard ratio 1.69, 95% CI 1.51-1.90, P Conclusions-In a large population of patients anticoagulated for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, approximate to 7 in 10 deaths were cardiovascular, whereasPeer reviewe

Improved functionalization of oleic acid-coated iron oxide nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles can providemultiple benefits for biomedical applications in aqueous environments such asmagnetic separation or magnetic resonance imaging. To increase the colloidal stability and allow subsequent reactions, the introduction of hydrophilic functional groups onto the particles’ surface is essential. During this process, the original coating is exchanged by preferably covalently bonded ligands such as trialkoxysilanes. The duration of the silane exchange reaction, which commonly takes more than 24 h, is an important drawback for this approach. In this paper, we present a novel method, which introduces ultrasonication as an energy source to dramatically accelerate this process, resulting in high-quality waterdispersible nanoparticles around 10 nmin size. To prove the generic character, different functional groups were introduced on the surface including polyethylene glycol chains, carboxylic acid, amine, and thiol groups. Their colloidal stability in various aqueous buffer solutions as well as human plasma and serum was investigated to allow implementation in biomedical and sensing applications.status: publishe