Evaluation of Patients' Perceptions of Alterations After Chin Bone Graft Harvesting

Objective: To evaluate patients' perceptions of alterations occurring after chin bone harvesting.Materials and Methods: Thirty patients were evaluated subjectively by visual analog scale-related sensitivity, facial aesthetics, eating, speaking, and lower lip movement, during 12 months. Objective analysis used the static light touch neurosensorial test. The statistical analysis was executed with Friedman test with P < 0.05 for both samples.Results: Subjective analysis revealed no alterations (1) to facial aesthetics, eating, speaking or lower lip movement but sensitivity of the mental region went from a lot of alteration initially (5) to little at the end of the study (3). Objective analysis results showed normal sensitivity (1) in the region after 12 months.Conclusion: The discrepancy between subjective and objective analyses may be indicative of the limited precision of clinical testing for subjective impressions assessment. (Implant Dent 2012;21:411-414)

Accuracy of impression and pouring techniques for an implant-supported prosthesis

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to compare the dimensional accuracy of a stone index and of 3 impression techniques (tapered impression copings, squared impression copings, and squared impression copings splinted with acrylic resin) associated with 3 pouring techniques (conventional, pouring using latex tubes fitted onto analogs, and pouring after joining the analogs with acrylic resin) for implant-supported prostheses. Materials and Methods: A mandibular brass cast with 4 stainless steel implant-abutment analogs, a framework, and 2 aluminum custom trays were fabricated. Polyether impression material was used for all impressions. Ten groups were formed (a control group and 9 test groups formed by combining each pouring technique and impression technique). Five casts were made per group for a total of 50 casts and 200 gap values (1 gap value for each implant-abutment analog). Results: The mean gap value with the index technique was 27.07 mu m. With the conventional pouring technique, the mean gap values were 116.97 mu m for the tapered group, 5784 mu m for the squared group, and 73.17 mu m for the squared splinted group. With pouring using latex tubes, the mean gap values were 65.69 mu m for the tapered group, 38.03 mu m for the squared group, and 82.47 mu m for the squared splinted group. With pouring after joining the analogs with acrylic resin, the mean gap values were 141.12 jum for the tapered group, 74.19 mu m for the squared group, and 104.67 mu m for the squared splinted group. No significant difference was detected among Index, squarellatex techniques, and master cast (P > .05). Conclusions: The most accurate impression technique utilized squared copings. The most accurate pouring technique for making the impression with tapered or squared copings utilized latex tubes. The pouring did not influence the accuracy of the stone casts when using splinted squared impression copings. Either the index technique or the use of squared coping combined with the latex-tube pouring technique are preferred methods for making implant-supported fixed restorations with dimensional accuracy.

Laurdan Spectrum Decomposition as a Tool for the Analysis of Surface Bilayer Structure and Polarity: a Study with DMPG, Peptides and Cholesterol

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Monoculture of Leafcutter Ant Gardens

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Interaction between Advanced Glycation End Products Formation and Vascular Responses in Femoral and Coronary Arteries from Exercised Diabetic Rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Formyl-peptide receptor is not involved in the protection afforded by annexin 1 in murine acute myocardial infarct

Recent interest in the annexin 1 field has come from the notion that specific G-protein-coupled receptors, members of the formyl-peptide receptor (FPR) family, appear to mediate the anti-inflammatory actions of this endogenous mediator. Administration of the annexin 1 N-terminal derived peptide Ac2-26 to mice after 25 min ischemia significantly attenuated the extent of acute myocardial injury as assessed 60 min postreperfusion. Evident at the dose of 1 mg/kg (similar to9 nmol per animal), peptide Ac2-26 cardioprotection was intact in FPR null mice. Similarly, peptide Ac2-26 inhibition of specific markers of heart injury (specifically myeloperoxidase activity, CXC chemokine KC contents, and endogenous annexin 1 protein expression) was virtually identical in heart samples collected from wild-type and FPR null mice. Mouse myocardium expressed the mRNA for FPR and the structurally related lipoxin A(4) receptor, termed ALX; thus, comparable equimolar doses of two ALX agonists (W peptide and a stable lipoxin A4 analog) exerted cardioprotection in wild-type and FPR null mice to an equal extent. Curiously, marked (>95%) blood neutropenia produced by an anti-mouse neutrophil serum did not modify the extent of acute heart injury, whereas it prevented the protection afforded by peptide Ac2-26. Thus, this study sheds light on the receptor mechanism(s) mediating annexin 1-induced cardioprotection and shows a pivotal role for ALX and circulating neutrophil, whereas it excludes any functional involvement of mouse FPR. These mechanistic data can help in developing novel therapeutics for acute cardioprotection.

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of the catalytic subunit of ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase from potato tuber

ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase is the key regulatory enzyme in the biosynthesis of starch in plants and glycogen in bacteria. The enzyme from potato tuber is comprised of a regulatory subunit and a catalytic subunit and is present as a heterotetramer (alpha(2)beta(2)) the catalytic subunit from potato tuber (50 kDa) was crystallized in four different forms, two of which are suitable for structural studies. A tetragonal crystal form obtained in the presence of the substrate analog Cr-ATP diffracted to 2.2 Angstrom and belongs to space group P4(1) (or its enantiomorph), with unit-cell parameters a = b = 110.57, c = 190.14 Angstrom. A second crystal form obtained diffracted to 2.8 Angstrom and belongs to space group PZ, with unit-eel parameters a = 80.06, b = 138.84, c = 92.20 Angstrom, beta = 112.40 degrees. As this protein displays no significant homology to any currently known protein structure, a search for heavy-atom derivatives has been initiated.

Robust tori-like Lagrangian coherent structures

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Extensive Comparisons of Optical Fast-OFDM and Conventional Optical OFDM for Local and Access Networks

A performance comparison between a recently proposed novel technique known as fast orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (FOFDM) and conventional orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) is undertaken over unamplified, intensity-modulated, and direct-detected directly modulated laser-based optical signals. Key transceiver parameters, such as the maximum achievable transmission capacity and the digital-to-analog/analog-to-digital converter (DAC/ADC) effects are explored thoroughly. It is shown that, similarly to conventional OFDM, the least complex and bandwidth efficient FOFDM can support up to similar to 20 Gb/s over 500 m worst-case multimode fiber (MMF) links having 3 dB effective bandwidths of similar to 200 MHz X km. For compensation of the DAC/ADC roll-off, a power-loading (PL) algorithm is adopted, leading to an FOFDM system improvement of similar to 4 dB. FOFDM and conventional OFDM give similar optimum DAC/ADC parameters over 500 m worst-case MMF, while over 50 km single-mode fiber a maximum deviation of only similar to 1 dB in clipping ratio is observed due to the imperfect chromatic dispersion compensation caused by one-tap equalizers.

Comparação dos tempos de geração e digitação de laudos radiológicos entre um sistema eletrônico baseado em voz sobre IP (VoIP) e um sistema tradicional baseado em papel

OBJETIVO: Comparar os tempos de geração e digitação de laudos radiológicos entre um sistema eletrônico baseado na tecnologia de voz sobre o protocolo de internet (VoIP) e o sistema tradicional, em que o radiologista escreve o laudo à mão. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Foi necessário modelar, construir e implantar o sistema eletrônico proposto, capaz de gravar o laudo em formato de áudio digital, e compará-lo com o tradicional já existente. Por meio de formulários, radiologistas e digitadores anotaram os tempos de geração e digitação dos laudos nos dois sistemas. RESULTADOS: Comparadas as médias dos tempos entre os sistemas, o eletrônico apresentou redução de 20% (p = 0,0410) do tempo médio de geração do laudo em comparação com o sistema tradicional. O tradicional foi mais eficiente em relação ao tempo de digitação, uma vez que a média de tempo do eletrônico foi três vezes maior (p < 0,0001). CONCLUSÃO: Os resultados mostraram diferença estatisticamente significante entre os sistemas comparados, sendo que o eletrônico foi mais eficiente do que o tradicional em relação ao tempo de geração dos laudos, porém, em relação ao tempo de digitação, o tradicional apresentou melhores resultados.

Interpolating EFGM for computing continuous and discontinuous electromagnetic fields

Purpose - This paper proposes an interpolating approach of the element-free Galerkin method (EFGM) coupled with a modified truncation scheme for solving Poisson's boundary value problems in domains involving material non-homogeneities. The suitability and efficiency of the proposed implementation are evaluated for a given set of test cases of electrostatic field in domains involving different material interfaces.Design/methodology/approach - the authors combined an interpolating approximation with a modified domain truncation scheme, which avoids additional techniques for enforcing the Dirichlet boundary conditions and for dealing with material interfaces usually employed in meshfree formulations.Findings - the local electric potential and field distributions were correctly described as well as the global quantities like the total potency and resistance. Since, the treatment of the material interfaces becomes practically the same for both the finite element method (FEM) and the proposed EFGM, FEM-oriented programs can, thus, be easily extended to provide EFGM approximations.Research limitations/implications - the robustness of the proposed formulation became evident from the error analyses of the local and global variables, including in the case of high-material discontinuity.Practical implications - the proposed approach has shown to be as robust as linear FEM. Thus, it becomes an attractive alternative, also because it avoids the use of additional techniques to deal with boundary/interface conditions commonly employed in meshfree formulations.Originality/value - This paper reintroduces the domain truncation in the EFGM context, but by using a set of interpolating shape functions the authors avoided the use of Lagrange multipliers as well Mathematics in Engineering high-material discontinuity.

Nonlinear Dynamics and Control of an Ideal/Nonideal Load Transportation System With Periodic Coefficients

In this paper, a loads transportation system in platforms or suspended by cables is considered. It is a monorail device and is modeled as an inverted pendulum built on a car driven by a dc motor the governing equations of motion were derived via Lagrange's equations. In the mathematical model we consider the interaction between the dc motor and the dynamical system, that is, we have a so called nonideal periodic problem. The problem is analyzed, qualitatively, through the comparison of the stability diagrams, numerically obtained, for several motor torque constants. Furthermore, we also analyze the problem quantitatively using the Floquet multipliers technique. Finally, we devise a control for the studied nonideal problem. The method that was used for analysis and control of this nonideal periodic system is based on the Chebyshev polynomial exponsion, the Picard iterative method, and the Lyapunov-Floquet transformation (L-F transformation). We call it Sinha's theory.

Settling analysis of MOS regulated current mirrors applied to micropower D/A converters

This paper provides an insight to the trade-off between settling time and power consumption in regulated current mirrors as building parts in micropower current-switching D/A converters. The regulation-loop frequency characteristic is obtained and difficulties to impose a dominant-pole condition to the resulting 2nd-order system are evaluated. Raising pole frequencies in micropower circuits, while meeting consumption requirements, is basically limited by parasitic capacitances. For such cases, an alternative is to impose a twin-pole condition in which design constraints are somewhat relieved and settling slightly improved. Relationships between pole frequencies, transistor geometry and bias are established and design guidelines for regulated current mirrors founded. By placing loop-transistors in either weak or strong inversion, small (W/L) ratios are allowed and stray capacitances reduced. Simulated waveforms suggest a good agreement with theory. The proposed approach applied to the design of a micropower current-mode D/A converter improves both simulated and experimental settling performance.

Mechanism of the Yb-Er energy transfer in fluorozirconate glass

The mechanism of the Yb(3+)-->Er(3+) energy transfer as a function of the donor and the acceptor concentration was investigated in Yb(3+)-Er(3+) codoped fluorozirconate glass. The luminescence decay curves were measured and analyzed by monitoring the Er(3+)((4)I(11/2)) fluorescence induced by the Yb(3+)((2)F(5/2)) excitation. The energy transfer microparameters were determined and used to estimate the Yb-Er transfer rate of an energy transfer process assisted by excitation migration among donors state (diffusion model). The experimental transfer rates were determined from the best fitting of the acceptor luminescence decay obtained using a theoretical approach analog to that one used in the Inokuti-Hirayama model for the donor luminescence decay. The obtained values of transfer parameter gamma [gamma(exp)] were always higher than that predicted by the Inokuti-Hirayama model. Also, the experimental transfer rate, gamma(2)(exp), was observed to be higher than the transfer rate predicted by the migration model. Assuming a random distribution among excited donors at the initial time (t=0) and that a fast excitation migration, which occurs in a very short time (t

The application of interpolating MLS approximations to the analysis of MHD flows

The element-free Galerkin method (EFGM) is a very attractive technique for solutions of partial differential equations, since it makes use of nodal point configurations which do not require a mesh. Therefore, it differs from FEM-like approaches by avoiding the need of meshing, a very demanding task for complicated geometry problems. However, the imposition of boundary conditions is not straightforward, since the EFGM is based on moving-least-squares (MLS) approximations which are not necessarily interpolants. This feature requires, for instance, the introduction of modified functionals with additional unknown parameters such as Lagrange multipliers, a serious drawback which leads to poor conditionings of the matrix equations. In this paper, an interpolatory formulation for MLS approximants is presented: it allows the direct introduction of boundary conditions, reducing the processing time and improving the condition numbers. The formulation is applied to the study of two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic flow problems, and the computed results confirm the accuracy and correctness of the proposed formulation. (C) 2002 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.