22,393 research outputs found
Developments in aircraft jet noise technology
Significant developments in two areas of jet noise technology are described: the development of jet noise technology relative to coannular nozzles of all types, and a recent approach to the analysis of flight effects that appears to allow simulated flight effects results to be transformed to actual flight conditions with a high degree of confidence. The coannular nozzle section presents results applicable to high-bypass-ratio turbofan engines, as well as current work on inverted-profile coannular nozzles applicable to low-bypass-ratio turbofan engines suitable for use in future supersonic cruise aircraft
Maternal haemodynamic function differs in preāeclampsia when it is associated with a smallāforāgestationalāage newborn: a prospective cohort study
Objective
To describe maternal haemodynamic differences in gestational hypertension with smallāforāgestationalāage babies (HDP + SGA), gestational hypertension with appropriateāforāgestationalāage babies (HDPāonly) and control pregnancies.
Design
Prospective cohort study.
Setting
Tertiary Hospital, UK.
Population
Women with gestational hypertension and healthy pregnant women.
Methods
Maternal haemodynamic indices were measured using a nonāinvasive Ultrasound Cardiac Output Monitor (USCOMā1AĀ®) and corrected for gestational age and maternal characteristics using deviceāspecific reference ranges.
Main outcome measures
Maternal cardiac output, stroke volume, systemic vascular resistance.
Results
We included 114 HDP + SGA, 202 HDPāonly and 401 control pregnancies at 26ā41 weeks of gestation. There was no significant difference in the mean arterial blood pressure (110 versus 107 mmHg, P = 0.445) between the two HDP groups at presentation. Pregnancies complicated by HDP + SGA had significantly lower median heart rate (76 versus 85 bpm versus 83 bpm), lower cardiac output (0.85 versus 0.98 versus 0.97 MoM) and higher systemic vascular resistance (1.4 versus 1.0 versus 1.2 MoM) compared with control and HDPāonly pregnancies, respectively (all P < 0.05).
Conclusion
Women with HDP + SGA present with more severe haemodynamic dysfunction than HDPāonly. Even HDPāonly pregnancies exhibit impaired haemodynamic indices compared with normal pregnancies, supporting a role of the maternal cardiovascular system in gestational hypertension irrespective of fetal size. Central haemodynamic changes may play a role in the pathogenesis of preāeclampsia and should be considered alongside placental aetiology
Expression of gastrin-releasing peptide by excitatory interneurons in the mouse superficial dorsal horn
Background:
Gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) and its receptor have been shown to play an important role in the sensation of itch. However, although GRP immunoreactivity has been detected in the spinal dorsal horn, there is debate about whether this originates from primary afferents or local excitatory interneurons. We therefore examined the relation of GRP immunoreactivity to that seen with antibodies that label primary afferent or excitatory interneuron terminals. We tested the specificity of the GRP antibody by preincubating with peptides with which it could potentially cross-react. We also examined tissue from a mouse line in which enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) is expressed under control of the GRP promoter.<p></p>
Results:
GRP immunoreactivity was seen in both primary afferent and non-primary glutamatergic axon terminals in the superficial dorsal horn. However, immunostaining was blocked by pre-incubation of the antibody with substance P, which is present at high levels in many nociceptive primary afferents. EGFP+ cells in the GRP-EGFP mouse did not express Pax2, and their axons contained the vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGLUT2), indicating that they are excitatory interneurons. In most cases, their axons were also GRP-immunoreactive. Multiple-labelling immunocytochemical studies indicated that these cells did not express either of the preprotachykinin peptides, and that they generally lacked protein kinase CĪ³, which is expressed by a subset of the excitatory interneurons in this region.<p></p>
Conclusions:
These results show that GRP is expressed by a distinct population of excitatory interneurons in laminae I-II that are likely to be involved in the itch pathway. They also suggest that the GRP immunoreactivity seen in primary afferents in previous studies may have resulted from cross-reaction of the GRP antibody with substance P or the closely related peptide neurokinin A
- ā¦