Colitis Following Initiation of Sofosbuvir and Simeprevir for Genotype 1 Hepatitis C.

Sofosbuvir and simeprevir are used for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C (HCV) genotype 1. Both drugs have been well-tolerated, with diarrhea noted in 6% cases with sofosbuvir, 16% with sofosbuvir plus simeprevir, and 0% with simeprevir. No prior reports exist of colitis secondary to either drug or their combination. We report a patient with no prior history of inflammatory bowel disease who developed significant bloody diarrhea within 2 weeks of sofosbuvir/simeprevir initiation. Colonoscopy and biopsy confirmed pancolitis, which responded to mesalamine and completion of sofosbuvir/simeprevir

VOICE QUALITY ASSESSMENT DURING VOICE TRANSMISSION\ud BY VARIOUS NETWORK TECHNOLOGIES\ud

This paper deals with the voice quality system assessment including calculation of the noise floor during voice transmission by various network technologies. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) development presupposes solution of the problems related to effective voice transmission with required transmission parameters (Quality of Services - QoS). One of the mechanisms that may be used for assurance of service quality in IP networks is the QoS model. The QoS model is used to evaluate the VoIP quality and to design the VoIP networks. The voice quality may be determined using the passive method – E-model – which respects the used codec, the packet loss and the delay or the jitter. Attention is also paid to the calculation of the noise floor emphasizing the possibilities of the signal-to-noise ratio estimating. This paper also presents results of experimental verification of the designed solution implementation functionality.\ud Описано систему оценки качества голоса включая определение порога шума в течении передачи голоса различными сетевыми технологиями. Развитие передачи голоса интернет протоколом (VoIP) предпочитает решение проблем относящихся к эффективной передачи голоса с требованными параметрами передачи (качество сервиса - QoS). Одним из механизмов, который может быть использован для обеспечения качества сервиса в IP сетях является QoS модель. QoS модели используются для оценки качества VoIP и для проектирования VoIP сетей. Качество голоса может быть определено с использованием пасивного метода – E-модели, которая отражает использован кодек, потерю пакетов, опаздывание и его колебание. Внимание уделяется определению порога шума подчеркивающее возможности оценки отношения сигнал-шум. Приведены результаты экспериментальной проверки функционирования имплементации предложенного решения.\u

Effect of Injection Molding Parameters on the Chemical Foaming of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) Using Breathing Mold Technology

Manufacturers have to adapt very quickly to the accelerating world and use specialized machines for production to meet the demands. This also means that those machines are not used as often as their mass-producing counterparts and sometimes become obsolete. In the case of foaming with injection molding, a complicated system has to be built around the machine and has to be structured in a specific way, which is not always cost-efficient. In this paper, two methods of chemical foaming of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) were performed on a regular injection molding machine. Chemical Blowing Agent (CBA) and Expandable Microsphere (EMS) were used with breathing mold technology. Injection molding parameters were modified, and specimens were produced for mechanical and morphological examinations. Properly selected parameters for foaming play an important role in retaining the mechanical strength of the product. With low switch-over volume and using the core-back method, it is possible to foam ABS using a Chemical Blowing Agent

Bioink properties before, during and after 3D bioprinting

Bioprinting is a process based on additive manufacturing from materials containing living cells. These materials, often referred to as bioink, are based on cytocompatible hydrogel precursor formulations, which gel in a manner compatible with different bioprinting approaches. The bioink properties before, during and after gelation are essential for its printability, comprising such features as achievable structural resolution, shape fidelity and cell survival. However, it is the final properties of the matured bioprinted tissue construct that are crucial for the end application. During tissue formation these properties are influenced by the amount of cells present in the construct, their proliferation, migration and interaction with the material. A calibrated computational framework is able to predict the tissue development and maturation and to optimize the bioprinting input parameters such as the starting material, the initial cell loading and the construct geometry. In this contribution relevant bioink properties are reviewed and discussed on the example of most popular bioprinting approaches. The effect of cells on hydrogel processing and vice versa is highlighted. Furthermore, numerical approaches were reviewed and implemented for depicting the cellular mechanics within the hydrogel as well as for prediction of mechanical properties to achieve the desired hydrogel construct considering cell density, distribution and material-cell interaction

Voice quality assessment during voice transmission

Описано систему оценки качества голоса включая определение порога шума в течении передачи голоса различными сетевыми технологиями. Развитие передачи голоса интернет протоколом (VoIP) предпочитает решение проблем относящихся к эффективной передачи голоса с требованными параметрами передачи (качество сервиса - QoS). Одним из механизмов, который может быть использован для обеспечения качества сервиса в IP сетях является QoS модель. QoS модели используются для оценки качества VoIP и для проектирования VoIP сетей. Качество голоса может быть определено с использованием пасивного метода – E-модели, которая отражает использован кодек, потерю пакетов, опаздывание и его колебание. Внимание уделяется определению порога шума подчеркивающее возможности оценки отношения сигнал-шум. Приведены результаты экспериментальной проверки функционирования имплементации предложенного решения.This paper deals with the voice quality system assessment including calculation of the noise floor during voice transmission by various network technologies. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) development presupposes solution of the problems related to effective voice transmission with required transmission parameters (Quality of Services - QoS). One of the mechanisms that may be used for assurance of service quality in IP networks is the QoS model. The QoS model is used to evaluate the VoIP quality and to design the VoIP networks. The voice quality may be determined using the passive method – E-model – which respects the used codec, the packet loss and the delay or the jitter. Attention is also paid to the calculation of the noise floor emphasizing the possibilities of the signal-to-noise ratio estimating. This paper also presents results of experimental verification of the designed solution implementation functionality

Review of group A rotavirus strains reported in swine and cattle

Group A rotavirus (RVA) infections cause severe economic losses in intensively reared livestock animals, particularly in herds of swine and cattle. RVA strains are antigenically heterogeneous, and are classified in multiple G and P types defined by the two outer capsid proteins, VP7 and VP4, respectively. This study summarizes published literature on the genetic and antigenic diversity of porcine and bovine RVA strains published over the last 3 decades. The single most prevalent genotype combination among porcine RVA strains was G5P[7], whereas the predominant genotype combination among bovine RVA strains was G6P[5], although spatiotemporal differences in RVA strain distribution were observed. These data provide important baseline data on epidemiologically important RVA strains in swine and cattle and may guide the development of more effective vaccines for veterinary use

Tree allocation dynamics beyond heat and hot drought stress reveal changes in carbon storage, belowground translocation and growth

Heatwaves combined with drought affect tree functioning with as yet undetermined legacy effects on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) allocation. We continuously monitored shoot and root gas exchange, δ13CO2 of respiration and stem growth in well-watered and drought-treated Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) seedlings exposed to increasing daytime temperatures (max. 42°C) and evaporative demand. Following stress release, we used 13CO2 canopy pulse-labeling, supplemented by soil-applied 15N, to determine allocation to plant compartments, respiration and soil microbial biomass (SMB) over 2.5 wk. Previously heat-treated seedlings rapidly translocated 13C along the long-distance transport path, to root respiration (Rroot; 7.1 h) and SMB (3 d). Furthermore, 13C accumulated in branch cellulose, suggesting secondary growth enhancement. However, in recovering drought-heat seedlings, the mean residence time of 13C in needles increased, whereas C translocation to Rroot was delayed (13.8 h) and 13C incorporated into starch rather than cellulose. Concurrently, we observed stress-induced low N uptake and aboveground allocation. C and N allocation during early recovery were affected by stress type and impact. Although C uptake increased quickly in both treatments, drought-heat in combination reduced the above–belowground coupling and starch accumulated in leaves at the expense of growth. Accordingly, C allocation during recovery depends on phloem translocation capacity

A new version of the HBSC Family Affluence Scale - FAS III: Scottish qualitative findings from the International FAS Development Study

A critical review of the Family Affluence Scale (FAS) concluded that FAS II was no longer discriminatory within very rich or very poor countries, where a very high or a very low proportion of children were categorised as high FAS or low FAS respectively (Currie et al. 2008). The review concluded that a new version of FAS - FAS III - should be developed to take into account current trends in family consumption patterns across the European region, the US and Canada. In 2012, the FAS Development and Validation Study was conducted in eight countries - Denmark, Greenland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Scotland. This paper describes the Scottish qualitative findings from this study. The Scottish qualitative fieldwork comprising cognitive interviews and focus groups sampled from 11, 13 and 15 year-old participants from 18 of the most- and least- economically deprived schools. These qualitative results were used to inform the final FAS III recommendations.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe