Coordinate measuring machines : a modern inspection tool in manufacturing

Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMM) are flexible and universal dimensional measuring devices with the capability for full integration into a CIM information network. Developed as highly precise measuring machines for specially designed measuring rooms, today\u27s CMMs are more and more used in shop floor applications which is a hostile environment for a precise measuring tool. CMMs are offered in a variety of configurations and levels of automation. For the CMM buyer it is therefore essential to have an overview of the different types of CMMs and their subsystems before making a purchasing decision. To obtain reliable measuring results that are used for controlling and improving manufacturing activities, it is essential to know how accurate the machine can perform and which parameters can influence its performance negatively. The US-standard B89.1.12M-1990 and the German industry guideline VDI/VDE-Richtlinie 2617 for CMM performance testing are compared. Coordinate measuring technique offers solutions for all dimensional measuring tasks and has replaced most of the conventional measuring tools used in metrology. The most important issues of this technique as discussed in detail in this thesis

LexOnto: A Model for Ontology Lexicons for Ontology-based NLP

Cimiano P, Haase P, Herold M, Mantel M, Buitelaar P. LexOnto: A Model for Ontology Lexicons for Ontology-based NLP. In: Proceedings of the OntoLex07 Workshop held in conjunction with ISWC’07. 2007

Generating and visualizing a soccer knowledge base

This demo abstract describes the SmartWeb Ontology-based Information Extraction System (SOBIE). A key feature of SOBIE is that all information is extracted and stored with respect to the SmartWeb ontology. In this way, other components of the systems, which use the same ontology, can access this information in a straightforward way. We will show how information extracted by SOBIE is visualized within its original context, thus enhancing the browsing experience of the end user

Altered drug susceptibility during host adaptation of a <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i> strain in a non-human primate model

Infections with Plasmodium falciparum, the most pathogenic of the Plasmodium species affecting man, have been reduced in part due to artemisinin-based combination therapies. However, artemisinin resistant parasites have recently emerged in South-East Asia. Novel intervention strategies are therefore urgently needed to maintain the current momentum for control and elimination of this disease. In the present study we characterize the phenotypic and genetic properties of the multi drug resistant (MDR) P. falciparum Thai C2A parasite strain in the non-human Aotus primate model, and across multiple passages. Aotus infections with C2A failed to clear upon oral artesunate and mefloquine treatment alone or in combination, and ex vivo drug assays demonstrated reduction in drug susceptibility profiles in later Aotus passages. Further analysis revealed mutations in the pfcrt and pfdhfr loci and increased parasite multiplication rate (PMR) across passages, despite elevated pfmdr1 copy number. Altogether our experiments suggest alterations in parasite population structure and increased fitness during Aotus adaptation. We also present data of early treatment failures with an oral artemisinin combination therapy in a pre-artemisinin resistant P. falciparum Thai isolate in this animal model

Stereotactic image-guided lung radiotherapy (SBRT) for clinical early-stage NSCLC: a long-term report from a multi-institutional database of patients treated with or without a pathologic diagnosis

PURPOSE: Early stage lung cancer is treated with stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) in patients who are unable or unwilling to undergo surgical resection. Some patients' comorbidities are so severe that they are unable to even undergo a biopsy. A clinical diagnosis without biopsy before SBRT has been used, but there are limited data on its efficacy. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Data on patients treated with SBRT for non-small cell lung cancer, with and without tissue confirmation, were collected from multiple institutions across Europe, Canada, and the United States. Patients with a minimum of 2 years of comprehensive follow up were selected for analysis. Treatment and patient characteristics were compared. Overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), cause-specific survival (CSS), and rates of local recurrence (LR), regional recurrence (RR), and distant metastasis (DM) were calculated and analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 701 patients were identified, of which 67% had tissue confirmation of their tumors. The 3- and 5-year outcomes for OS, CSS, and DFS were 83.8%, 93.1%, 69%, and 60.6%, 86.7%, 45.5%, respectively. The rates for LR, RR, and DM at 3 and 5 years were 6.4%, 9.3%, 14.3%, and 10.5%, 14.3%, 19.7%, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in survival outcomes or recurrences between the biopsy and no-biopsy cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: SBRT for clinically diagnosed lung cancers is efficacious in appropriately selected patients, with similar outcomes as those with a pathologic diagnosis. Thorough clinical and radiographic evaluations in a multidisciplinary setting are critical to the management of these patients

RIFL 1.1: A Common Specification Language for Information-Flow Requirements

The RS³ Information-Flow Specification Language (RIFL) is a policy language for information-flow security. RIFL originated from the need for a common language for specifying security requirements within the DFG priority program Reliably Secure Software Systems (RS³) (http://www.spp-rs3.de). In this report, we present the syntax and informal semantics of RIFL 1.1, the most recent version of RIFL. At this point in time, RIFL is supported by four tools for information-flow analysis. We believe that RIFL can also be useful as a policy language for further tools, and we encourage its adoption and extension by the community

Profiling the Essential Nature of Lipid Metabolism in Asexual Blood and Gametocyte Stages of Plasmodium falciparum

SummaryDuring its life cycle, Plasmodium falciparum undergoes rapid proliferation fueled by de novo synthesis and acquisition of host cell lipids. Consistent with this essential role, Plasmodium lipid synthesis enzymes are emerging as potential drug targets. To explore their broader potential for therapeutic interventions, we assayed the global lipid landscape during P. falciparum sexual and asexual blood stage (ABS) development. Using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, we analyzed 304 lipids constituting 24 classes in ABS parasites, infected red blood cell (RBC)-derived microvesicles, gametocytes, and uninfected RBCs. Ten lipid classes were previously uncharacterized in P. falciparum, and 70%–75% of the lipid classes exhibited changes in abundance during ABS and gametocyte development. Utilizing compounds that target lipid metabolism, we affirmed the essentiality of major classes, including triacylglycerols. These studies highlight the interplay between host and parasite lipid metabolism and provide a comprehensive analysis of P. falciparum lipids with candidate pathways for drug discovery efforts

Runx proteins regulate Foxp3 expression

Runx proteins are essential for hematopoiesis and play an important role in T cell development by regulating key target genes, such as CD4 and CD8 as well as lymphokine genes, during the specialization of naive CD4 T cells into distinct T helper subsets. In regulatory T (T reg) cells, the signature transcription factor Foxp3 interacts with and modulates the function of several other DNA binding proteins, including Runx family members, at the protein level. We show that Runx proteins also regulate the initiation and the maintenance of Foxp3 gene expression in CD4 T cells. Full-length Runx promoted the de novo expression of Foxp3 during inducible T reg cell differentiation, whereas the isolated dominant-negative Runt DNA binding domain antagonized de novo Foxp3 expression. Foxp3 expression in natural T reg cells remained dependent on Runx proteins and correlated with the binding of Runx/core-binding factor β to regulatory elements within the Foxp3 locus. Our data show that Runx and Foxp3 are components of a feed-forward loop in which Runx proteins contribute to the expression of Foxp3 and cooperate with Foxp3 proteins to regulate the expression of downstream target genes

First International External Quality Assessment Study on Molecular and Serological Methods for Yellow Fever Diagnosis

Objective: We describe an external quality assurance (EQA) study designed to assess the efficiency and accurateness of molecular and serological methods used by expert laboratories performing YF diagnosis. Study Design: For molecular diagnosis evaluation, a panel was prepared of 14 human plasma samples containing specific RNA of different YFV strains (YFV-17D, YFV South American strain [Brazil], YFV IvoryC1999 strain), and specificity samples containing other flaviviruses and negative controls. For the serological panel, 13 human plasma samples with anti-YFVspecific antibodies against different strains of YFV (YFV-17D strain, YFV IvoryC1999 strain, and YFV Brazilian strain), as well as specificity and negative controls, were included. Results: Thirty-six laboratories from Europe, the Americas, Middle East, and Africa participated in these EQA activities. Only 16% of the analyses reported met all evaluation criteria with optimal performance. Serial dilutions of YFV-17D showed that in general the methodologies reported provided a suitable sensitivity. Failures were mainly due to the inability to detect wild-type strains or the presence of false positives. Performance in the serological diagnosis varied, mainly depending on the methodology used. Anti-YFV IgM detection was not performed in 16% of the reports using IIF or ELISA techniques, although it is preferable for the diagnosis of YFV acute infections. A good sensitivity profile was achieved in general; however, in the detection of IgM antibodies a lack of sensitivity of anti-YFV antibodies against the vaccine strain 17D was observed, and of the anti-YFV IgG antibodies against a West African strain. Neutralization assays showed a very good performance; however, the unexpected presence of false positives underlined the need of improving the running protocols. Conclusion: This EQA provides information on each laboratory’s efficacy of RT-PCR and serological YFV diagnosis techniques. The results indicate the need for improving serological and molecular diagnosis techniques and provide a follow-up of the diagnostic profiles