Nonforward parton distributions of the pion within an effective single instanton approximation

We develop a relativistic quark model for pion structure, which incorporates the nontrivial structure of the vacuum of quantum chromodynamics as modelled by instantons. Pions are bound states of quarks and the strong quark-pion vertex is determined from an instanton induced effective Lagrangian. The interaction of the constituents of the pion with the external electromagnetic field is introduced in gauge invariant form. The parameters of the model, i.e., effective instanton radius and constituent quark mass, are obtained from the vacuum expectation values of the lowest dimensional quark and gluon operators and the low-energy observables of the pion. We apply the formalism to the calculation of the pion form factor by means of the isovector nonforward parton distributions and find agreement with the experimental data. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V.

Comparing methods to estimate the human lens power

Purpose: To compare accuracies of different methods for calculating human lens power when lens thickness is not available. Methods: Lens power was calculated by four methods. Three methods were used with previously published biometry and refraction data of 184 emmetropic and myopic eyes of 184 subjects (age range [18, 63] years, spherical equivalent range [–12.38, +0.75] D). These three methods consist of the Bennett method, which uses lens thickness, our modification of the Stenström method and the Bennett¬Rabbetts method, both of which do not require knowledge of lens thickness. These methods include c constants, which represent distances from lens surfaces to principal planes. Lens powers calculated with these methods were compared with those calculated using phakometry data available for a subgroup of 66 emmetropic eyes (66 subjects). Results: Lens powers obtained from the Bennett method corresponded well with those obtained by phakometry for emmetropic eyes, although individual differences up to 3.5D occurred. Lens powers obtained from the modified¬Stenström and Bennett¬Rabbetts methods deviated significantly from those obtained with either the Bennett method or phakometry. Customizing the c constants improved this agreement, but applying these constants to the entire group gave mean lens power differences of 0.71 ± 0.56D compared with the Bennett method. By further optimizing the c constants, the agreement with the Bennett method was within ± 1D for 95% of the eyes. Conclusion: With appropriate constants, the modified¬Stenström and Bennett¬Rabbetts methods provide a good approximation of the Bennett lens power in emmetropic and myopic eyes.

Incontinence-associated dermatitis: A cross-sectional prevalence study in the Australian acute care hospital setting

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to identify the prevalence of incontinence and incontinence-associated dermatitis (IAD) in Australian acute care patients and to describe the products worn to manage incontinence, and those provided at the bedside for perineal skin care. Data on 376 inpatients were collected over 2 days at a major Australian teaching hospital. The mean age of the sample group was 62 years and 52% of the patients were male. The prevalence rate of incontinence was 24% (91/376). Urinary incontinence was significantly more prevalent in females (10%) than males (6%) (χ2  = 4·458, df = 1, P = 0·035). IAD occurred in 10% (38/376) of the sample group, with 42% (38/91) of incontinent patients having IAD. Semi-formed and liquid stool were associated with IAD (χ2  = 5·520, df = 1, P = 0·027). Clinical indication of fungal infection was present in 32% (12/38) of patients with IAD. Absorbent disposable briefs were the most common incontinence aids used (80%, 70/91), with soap/water and disposable washcloths being the clean-up products most commonly available (60%, 55/91) at the bedside. Further data are needed to validate this high prevalence. Studies that address prevention of IAD and the effectiveness of management strategies are also needed.

Combination inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta2-agonists for children and adults with bronchiectasis

BACKGROUND Bronchiectasis is a major contributor to chronic respiratory morbidity and mortality worldwide. Wheeze and other asthma-like symptoms and bronchial hyperreactivity may occur in people with bronchiectasis. Physicians often use asthma treatments in patients with bronchiectasis. OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of inhaled long-acting beta2-agonists (LABA) combined with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) in children and adults with bronchiectasis during (1) acute exacerbations and (2) stable state. SEARCH METHODS The Cochrane Airways Group searched the the Cochrane Airways Group Specialised Register of Trials, which includes records identified from the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE and other databases. The Cochrane Airways Group performed the latest searches in October 2013. SELECTION CRITERIA All randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of combined ICS and LABA compared with a control (placebo, no treatment, ICS as monotherapy) in children and adults with bronchiectasis not related to cystic fibrosis (CF). DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two review authors extracted data independently using standard methodological procedures as expected by The Cochrane Collaboration. MAIN RESULTS We found no RCTs comparing ICS and LABA combination with either placebo or usual care. We included one RCT that compared combined ICS and LABA with high-dose ICS in 40 adults with non-CF bronchiectasis without co-existent asthma. All participants received three months of high-dose budesonide dipropionate treatment (1600 micrograms). After three months, participants were randomly assigned to receive either high-dose budesonide dipropionate (1600 micrograms per day) or a combination of budesonide with formoterol (640 micrograms of budesonide and 18 micrograms of formoterol) for three months. The study was not blinded. We assessed it to be an RCT with overall high risk of bias. Data analysed in this review showed that those who received combined ICS-LABA (in stable state) had a significantly better transition dyspnoea index (mean difference (MD) 1.29, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.40 to 2.18) and cough-free days (MD 12.30, 95% CI 2.38 to 22.2) compared with those receiving ICS after three months of treatment. No significant difference was noted between groups in quality of life (MD -4.57, 95% CI -12.38 to 3.24), number of hospitalisations (odds ratio (OR) 0.26, 95% CI 0.02 to 2.79) or lung function (forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC)). Investigators reported 37 adverse events in the ICS group versus 12 events in the ICS-LABA group but did not mention the number of individuals experiencing adverse events. Hence differences between groups were not included in the analyses. We assessed the overall evidence to be low quality. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS In adults with bronchiectasis without co-existent asthma, during stable state, a small single trial with a high risk of bias suggests that combined ICS-LABA may improve dyspnoea and increase cough-free days in comparison with high-dose ICS. No data are provided for or against, the use of combined ICS-LABA in adults with bronchiectasis during an acute exacerbation, or in children with bronchiectasis in a stable or acute state. The absence of high quality evidence means that decisions to use or discontinue combined ICS-LABA in people with bronchiectasis may need to take account of the presence or absence of co-existing airway hyper-responsiveness and consideration of adverse events associated with combined ICS-LABA.

Fluctuations and correlations of conserved charges in the (2+1) Polyakov quark meson model

We consider the (2 + 1) flavor Polyakov quark meson model and study the fluctuations (correlations) of conserved charges up to sixth (fourth) order. A comparison is made with lattice data wherever available and overall good qualitative agreement is found, more so for the case of the normalized susceptibilities. The model predictions for the ratio of susceptibilities go to that of an ideal gas of hadrons as in hadron resonance gas model at low temperatures while at high temperature the values are close to that of an ideal gas of massless quarks. Our study provides a strong basis for the use of the Polyakov quark meson model as an effective model to understand the topology of the QCD phase diagram. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevD.86.114021 PACS numbers: 12.39.-x, 05.40.-a, 12.38.Aw, 12.38.Mh

Structural and magnetic properties of SmCo5/Co exchange coupled nanocomposite thin films

We investigated the structural and magnetic properties of SmCo5/Co exchange coupled nanocomposite thin films grown by magnetron sputtering from Sm and Co multitargets successively. The growth of the films was carried out at elevated substrate temperature followed by in situ annealing. On Si (100) substrate, X-ray diffraction confirms the formation of textured (110) SmCo5 hard phase, whereas on MgO (110) substrate, the diffraction pattern shows the epitaxial growth of SmCo5 phase with crystalline orientation along 100] direction. Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy reveals the structural transformation from multilayered (Sm/Co) to SmCo5/Co nano-composite films due to high reactivity of Sm at elevated temperature. Transmission electron microscopy indicates the existence of nanocrystalline phase of SmCo5 along with unreacted Co. Observed single phase behavior in magnetic hysteresis measurements indicates well exchange coupling between the soft and the hard phases in these nano-composite films. For samples with samarium layer thickness, t(sm)=3.2 nm and cobalt layer thickness, t(Co)= 11.4 nm, the values of (BH)(max) were obtained as 20.1 MGOe and 12.38 MGOe with H-c value similar to 3.0 kOe grown on MgO and Si substrates, respectively.

Time and space-resolved measurement of a gas-puff laser-plasma x-ray source

The dynamic interaction processes between a nano-second laser pulse and a gas-puff target, such as those of plasma formation, laser heating, and x-ray emission, have been investigated quantitatively. Time and space-resolved x-ray and optical measurement techniques were used in order to investigate time-resolved laser absorption and subsequent x-ray generation. Efficient absorption of the incident laser energy into the gas-puff target of 17%, 12%, 38%, and 91% for neon, argon, krypton, and xenon, respectively, was shown experimentally. It was found that the laser absorption starts and, simultaneously, soft x-ray emission occurs. The soft x-ray lasts much longer than the laser pulse due to the recombination. Temporal evolution of the soft x-ray emission region was analyzed by comparing the experimental results to the results of the model calculation, in which the laser light propagation through a gas-puff plasma was taken into account. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.

中山市淡水浮游动物区系调查

2005年6～7月和12月对中山市主要淡水水体的浮游动物区系进行了调查。结果表明,中山市主要淡水水体浮游动物由38目92科129属317种组成。区系特点以原生动物最丰富,有30目82科102属263种,占浮游动物物种总数的83%;其次为轮虫,有4目4科19属37种组成,占12%;枝角类和桡足类物种数最少。各样点浮游动物种类在11～168种之间,种类最少的出现在洪奇沥,最多的出现在逍遥谷。研究结果表明,中山市淡水浮游动物资源比较丰富。各区系浮游动物的分布与水体的营养状态密切相关,污染严重的水体,种类数较少,

在光、暗及高温下氧与鱼腥藻7120固氮的关系

鱼腥藻7120从光转暗不同时间后,照光检测固氮活性的损失速度与氧量直接相关。在黑暗12小时后,复光时的活性恢复被氧霉素、氯化铵或38—40℃空气氧所阻遏,黑暗中生成的酶易被氧失活。在光下和黑暗中短时暴露于不同氧压时,黑暗中氧引起固氮活性的下降比光下快得多。抗坏血酸大大减少高氧引起的失活,高温可能增加固氮酶活性对氧的敏感性。在光下100%O_2处理120分钟,活性没有进一步下降,也没有活性的恢复,没有观察到构型保护。讨论了环境条件与氧保护的关系。

Population dynamics and maturation cycle of Camallanus cotti (Nematoda : Camallanidae) in the Chinese hooksnout carp Opsariichthys bidens (Osteichthyes : Cyprinidae) from a reservoir in China

The seasonal population dynamics and maturation cycle of the nematode Camallanus cotti in the posterior intestine of Chinese hooksnout carp Opsariichthys bidens have been studied in the Danjiangkou Reservoir of the Hubei Province in central China from September 2004 to November, 2005. The overall prevalence, mean abundance and intensity of C cotti among fish sampled (n = 700 fish) were 47%, 2.29 +/- 12.38 ( +/- S.D.) and 1-307 (average 4.89 +/- 17.74), respectively. The overall sexual ratio of female to male nematodes (excluding L3 and L4 juveniles) was 1.17:1. Statistical results showed weakly positive correlations betweerl fish length and the number of nematodes per host. The dynamics of infection of the nematode exhibited significant seasonal pattern in changes in mean abundance. A similar pattern was found for changes in nematode prevalence, although this was not statistically significant. Higher levels of infection were observed among fish sampled in summer months and the lower in the winter. Neither the prevalence nor the abundance of the parasite was significantly different between male and female hosts. The pattern of frequency distribution of the parasite in the host was found to be over-dispersed throughout the sampling period. In addition, studies on the development and maturation of the parasite in O. bidens revealed that development (maturation), recruitment of the next generation, and reproduction may be continuous year-round, although reproduction may peak during the winter. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

分子束外延GaAs/AlGaAs超晶格缓冲层量子阱材料的研究

采用分子束外延技术(MBE)生长了GaAs/AlGaAs单量子阱和多量子阱材料。采用GaAs/AlGaAs超晶格缓冲层掩埋衬底缺陷，获得的量子阱结构材料被成功地用于制作量子阱激光器。波长为778nm的激光器，最低阈值电流为30 mA，室温下线性光功率大于20 mW。

长白山阔叶红松林林地土壤CO2排放规律与机理

土壤CO2释放通量总量与潜力作为陆地土壤碳循环过程研究的重要组分，一直是国际统碳循环研究的前沿领域。鉴于温带森林对全球气候变化的敏感性，以阔叶红松林为代表的土壤CO2 放通量过程与机制的研究，能够为正确评估我国温带森林土壤碳库动态和潜力提供科学依据。本文利用静态箱／气相色谱技术，连续测定了长白山阔叶红松林及其附近的次生林土壤CO2释放通量并进行比较研究，结果表明：（1）长白山阔叶红松林土壤CO2释放通量具有明显的季节动态，与温度的变化趋势大致相同，在生长季节中表现出8月份＞7月份＞9月份＞5月份＞4月份。（2）土壤温度是控制CO2释放的关键驱动因子；土壤含水量变化对CO2 释放亦有一定的影响。（3）不同土壤类型的土壤COZ释放通量强度不同，其中阔叶红松林年C排放量为7253.72 kg/hm2，白桦林排放量为6581.28 kg／hm2，山杨白桦混交林和山杨林排放量分别是6301.64 kg／hm2和4941.77 kg/hm2。（4）凋落物对林地CO2释放有显著的影响，贡献率约占-12％-38％；根系的贡献约为7.26％-57.6％。

废水中类固醇物质的LCMSMS检测方法优化及其在养殖废水检测中的应用

以固相萃取为预处理手段,用高效液相色谱-串联四极杆质谱联用技术,针对澳大利亚南威尔士州畜牧业废水中的丙酸睾酮等13种类固醇化合物含量建立了分析方法.采用大气压化学电离源,在正离子模式下,对色谱条件和质谱条件进行优化,其中,丙酸睾酮等7种化合物以质子化的准分子离子峰[M+H]+、另6种化合物以产生了脱去水的离子峰[M+H-H2O]+为母离子进行二级质谱扫描,以最大丰度确定定量离子对.结果表明:该方法所建立的13种化合物的9点标准曲线的线性相关范围为1～1000ng·ml-1,在该范围内,相关系数均>0.9990;各化合物的平均回收率在83.75%～111.50%,相对标准差2.02%～14.21%;除美雌醇和雌三醇的灵敏度相对较低,检测限高于15ng·ml-1外,其余物质的检测限均低于5ng·ml-1;实际样品测定时,不同处理流程中各化合物的浓度均能得到较好体现,该方法能满足检测要求.

Development of process control methodology for tracking the quality and safety of pain, agitation and sedation management in critical care units

Objective: To develop sedation, pain, and agitation quality measures using process control methodology and evaluate their properties in clinical practice. Design: A Sedation Quality Assessment Tool was developed and validated to capture data for 12-hour periods of nursing care. Domains included pain/discomfort and sedation-agitation behaviors; sedative, analgesic, and neuromuscular blocking drug administration; ventilation status; and conditions potentially justifying deep sedation. Predefined sedation-related adverse events were recorded daily. Using an iterative process, algorithms were developed to describe the proportion of care periods with poor limb relaxation, poor ventilator synchronization, unnecessary deep sedation, agitation, and an overall optimum sedation metric. Proportion charts described processes over time (2 monthly intervals) for each ICU. The numbers of patients treated between sedation-related adverse events were described with G charts. Automated algorithms generated charts for 12 months of sequential data. Mean values for each process were calculated, and variation within and between ICUs explored qualitatively. Setting: Eight Scottish ICUs over a 12-month period. Patients: Mechanically ventilated patients. Interventions: None. Measurements and Main Results: The Sedation Quality Assessment Tool agitation-sedation domains correlated with the Richmond Sedation Agitation Scale score (Spearman [rho] = 0.75) and were reliable in clinician-clinician (weighted kappa; [kappa] = 0.66) and clinician-researcher ([kappa] = 0.82) comparisons. The limb movement domain had fair correlation with Behavioral Pain Scale ([rho] = 0.24) and was reliable in clinician-clinician ([kappa] = 0.58) and clinician-researcher ([kappa] = 0.45) comparisons. Ventilator synchronization correlated with Behavioral Pain Scale ([rho] = 0.54), and reliability in clinician-clinician ([kappa] = 0.29) and clinician-researcher ([kappa] = 0.42) comparisons was fair-moderate. Eight hundred twenty-five patients were enrolled (range, 59-235 across ICUs), providing 12,385 care periods for evaluation (range 655-3,481 across ICUs). The mean proportion of care periods with each quality metric varied between ICUs: excessive sedation 12-38%; agitation 4-17%; poor relaxation 13-21%; poor ventilator synchronization 8-17%; and overall optimum sedation 45-70%. Mean adverse event intervals ranged from 1.5 to 10.3 patients treated. The quality measures appeared relatively stable during the observation period. Conclusions: Process control methodology can be used to simultaneously monitor multiple aspects of pain-sedation-agitation management within ICUs. Variation within and between ICUs could be used as triggers to explore practice variation, improve quality, and monitor this over time

Biología y demografía de Brevicoryne brassicae (L.) (Homoptera: Aphididae) sobre cuatro cultivares de Brassica oleracea L.

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