Power Converters of the Main Dipole and Quadrupole Magnet Strings of the Antiproton Decelerator at CERN

The two main power converters for the dipoles (D) and quadrupoles (Q) are presented as part of the complex power converter system of the Antiproton Decelerator. The operational requirements and the performance specifications for deceleration from 3.5 to 0.1 GeV/c are discussed. The layout and design of the power part, consisting of a 12-pulse thyristor rectifier and a switch-mode parallel active filter (AF), and of the precision regulation are described. The alternatives for integrating the AF into the current and voltage regulation loops are outlined. Problems encountered and results of tests are reported

ECG Response of Koalas to Tourists Proximity: A Preliminary Study

Koalas operate on a tight energy budget and, thus, may not always display behavioral avoidance reaction when placed in a stressful condition. We investigated the physiological response of captive koalas Phascolarctos cinereus in a conservation centre to the presence of tourists walking through their habitat. We compared, using animal-attached data-recorders, the electrocardiogram activity of female koalas in contact with tourists and in a human-free area. One of the koalas in the tourist zone presented elevated heart rate values and variability throughout the recording period. The remaining female in the exhibit area showed a higher field resting heart rates during the daytime than that in the isolated area. In the evening, heart rate profiles changed drastically and both the koalas in the exhibit and in the tourist-free zones displayed similar field resting heart rates, which were lower than those during the day. In parallel, the autonomic nervous systems of these two individuals evolved from sympathetic-dominant during the day to parasympathetic-dominant in the evening. Our results report ECG of free-living koalas for the first time. Although they are preliminary due to the difficulty of having sufficient samples of animals of the same sex and age, our results stress out the importance of studies investigating the physiological reaction of animals to tourists

Mise au point d'une méthode de titrage du virus aphteux sur le porc

Thomas J. P., Fédida Maurice, Coudert Michel, Dannacher Guy, Peillon Myriam, Lucam François. Mise au point d’une méthode de titrage du virus aphteux sur le porc. In: Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France tome 124 n°7, 1971. pp. 353-357

HAMAP in 2015: updates to the protein family classification and annotation system.

HAMAP (High-quality Automated and Manual Annotation of Proteins-available at http://hamap.expasy.org/) is a system for the automatic classification and annotation of protein sequences. HAMAP provides annotation of the same quality and detail as UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, using manually curated profiles for protein sequence family classification and expert curated rules for functional annotation of family members. HAMAP data and tools are made available through our website and as part of the UniRule pipeline of UniProt, providing annotation for millions of unreviewed sequences of UniProtKB/TrEMBL. Here we report on the growth of HAMAP and updates to the HAMAP system since our last report in the NAR Database Issue of 2013. We continue to augment HAMAP with new family profiles and annotation rules as new protein families are characterized and annotated in UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot; the latest version of HAMAP (as of 3 September 2014) contains 1983 family classification profiles and 1998 annotation rules (up from 1780 and 1720). We demonstrate how the complex logic of HAMAP rules allows for precise annotation of individual functional variants within large homologous protein families. We also describe improvements to our web-based tool HAMAP-Scan which simplify the classification and annotation of sequences, and the incorporation of an improved sequence-profile search algorithm

L’immunité anti-aphteuse chez le porc vacciné. II. Appréciation par titrage des anticorps

Fédida Maurice, Dannacher Guy, Coudert Michel, Peillon Myriam, Thomas J.-P., Lucam François. L'immunité anti-aphteuse chez le Porc vacciné. II. Appréciation par titrage des anticorps. In: Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France tome 124 n°8, 1971. pp. 387-392

L'immunité anti-aphteuse chez le porc vacciné. I. Mise au point d'une méthode d'appréciation par épreuve virulente

Fédida Maurice, Dannacher Guy, Coudert Michel, Peillon Myriam, Thomas J.-P., Lucam François. L’immunité anti-aphteuse chez le Porc vacciné. I. Mise au point d’une méthode d’appréciation par épreuve virulente. In: Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France tome 124 n°8, 1971. pp. 381-386

Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation Accelerates Randall's Plaque Formation in a Murine Model

Most kidney stones are made of calcium oxalate crystals. Randall\u27s plaque, an apatite deposit at the tip of the renal papilla, is considered to at the origin of these stones. Hypercalciuria may promote Randall\u27s plaque formation and growth. We analyzed whether long-term exposure of Abcc6 mice (a murine model of Randall\u27s plaque) to vitamin D supplementation, with or without a calcium-rich diet, would accelerate the formation of Randall\u27s plaque. Eight groups of mice (including Abcc6 and wild type) received vitamin D alone (100,000 UI/kg every 2 weeks), a calcium-enriched diet alone (calcium gluconate 2 g/L in drinking water), both vitamin D supplementation and a calcium-rich diet, or a standard diet (controls) for 6 months. Kidney calcifications were assessed by 3-dimensional microcomputed tomography, μ-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission-scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Yasue staining. At 6 months, Abcc6 mice exposed to vitamin D and calcium supplementation developed massive Randall\u27s plaque when compared with control Abcc6 mice (P < 0.01). Wild-type animals did not develop significant calcifications when exposed to vitamin D. Combined administration of vitamin D and calcium significantly accelerates Randall\u27s plaque formation in a murine model. This original model raises concerns about the cumulative risk of vitamin D supplementation and calcium intakes in Randall\u27s plaque formation