Dissipative quantum disordered models

This article reviews recent studies of mean-field and one dimensional quantum disordered spin systems coupled to different types of dissipative environments. The main issues discussed are: (i) The real-time dynamics in the glassy phase and how they compare to the behaviour of the same models in their classical limit. (ii) The phase transition separating the ordered -- glassy -- phase from the disordered phase that, for some long-range interactions, is of second order at high temperatures and of first order close to the quantum critical point (similarly to what has been observed in random dipolar magnets). (iii) The static properties of the Griffiths phase in random Ising chains. (iv) The dependence of all these properties on the environment. The analytic and numeric techniques used to derive these results are briefly mentioned.Comment: Contribution to the 12th International Conference on Recent Progress in Many-Body Theories, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, August 2004; 10 pages no fig

Sensitizing Ability and Toxicity of Iodoacetamide in Radiotherapy of a C3H Mouse Mammary Carcinoma

The radiosensitizing effect of iodoacetamide was studied in a C3H mouse mammary carcinoma together with its toxicity to the host. TCD50 or radiation dose to yield 50% tumour control frequency was determined in tumours treated or untreated with the agent. Results indicated that 15 mg/kg of iodoacetamide sensitized hypoxic tumour cells, as did atmospheric oxygen, and the sensitization was not detectable below this dose. Experiments with fractionated treatments suggested that the reoxygenation occurring during the treatment intervals of 24 hours might be more important in the sterilization of tumour cells than the agent

ER stress as a trigger for beta-cell dysfunction and autoimmunity in type 1 diabetes

Comment on: Tersey SA, Nishiki Y, Templin AT, Cabrera SM, Stull ND, Colvin SC, Evans-Molina C, Rickus JL, Maier B, Mirmira RG. Islet β-cell endoplasmic reticulum stress precedes the onset of type 1 diabetes in the nonobese diabetic mouse model. Diabetes. 2012 Apr;61(4):818-27

Low Temperature Symmetry of Pyrochlore Oxide Cd2Re2O7

We report the X-ray study for the pyrochlore oxide Cd2Re2O7. Two symmetry-lowering structural transitions were observed at Ts1=200K and Ts2=120K. The former is of the second order from the ideal cubic pyrochlore structure with space group Fd-3m to a tetragonally distorted structure with I-4m2, while the latter is of the first order likely to another tetragonal space group I4122. We discuss the feature of the lattice deformation.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Biocompatibility of cross-linked hyaluronate (Gel-200) for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis

SummaryObjectiveTo compare the biocompatibility and immunogenicity of two intra-articular hyaluronan formulations, Gel-200 (Gel-One®) and hylan G-F 20 (Synvisc® series).Experimental designA comparison of the biocompatibility of Gel-200 and hylan G-F 20 was made using a rat subcutaneous air pouch model and the knee joint of normal rabbits. Immunogenicity was evaluated using a homologous passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) assay in guinea pigs.ResultsIn the air pouch model in rats, characteristic fibrous belts formed in the subcutaneous tissue. Injection of hylan G-F 20 into the air pouch induced granulomatous nodules primarily composed of macrophages, multinucleated giant cells, and eosinophils accompanied with the test material in the center of the nodules in the fibrous belt. Furthermore, the thickness of the fibrous belt in the hylan G-F 20 group increased significantly compared to the saline group. Injection of Gel-200 into the air pouch induced neither granulomatous inflammation nor significant thickening of fibrous belt, while foamy macrophages containing the test material were observed. Intra-articular injection of hylan G-F 20 into the rabbit knee joints induced granulomatous inflammation, eosinophil infiltration, and significant increase in the number of cells in the synovial fluid, while these findings were absent in the Gel-200 group. In the immunogenicity assay, hylan G-F 20 induced a positive PCA reaction, but the Gel-200 did not.ConclusionGel-200 showed more favorable biocompatibility and less immunogenicity compared to hylan G-F 20. Gel-200 is expected to be a single injection hyaluronan product with less safety concerns for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (OA) pain

A Chain Oriented Data Collection Protocol for Energy-Aware and Delay-Constrained WSN

Energy awareness plays an important role in developing routing protocol for the battery powered wireless sensor networks. As the replacement of the battery is often unfeasible in practical situations, we present here an optimal solution for the maximum utilization of precious available energy at the same time trying to minimize the latency in data delivery. We propose to form hierarchical chains with deployed sensors to collect information from a target field where data get fused at every node level before transmitted finally. Our protocol utilizes the higher energy nodes for more frequent long distance transmissions so that the energy expenditure become even between all nodes in the network irrespective of their physical locations. It has been found in our simulation that this protocol outperforms other hierarchical protocols like LEACH and PEGASIS in both the cases of energy consumption and time requirements respectively. It has been also found that the overall lifetime of the sensor network also increases in our protocol