Supernumerary premolars. Report of 10 cases

Supernumerary premolars are 'extra' teeth morphologically belonging to the premolar group. Hyperdontia affecting premolars can be single (when only one supernumerary tooth is found), multiple (if several teeth are involved) or related to a syndrome such as cleidocranial dysplasia. Supernumerary premolars are the third most frequent group of supernumerary teeth, following mesiodens and fourth molars; the prevalence among the general population ranges from 0.09-0.64%. The present study describes 10 cases of supernumerary premolars treated in our Service of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery of the Dental Clinic of the University of Barcelona. A late onset was demonstrated in one case, contrasting the present pantomograph with another obtained 5 years before. In only one case did the presence of a supernumerary premolar alter normal tooth eruption. Two supernumerary premolars were affected by follicular cysts

Estudi sobre el ritme de restauració de les activitats extractives de Catalunya

L’objecte d’aquest projecte és determinar si el ritme restaurador de les activitats extractives és el mateix que el de l’extracció del mineral. Per avaluar-ho s’ha analitzat la dinàmica de les explotacions mineres que exploten els quatre tipus principals de recursos a Catalunya, en el període de 10 anys (1993-2003), amb l’ajuda de Sistemes d’Informació Geogràfica (SIG). Per dur a terme aquest estudi s’ha emprat bases cartogràfiques diferents: els Mapes de cobertes del Sòl de Catalunya (MCSC) i el de les activitats extractives (EXTCATA). A partir de l’anàlisi dels resultats, es determina que si bé, en general, el procés de restauració dels espais afectats per les activitats extractives està sent molt important des de l’entrada en vigor de la Llei 12/1981, no es pot afirmar que aquests treballs es realitzin de forma compaginada amb els d’explotació.

Tax Coordination Between Regions in Spain. The Role of the Courts

Overview of the Tax Coordination of the Regions in Spain from the point of view of the role of the Courts in developing the present system

Study of chemical modification of alkaline lignin by the glyoxalation reaction

In this study, glyoxalated alkaline lignins with a non-volatile and non-toxic aldehyde, which can be obtained from several natural resources, namely glyoxal, were prepared and characterized for its use in wood adhesives. The preparation method consisted of the reaction of lignin with glyoxal under an alkaline medium. The influence of reaction conditions such as the molar ratio of sodium hydroxide-to-lignin and reaction time were studied relative to the properties of the prepared adducts. The analytical techniques used were FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopies, gel permeation chromatography (GPC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Results from both the FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopies showed that the amount of introduced aliphatic hydroxyl groups onto the lignin molecule increased with increasing reaction time and reached a maximum value at 10 h, and after they began to decrease. The molecular weights remained unchanged until 10 h of reaction time, and then started to increase, possibly due to the repolymerization reactions. DSC analysis showed that the glass transition temperature (Tg) decreased with the introduction of glyoxal onto the lignin molecule due to the increase in free volume of the lignin molecules. TGA analysis showed that the thermal stability of glyoxalated lignin is not influenced and remained suitable for wood adhesives. Compared to the original lignin, the improved lignin is reactive and a suitable raw material for adhesive formula

Capacity-approaching rate function for layered multiantenna architectures

The simultaneous use of multiple transmit and receive antennas can unleash very large capacity increases in rich multipath environments. Although such capacities can be approached by layered multi-antenna architectures with per-antenna rate control, the need for short-term feedback arises as a potential impediment, in particular as the number of antennas—and thus the number of rates to be controlled—increases. What we show, however, is that the need for short-term feedback in fact vanishes as the number of antennas and/or the diversity order increases. Specifically, the rate supported by each transmit antenna becomes deterministic and a sole function of the signal-to-noise, the ratio of transmit and receive antennas, and the decoding order, all of which are either fixed or slowly varying. More generally, we illustrate -through this specific derivation— the relevance of some established random CDMA results to the single-user multi-antenna problem.

Student modeling based on fuzzy inference mechanisms

The paper presents a competence-based instructional design system and a way to provide a personalization of navigation in the course content. The navigation aid tool builds on the competence graph and the student model, which includes the elements of uncertainty in the assessment of students. An individualized navigation graph is constructed for each student, suggesting the competences the student is more prepared to study. We use fuzzy set theory for dealing with uncertainty. The marks of the assessment tests are transformed into linguistic terms and used for assigning values to linguistic variables. For each competence, the level of difficulty and the level of knowing its prerequisites are calculated based on the assessment marks. Using these linguistic variables and approximate reasoning (fuzzy IF-THEN rules), a crisp category is assigned to each competence regarding its level of recommendation.

New measurements of radial velocities in clusters of galaxies

Redshifts for 100 galaxies in 10 clusters of galaxies are presented based on data obtained between March 1984 and March 1985 from Calar Alto, La Palma, and ESO, and on data from Mauna Kea. Data for individual galaxies are given, and the accuracy of the velocities of the four instruments is discussed. Comparison with published data shows the present velocities to be shifted by + 4.0 km/s on average, with a standard deviation in the difference of 89.7 km/s, consistent with the rms of redshift measurements which range from 50-100 km/s.

Evolutionary analysis of genetic variants involved in rare diseases

Next-generation sequencing techniques such as exome sequencing can successfully detect all genetic variants in a human exome and it has been useful together with the implementation of variant filters to identify causing-disease mutations. Two filters aremainly used for the mutations identification: low allele frequency and the computational annotation of the genetic variant. Bioinformatic tools to predict the effect of a givenvariant may have errors due to the existing bias in databases and sometimes show a limited coincidence among them. Advances in functional and comparative genomics are needed in order to properly annotate these variants.The goal of this study is to: first, functionally annotate Common Variable Immunodeficiency disease (CVID) variants with the available bioinformatic methods in order to assess the reliability of these strategies. Sencondly, as the development of new methods to reduce the number of candidate genetic variants is an active and necessary field of research, we are exploring the utility of gene function information at organism level as a filter for rare disease genes identification. Recently, it has been proposed that only 10-15% of human genes are essential and therefore we would expect that severe rare diseases are mostly caused by mutations on them. Our goal is to determine whether or not these rare and severe diseases are caused by deleterious mutations in these essential genes. If this hypothesis were true, taking into account essential genes as a filter would be an interesting parameter to identify causingdisease mutations.

Minor salivary gland tumors: a clinicopathological study of 18 cases

Introduction: Minor salivary gland tumors (MSGTs) are infrequent, representing 10-15% of all salivary neoplasms. Despite this low frequency, MSGTs conform a heterogeneous group of neoplasms characterized by a broad range of histological types. Patients and method: We identified cases of MSGT in a retrospective study of the biopsies made in the period 1997-2007 in the Service of Oral Surgery (Dental Clinic of the University of Barcelona, Spain). The data collected comprised patient age and sex, the clinical characteristics and location of the tumor, the duration of the lesion, its size, the treatment provided, and the histopathological findings. Results: Of the 18 cases of MSGT studied, 12 corresponded to women (66.7%) and 6 to men (33.3%). The great majority (94.4%) were benign tumors. The preferential location was the posterior third of the hard palate (33.2%), followed by the soft palate (16.7%) and the mucosa of the upper lip (16.7%). The histopathological diagnoses of our MSGTs comprised 10 pleomorphic adenomas (55.3%), 2 cystadenomas (11.1%), 1 myoepithelioma (5.6%), 1 sialadenoma papilliferum (5.6%), 1 basal cell adenoma (5.6%), 1 Warthin"s tumor (5.6%), 1 canalicular adenoma (5.6%), and 1 low-grade polymorphic adenocarcinoma (5.6%). Discussion and conclusions: Coinciding with our own results, the literature describes a high recurrence rate for MSGTs (5-30%) when surgical removal is incomplete. Six percent of all benign minor salivary gland tumors are considered to relapse, versus 65% of all malignant lesions. Periodic clinical controls are required, since the possibility of malignant transformation must be taken into account

Caracterización del comportamiento agroforestal de doce genotipos de nogal (Juglans sp.) en dos localidades de Cataluña

El comportamiento agroforestal de 10 genotipos de J. regia y dos híbridos comerciales de Juglans, Ng23xRa y Mj209xRa, se ha evaluado desde 1995 a 2000 en dos localidades: Massanes (Girona) y Prades (Tarragona). Se establecen tres grupos de genotipos diferenciados de acuerdo a su tasa de crecimiento en altura: 1) crecimiento medio superior a 60 cm/año, que corresponde a los dos híbridos; 2) crecimiento medio de unos 50 cm/año, que corresponde a las progenies de J. regia con brotaciones anteriores al 20 de abril; y 3) crecimiento medio inferior a los 40 cm/año, que corresponde a los genotipos de J. regia con brotación posterior al 20 de abril. La evolución de las progenies en altura y diámetro está significativamente ligada a la localidad. El orden en la clasificación de las progenies por su crecimiento, en altura y en grosor, es prácticamente idéntico en ambas localidades. El diámetro a 2,50 m, al sexto período vegetativo, presenta una dependencia significativa de localidad y genotipo: en Massanes se alcanza un mayor crecimiento que en Prades y el diámetro a 2,50 m de los híbridos es el doble que el del mejor J. regia. La dominancia y la rectitud dependen de los genotipos. Sólo dos J. regia tienen una aptitud forestal aceptable, concretamente dos genotipos italianos, «Bleggiana» y «Boschi Maria Grazia». Los híbridos Ng23xRa y Mj209xRa presentan un mejor comportamiento agroforestal que los genotipos de J. regia estudiados: menor mortalidad en plantación, superiores crecimientos primario y secundario y buena dominancia apical y rectitud.

Evaluating the Performance of a Regional-Scale Photochemical Modelling System: Part I Ozone Predictions

We present a detailed evaluation of the seasonal performance of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modelling system and the PSU/NCAR meteorological model coupled to a new Numerical Emission Model for Air Quality (MNEQA). The combined system simulates air quality at a fine resolution (3 km as horizontal resolution and 1 h as temporal resolution) in north-eastern Spain, where problems of ozone pollution are frequent. An extensive database compiled over two periods, from May to September 2009 and 2010, is used to evaluate meteorological simulations and chemical outputs. Our results indicate that the model accurately reproduces hourly and 1-h and 8-h maximum ozone surface concentrations measured at the air quality stations, as statistical values fall within the EPA and EU recommendations. However, to further improve forecast accuracy, three simple bias-adjustment techniques mean subtraction (MS), ratio adjustment (RA), and hybrid forecast (HF) based on 10 days of available comparisons are applied. The results show that the MS technique performed better than RA or HF, although all the bias-adjustment techniques significantly reduce the systematic errors in ozone forecasts.

Finite Element Analysis of Electrically Excited Quartz Tuning Fork Devices

Quartz Tuning Fork (QTF)-based Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) is an important field of research. A suitable model for the QTF is important to obtain quantitative measurements with these devices. Analytical models have the limitation of being based on the double cantilever configuration. In this paper, we present an electromechanical finite element model of the QTF electrically excited with two free prongs. The model goes beyond the state-of-the-art of numerical simulations currently found in the literature for this QTF configuration. We present the first numerical analysis of both the electrical and mechanical behavior of QTF devices. Experimental measurements obtained with 10 units of the same model of QTF validate the finite element model with a good agreement.

Heteromeric nicotinic receptors are involved in the sensitization and addictive properties of MDMA in mice

We have investigated the effect of nicotinic receptor ligands in the behavioral sensitization (hyperlocomotion) and rewarding properties (conditioned place preference paradigm, CPP) of 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA) in mice. Each animal received intraperitoneal pretreatment with either saline, dihydro-β-erythroidine (DHβE, 1 mg/kg) or varenicline (VAR, 0.3 mg/kg), 15 min prior to subcutaneous saline or MDMA (5 mg/kg), for 10 consecutive days. On day 1, both DHβE and VAR inhibited the MDMA-induced hyperlocomotion. After 10 days of treatment, MDMA induced a hyperlocomotion that was not reduced (rather enhanced) in antagonist-pretreated animals. This early hyperlocomotion was accompanied by a significant increase in heteromeric nicotinic receptors in cortex that was not blocked by DHβE or VAR. Behavioral sensitization to MDMA was highest 2 weeks after the discontinuation of MDMA treatment. This additional increase in sensitivity was prevented in animals pretreated with DHβE or VAR. At this time, MDMA-treated mice showed a significant increase in heteromeric receptors in cortex that was prevented by DHβE and VAR. An involvement of α7 nicotinic receptors in this effect is ruled out. MDMA (10 mg/kg) induced positive CPP that was abolished by DHβE (2 mg/kg) and VAR (2 mg/kg). Moreover, chronic nicotine pretreatment (2 mg/kg, ip, b.i.d., for 14 days) caused MDMA, administered at a low dose (3 mg/kg), to induce CPP, which would otherwise not occur. Finally, present results point out that heteromeric nicotinic receptors are involved in locomotor sensitization and addictive potential induced by MDMA. Thus, varenicline might be a useful drug to treat both tobacco and MDMA abuse at once.

Heteromeric nicotinic receptors are involved in the sensitization and addictive properties of MDMA in mice

We have investigated the effect of nicotinic receptor ligands in the behavioral sensitization (hyperlocomotion) and rewarding properties (conditioned place preference paradigm, CPP) of 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA) in mice. Each animal received intraperitoneal pretreatment with either saline, dihydro-β-erythroidine (DHβE, 1 mg/kg) or varenicline (VAR, 0.3 mg/kg), 15 min prior to subcutaneous saline or MDMA (5 mg/kg), for 10 consecutive days. On day 1, both DHβE and VAR inhibited the MDMA-induced hyperlocomotion. After 10 days of treatment, MDMA induced a hyperlocomotion that was not reduced (rather enhanced) in antagonist-pretreated animals. This early hyperlocomotion was accompanied by a significant increase in heteromeric nicotinic receptors in cortex that was not blocked by DHβE or VAR. Behavioral sensitization to MDMA was highest 2 weeks after the discontinuation of MDMA treatment. This additional increase in sensitivity was prevented in animals pretreated with DHβE or VAR. At this time, MDMA-treated mice showed a significant increase in heteromeric receptors in cortex that was prevented by DHβE and VAR. An involvement of α7 nicotinic receptors in this effect is ruled out. MDMA (10 mg/kg) induced positive CPP that was abolished by DHβE (2 mg/kg) and VAR (2 mg/kg). Moreover, chronic nicotine pretreatment (2 mg/kg, ip, b.i.d., for 14 days) caused MDMA, administered at a low dose (3 mg/kg), to induce CPP, which would otherwise not occur. Finally, present results point out that heteromeric nicotinic receptors are involved in locomotor sensitization and addictive potential induced by MDMA. Thus, varenicline might be a useful drug to treat both tobacco and MDMA abuse at once.

Retrospective study of 145 supernumerary teeth

Objective: The goal of the present retrospective study is to describe the distribution of the supernumerary teeth in a population of patients that have been attended at the Public Clinic of the Department of Oral Surgery. Background: Supernumerary teeth and multiple hyperdontia are usually associated with different syndromes, such as Gardner syndrome, or with facial fissures; however, they can appear in patients without any pathology. Their prevalence oscillates to 0.5-3.8% in patients with permanent teeth and to 0.35-0.6% in patients with primary teeth. Patients and Methods: A total of 36,057 clinical histories of patients that were admitted at the clinic between September of 1991 and March of 2003 were revised. The following data were extrapolated: age, sex, number of extracted supernumerary teeth, localization, morphology and type of supernumerary teeth. Consequently, 102 patients were included into the present study. Results: Of the 147 supernumerary teeth identified in the oral cavities of patients 145 were extracted. The most frequent supernumerary teeth identified were mesiodens (46.9%), followed by premolars (24.1%) and fourth molars or distal molars (18%). As for location, 74.5% of the supernumerary teeth were found in the superior maxillary bone and 46.9% of the supernumerary teeth were present in the palatine/lingual area. Heteromorphology was found in two thirds of the supernumerary teeth, with conical shape being the most frequent. Finally, 29.7% of the supernumerary teeth had occlusion with permanent teeth, and mesiodens were the predominating type of supernumerary teeth that showed this feature. Conclusions: Mesiodens very frequently cause retention of permanent incisors, which erupt spontaneously after the extraction of supernumerary teeth, if there is sufficient space in the dental arch and if they conserve the eruptive force. Generally, supernumerary premolars are eumorphic and are casually discovered during radiological exam, if not producing any symptomology.