169 research outputs found

    Alien Registration- Aspey, Annie (Warren, Knox County)

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    https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/12893/thumbnail.jp

    Studies of an ischaemic stroke model (middle cerebral artery occlusion in the rat) and modifications to improve its consistency

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    The work in this study has been mainly directed towards developing consistent protocols for an animal model of ischaemic stroke, suitable for novel drug combination strategies, using the intraluminal suture method of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in the rat. Following optimisation of the measurement protocols, it was found that more consistent volumes of cerebral infarction were produced in the animal model when a silicone-coated type of intraluminal suture was used for permanent MCAO in Sprague-Dawley rats (coefficient of variation (cv) 19.9%), compared to an uncoated type (cv 66.6%). This more consistent protocol was used in a therapeutic screening study, combining 619C89, a sodium channel blocker to inhibit glutamate release, with BB-823, a platelet activating factor (PAF) antagonist to inhibit inflammatory responses. Although both agents individually reduced infarct volume, combined administration was only slightly and not significantly more effective. This may have been due to either a ceiling effect or the possibility that both agents targetted the same pathological mechanism. Both glutamate and PAF have been previously shown to induce the expression of cyclo-oxygenase (COX-2). However, molecular studies showed that although COX-2 induction was glutamate-mediated, 619C89 had no effect on the process, and the effect of BB-823 was only slight. A persistent problem with the model was the degree of residual variability, which was possibly obscuring small but significant differences. An attempt was made to improve reproducibility of the protocol further, by investigating the effect of animal strain. In the context of permanent MCAO, Fischer-344 rats had more consistent infarct volumes (cv 10%). Extending this approach to the context of temporary MCAO, Wistar rats had more consistent results (cv 9.5%). The direction of this study turned from investigating novel therapies to developing consistent protocols. Since reliable animal models are essential for preclinical studies, the present findings should significantly benefit stroke research

    The impact of the EU procurement rules on corporate responsibility in the supply chain: a study of utilities

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    Corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to the voluntary integration of social and environmental concerns into business practice. It is of increasing importance to utilities, with commercial pressure to be socially responsible coming from, inter alia, consumers, investors and employees. One way in which utilities can integrate CSR into their business is in their procurement. However, the potential scope for the inclusion of CSR considerations in procurement regulated by the EU is uncertain, with some policies clearly restricted but the legality of others being less clear. This thesis examines the practical impact of the EU procurement regulation on the use of CSR policies in utilities procurement, focusing specifically on the inclusion of labour concerns. The project aims to discover practitioners’ opinions of the EU law in this area and their experience in applying it, looking at positive and negative aspects of the law. In order to do so, a qualitative study was completed, with semi-structured interviews conducted with a sample of procurement practitioners based in UK utilities. The study covers the level of use of labour policies in procurement, the types of labour policy commonly included and the means by which those policies are integrated into procurement, with emphasis on the impact of the EU regulation on each issue. The thesis concludes that the impact of the EU regulation was relatively low, with most practitioners feeling that the procurement rules did not generally restrict their inclusion of labour policies. Instead, practical concerns governed the choice of labour policy and the means by which those policies were integrated into procurement. The major exception to this was in the area of policies which favoured local labour or firms, where practitioners felt that the EU regulation was very restrictive and prevented them from achieving their commercial aims

    The inverse solution of the atomic mixing equations by an operator-splitting method

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    The quantification problem of recovering the original material distribution from secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) data is considered in this paper. It is an inverse problem, is ill-posed and hence it requires a special technique for its solution. The quantification problem is essentially an inverse diffusion or (classically) a backward heat conduction problem. In this paper an operator-splitting method (that is proposed in a previous paper by the first author for the solution of inverse diffusion problems) is developed for the solution of the problem of recovering the original structure from the SIMS data. A detailed development of the quantification method is given and it is applied to typical data to demonstrate its effectiveness

    Acute oral sodium propionate supplementation raises resting energy expenditure and lipid oxidation in fasted humans

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    Short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs), produced from fermentation of dietary fibre by the gut microbiota, have been suggested to modulate energy metabolism. Previous work using rodent models has demonstrated that oral supplementation of the SCFA propionate raises resting energy expenditure (REE) by promoting lipid oxidation. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of oral sodium propionate on REE and substrate metabolism in humans. Eighteen healthy volunteers (9 women and 9 men; age 25 ± 1 years; body mass index 24.1 ± 1.2 kg/m2) completed 2 study visits following an overnight fast. Tablets containing a total of 6845 mg sodium propionate or 4164 mg sodium chloride were provided over the 180‐minute study period in random order. REE and substrate oxidation were assessed by indirect calorimetry. Oral sodium propionate administration increased REE (0.045 ± 0.020 kcal/min; P = .036); this was accompanied by elevated rates of whole‐body lipid oxidation (0.012 ± 0.006 g/min; P = .048) and was independent of changes in glucose and insulin concentrations. Future studies are warranted to determine whether the acute effects of oral sodium propionate on REE translate into positive improvements in long‐term energy balance in humans

    Behavioral energetics: the cost of survival in vertebrates

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    (print) x, 300 p. : ill. ; 24 cmPreface ix SHELDON I. LUSTICK -- SURVIVAL STRATEGY 1 -- MAKING YOUR WAY Orientational Strategies in Birds : A Tribute to W. T. Keeton MELVIN L. KREITHEN 3 -- Life Energetics of Sockeye Salmon, Oncorhynchus nerka JOHN R. BRETT 29 -- SURVIVAL STRATEGY 2 : REPRODUCTION AND AGGRESSION -- Costs of Reproduction in Baboons (Papio cynocephalus) JEANNE ALTMANN 67 -- Reproductive Behavior of Subadult Elephant Seals : The Cost of Breeding CATHLEEN R. COX 89 -- Costs of Aggression in Trout and Pupfish C. ROBERT FELDMETH 117 -- SURVIVAL STRATEGY 3 : COST-BENEFITS OF TEMPERATURE REGULATION AND FORAGING -- Amphibians and Reptiles as Low-Energy Systems F. HARVEY POUGH 141 -- Cost-Benefit Analysis of Temperature and Food Resource Use : A Synthesis with Examples from the Fishes LARRY B. CROWDER JOHN J. MAGNUSON 189 -- Economics of Foraging Strategies in Sunbirds and Hummingbirds LARRY L. WOLF F. REED HAINSWORTH 223 -- Cost-Benefit of Thermoregulation in Birds : Influences of Posture, Microhabitat Selection, and Color SHELDON I. LUSTICK 265 -- Index 29

    A High-Resolution Sensor Network for Monitoring Glacier Dynamics

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    This paper provides an overview of a wide area wireless sensor network that was deployed on the calving front of the Helheim Glacier in Greenland during the summer of 2013. The purpose of the network was to measure the flow rate of the glacier using accurate satellite positioning data. The challenge in this extreme environment was to collect data in real time at the calving edge of the glacier. This was achieved using a solar powered 2.4-GHz Zigbee wireless sensor network operated in a novel hybrid cellular/mesh access architecture consisting of ice nodes communicating with base stations placed on the rock adjacent to the glacier. This highly challenging transmission environment created substantial signal outage conditions, which were successfully mitigated by a radio network diversity scheme. The network development and measurement campaign were highly successful yielding significant results on glacial dynamics associated with climate change

    Depression, stigma and social isolation: The psychosocial trifecta of primary chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus, a cross-sectional and path analysis

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    OBJECTIVE: Depression is common in individuals with chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CCLE). However, how CCLE may impact patients\u27 psychological well-being is poorly understood, particularly among disproportionally affected populations. We examined the relationships between depression and psychosocial factors in a cohort of predominantly Black patients with primary CCLE (CCLE without systemic manifestations). METHODS: Cross-sectional assessment of individuals with dermatologist-validated diagnosis of primary CCLE. NIH-PROMIS short-forms were used to measure depression, disease-related stigma, social isolation and emotional support. Linear regression analyses (ɑ=0.05) were used to test an a priori conceptual model of the relationship between stigma and depression and the effect of social isolation and emotional support on that association. RESULTS: Among 121 participants (87.6% women; 85.1% Black), 37 (30.6%) reported moderate to severe depression. Distributions of examined variables divided equally among those which did (eg, work status, stigma (more), social isolation (more), emotional support (less)) and did not (eg, age, sex, race, marital status) significantly differ by depression. Stigma was significantly associated with depression (b=0.77; 95% CI0.65 to 0.90), whereas social isolation was associated with both stigma (b=0.85; 95% CI 0.72 to 0.97) and depression (b=0.70; 95% CI0.58 to 0.92). After controlling for confounders, stigma remained associated with depression (b=0.44; 95% CI0.23 to 0.66) but lost significance (b=0.12; 95% CI -0.14 to 0.39) when social isolation (b=0.40; 95% CI 0.19 to 0.62) was added to the model. Social isolation explained 72% of the total effect of stigma on depression. Emotional support was inversely associated with depression in the univariate analysis; however, no buffer effect was found when it was added to the multivariate model. CONCLUSION: Our findings emphasise the psychosocial challenges faced by individuals living with primary CCLE. The path analysis suggests that stigmatisation and social isolation might lead to depressive symptoms. Early clinical identification of social isolation and public education demystifying CCLE could help reduce depression in patients with CCLE
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