Dogs as a diagnostic tool for ill-health in humans

Researchers have long reported that dogs and cats improve the physical and psychological health of their human caregivers, and while it is still inconclusive, a substantial amount of research now lends support for the commonly held view that "pets are good for us." Recently, studies have directed attention toward exploring the use of animals, most notably dogs, in the detection of disease and other types of health problems in people. This article reviews the evidence for dogs' ability to detect ill health in humans, focusing specifically on the detection of cancer, epileptic seizures, and hypoglycemia. The author describes the research carried out in this area and evaluates it in an effort to determine whether dogs have a role to play in modern health care as an "alert" tool or screening system for ill health. Where necessary, the author has highlighted weaknesses in the work and proposed directions for future studies.

High speed DSC (hyper-DSC) as a tool to measure the solubility of a drug within a solid or semi-solid matrix

Conventional differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques are commonly used to quantify the solubility of drugs within polymeric-controlled delivery systems. However, the nature of the DSC experiment, and in particular the relatively slow heating rates employed, limit its use to the measurement of drug solubility at the drug's melting temperature. Here, we describe the application of hyper-DSC (HDSC), a variant of DSC involving extremely rapid heating rates, to the calculation of the solubility of a model drug, metronidazole, in silicone elastomer, and demonstrate that the faster heating rates permit the solubility to be calculated under non-equilibrium conditions such that the solubility better approximates that at the temperature of use. At a heating rate of 400 degrees C/min (HDSC), metronidazole solubility was calculated to be 2.16 mg/g compared with 6.16 mg/g at 20 degrees C/min. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A neural network based tool for semi-automatic code transformation

A neural network based tool has been developed to assist in the process of code transformation. The tool offers advice on appropriate transformations within a knowledge-driven, semi-automatic parallelisation environment. We have identified the essential characteristics of codes relevant to loop transformations. A Kohonen network is used to discover structure in the characterised codes thus revealing new knowledge that may be brought to bear on the mapping between codes and transformations or transformation sequences. A transform selector based on this process has been developed and successfully applied to the parallelisation of sequential codes.

The Role of Tool/Sheet Contact in Plug-Assisted Thermoforming.

Plug-assisted thermoforming produces a wide range of polymer products through a combination of deformation by air pressure and contact with tool surfaces. In this paper the role of tool/sheet contact in determining the process output is investigated. A combination of thermoforming, friction and heat transfer tests were carried out on common tool and sheet materials. The results show that the typical friction coefficients for the material combinations are within the range 0.1 to 0.3, but the values rise sharply on approaching thermoforming temperatures. Thermal imaging tests demonstrate that all of the plug materials significantly cool the heated sheet on contact, even over very short periods of time. The temperature of the plug is very important. At low plug temperatures heat transfer effects predominate, whereas at high plug temperatures friction effects predominate. A plug temperature of approximately 100oC balances these effects and creates the most effective material distribution.

Do vesicle cells of the red alga Asparagopsis (Falkenbergia stage) play a role in bromocarbon production?

The Rhodophyceae (red algae) are an established source of volatile halocarbons in the marine environment. Some species in the Bonnemaisoniaceae have been reported to contain large amounts of halogens in structures referred to as vesicle cells, suggesting involvement of these specialised cells in the production of halocarbons. We have investigated the role of vesicle cells in the accumulation and metabolism of bromide in an isolate of the red macroalga Asparagopsis (Falkenbergia stage), a species known to release bromocarbons. Studies of laboratory-cultivated alga, using light microscopy, revealed a requirement of bromide for both the maintenance and formation of vesicle cells. Incubation of the alga in culture media with bromide concentrations below 64 mg l-1 (the concentration of Br- in seawater) resulted in a decrease in the proportion of vesicle cells to pericentral cells. The abundance of vesicle cells was correlated with bromide concentration below this level. Induction of vesicle cell formation in cultures of Falkenbergia occurred at concentrations as low as 8 mg l-1, with the abundance of vesicle cells increasing with bromide concentration up to around 100 mg l-1. Further studies revealed a positive correlation between the abundance of vesicle cells and dibromomethane and bromoform production. Interestingly, however, whilst dibromomethane production was stimulated by the presence of bromide in the culture media, bromoform release remained unaffected suggesting that the two compounds are formed by different mechanisms.