Dynamic response of a pavement-subgrade-soft ground system subjected to moving traffic load

This paper introduces a three-dimensional model for the steady-state response of a pavement-subgrade-soft ground system subjected to moving traffic load. A semi-analytical wave propagation model is introduced which is subjected to four rectangular moving loads and based on a calculation method of the dynamic stiffness matrix of the ground. In order to model a complete road system, the effect of a simple road model is taken into account including pavement, subgrade and soft subsoil. The pavement and the subgrade are regarded as two elastic layers resting on a poroelastic half-space soil medium. The priority has been given to a simple formulation based on the principle of spatial Fourier transforms compatible with good numerical efficiency and yet providing quick solutions. The frequency wave-number domain solution of the road system is obtained by the compatibility condition at the interface of the structural layers. By introducing FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) algorithm, the numerical results are derived and the influences of the observation coordinates, the load speed and excitation frequency, the permeability of the soft subsoil, and the rigidity of the subgrade on the response of the pavement-subgrade-soft ground system are investigated. The numerical results show that the influences of these parameters on the dynamic response of the road system are significant

Effective p-wave Fermi-Fermi Interaction Induced by Bosonic Superfluids

We study the two-dimensional Bose-Fermi mixture on square lattice at finite temperature by using the determinant quantum Monte Carlo method within the weakly interacting regime. Here we consider the attractive Bose-Hubbard model and free spinless fermions. In the absence of bosonfermion interactions, we obtain the boundary of the collapsed state of the attractive bosons. In the presence of boson-fermion interactions, an effective p-wave interaction between fermions will be induced as far as the bosons are in a superfluid state. Moreover, we find the emergence of the composite fermion pairs at low temperatures

A preliminary study on the monitoring of mixed venous oxygen saturation through the left main bronchus

INTRODUCTION: The study sought to assess the feasibility and accuracy of measuring mixed venous oxygen saturation (SvO(2)) through the left main bronchus (SpO(2trachea)) METHODS: Twenty hybrid pigs of each sex were studied. After anesthesia, a Robertshaw double-lumen tracheal tube with a single-use pediatric pulse oximeter attached to the left lateral surface was introduced toward the left main bronchus of the pig by means of a fibrobronchoscope. Measurements of SpO(2trachea )and oxygen saturation from pulmonary artery samples (SvO(2blood)) were performed with an intracuff pressure of 0 to 60 cmH(2)O. After equilibration, hemorrhagic shock was induced in these pigs by bleeding to a mean arterial blood pressure of 40 mmHg. With the intracuff pressure maintained at 60 cmH(2)O, SpO(2trachea )and SvO(2blood )were obtained respectively during the pre-shock period, immediately after the onset of shock, 15 and 30 minutes after shock, and 15, 30, and 60 minutes after resuscitation. RESULTS: SpO(2trachea )was the same as SvO(2blood )at an intracuff pressure of 10, 20, 40, and 60 cmH(2)O, but was reduced when the intracuff pressure was zero (p < 0.001 compared with SvO(2blood)) in hemodynamically stable states. Changes of SpO(2trachea )and SvO(2blood )corresponded with varieties of cardiac output during the hemorrhagic shock period. There was a significant correlation between the two methods at different time points. CONCLUSION: Measurement of the left main bronchus SpO(2 )is feasible and provides similar readings to SvO(2blood )in hemodynamically stable or in low saturation states. Tracheal oximetry readings are not primarily derived from the tracheal mucosa. The technique merits further evaluation

A New Concept to Reveal Protein Dynamics Based on Energy Dissipation

Protein dynamics is essential for its function, especially for intramolecular signal transduction. In this work we propose a new concept, energy dissipation model, to systematically reveal protein dynamics upon effector binding and energy perturbation. The concept is applied to better understand the intramolecular signal transduction during allostery of enzymes. The E. coli allosteric enzyme, aspartokinase III, is used as a model system and special molecular dynamics simulations are designed and carried out. Computational results indicate that the number of residues affected by external energy perturbation (i.e. caused by a ligand binding) during the energy dissipation process shows a sigmoid pattern. Using the two-state Boltzmann equation, we define two parameters, the half response time and the dissipation rate constant, which can be used to well characterize the energy dissipation process. For the allostery of aspartokinase III, the residue response time indicates that besides the ACT2 signal transduction pathway, there is another pathway between the regulatory site and the catalytic site, which is suggested to be the β15-αK loop of ACT1. We further introduce the term “protein dynamical modules” based on the residue response time. Different from the protein structural modules which merely provide information about the structural stability of proteins, protein dynamical modules could reveal protein characteristics from the perspective of dynamics. Finally, the energy dissipation model is applied to investigate E. coli aspartokinase III mutations to better understand the desensitization of product feedback inhibition via allostery. In conclusion, the new concept proposed in this paper gives a novel holistic view of protein dynamics, a key question in biology with high impacts for both biotechnology and biomedicine

Reduced Risk of Colorectal Cancer With Metformin Therapy in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes

Objective: Both in vitro and in vivo studies indicate that metformin inhibits cancer cell growth and reduces cancer risk. Recent epidemiological studies suggest that metformin therapy may reduce the risks of cancer and overall cancer mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes. However, data on its effect on colorectal cancer are limited and inconsistent. We therefore pooled data currently available to examine the association between metformin therapy and colorectal cancer among patients with type 2 diabetes. Research Design and Methods: The PubMed and SciVerse Scopus databases were searched to identify studies that examined the effect of metformin therapy on colorectal cancer among patients with type 2 diabetes. Summary effect estimates were derived using a random-effects meta-analysis model. Results: The analysis included five studies comprising 108,161 patients with type 2 diabetes. Metformin treatment was associated with a significantly lower risk of colorectal neoplasm (relative risk [RR] 0.63 [95% CI 0.50–0.79]; P < 0.001). After exclusion of one study that investigated colorectal adenoma, the remaining four studies comprised 107,961 diabetic patients and 589 incident colorectal cancer cases during follow-up. Metformin treatment was associated with a significantly lower risk of colorectal cancer (0.63 [0.47–0.84]; P = 0.002). There was no evidence for the presence of significant heterogeneity between the five studies (Q = 4.86, P = 0.30; I2 = 18%). Conclusions: From observational studies, metformin therapy appears to be associated with a significantly lower risk of colorectal cancer in patients with type 2 diabetes. Further investigation is warranted

Tim-3 expression on peripheral T cell subsets correlates with disease progression in hepatitis B infection

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background and objective</p> <p>T-cell immunoglobulin domain and mucin domain-containing molecule-3 (Tim-3) represents a novel mechanism of T-cell dysfunction in chronic viral diseases. However, the role of Tim-3 in the pathogenesis of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is not well understood. We investigated Tim-3 expression on peripheral T cell subsets and analyzed the relationship between Tim-3 expression and disease progression in HBV infection.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>peripheral blood samples were obtained from CHB patients (n = 40), including 23 patients with moderate CHB [MCHB] and 17 with severe CHB [SCHB]. Control samples were obtained from nine acute hepatitis B patients (AHB) and 26 age-matched healthy subjects. The expression of Tim-3 on T cells was determined by flow cytometry.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Tim-3 expression was elevated on peripheral CD4⁺and CD8⁺T cells from AHB and CHB patients compared to those from healthy controls. The percentage of Tim-3⁺T cells was further increased in SCHB patients relative to MCHB patients and showed a positive correlation with conventional markers for liver injury (alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), total bilirubin (TB) and international normalized ratio (INR) level). The frequency of Tim-3-expressing T cells was negatively correlated with T-bet mRNA expression and plasma interferon-gamma (INF-gamma) levels. Further, Tim-3 expression on CD4⁺or CD8⁺T cells was reduced in CHB patients with disease remission after antiviral treatment and in AHB patients during the convalescence phase.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results suggest that over-expression of Tim-3 is involved in disease progression of CHB and that Tim-3 may participate in skewing of Th1/Tc1 response, which contributes to persistency of HBV infection.</p