Opportunities for Process Control and Quality Assurance Using Online NIR Analysis to a Continuous Wet Granulation Tableting Line

This paper investigates the application of online near-infrared measurements as a means to measure blend uniformity in a continuous tableting line. Underlying all the monitoring and control methods is the ability to measure key tablet properties online at a rate suitable for control purposes. The use of NIR to determine any deviations in blend uniformity is demonstrated by interpreting the relevant spectral signature allowing quantitative information to be acquired for process monitoring and quality assurance. In addition to demonstrating the functionality of the NIR probe, the practical issues arising in the application are discussed. The composition of the blend was measured using an NIR probe over a range of concentrations and the results were calculated comparing sub unit dose scale of scrutiny of small populations. This was compared with predicted product quality for whole tablets over the whole production period. This technique has demonstrated how data collected online can be used to successfully predict the quality of the whole production run for the purposes of real-time product quality assurance

Drawing Planar Graphs with Few Geometric Primitives

We define the \emph{visual complexity} of a plane graph drawing to be the number of basic geometric objects needed to represent all its edges. In particular, one object may represent multiple edges (e.g., one needs only one line segment to draw a path with an arbitrary number of edges). Let $n$ denote the number of vertices of a graph. We show that trees can be drawn with $3n/4$ straight-line segments on a polynomial grid, and with $n/2$ straight-line segments on a quasi-polynomial grid. Further, we present an algorithm for drawing planar 3-trees with $(8n-17)/3$ segments on an $O(n)\times O(n^2)$ grid. This algorithm can also be used with a small modification to draw maximal outerplanar graphs with $3n/2$ edges on an $O(n)\times O(n^2)$ grid. We also study the problem of drawing maximal planar graphs with circular arcs and provide an algorithm to draw such graphs using only $(5n - 11)/3$ arcs. This is significantly smaller than the lower bound of $2n$ for line segments for a nontrivial graph class.Comment: Appeared at Proc. 43rd International Workshop on Graph-Theoretic Concepts in Computer Science (WG 2017

Automorphisms of graphs of cyclic splittings of free groups

We prove that any isometry of the graph of cyclic splittings of a finitely generated free group $F_N$ of rank $N\ge 3$ is induced by an outer automorphism of $F_N$. The same statement also applies to the graphs of maximally-cyclic splittings, and of very small splittings.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures. Small modifications. To appear in Geometriae Dedicat

Weather in stellar atmosphere: the dynamics of mercury clouds in alpha Andromedae

The formation of long-lasting structures at the surfaces of stars is commonly ascribed to the action of strong magnetic fields. This paradigm is supported by observations of evolving cool spots in the Sun and active late-type stars, and stationary chemical spots in the early-type magnetic stars. However, results of our seven-year monitoring of mercury spots in non-magnetic early-type star alpha Andromedae show that the picture of magnetically-driven structure formation is fundamentally incomplete. Using an indirect stellar surface mapping technique, we construct a series of 2-D images of starspots and discover a secular evolution of the mercury cloud cover in this star. This remarkable structure formation process, observed for the first time in any star, is plausibly attributed to a non-equilibrium, dynamical evolution of the heavy-element clouds created by atomic diffusion and may have the same underlying physics as the weather patterns on terrestrial and giant planets.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures; to be published in Nature Physic

Neural expression and post-transcriptional dosage compensation of the steroid metabolic enzyme 17β-HSD type 4

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Steroids affect many tissues, including the brain. In the zebra finch, the estrogenic steroid estradiol (E₂) is especially effective at promoting growth of the neural circuit specialized for song. In this species, only the males sing and they have a much larger and more interconnected song circuit than females. Thus, it was surprising that the gene for 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 4 (HSD17B4), an enzyme that converts E₂to a less potent estrogen, had been mapped to the Z sex chromosome. As a consequence, it was likely that HSD17B4 was differentially expressed in males (ZZ) and females (ZW) because dosage compensation of Z chromosome genes is incomplete in birds. If a higher abundance of HSD17B4 mRNA in males than females was translated into functional enzyme in the brain, then contrary to expectation, males could produce less E₂in their brains than females.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here, we used molecular and biochemical techniques to confirm the HSD17B4 Z chromosome location in the zebra finch and to determine that HSD17B4 mRNA and activity were detectable in the early developing and adult brain. As expected, HSD17B4 mRNA expression levels were higher in males compared to females. This provides further evidence of the incomplete Z chromosome inactivation mechanisms in birds. We detected HSD17B4 mRNA in regions that suggested a role for this enzyme in the early organization and adult function of song nuclei. We did not, however, detect significant sex differences in HSD17B4 activity levels in the adult brain.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results demonstrate that the HSD17B4 gene is expressed and active in the zebra finch brain as an E₂metabolizing enzyme, but that dosage compensation of this Z-linked gene may occur via post-transcriptional mechanisms.</p

Upregulation of the cell-cycle regulator RGC-32 in Epstein-Barr virus-immortalized cells

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is implicated in the pathogenesis of multiple human tumours of lymphoid and epithelial origin. The virus infects and immortalizes B cells establishing a persistent latent infection characterized by varying patterns of EBV latent gene expression (latency 0, I, II and III). The CDK1 activator, Response Gene to Complement-32 (RGC-32, C13ORF15), is overexpressed in colon, breast and ovarian cancer tissues and we have detected selective high-level RGC-32 protein expression in EBV-immortalized latency III cells. Significantly, we show that overexpression of RGC-32 in B cells is sufficient to disrupt G2 cell-cycle arrest consistent with activation of CDK1, implicating RGC-32 in the EBV transformation process. Surprisingly, RGC-32 mRNA is expressed at high levels in latency I Burkitt's lymphoma (BL) cells and in some EBV-negative BL cell-lines, although RGC-32 protein expression is not detectable. We show that RGC-32 mRNA expression is elevated in latency I cells due to transcriptional activation by high levels of the differentially expressed RUNX1c transcription factor. We found that proteosomal degradation or blocked cytoplasmic export of the RGC-32 message were not responsible for the lack of RGC-32 protein expression in latency I cells. Significantly, analysis of the ribosomal association of the RGC-32 mRNA in latency I and latency III cells revealed that RGC-32 transcripts were associated with multiple ribosomes in both cell-types implicating post-initiation translational repression mechanisms in the block to RGC-32 protein production in latency I cells. In summary, our results are the first to demonstrate RGC-32 protein upregulation in cells transformed by a human tumour virus and to identify post-initiation translational mechanisms as an expression control point for this key cell-cycle regulator

Polish-American Children's Hospital in Krakow, Poland

In late 1990 staff from the US Department of Energy's Office of Technical and Financial Assistance identified the Polish-American Children's Hospital as a potential site for application of DOE expertise to reduce the Hospital's energy requirements. Visits to the hospital in the fall and winter of 1991--1992 provided initial scoping of the energy related activities that would be supported by DOE. In addition to reducing energy requirements, the Hospital staff expressed a need for assistance in the areas of power quality and medical waste incineration. Subsequently, a power quality study supported by the Electric Power and Research Institute has been initiated and medical waste incineration will be provided by a Polish organization. The resulting scope of work for this effort is to survey the Hospital's thermal energy supply and demand systems to identify no-cost and low-cost measures that will reduce the Hospital's energy requirements. Applicable measures would then be demonstrated in the Hospital through a partnership with US and Polish organizations and a sister hospital in the United States

Antagonistic Parent-Offspring Co-Adaptation

In species across taxa, offspring have means to influence parental investment (PI). PI thus evolves as an interacting phenotype and indirect genetic effects may strongly affect the co-evolutionary dynamics of offspring and parental behaviors. Evolutionary theory focused on explaining how exaggerated offspring solicitation can be understood as resolution of parent-offspring conflict, but the evolutionary origin and diversification of different forms of family interactions remains unclear.Methodology/Principal Findings In contrast to previous theory that largely uses a static approach to predict how “offspring individuals” and “parental individuals” should interact given conflict over PI, we present a dynamic theoretical framework of antagonistic selection on the PI individuals obtain/take as offspring and the PI they provide as parents to maximize individual lifetime reproductive success; we analyze a deterministic and a stochastic version of this dynamic framework. We show that a zone for equivalent co-adaptation outcomes exists in which stable levels of PI can evolve and be maintained despite fast strategy transitions and ongoing co-evolutionary dynamics. Under antagonistic co-adaptation, cost-free solicitation can evolve as an adaptation to emerging preferences in parents. Conclusions/Significance We show that antagonistic selection across the offspring and parental life-stage of individuals favors co-adapted offspring and parental behavior within a zone of equivalent outcomes. This antagonistic parent-offspring co-adaptation does not require solicitation to be costly, allows for rapid divergence and evolutionary novelty and potentially explains the origin and diversification of the observed provisioning forms in family life

Building Babies - Chapter 16

In contrast to birds, male mammals rarely help to raise the offspring. Of all mammals, only among rodents, carnivores, and primates, males are sometimes intensively engaged in providing infant care (Kleiman and Malcolm 1981). Male caretaking of infants has long been recognized in nonhuman primates (Itani 1959). Given that infant care behavior can have a positive effect on the infant’s development, growth, well-being, or survival, why are male mammals not more frequently involved in “building babies”? We begin the chapter defining a few relevant terms and introducing the theory and hypotheses that have historically addressed the evolution of paternal care. We then review empirical findings on male care among primate taxa, before focusing, in the final section, on our own work on paternal care in South American owl monkeys (Aotus spp.). We conclude the chapter with some suggestions for future studies.Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (HU 1746/2-1) Wenner-Gren Foundation, the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation, the National Geographic Society, the National Science Foundation (BCS-0621020), the University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation, the Zoological Society of San Dieg