Comparison of the acute renal and peripheral vascular responses to frusemide and bumetanide at low and high dose

1. The effects of equipotent doses of frusemide (10 mg and 100 mg) and bumetanide (250 micrograms and 2.5 mg) upon renal and peripheral vascular responses, urinary prostaglandin excretion, plasma renin activity, angiotensin II and noradrenaline were compared in nine healthy volunteers. 2. Frusemide (10 mg and 100 mg) and bumetanide (2.5 mg) increased renal blood flow acutely compared with placebo but bumetanide (250 micrograms) had no effect. The changes in peripheral vascular responses were not significantly different from placebo. 3. Urinary prostaglandin metabolite excretion was acutely increased by all treatments, with no inter-treatment difference. Plasma renin activity was increased acutely by both doses of frusemide and by bumetanide (2.5 mg) compared with placebo and to bumetanide (250 micrograms). There were no differences between the latter two treatments. Angiotensin II was increased significantly 30 min after frusemide 100 mg and bumetanide 2.5 mg, and by all four treatments at 50 min when compared with placebo. There were no significant differences between either of the low doses or the higher doses. Plasma noradrenaline was unchanged by all treatments. 4. Frusemide 100 mg and bumetanide 2.5 mg have the same effects on the renal vasculature and the renin-angiotensin-prostaglandin system. Under the conditions of this study, frusemide 10 mg had different effects on plasma renin activity than bumetanide 250 micrograms.

Metabolism of very low- and low-density lipoproteins isolated from normolipidaemic type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetic patients by human monocyte-derived macrophages

The very low- and low-density lipoprotein fractions were isolated from 16 normolipidaemic Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetic patients in good to fair glycaemic control and from corresponding age-, sex-, and race-matched, non-diabetic control subjects. Rates of cholesteryl ester synthesis averaged 268 +/- 31 vs 289 +/- 40 pmol 14C-cholesteryl oleate.mg cell protein-1.20 h-1 for very low- and 506 +/- 34 vs 556 +/- 51 pmol 14C-cholesteryl oleate.mg cell protein-1.20 h-1 for low-density lipoproteins isolated from the Type 2 diabetic patients and control subjects, respectively, when they were incubated with human macrophages. A group of approximately one-third of the patients was selected for separate analyses because very low-density lipoproteins isolated from these patients did stimulate more cholesteryl ester synthesis when incubated with macrophages. There were no significant differences in the lipid composition of the lipoproteins isolated from the three groups of subjects. The relative proportion of apoprotein C to apoprotein E was significantly decreased (p less than 0.002) in the very low-density lipoproteins from diabetic patients and was further decreased in samples from these selected diabetic patients. The apoprotein C-I content of very low-density lipoproteins isolated from diabetic patients was increased compared to control subjects and was further increased in samples from the selected diabetic patients (p less than 0.02). There were no significant differences in the proportions of apoproteins C-III-0, C-III-1, or C-III-2 among the three groups. These studies suggest that in normolipidaemic Type 2 diabetic patients, the apoprotein composition of VLDL is abnormal and this may alter VLDL macrophage interactions and thus contribute to the increased prevalence of atherosclerosis in diabetic patients.

The superluminous supernova PS1-11ap: bridging the gap between low and high redshift

We present optical photometric and spectroscopic coverage of the superluminous supernova (SLSN) PS1-11ap, discovered with the Pan-STARRS1 Medium Deep Survey at z = 0.524. This intrinsically blue transient rose slowly to reach a peak magnitude of Mu = −21.4 mag and bolometric luminosity of 8 × 1043 erg s−1 before settling on to a relatively shallow gradient of decline. The observed decline is significantly slower than those of the SLSNe-Ic which have been the focus of much recent attention. Spectroscopic similarities with the lower redshift SN2007bi and a decline rate similar to 56Co decay time-scale initially indicated that this transient could be a candidate for a pair instability supernova (PISN) explosion. Overall the transient appears quite similar to SN2007bi and the lower redshift object PTF12dam. The extensive data set, from 30 d before peak to 230 d after, allows a detailed and quantitative comparison with published models of PISN explosions. We find that the PS1-11ap data do not match these model explosion parameters well, supporting the recent claim that these SNe are not pair instability explosions. We show that PS1-11ap has many features in common with the faster declining SLSNe-Ic, and the light-curve evolution can also be quantitatively explained by the magnetar spin-down model. At a redshift of z = 0.524, the observer-frame optical coverage provides comprehensive rest-frame UV data and allows us to compare it with the SLSNe recently found at high redshifts between z = 2 and 4. While these high-z explosions are still plausible PISN candidates, they match the photometric evolution of PS1-11ap and hence could be counterparts to this lower redshift transient.

Comparing the relationship between stature and later life health in six low and middle income countries

This paper examines the relationship between stature and later life health in 6 emerging economies, each of which are expected to experience significant increases in the mean age of their populations over the coming decades. Using data from the WHO Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) and pilot data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI), I show that various measures of health are associated with height, a commonly used proxy for childhood environment. In the pooled sample, a 10 cm increase in height is associated with between a 2 and 3 percentage point increase in the probability of being in very good or good self-reported health, a 3 percentage point increase in the probability of reporting no difficulties with activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living, and between a fifth and a quarter of a standard deviation increase in grip strength and lung function. Adopting a methodology previously used in the research on inequality, I also summarise the height-grip strength gradient for each country using the concentration index, and provide a decomposition analysis.

Comparison of the Behavioural Development of Infants at Low and High-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders

By identifying early signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder, early intervention or parent training could be implemented and assist in increasing the developmental trajectory for these infants. This cross sectional study used the Parent Observation of Early Markers Scale (POEMS) to identify early signs of ASD in 69 high-risk (older sibling diagnosed with ASD) and 69 matched low-risk infants' families (no family history of ASD) between 6 and 36 months of age. The preliminary results showed the high-risk children had significantly more elevated POEMS items than the low-risk children at 12, 18,24,30 and 36 months of age. The results suggest that at-risk infants may show signs of ASD as early as 12 months of age, and that the POEMS could be used to guide early intervention or parent training for children 12 months or older.

Investigations on the Multiferroic and Thermoelectric properties of Low and Intermediate band width Manganites

This thesis lays importance in the investigation on the multiferroic and thermooelectric properties of selected representatives of low bandwidth and intermediate band width manganites. The first candidate, Strontium doped Gd manganite, is prepared by wet solid state reaction method and the second candidate, Na doped La manganite, by citrate gel method. In addition to the above mentioned properties, magneto resistance and dielectric properties are investigated. Using dielectric spectroscopic the dispersion parameters are correlated to the relaxation mechanisms and an attempt is made to obtain the grain and grain boundary contribution to the impedance of the sample through impedance spectroscopy studies.

High and steady or low and rising? : vocational versus general education in life-cycle earnings. 'Alto y estable o bajo y en alza? : formación profesional versus general en los ingresos del ciclo de vida'.

Resumen basado en el de la publicación

Effect of type and timing of oil supplements to sows during pregnancy on the growth performance and endocrine profile of low and normal birth weight offspring

Eighty-eight multiparous sows were used to evaluate whether type and timing of oil supplementation during gestation influences the incidence of low birth weight (LBW). Sows were allocated (eight per treatment) commercial sow pellets (3 kg/d; control diet) or an experimental diet consisting of control diet plus 10 % extra energy in the form of excess pellets, palm oil, olive oil (OO), sunflower oil (SO) or fish oil; experimental diets were fed during either the first half (G1) or second half (G2) of gestation. Growth performance and endocrine profile of LBW ( < 1·09 kg) and normal birth weight (NBW; 1·46–1·64 kg) offspring were compared. Maternal dietary supplementation altered the distribution curve for piglet birth weight. SOG1 sows had a greater proportion of LBW piglets (P < 0·05), whilst it was reduced in the OOG1 group (P < 0·05). Growth rate of LBW piglets was lower compared with their NBW siblings (P < 0·05) when dietary supplementation was offered in G2 but were similar for G1. At birth, LBW offspring of supplemented animals possessed more fat compared with the control group (P < 0·05); LBW offspring of control animals exhibited a more rapid decline in fat free mass/kg prior to weaning. Plasma metabolites and insulin concentrations were influenced by maternal diet and birth weight. In conclusion, maternal dietary supplementation altered the distribution of piglet birth weights and improved the energy status of LBW piglets. Supplementation with MUFA during G1 reduced the incidence of LBW, whereas PUFA had the reverse effect.

A socio-technical network approach to the adoption of low and zero carbon technologies in new housing

Housing in the UK accounts for 30.5% of all energy consumed and is responsible for 25% of all carbon emissions. The UK Government’s Code for Sustainable Homes requires all new homes to be zero carbon by 2016. The development and widespread diffusion of low and zero carbon (LZC) technologies is recognised as being a key solution for housing developers to deliver against this zero-carbon agenda. The innovation challenge to design and incorporate these technologies into housing developers’ standard design and production templates will usher in significant technical and commercial risks. In this paper we report early results from an ongoing Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council project looking at the innovation logic and trajectory of LZC technologies in new housing. The principal theoretical lens for the research is the socio-technical network approach which considers actors’ interests and interpretative flexibilities of technologies and how they negotiate and reproduce ‘acting spaces’ to shape, in this case, the selection and adoption of LZC technologies. The initial findings are revealing the form and operation of the technology networks around new housing developments as being very complex, involving a range of actors and viewpoints that vary for each housing development.

A multidisciplinary literature review of low and zero carbon technologies into new housing

The UK Government is committed to all new homes being zero-carbon from 2016. The use of low and zero carbon (LZC) technologies is recognised by housing developers as being a key part of the solution to deliver against this zero-carbon target. The paper takes as its starting point that the selection of new technologies by firms is not a phenomenon which takes place within a rigid sphere of technical rationality (for example, Rip and Kemp, 1998). Rather, technology forms and diffusion trajectories are driven and shaped by myriad socio-technical structures, interests and logics. A literature review is offered to contribute to a more critical and systemic foundation for understanding the socio-technical features of the selection of LZC technologies in new housing. The problem is investigated through a multidisciplinary lens consisting of two perspectives: technological and institutional. The synthesis of the perspectives crystallises the need to understand that the selection of LZC technologies by housing developers is not solely dependent on technical or economic efficiency, but on the emergent ‘fit’ between the intrinsic properties of the technologies, institutional logics and the interests and beliefs of various actors in the housing development process.

Seasonal persistence of northern low- and middle-latitude anomalies of ozone and other trace gases in the upper stratosphere

Analysis of observed ozone profiles in Northern Hemisphere low and middle latitudes reveals the seasonal persistence of ozone anomalies in both the lower and upper stratosphere. Principal component analysis is used to detect that above 16 hPa the persistence is strongest in the latitude band 15–45°N, while below 16 hPa the strongest persistence is found over 45–60°N. In both cases, ozone anomalies persist through the entire year from November to October. The persistence of ozone anomalies in the lower stratosphere is presumably related to the wintertime ozone buildup with subsequent photochemical relaxation through summer, as previously found for total ozone. The persistence in the upper stratosphere is more surprising, given the short lifetime of Ox at these altitudes. It is hypothesized that this “seasonal memory” in the upper stratospheric ozone anomalies arises from the seasonal persistence of transport-induced wintertime NOy anomalies, which then perturb the ozone chemistry throughout the rest of the year. This hypothesis is confirmed by analysis of observations of NO2, NOx, and various long-lived trace gases in the upper stratosphere, which are found to exhibit the same seasonal persistence. Previous studies have attributed much of the year-to-year variability in wintertime extratropical upper stratospheric ozone to the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) through transport-induced NOy (and hence NO2) anomalies but have not identified any statistical connection between the QBO and summertime ozone variability. Our results imply that through this “seasonal memory,” the QBO has an asynchronous effect on ozone in the low to midlatitude upper stratosphere during summer and early autumn.

An evolutionary innovation perspective on the selection of low and zero carbon technologies in new housing

The Code for Sustainable Homes (the Code) will require new homes in the United Kingdom to be ‘zero carbon’ from 2016. Drawing upon an evolutionary innovation perspective, this paper contributes to a gap in the literature by investigating which low and zero carbon technologies are actually being used by house builders, rather than the prevailing emphasis on the potentiality of these technologies. Using the results from a questionnaire three empirical contributions are made. First, house builders are selecting a narrow range of technologies. Second, these choices are made to minimise the disruption to their standard design and production templates (SDPTs). Finally, the coalescence around a small group of technologies is expected to intensify with solar-based technologies predicted to become more important. This paper challenges the dominant technical rationality in the literature that technical efficiency and cost benefits are the primary drivers for technology selection. These drivers play an important role but one which is mediated by the logic of maintaining the SDPTs of the house builders. This emphasises the need for construction diffusion of innovation theory to be problematized and developed within the context of business and market regimes constrained and reproduced by resilient technological trajectories.