305 research outputs found

    EXPERIMENTAL MEASUREMENT OF INTERNAL TEMPERATURE OF A TUBE IN COOLING ON A BED OF PASSAGECONTINUOUS UNDER NATURAL CONVECTION

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    The process behind manufacturing bars and profiles in the steel industry utilizes heating and cooling at controlled rates in order to facilitate changes in their geometries, as well as to obtain desired changes in mechanical steel properties.This work develops an experimental procedure to reproduce the thermal behavior tubes over a cooling bed. In literature the experimental results obtained by Damasceno (2004) do not take into account the temperature measurements of the sidewalls and the floor below the bed and storage temperatures within and outside the shed. These failures compromise the claim to validate the mathematical model of Souza (2015) and therefore new measurements were obtained with room temperatures controlled, order to validate the mathematical model of a cooling bed heat treatment of steel mill Vallourec Tubes, located in Belo Horizonte, Brazil

    Broad activation of the ubiquitin-proteasome system by Parkin is critical for mitophagy

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    Parkin, an E3 ubiquitin ligase implicated in Parkinson's disease, promotes degradation of dysfunctional mitochondria by autophagy. Using proteomic and cellular approaches, we show that upon translocation to mitochondria, Parkin activates the ubiquitin–proteasome system (UPS) for widespread degradation of outer membrane proteins. This is evidenced by an increase in K48-linked polyubiquitin on mitochondria, recruitment of the 26S proteasome and rapid degradation of multiple outer membrane proteins. The degradation of proteins by the UPS occurs independently of the autophagy pathway, and inhibition of the 26S proteasome completely abrogates Parkin-mediated mitophagy in HeLa, SH-SY5Y and mouse cells. Although the mitofusins Mfn1 and Mfn2 are rapid degradation targets of Parkin, we find that degradation of additional targets is essential for mitophagy. These results indicate that remodeling of the mitochondrial outer membrane proteome is important for mitophagy, and reveal a causal link between the UPS and autophagy, the major pathways for degradation of intracellular substrates

    Australia and Other Nations are Failing to Meet Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for Children: Implications and a Way Forward

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    BACKGROUND: Australia has joined a growing number of nations which have evaluated the physical activity and sedentary behaviour status of their children. Australia received a 'D minus' in the first Active Healthy Kids Australia Physical Activity Report Card. METHODS: An expert subgroup of the Australian Report Card Research Working Group iteratively reviewed available evidence to answer three questions: 1) What are the main sedentary behaviours of children?, 2) What are the potential mechanisms for sedentary behaviour to impact on child health and development? and, 3) What are the effects of different types of sedentary behaviours on child health and development? RESULTS: Neither sedentary time nor screen time are homogeneous activities likely to result in homogenous effects. There are several mechanisms by which various sedentary behaviours may positively or negatively affect cardiometabolic, neuro-musculoskeletal, and psycho-social health, though the strength of evidence varies. National surveillance systems, and mechanistic, longitudinal and experimental studies are needed for Australia and other nations to improve their grade. CONCLUSIONS: Despite limitations, available evidence is sufficiently convincing that the total exposure and pattern of exposure to sedentary behaviours are critical to the healthy growth, development and wellbeing of children. Nations therefore need strategies to address these common behaviours

    Performance Analysis of Available Bandwidth Estimation Tools for Grid Networks

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    Abstract Modern large-scale grid computing systems for processing advanced science and engineering applications rely on geographically distributed clusters. In such highly distributed environments, estimating the available bandwidth between clusters is a key issue for efficient task scheduling. We analyze the performance of two well known available bandwidth estimation tools, pathload and abget, with the aim of using them in grid environments. Our experiments consider the accuracy of the estimation, the convergence time, their level of intrusion in the grid links, and the ability to handle multiple simultaneous estimations. Overall, pathload represents a good solution to estimate available bandwidth in grid environments

    Weight management interventions in adults with intellectual disabilities and obesity: a systematic review of the evidence

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    o evaluate the clinical effectiveness of weight management interventions in adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) and obesity using recommendations from current clinical guidelines for the first line management of obesity in adults. Full papers on lifestyle modification interventions published between 1982 to 2011 were sought by searching the Medline, Embase, PsycINFO and CINAHL databases. Studies were evaluated based on 1) intervention components, 2) methodology, 3) attrition rate 4) reported weight loss and 5) duration of follow up. Twenty two studies met the inclusion criteria. The interventions were classified according to inclusion of the following components: behaviour change alone, behaviour change plus physical activity, dietary advice or physical activity alone, dietary plus physical activity advice and multi-component (all three components). The majority of the studies had the same methodological limitations: no sample size justification, small heterogeneous samples, no information on randomisation methodologies. Eight studies were classified as multi-component interventions, of which one study used a 600 kilocalorie (2510 kilojoule) daily energy deficit diet. Study durations were mostly below the duration recommended in clinical guidelines and varied widely. No study included an exercise program promoting 225–300 minutes or more of moderate intensity physical activity per week but the majority of the studies used the same behaviour change techniques. Three studies reported clinically significant weight loss (≥ 5%) at six months post intervention. Current data indicate weight management interventions in those with ID differ from recommended practice and further studies to examine the effectiveness of multi-component weight management interventions for adults with ID and obesity are justified

    SOS: A Screening Instrument to Identify Children with Handwriting Impairments

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    Poor handwriting has been shown to be associated with developmental disorders such as Developmental Coordination Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, autism, and learning disorders. Handwriting difficulties could lead to academic underachievement and poor self-esteem. Therapeutic intervention has been shown to be effective in treating children with poor handwriting, making early identification critical. The SOS test (Systematic Screening for Handwriting Difficulties) has been developed for this purpose. A child copies a sample of writing within 5 min. Handwriting quality is evaluated using six criteria and writing speed is measured. The Dutch SOS test was administered to 860 Flemish children (7-12 years). Inter-and intrarater reliability was excellent. Test-retest reliability was moderate. A correlation coefficient of 0.70 between SOS and "Concise Assessment Methods of Children Handwriting" test (Dutch version) confirmed convergent validity. The SOS allowed discrimination between typically developing children and children in special education, males and females, and different age groups

    Healthcare practitioners' views and experiences of barriers and facilitators to weight management interventions for adults with intellectual disabilities

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    Background Obesity is common in adults with intellectual disabilities, yet little is known about how weight management interventions are provided for this population. Methods Semi‐structured interviews were held with 14 healthcare practitioners involved in weight management interventions in an English county. A study topic guide was developed to elicit practitioners' views and experiences of barriers and facilitators to weight management for adults with intellectual disabilities. Responses were analysed using thematic analysis. Results Several barriers are involved in weight management for people with intellectual disabilities including communication challenges, general practitioners' lack of knowledge and awareness of weight management services, inconsistencies in caring support, resource constraints, wider external circumstances surrounding the individuals and motivational issues. Facilitators include reasonable adjustments to existing weight management services. However, there is a need for specialist weight management provision for people with intellectual disabilities. Conclusions This study provides suggestions for future research, policy and practice consideration

    Psicología Y educación a distancia : una revisión de la literatura

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    O presente estudo investigou as contribuições da Psicologia para a educação a distância – EAD. Para isso, realizou-se revisão bibliográfica de publicações nacionais, entre 1999 e 2009, nas bases de dados SciELO, Lilacs, PsycINFO, BVS e Google Acadêmico. Foram selecionados 69 estudos, dos quais se excluíram 15, por não serem compatíveis com a pesquisa. Os resultados evidenciaram nove eixos temáticos: (1) tecnologia educacional a distância com fundamentos psicológicos, (2) afeição, (3) papel do tutor/professor, (4) teorias psicológicas, (5) interatividade, (6) evasão, (7) relatos de experiências, (8) avaliação de treinamento, desenvolvimento e educação a distância e (9) outros. Os temas tecnologia educacional a distância com fundamentos psicológicos e afeição obtiveram maior frequência nas publicações. Neste estudo, registrou-se, também, que, embora em ascensão desde 2006, os anos de maiores publicações da Psicologia na educação a distância foram 2008 e 2009. Sugere-se que estudos futuros ampliem esta pesquisa para incluir bases de dados internacionais.This study investigated the contributions of Psychology to Distance Learning. A literature review of national publications between 1999 to 2009 was made in the electronic databases SciELO, LILACS, PsycINFO, BVS and Google Scholar. From the 69 studies selected, 15 were excluded because they were not compatible with the research. The results showed nine themes: (1) the distance learning technology with psychological grounding, (2) affection, (3)the role of the tutor/professor, (4) psychological theories, (5) interactivity, (6) dropout, (7) reports of experiences, (8) assessment of distance training, development and education and (9) others. The topics distance education technology with psychological grounding and affection had a larger frequency in the publications. Since 2006, there was an increasing number of publications in psychology distance education, but the years of major publications were from 2008 to 2009. It is suggested that future studies expand this research including international databases.El presente estudio investigó las contribuciones de la Psicología para la Educación a Distancia – EAD. Para eso, fue realizada una revisión bibliográfica de publicaciones nacionales, entre 1999 y 2009 en las bases de datos SciELO, Lilacs, PsycINFO, BVS y Google Académico. Fueron seleccionados 69 estudios, de los cuales se excluyeron 15, por no ser compatibles con la pesquisa. Los resultados evidenciaron nueve ejes temáticos (1) tecnología educacional la distancia con fundamentos psicológicos; (2) afección; (3) papel del tutor/profesor; (4) teorías psicológicas; (5) interactividad; (6) evasión; (7) relatos de experiencias, (8) evaluación de entrenamiento, desarrollo y educación distancia y (9) otros. Los temas tecnología educacional a distancia con fundamentos psicológicos y afección obtuvieron mayor frecuencia en las publicaciones. En ese estudio se registró, también, que, aunque en ascensión desde 2006, los años de mayores publicaciones de la psicología en la educación a distancia, fueron 2008 y 2009. Se sugiere que estudios futuros amplíen esa pesquisa para incluir bases de datos internacionales

    Retinoic acid-induced 1 gene haploinsufficiency alters lipid metabolism and causes autophagy defects in Smith-Magenis syndrome

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    Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by cognitive and behavioral symptoms, obesity, and sleep disturbance, and no therapy has been developed to alleviate its symptoms or delay disease onset. SMS occurs due to haploinsufficiency of the retinoic acid-induced-1 (RAI1) gene caused by either chromosomal deletion (SMS-del) or RAI1 missense/nonsense mutation. The molecular mechanisms underlying SMS are unknown. Here, we generated and characterized primary cells derived from four SMS patients (two with SMS-del and two carrying RAI1 point mutations) and four control subjects to investigate the pathogenetic processes underlying SMS. By combining transcriptomic and lipidomic analyses, we found altered expression of lipid and lysosomal genes, deregulation of lipid metabolism, accumulation of lipid droplets, and blocked autophagic flux. We also found that SMS cells exhibited increased cell death associated with the mitochondrial pathology and the production of reactive oxygen species. Treatment with N-acetylcysteine reduced cell death and lipid accumulation, which suggests a causative link between metabolic dyshomeostasis and cell viability. Our results highlight the pathological processes in human SMS cells involving lipid metabolism, autophagy defects and mitochondrial dysfunction and suggest new potential therapeutic targets for patient treatment
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