The critical detection distance for passively tracking tagged fish using a fixed radio telemetry station in a small stream

Background: Fixed radio telemetry stations are used to study the movement ecology of fishes in streams and rivers. A common assumption of such studies is that detection efficiency remains constant through space and time. The objective of this study was to understand how site characteristics and tag distance can influence the detection efficiency of a fixed receiver when used for fisheries research in a small stream. Field tests included a fixed receiver station on Forty Mile Creek, in Banff National Park, AB, Canada that recorded signals from radio tags over specified distances (i.e., 0 m, 27 m, 53 m, 80 m) within the expected detection range from July to October, 2016. Model selection was used to test which parameters may influence detection efficiency. Results: The fixed receiver was able to record an average of 89% of transmissions over the study period. Detection efficiency was greater or equal to 0.97 at tag di

RiceWrist Robotic Device for Upper Limb Training: Feasibility Study and Case Report of Two Tetraplegic Persons with Spinal Cord Injury

Regaining upper extremity function is the primary concern of persons with tetraplegia caused by spinal cord injury (SCI). Robotic rehabilitation has been inadequately tested and underutilized in rehabilitation of the upper extremity in the SCI population. Given the acceptance of robotic training in stroke rehabilitation and SCI gait training, coupled with recent evidence that the spinal cord, like the brain, demonstrates plasticity that can be enhanced by repetitive movement training such as that available with robotic devices, it is probable that robotic upper extremity training of persons with SCI could be clinically beneficial. The primary goal of this pilot study was to test the feasibility of using a novel robotic device –the RiceWrist Exoskeleton- for rehabilitation of the upper limbs (UL) of two tetraplegic persons with incomplete SCI. Two pilot experiments were conducted. Experiment 1was the first novel attempt to administer treatment with the RiceWrist. The left UL of a tetraplegic subject was treated during seven therapy sessions. The subject’s feedback and the investigator’s obser-vations were used to enhance the robotic device and the corresponding graphical-interface. In Experiment 2, a second tetra-plegic subject underwent 10 three-hour training sessions administered by a physical therapist. Smoothness factor (FS) –a new measure developed in Experiment 1- was used as the primary outcome to test the subject’s performance before and after the training. The RiceWrist was modified according to the feedback obtained in Experiment 1. Thereafter, the device was suc-cessfully administered for upper limb training of the tetraplegic individual. Noticeable improvements in FS were observed for the stronger arm of the subject who completed 10 sessions of training. Improvements were also observed in the subject’s hand according to the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test. Results from this study suggest a potential application of the RiceWrist for rehabilitation of SCI individuals and offer valuable information regarding development of UL robotic devices for this population

Modulation of ConA-induced inflammatory ascites by histamine — Short communication

The early phase of the ConA-induced inflammatory ascites was studied, with special reference to histamine. Concanavalin A (ConA), a cell-surface binding lectin was injected i.p. (25 mg/kg bw) to mice. After 1 h the animals were killed, the ascitic fluid collected and measured. Other agents were injected s.c., 10 min before the ConA-challenge. Exogenous histamine markedly inhibited the ConA-induced ascites. Release of endogenous vasoactive agents from the mast cells by Compound 48/80 had a similar, but slight effect. Cromolyn, a mast cell stabilizing agent, and chloropyramine, a histamine H1 receptor antagonist was ineffective. Although histamine increases endothelial permeability, it did not enhance the formation of ascitic fluid, on the contrary, it inhibited the ConA-induced ascites, presumably due to its known hypotonic effect. It is concluded that ConA-induced ascites is not mediated by mast cell histamine

The Gain Reduction Method for manual tracking of radio-tagged fish in streams

Background: Manual tracking has been used since the 1970s as an effective radio telemetry approach for evaluating habitat use of fish in fluvial systems. Radio tags are often located by continually reducing the gain when approaching the tag along a watercourse to estimate its location, termed here as the 'Gain Reduction Method'. However, to our knowledge the accuracy of this method has not been empirically evaluated and reported in the literature. Here, the longitudinal and lateral positional errors of radio tags are assessed when applying the Gain Reduction Method in a small stream environment. Longitudinal and lateral positional errors (i.e. the difference between the e

Clinical activity of ipilimumab for metastatic uveal melanoma: a retrospective review of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and University Hospital of Lausanne experience.

BACKGROUND: Uveal melanoma exhibits a high incidence of metastases; and, to date, there is no systemic therapy that clearly improves outcomes. The anticytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (anti-CTLA-4) antibody ipilimumab is a standard of care for metastatic melanoma; however, the clinical activity of CTLA-4 inhibition in patients with metastatic uveal melanoma is poorly defined. METHODS: To assess ipilimumab in this setting, the authors performed a multicenter, retrospective analysis of 4 hospitals in the United States and Europe. Clinical characteristics, toxicities, and radiographic disease burden, as determined by central, blinded radiology review, were evaluated. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients with uveal melanoma were identified, including 34 patients who received 3 mg/kg ipilimumab and 5 who received 10 mg/kg ipilimumab. Immune-related response criteria and modified World Health Organization criteria were used to assess the response rate (RR) and the combined response plus stable disease (SD) rate after 12 weeks, after 23 weeks, and overall (median follow-up, 50.4 weeks [12.6 months]). At week 12, the RR was 2.6%, and the response plus SD rate was 46.%; at week 23, the RR was 2.6%, and the response plus SD rate was 28.2%. There was 1 complete response and 1 late partial response (at 100 weeks after initial SD) for an immune-related RR of 5.1%. Immune-related adverse events were observed in 28 patients (71.8%) and included 7 (17.9%) grade 3 and 4 events. Immune-related adverse events were more frequent in patients who received 10 mg/kg ipilimumab than in those who received 3 mg/kg ipilimumab. The median overall survival from the first dose of ipilimumab was 9.6 months (95% confidence interval, 6.3-13.4 months; range, 1.6-41.6 months). Performance status, lactate dehydrogenase level, and an absolute lymphocyte count ≥ 1000 cells/μL at week 7 were associated significantly with survival. CONCLUSIONS: In this multicenter, retrospective analysis of 4 hospitals in the United States and Europe of patients with uveal melanoma, durable responses to ipilimumab and manageable toxicity were observed

Gravitational collapse of a Hagedorn fluid in Vaidya geometry

The gravitational collapse of a high-density null charged matter fluid, satisfying the Hagedorn equation of state, is considered in the framework of the Vaidya geometry. The general solution of the gravitational field equations can be obtained in an exact parametric form. The conditions for the formation of a naked singularity, as a result of the collapse of the compact object, are also investigated. For an appropriate choice of the arbitrary integration functions the null radial outgoing geodesic, originating from the shell focussing central singularity, admits one or more positive roots. Hence a collapsing Hagedorn fluid could end either as a black hole, or as a naked singularity. A possible astrophysical application of the model, to describe the energy source of gamma-ray bursts, is also considered.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Treatment-resistant psychotic symptoms and the 15q11.2 BP1–BP2 (Burnside-Butler) deletion syndrome: case report and review of the literature

The 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 (Burnside-Butler) deletion is a rare copy number variant impacting four genes (NIPA1, NIPA2, CYFIP1, and TUBGCP5), and carries increased risks for developmental delay, intellectual disability, and neuropsychiatric disorders (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, and psychosis). In this case report (supported by extensive developmental information and medication history), we present the complex clinical portrait of a 44-year-old woman with 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 deletion syndrome and chronic, treatment-resistant psychotic symptoms who has resided nearly her entire adult life in a long-term state psychiatric institution. Diagnostic and treatment implications are discussed

Time-integrated luminosity recorded by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II e+e- collider

This article is the Preprint version of the final published artcile which can be accessed at the link below.We describe a measurement of the time-integrated luminosity of the data collected by the BABAR experiment at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy e+e- collider at the ϒ(4S), ϒ(3S), and ϒ(2S) resonances and in a continuum region below each resonance. We measure the time-integrated luminosity by counting e+e-→e+e- and (for the ϒ(4S) only) e+e-→μ+μ- candidate events, allowing additional photons in the final state. We use data-corrected simulation to determine the cross-sections and reconstruction efficiencies for these processes, as well as the major backgrounds. Due to the large cross-sections of e+e-→e+e- and e+e-→μ+μ-, the statistical uncertainties of the measurement are substantially smaller than the systematic uncertainties. The dominant systematic uncertainties are due to observed differences between data and simulation, as well as uncertainties on the cross-sections. For data collected on the ϒ(3S) and ϒ(2S) resonances, an additional uncertainty arises due to ϒ→e+e-X background. For data collected off the ϒ resonances, we estimate an additional uncertainty due to time dependent efficiency variations, which can affect the short off-resonance runs. The relative uncertainties on the luminosities of the on-resonance (off-resonance) samples are 0.43% (0.43%) for the ϒ(4S), 0.58% (0.72%) for the ϒ(3S), and 0.68% (0.88%) for the ϒ(2S).This work is supported by the US Department of Energy and National Science Foundation, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (Canada), the Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique and Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physiquedes Particules (France), the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung and Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Germany), the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (Italy), the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (The Netherlands), the Research Council of Norway, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Spain), and the Science and Technology Facilities Council (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the Marie-Curie IEF program (European Union) and the A.P. Sloan Foundation (USA)

System Size and Energy Dependence of Jet-Induced Hadron Pair Correlation Shapes in Cu+Cu and Au+Au Collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 and 62.4 GeV

We present azimuthal angle correlations of intermediate transverse momentum (1-4 GeV/c) hadrons from {dijets} in Cu+Cu and Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 62.4 and 200 GeV. The away-side dijet induced azimuthal correlation is broadened, non-Gaussian, and peaked away from \Delta\phi=\pi in central and semi-central collisions in all the systems. The broadening and peak location are found to depend upon the number of participants in the collision, but not on the collision energy or beam nuclei. These results are consistent with sound or shock wave models, but pose challenges to Cherenkov gluon radiation models.Comment: 464 authors from 60 institutions, 6 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables. Submitted to Physical Review Letters. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm