Partial oxidation of methane to syngas over Pt/A(2)O(3) and Pt/CeO2/Al2O3

The catalytic oxidation of methane to syngas has been carried out over Pt/Al2O3 and Pt/CeO2/Al2O3. It was found that the catalysts with ceria exhibit a higher activity and selectivity than those without ceria. The catalysts were characterized by means of TPR, TPD, SEM-EDX and XRD. There is a strong interaction between ceria and platinum under the reaction condition, which increase the dispersion of platinum over catalysts, preventing the sinter of the Pt particles. As a result of the synergistic;effect between Pt and ceria, the activity of Pt/Al2O3 for combustion reaction was suppressed, the activity and selectivity :For partial oxidation were improved greatly. Another role of ceria in the catalyst is the enhancing of the WGSR, which leads to the increase of the selectivity of catalyst for hydrogen and accelerating the equilibrium of the reaction.

中国北方表沙无机碳储量及次生碳酸盐固碳潜力研究

This paper selected the Taklamakan Desert and the Badain Jaran Desert as the research areas, tested the carbonate content of surface-sand samples of dunes using Eijkelkamp carbonate goniophotometer, and analyzed the spatial-distribution characteristics of carbonate and estimated the carbonate-stock and secondary carbonate-stock in 1m depth of surface sand in the Taklamakan Desert and the Badain Jaran Desert. In addition, the paper test XRD, SEM, TDA, stable carbon isotope and radioactive strontium isotope of lacustrine deposits in the Taklamakan Desert and carbonates, such as kunkar, root canal, lacustrine deposits, sinter and calcrete, in the Badain Jaran Desert. Resting on the achievements by our predecessors, it analyzed the mineral-composition differences of the carbonates, calculated the contents of secondary carbonate and, furthermore, evaluated their potential of sequestration of CO2 in the atmosphere. The overall goal of this study was to increase our understanding of soil carbonate in the context of carbon sequestration in the arid region in China. That is, to advance our understanding about whether or not secondary carbonate in desert is a sink for atmospheric CO2. The following viewpoints were obtained: 1 Carbonate contents of surface-sand samples decend from the south to the north of the Taklamakan Desert. The minimum lies in the south and the maxmum in the mid. Carbonate content of surface-sand of megadunes in the Badain Jaran Desert has low value generally in the dune-crest and the base of slope, and large value in the mid. The average of Carbonate contents of all sorts of collected samples in the same area of the Taklamakan Desert has small diffetences. The average is about 9%. 2 Using carbonate contents as key parameters, calculate the carbon-stock of carbonates in 1m depth of surface sand in the Taklamakan Desert and the Badain Jaran Deser.They are 1.13Pg and 0.19 Pg respectively. There are 0.53Pg and 0.088Pg carbon-stock of secondary-carbonates in 1m depth of surface sand in the Taklamakan Desert and the Badain Jaran Desert. 3 Through testing data from XRD （X-ray diffraction）and TAD ( Thermal Analysis Data), the most significant conclusion derived from is that the main mineral ingredient is calcite in different carbonate substances in arid regions, From the SEM(Scanning electron microscopy ) images, can obtains the information about the micro environment of different carbonate forms in which they can grow. 4 Selected gas by termal cracking and traditional phosphoric acid method, their δ13C show that δ13C is a good parameter to indicate the micro environment in which different secondary carbonate forms. From the δ13C of the same type samples, if the redeposit degree is hard, theδ13C is light, the redeposit degree is weak, the δ13C is heave. and the δ13C of the different type samples, δ13C is mainly controlled by the micro environment in which secondary formed. if the procedure is characterized by redeposit and dissolve of marine facies carbonate, δ13C is heavy, it is characterized by CO2 which produced by plant respiration,δ13C is light. 5 From the δ13C of lacustrine deposit in the different grain size, there exsit certain differences in their micro environment and secondary degree among different grain size in the same grade. 6 The secondary carbonate content of lacustrine deposits in Taklimakan Desert is 47.26%. And those of root canal, sinter, calcrete, kunkar, lacustrine deposit and surface sand in Badain Jaran Desert are 91.74%, 78.46%, 76.26%, 87.87%, 85.37%and 46.49%, respectively. Of different grain size samples, the secondary carbonate contents of coarse fraction (20-63μm), sub-coarse fraction (5-20μm) and fine fraction (<5μm) are 80.10%, 47.2%and 50.07%, respectively. 7 There is no obvious relevance betweenδ13C of secondary carbonate and the content of secondary carbonate,theδ13C of secondary carbonate mainly reflects the parameters of secondary process, the content of secondary carbonate reflects difference of secondary degree.. 8 Silicates potentially supply 3.4 pencent calcium source during forming process of lacustrine deposits in Taklimakan Desert. If calcium source is mainly supplied by goundwater, it can be calculated that about 5.18 %, 6.13%, 5.68%, 5.64 % and 6.82% silicates supply calcium source respectively for root canal, kunkar, lacustrine deposit, calcrete and sinter, during the forming process of different kinds of carbonates in Badain Jaran Desert.

Genome-wide association with bone mass and geometry in the Framingham Heart Study

BACKGROUND:Osteoporosis is characterized by low bone mass and compromised bone structure, heritable traits that contribute to fracture risk. There have been no genome-wide association and linkage studies for these traits using high-density genotyping platforms.METHODS:We used the Affymetrix 100K SNP GeneChip marker set in the Framingham Heart Study (FHS) to examine genetic associations with ten primary quantitative traits: bone mineral density (BMD), calcaneal ultrasound, and geometric indices of the hip. To test associations with multivariable-adjusted residual trait values, we used additive generalized estimating equation (GEE) and family-based association tests (FBAT) models within each sex as well as sexes combined. We evaluated 70,987 autosomal SNPs with genotypic call rates [greater than or equal to]80%, HWE p [greater than or equal to] 0.001, and MAF [greater than or equal to]10% in up to 1141 phenotyped individuals (495 men and 646 women, mean age 62.5 yrs). Variance component linkage analysis was performed using 11,200 markers.RESULTS:Heritability estimates for all bone phenotypes were 30-66%. LOD scores [greater than or equal to]3.0 were found on chromosomes 15 (1.5 LOD confidence interval: 51,336,679-58,934,236 bp) and 22 (35,890,398-48,603,847 bp) for femoral shaft section modulus. The ten primary phenotypes had 12 associations with 100K SNPs in GEE models at p < 0.000001 and 2 associations in FBAT models at p < 0.000001. The 25 most significant p-values for GEE and FBAT were all less than 3.5 x 10-6 and 2.5 x 10-5, respectively. Of the 40 top SNPs with the greatest numbers of significantly associated BMD traits (including femoral neck, trochanter, and lumbar spine), one half to two-thirds were in or near genes that have not previously been studied for osteoporosis. Notably, pleiotropic associations between BMD and bone geometric traits were uncommon. Evidence for association (FBAT or GEE p < 0.05) was observed for several SNPs in candidate genes for osteoporosis, such as rs1801133 in MTHFR; rs1884052 and rs3778099 in ESR1; rs4988300 in LRP5; rs2189480 in VDR; rs2075555 in COLIA1; rs10519297 and rs2008691 in CYP19, as well as SNPs in PPARG (rs10510418 and rs2938392) and ANKH (rs2454873 and rs379016). All GEE, FBAT and linkage results are provided as an open-access results resource at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/projects/gap/cgi-bin/study.cgi?id=phs000007.CONCLUSION:The FHS 100K SNP project offers an unbiased genome-wide strategy to identify new candidate loci and to replicate previously suggested candidate genes for osteoporosis.

The cumulative effect of core lifestyle behaviours on the prevalence of hypertension and dyslipidemia

Background: Most cardiovascular disease (CVD) occurs in the presence of traditional risk factors, including hypertension and dyslipidemia, and these in turn are influenced by behavioural factors such as diet and lifestyle. Previous research has identified a group at low risk of CVD based on a cluster of inter-related factors: body mass index (BMI) < 25 Kg/m2, moderate exercise, alcohol intake, non-smoking and a favourable dietary pattern. The objective of this study was to determine whether these factors are associated with a reduced prevalence of hypertension and dyslipidemia in an Irish adult population. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional survey of 1018 men and women sampled from 17 general practices. Participants completed health, lifestyle and food frequency questionnaires and provided fasting blood samples for analysis of glucose and insulin. We defined a low risk group based on the following protective factors: BMI <25 kg/m2; waist-hip ratio (WHR) <0.85 for women and <0.90 for men; never smoking status; participants with medium to high levels of physical activity; light alcohol consumption (3.5–7 units of alcohol/week) and a "prudent" diet. Dietary patterns were assessed by cluster analysis. Results: We found strong significant inverse associations between the number of protective factors and systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and dyslipidemia. The prevalence odds ratio of hypertension in persons with 1, 2, 3, ≥ 4 protective factors relative to those with none, were 1.0, 0.76, 0.68 and 0.34 (trend p < 0.01). The prevalence odds ratio of dyslipidemia in persons with 1, 2, 3, ≥ 4 protective factors relative to those with none were 0.83, 0.98, 0.49 and 0.24 (trend p = 0.001). Conclusion: Our findings of a strong inverse association between low risk behaviours and two of the traditional risk factors for CVD highlight the importance of 'the causes of the causes' and the potential for behaviour modification in CVD prevention at a population level.

Longitudinal study of changes in body mass index, anthropometric measures, dietary intake and physical activity in cohorts of school-going Irish adolescents

The prevalence of obesity worldwide has increased dramatically over the last few decades. Poor dietary habits and low levels of exercise in adolescence are often maintained into adulthood where they can impact on the incidence of obesity and chronic diseases. A 3-year longitudinal study of anthropometric, dietary and exercise parameters was carried out annually (2005 - 2007) in 3 Irish secondary schools. Anthropometric measurements were taken in each year and analysed longitudinally. Overweight and obesity were at relatively low levels in these adolescents. Height, weight, BMI, waist and hip circumferences and TST increased significantly over the 3 years. Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) decreased significantly over time. Boys were significantly taller than girls across the 3 years. A 3-day weighed food diary was used to assess food intake by the adolescents. Analysis of dietary intake data was determined using WISP©. Mean daily energy and nutrient intakes were reported. Mean daily energy and macronutrient intakes were analysed longitudinally. The adolescents’ diet was characterised by relatively high saturated fat intakes and insufficient fruit and vegetable consumption. The dietary pattern did not change significantly over the 3 years. Boys consumed more energy than girls over the study period. A validated questionnaire was used to assess physical activity and sedentary activity levels. Boys were substantially more active and had higher energy expenditure estimates than girls throughout the study. A significant longitudinal decrease in physical activity levels among the adolescents was observed. Both genders spent more than the recommended amount of time (hrs/day) pursing sedentary activities. The dietary pattern in these Irish adolescents is relatively poor. Of additional concern is the overall longitudinal decrease in physical activity levels. Promoting consumption of a balanced diet and increased exercise levels among adolescents will help to reduce future public health care costs due to weight-related diseases.

The effectiveness of using patient-reported outcome measures as quality improvement tools

Aim: To investigate the value of using PROMs as quality improvement tools. Methods: Two systematic reviews were undertaken. The first reviewed the quantitative literature on the impact of PROMs feedback and the second reviewed the qualitative literature on the use of PROMs in practice. These reviews informed the focus of the primary research. A cluster randomised controlled trial (PROFILE) examined the impact of providing peer benchmarked PROMs feedback to consultant orthopaedic surgeons on improving outcomes for hip replacement surgery. Qualitative interviews with surgeons in the intervention arm of the trial examined the view of and reactions to the feedback. Results: The quantitative review of 17 studies found weak evidence to suggest that providing PROMs feedback to professionals improves patient outcomes. The qualitative review of 16 studies identified the barriers and facilitators to the use of PROMs based on four themes: practical considerations, attitudes towards the data, methodological concerns and the impact of feedback on care. The PROFILE trial included 11 surgeons and 215 patients in the intervention arm, and 10 surgeons and 217 patients in the control arm. The trial found no significant difference in the Oxford Hip Score between the arms (-0.7, 95% CI -1.9-0.5, p=0.2). Interviews with surgeons revealed mixed opinions about the value of the PROMs feedback and the information did not promote explicit changes to their practice. Conclusion: It is important to use PROMs which have been validated for the specific purpose of performance measurement, consult with professionals when developing a PROMs feedback intervention, communicate with professionals about the objectives of the data collection, educate professionals on the properties and interpretation of the data, and support professionals in using the information to improve care. It is also imperative that the burden of data collection and dissemination of the information is minimised.

Phylotastic! Making tree-of-life knowledge accessible, reusable and convenient.

BACKGROUND: Scientists rarely reuse expert knowledge of phylogeny, in spite of years of effort to assemble a great "Tree of Life" (ToL). A notable exception involves the use of Phylomatic, which provides tools to generate custom phylogenies from a large, pre-computed, expert phylogeny of plant taxa. This suggests great potential for a more generalized system that, starting with a query consisting of a list of any known species, would rectify non-standard names, identify expert phylogenies containing the implicated taxa, prune away unneeded parts, and supply branch lengths and annotations, resulting in a custom phylogeny suited to the user's needs. Such a system could become a sustainable community resource if implemented as a distributed system of loosely coupled parts that interact through clearly defined interfaces. RESULTS: With the aim of building such a "phylotastic" system, the NESCent Hackathons, Interoperability, Phylogenies (HIP) working group recruited 2 dozen scientist-programmers to a weeklong programming hackathon in June 2012. During the hackathon (and a three-month follow-up period), 5 teams produced designs, implementations, documentation, presentations, and tests including: (1) a generalized scheme for integrating components; (2) proof-of-concept pruners and controllers; (3) a meta-API for taxonomic name resolution services; (4) a system for storing, finding, and retrieving phylogenies using semantic web technologies for data exchange, storage, and querying; (5) an innovative new service, DateLife.org, which synthesizes pre-computed, time-calibrated phylogenies to assign ages to nodes; and (6) demonstration projects. These outcomes are accessible via a public code repository (GitHub.com), a website (http://www.phylotastic.org), and a server image. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 9 person-months of effort (centered on a software development hackathon) resulted in the design and implementation of proof-of-concept software for 4 core phylotastic components, 3 controllers, and 3 end-user demonstration tools. While these products have substantial limitations, they suggest considerable potential for a distributed system that makes phylogenetic knowledge readily accessible in computable form. Widespread use of phylotastic systems will create an electronic marketplace for sharing phylogenetic knowledge that will spur innovation in other areas of the ToL enterprise, such as annotation of sources and methods and third-party methods of quality assessment.

Patient expectation is the most important predictor of discharge destination after primary total joint arthroplasty.

The purpose of this study was to identify preoperative predictors of discharge destination after total joint arthroplasty. A retrospective study of three hundred and seventy-two consecutive patients who underwent primary total hip and knee arthroplasty was performed. The mean length of stay was 2.9 days and 29.0% of patients were discharged to extended care facilities. Age, caregiver support at home, and patient expectation of discharge destination were the only significant multivariable predictors regardless of the type of surgery (total knee versus total hip arthroplasty). Among those variables, patient expectation was the most important predictor (P < 0.001; OR 169.53). The study was adequately powered to analyze the variables in the multivariable logistic regression model, which had a high concordance index of 0.969.

Unipedal balance is affected by lower extremity joint arthroplasty procedure 1 year following surgery.

Lower Extremity Joint Arthroplasty (LEJA) surgery is an effective way to alleviate painful osteoarthritis. Unfortunately, these surgeries do not normalize the loading asymmetry during the single leg stance phase of gait. Therefore, we examined single leg balance in 234 TJA patients (75 hips, 65 knees, 94 ankles) approximately 12 months following surgery. Patients passed if they maintained single leg balance for 10s with their eyes open. Patients one year following total hip arthroplasty (THA-63%) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA-69%) had similar pass rates compared to a total ankle arthroplasty (TAA-9%). Patients following THA and TKA exhibit better unilateral balance in comparison with TAA patients. It may be beneficial to include a rigorous proprioception and balance training program in TAA patients to optimize functional outcomes.

Adjunctive albuterol enhances the response to enzyme replacement therapy in late-onset Pompe disease.

Effective dosages for enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) in Pompe disease are much higher than for other lysosomal storage disorders, which has been attributed to low cation-independent mannose-6-phosphate receptor (CI-MPR) in skeletal muscle. We have previously demonstrated the benefit of increased CI-MPR-mediated uptake of recombinant human acid-α-glucosidase during ERT in mice with Pompe disease following addition of albuterol therapy. Currently we have completed a pilot study of albuterol in patients with late-onset Pompe disease already on ERT for >2 yr, who were not improving further. The 6-min walk test (6MWT) distance increased in all 7 subjects at wk 6 (30±13 m; P=0.002), wk 12 (34±14 m; P=0.004), and wk 24 (42±37 m; P=0.02), in comparison with baseline. Grip strength was improved significantly for both hands at wk 12. Furthermore, individual subjects reported benefits; e.g., a female patient could stand up from sitting on the floor much more easily (time for supine to standing position decreased from 30 to 11 s), and a male patient could readily swing his legs out of his van seat (hip abduction increased from 1 to 2+ on manual muscle testing). Finally, analysis of the quadriceps biopsies suggested increased CI-MPR at wk 12 (P=0.08), compared with baseline. With the exception of 1 patient who succumbed to respiratory complications of Pompe disease in the first week, only mild adverse events have been reported, including tremor, transient difficulty falling asleep, and mild urinary retention (requiring early morning voiding). Therefore, this pilot study revealed initial safety and efficacy in an open label study of adjunctive albuterol therapy in patients with late-onset Pompe disease who had been stable on ERT with no improvements noted over the previous several years.

Elucidating the Molecular Composition of Cartilage by Proteomics.

Articular cartilage consists of chondrocytes and two major components, a collagen-rich framework and highly abundant proteoglycans. Most prior studies defining the zonal distribution of cartilage have extracted proteins with guanidine-HCl. However, an unextracted collagen-rich residual is left after extraction. In addition, the high abundance of anionic polysaccharide molecules extracted from cartilage adversely affects the chromatographic separation. In this study, we established a method for removing chondrocytes from cartilage sections with minimal extracellular matrix protein loss. The addition of surfactant to guanidine-HCl extraction buffer improved protein solubility. Ultrafiltration removed interference from polysaccharides and salts. Almost four-times more collagen peptides were extracted by the in situ trypsin digestion method. However, as expected, proteoglycans were more abundant within the guanidine-HCl extraction. These different methods were used to extract cartilage sections from different cartilage layers (superficial, intermediate, and deep), joint types (knee and hip), and disease states (healthy and osteoarthritic), and the extractions were evaluated by quantitative and qualitative proteomic analyses. The results of this study led to the identifications of the potential biomarkers of osteoarthritis (OA), OA progression, and the joint specific biomarkers.

Using EMGs and kinematics data to study the take-off technique of experts and novices for a pole vaulting short run-up educational exercise

This study attempts to characterise the electromyographic activity and kinematics exhibited during the performance of take-off for a pole vaulting short run-up educational exercise, for different expertise levels. Two groups (experts and novices) participated in this study. Both groups were asked to execute their take-off technique for that specific exercise. Among the kinematics variables studied, the knee, hip and ankle angles and the hip and knee angular velocities were significantly different. There were also significant differences in the EMG variables, especially in terms of (i) biceps femoris and gastrocnemius lateralis activity at touchdown and (ii) vastus lateralis and gastrocnemius lateralis activity during take-off. During touchdown, the experts tended to increase the stiffness of the take-off leg to decrease braking. Novices exhibited less stiffness in the take-off leg due to their tendency to maintain a tighter knee angle. Novices also transferred less energy forward during take-off due to lack of contraction in the vastus lateralis, which is known to contribute to forward energy transfers. This study highlights the differences in both groups in terms of muscular and angular control according to the studied variables. Such studies of pole vaulting could be useful to help novices to learn expert's technique.

Kinematics and EMG analysis of expert pole vaulter's lower limb during take off phase (P218)

Introduction: The critical phase, in jumping events in track and field, appears to be between touchdown and take-off. Since obvious similarities exist between the take off phase in both long jump and pole vault, numerous 3D kinematics and electromyographic studies have only looked at long jump. Currently there are few detailed kinematics electromyographic data on the pole vault take-off phase. The aim of this study was therefore to characterise kinematics and electromyographic variables during the take-off phase to provide a better understanding of this phase in pole vaulting and its role in performance outcome. Material and methods: Six pole-vaulters took part in the study. Kinematics data were captured with retro reflective markers fixed on the body. Hip, knee and ankle angle were calculated. Differential bipolar surface electrodes were placed on the following muscles of the take-off leg: tibialis anterior, lateral gastrocnemius, vastus lateralis, rectus femoris, bicep femoris and gluteus maximus. EMG activity was synchronously acquired with the kinematic data. EMG data were rectified and smoothed using a second order low pass Butterworth Bidirectional filter (resulting in a 4th order filter) with a cut-off frequency of 14 Hz. Results: Evolution of hip, knee and ankle angle show no significant differences during the last step before touchdown, the take-off phase and the beginning of fly phase. Meanwhile, strong differences in EMG signal are noted inter and intra pole vaulter. However for a same subject the EMG activities seem to converge to some phase locked point. Discussion: All pole vaulters have approximately the same visible coordination This coordination reflects a different muscular control among pole vaulters but also for a considered pole vaulter. These phase locked point could be considered as invariant of motor control i.e. a prerequisite for a normal sequence of the movement and performance realization.

The Influence of Inert Packaging on the shelf Ageing of Gamma-Irradiation Sterilised ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) is used for wear applications in total hip prostheses and total knee prostheses. Sterilisation of these prostheses is commonly by gamma-irradiation. This process creates reactive free radicals in the UHMWPE, greatly increasing its susceptibility to oxidative degradation. This study has investigated the influence of air and vacuum packaging on the properties of gamma-irradiated UHMWPE (GUR1050) following 3 years of shelf ageing. The findings indicate that vacuum packaging minimises oxidative degradation reactions that occur for UHMWPE during shelf ageing. However, gamma-irradiation of vacuum-packaged UHMWPE promotes a degree of cross-linking. It is proposed that this may enhance the wear performance of UHMWPE. Accelerated ageing studies indicate that 3 years of shelf ageing would also seem to reduce the susceptibility of gamma-irradiated UHMWPE to oxidative degradation upon removal from its vacuum packaging.