BRONCHOALVEOLAR LAVAGE AND GALLIUM-67 LUNG SCANNING IN THE EVALUATION OF ASBESTOS-EXPOSED INDIVIDUALS

In this study, an attempt is made to evaluate certain parameters that might indicate the beginning of a certain fibrogenic activity in the lung parenchyma, even before such changes become visible on the chest x-ray. The hypothesis is that studies such as certain bronchoalveolar immunological characteristics and Gallium-67 lung scans may be more sensitive indicators of parenchymal lung damage in response to asbestos inhalation than conventional radiographic criteria. If so, then in those cases where the criteria for the diagnosis of asbestosis lack the presence of parenchymal changes, it would be unwise to deny the diagnosis unless further investigations, such as the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid analysis and the Gallium-67 lung scan techniques, are made available.^ Four groups of individuals have been included in this study. The volunteer group showing no history of asbestos exposure with normal chest x-rays has been used as a normal healthy comparison group. The other three groups are all asbestos-exposed but differ as to their findings in the chest radiographs. One has parenchymal changes (0/1 or more, ILO Classification), the second has no parenchymal but pleural changes, and the third has neither.^ The most significant laboratory parameter for bronchoalveolar lavage, in this study, is that of Neutrophils (PMNs). All three asbestos-exposed groups showed no differences when compared with each other, while such differences were statistically significant when such groups were separately compared with the normal comparison group. A similar finding existed also when the Helper: Suppressor T-Cell ratios were compared, and found to be higher in all the asbestos-exposed groups.^ Another sensitive test is that of Gallium-67 lung scan. This was found to be positive in some patients where parenchymal changes were absent. Even in some of those who showed neither parenchymal nor pleural changes in their chest x-ray showed positive test results. Such changes indicate a state of an underlying pathogenic process that is still undetectable by conventional radiography. This highly recommends the future application of such tests for the early detection of active pulmonary disease, especially in those who show no parenchymal changes in their chest x-rays. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.) ^

Ultrasonic sensors in urban traffic driving-aid systems

Currently, vehicles are often equipped with active safety systems to reduce the risk of accidents, most of which occur in urban environments. The most prominent include Antilock Braking Systems (ABS), Traction Control and Stability Control. All these systems use different kinds of sensors to constantly monitor the conditions of the vehicle, and act in an emergency. In this paper the use of ultrasonic sensors in active safety systems for urban traffic is proposed, and the advantages and disadvantages when compared to other sensors are discussed. Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) for urban traffic based on ultrasounds is presented as an application example. The proposed system has been implemented in a fully-automated prototype vehicle and has been tested under real traffic conditions. The results confirm the good performance of ultrasonic sensors in these systems. ©2011 by the authors.

Sensor magneto-óptico de corriente con supresión de birrefringencia lineal mediante espejo de Faraday

Fiber optic sensors have some advantages in subjects related with electrical current and magnetic field measurement. In spite of the optical fiber utilization advantages we have to take into account undesirable effects, which are present in real non-ideal optical fibers. In telecommunication and sensor application fields the presence of inherent and induced birefringence is crucial. The presence of birefringence may cause an undesirable change in the polarization state. In order to compensate the linear birefringence a promising method has been chosen. This method employs orthogonal polarization conjugation in the back propagation direction of the light wave in the fiber. A study and a simulation of an experimental setup are realized with the advantage of a significant sensitivity improvement.

Multiple proportion case-basing driven CBRE and its application in the evaluation of possible failure of firms

Case-based reasoning (CBR) is a unique tool for the evaluation of possible failure of firms (EOPFOF) for its eases of interpretation and implementation. Ensemble computing, a variation of group decision in society, provides a potential means of improving predictive performance of CBR-based EOPFOF. This research aims to integrate bagging and proportion case-basing with CBR to generate a method of proportion bagging CBR for EOPFOF. Diverse multiple case bases are first produced by multiple case-basing, in which a volume parameter is introduced to control the size of each case base. Then, the classic case retrieval algorithm is implemented to generate diverse member CBR predictors. Majority voting, the most frequently used mechanism in ensemble computing, is finally used to aggregate outputs of member CBR predictors in order to produce final prediction of the CBR ensemble. In an empirical experiment, we statistically validated the results of the CBR ensemble from multiple case bases by comparing them with those of multivariate discriminant analysis, logistic regression, classic CBR, the best member CBR predictor and bagging CBR ensemble. The results from Chinese EOPFOF prior to 3 years indicate that the new CBR ensemble, which significantly improved CBRs predictive ability, outperformed all the comparative methods.

Adeno-associated viral-mediated catalase expression suppresses optic neuritis in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis

Suppression of oxidative injury by viral-mediated transfer of the human catalase gene was tested in the optic nerves of animals with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE). EAE is an inflammatory autoimmune disorder of primary central nervous system demyelination that has been frequently used as an animal model for the human disease multiple sclerosis (MS). The optic nerve is a frequent site of involvement common to both EAE and MS. Recombinant adeno-associated virus containing the human gene for catalase was injected over the right optic nerve heads of SJL/J mice that were simultaneously sensitized for EAE. After 1 month, cell-specific catalase activity, evaluated by quantitation of catalase immunogold, was increased approximately 2-fold each in endothelia, oligodendroglia, astrocytes, and axons of the optic nerve. Effects of catalase on the histologic lesions of EAE were measured by computerized analysis of the myelin sheath area (for demyelination), optic disc area (for optic nerve head swelling), extent of the cellular infiltrate, extravasated serum albumin labeled by immunogold (for blood–brain barrier disruption), and in vivo H2O2 reaction product. Relative to control, contralateral optic nerves injected with the recombinant virus without a therapeutic gene, catalase gene inoculation reduced demyelination by 38%, optic nerve head swelling by 29%, cellular infiltration by 34%, disruption of the blood–brain barrier by 64%, and in vivo levels of H2O2 by 61%. Because the efficacy of potential treatments for MS are usually initially tested in the EAE animal model, this study suggests that catalase gene delivery by using viral vectors may be a therapeutic strategy for suppression of MS.

Phospholipase Cβ4 is specifically involved in climbing fiber synapse elimination in the developing cerebellum

Elimination of excess climbing fiber (CF)–Purkinje cell synapses during cerebellar development involves a signaling pathway that includes type 1 metabotropic glutamate receptor, Gαq, and the γ isoform of protein kinase C. To identify phospholipase C (PLC) isoforms involved in this process, we generated mice deficient in PLCβ4, one of two major isoforms expressed in Purkinje cells. PLCβ4 mutant mice are viable but exhibit locomotor ataxia. Their cerebellar histology, parallel fiber synapse formation, and basic electrophysiology appear normal. However, developmental elimination of multiple CF innervation clearly is impaired in the rostral portion of the cerebellar vermis, in which PLCβ4 mRNA is predominantly expressed. By contrast, CF synapse elimination is normal in the caudal cerebellum, in which low levels of PLCβ4 mRNA but reciprocally high levels of PLCβ3 mRNA are found. These results indicate that PLCβ4 transduces signals that are required for CF synapse elimination in the rostral cerebellum.

Out of hours service in Denmark: evaluation five years after reform

Objective: Five years after its introduction, to evaluate the 1992 reform in the out of hours service in Denmark.

A Fiberless Seed Mutation in Cotton Is Associated with Lack of Fiber Cell Initiation in Ovule Epidermis and Alterations in Sucrose Synthase Expression and Carbon Partitioning in Developing Seeds1

Fiber cell initiation in the epidermal cells of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) ovules represents a unique example of trichome development in higher plants. Little is known about the molecular and metabolic mechanisms controlling this process. Here we report a comparative analysis of a fiberless seed (fls) mutant (lacking fibers) and a normal (FLS) mutant to better understand the initial cytological events in fiber development and to analyze the metabolic changes that are associated with the loss of a major sink for sucrose during cellulose biosynthesis in the mutant seeds. On the day of anthesis (0 DAA), the mutant ovular epidermal cells lacked the typical bud-like projections that are seen in FLS ovules and are required for commitment to the fiber development pathway. Cell-specific gene expression analyses at 0 DAA showed that sucrose synthase (SuSy) RNA and protein were undetectable in fls ovules but were in abundant, steady-state levels in initiating fiber cells of the FLS ovules. Tissue-level analyses of developing seeds 15 to 35 DAA revealed an altered temporal pattern of SuSy expression in the mutant relative to the normal genotype. Whether the altered programming of SuSy expression is the cause or the result of the mutation is unknown. The developing seeds of the fls mutant have also shown several correlated changes that represent altered carbon partitioning in seed coats and cotyledons as compared with the FLS genotype.

Experiências do desenvolvimento de transformador para alta temperatura baseado em isolação semi-híbrida e óleo vegetal isolante.

O transformador de potência é um importante equipamento utilizado no sistema elétrico de potência, responsável por transmitir energia elétrica ou potência elétrica de um circuito a outro e transformar tensões e correntes de um circuito elétrico. O transformador de potência tem ampla aplicação, podendo ser utilizado em subestações de usinas de geração, transmissão e distribuição. Neste sentido, mudanças recentes ocorridas no sistema elétrico brasileiro, causadas principalmente pelo aumento considerável de carga e pelo desenvolvimento tecnológico tem proporcionado a fabricação de um transformador com a aplicação de alta tecnologia, aumentando a confiabilidade deste equipamento e, em paralelo, a redução do seu custo global. Tradicionalmente, os transformadores são fabricados com um sistema de isolação que associa isolantes sólidos e celulose, ambos, imersos em óleo mineral isolante, constituição esta que define um limite à temperatura operacional contínua. No entanto, ao se substituir este sistema de isolação formado por papel celulose e óleo mineral isolante por um sistema de isolação semi- híbrida - aplicação de papel NOMEX e óleo vegetal isolante, a capacidade de carga do transformador pode ser aumentada por suportar maiores temperaturas. Desta forma, o envelhecimento do sistema de isolação poderá ser em longo prazo, significativamente reduzido. Esta técnica de aumentar os limites térmicos do transformador pode eliminar, essencialmente, as restrições térmicas associadas à isolação celulósica, provendo uma solução econômica para aperfeiçoar o uso de transformadores de potência, aumentando a sua confiabilidade operacional. Adicionalmente, à aplicação de sensores de fibra óptica, em substituição aos sensores de imagem térmica no monitoramento das temperaturas internas do transformador, se apresentam como importante opção na definição do equacionamento do comportamento do transformador sob o ponto de vista térmico.

Optic neuritis in pediatric population: A review in current tendencies of diagnosis and management

Optic neuritis is an inflammation of the optic nerve and may be related to different systemic conditions. The clinical presentation of this pathology usually includes sudden loss of visual acuity (VA) which may be unilateral or bilateral, visual field restriction, pain with eye movements, dyschromatopsia, a relative afferent pupillary defect and optic disk swelling. Optic neuritis in children has specific clinical features and a better prognosis than in adulthood. Although usually appears an underlying viral disease, the main concern for practitioners is the relationship of optic neuritis with multiple sclerosis. In addition to the classical techniques as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), current tendencies of diagnosis for eye practitioners include new imaging devices as optical coherence tomography (OCT), useful to show a thinning of the retinal fibers layer (RFL) after the inflammatory episode. Regarding the management of these patients, short-term intravenous steroid dosages seem to be the best option to treat acute attacks characterized by a very poor bilateral VA.