IntAct is an open source database and software suite for modeling, storing and analyzing molecular interaction data. The data available in the database originates entirely from published literature ...and is manually annotated by expert biologists to a high level of detail, including experimental methods, conditions and interacting domains. The database features over 126 000 binary interactions extracted from over 2100 scientific publications and makes extensive use of controlled vocabularies. The web site provides tools allowing users to search, visualize and download data from the repository. IntAct supports and encourages local installations as well as direct data submission and curation collaborations. IntAct source code and data are freely available from http://www.ebi.ac.uk/intact.
Abstract
As a lightweight construction strategy, hot stamped parts of ultra-high-strength steels with tailored properties are increasingly used for crash relevant components in car bodies, e.g., as ...B-pillars. With the process of tailored carburization, parts can be reinforced locally without increasing the sheet metal thickness. Thus, this process has the potential to be applied to lightweight components for no deformation zones, e.g., in the battery housings. Standardly, carburization is performed at 950 °C, with the highest strengths achieved at long times of up to 6 h, which prolongs the total process time. By raising the temperature, the carbon diffusion increases, which enables a reduced heat treatment time and, consequently, a shorter process time. Therefore, the objective of this study is to investigate the influence of elevated carburization temperatures on the mechanical properties of a carburized and hardened complex phase steel, CP-W® 800. A single carburization step at the enhanced temperatures leads to an embrittlement of the samples. Hence, an additional diffusion-annealing step is implemented to homogenize the carbon content, without enlarging the total heat treatment time. Depending on the time allocation of carburization and diffusion, the application of the diffusion annealing step results in higher strengths and ductility compared to only carburized samples.
Purpose: Worldwide, hypertension awareness remains largely insufficient. This is particularly true in some population subgroups with a low socioeconomic status or in young adults who have limited ...interactions with healthcare systems. Performing Blood Pressure (BP) screening in non-conventional settings, such as in barbershops, has been suggested by a number of American authors. Whether this approach is feasible in Europe or in North Africa has not been evaluated, however. We, therefore, undertook a study to assess the value of BP screening at hairdressers in France and in Morocco.
Materials and Methods: This was a prospective multicenter feasibility study. Twenty-three hairdressers in France and six in Morocco participated in the study. After being provided the relevant information, all consenting customers aged over 18 years were included. Three BP measurements were performed by the customers themselves using a validated Omron M7 automatic BP device connected to a printer.
Results: In France, 1025 subjects were enrolled, while 300 subjects participated in Morocco. Three hundred and seventy French participants (36%) had an elevated BP. Among the subjects claiming to be normotensive or who did not know their hypertension status, 31.7% had a BP ≥ 135/85 mmHg. Only 42% of the subjects with an elevated BP contacted their physician within 3 months, although hypertension was confirmed in ¾ of them. In Morocco, the participants were older, with only 11.7% of the subjects aged <50 years. They more frequently had unknown elevated BP values (71.9%). The rate of BP monitoring in known hypertensive individuals was 42.7% in France and 17.1% in Morocco. The procedure was very well accepted and considered to be useful in both countries.
Conclusion: BP screening at hairdressers is feasible and well-accepted, although it does suffer somewhat from a relatively low efficacy.
IntAct is an open source database and software suite for modeling, storing and analyzing molecular interaction data. The data available in the database originates entirely from published literature ...and is manually annotated by expert biologists to a high level of detail, including experimental methods, conditions and interacting domains. The database features over 126 000 binary interactions extracted from over 2100 scientific publications and makes extensive use of controlled vocabularies. The web site provides tools allowing users to search, visualize and download data from the repository. IntAct supports and encourages local installations as well as direct data submission and curation collaborations. IntAct source code and data are freely available from http://www.ebi.ac.uk/intact.
The main aim of this paper is to effectively replicate the process heat effects during Selective Laser Melting (SLM) using a commercial FE package in terms of modeling effort and computation time, in ...order to achieve reliable residual stress distributions and distortions compared to experimental measurements. Since each build-up layer consists of hundreds of scan vectors, it is impracticable to model and execute a transient thermo-mechanical simulation without appropriate simplifications. By managing to provide reliable numerical results of the final component shape the volume-by-volume (VBV) method will allow performing a parameter sensitivity analysis on the final shape distortion. With the VBV method three layers of materials are being brought into melt simultaneously. The parameters investigated are the overall heat input and the stiffness of the component; both being directly related to the number of layers being deposited.
Almost every state has a slayer statute which prevents a killer from benefiting from the estate of their victim as an heir, an insurance beneficiary, or a joint tenant. However, very few of these ...slayer statutes address the problem that arises when the slayer has been determined to be legally insane. In the absence of legislative guidance, courts facing this problem have developed multiple different approaches to address this issue. Ultimately, the majority of courts have allowed the insane slayer to inherit, escaping the application of the slayer statute. However, some courts have taken the opposite approach and barred the insane slayer from inheriting. Recently, a federal court faced this issue while interpreting Iowa law. The court had little guidance from Iowa law--the statute was silent and the state supreme court had yet to take up the issue. It ultimately decided that Iowa's slayer statute probably did not bar the insane slayer from benefiting from the victim's estate. This Note argues that the Iowa Legislature should amend its slayer statute to ensure that even the insane slayer does not inherit.
We report an original case of reversible antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) due to minocycline in a young male patient who experienced recurrent strokes while taking minocycline. He started minocycline ...therapy (50 mg twice daily) at 15 years old for acne. After three years of treatment, the patient experienced a lateral medullary syndrome. He was treated with aspirin while minocycline was continued. Eighteen months later, the patient complained about horizontal binocular diplopia. MRI revealed an infarct of the oculomotor nerve nucleus. Laboratory investigations revealed high titers of anti-beta 2 glycoprotein 1 (antiβ2GP1) antibodies of 470 U/ml (normal range <15 U/ml) and antiphosphatidylethanolamine antibodies of 137.4 U/ml (normal range <18 U/ml). Other laboratory tests were normal. Six weeks after discontinuation of minocycline, anti-β2GP1 antibodies decreased to 335 U/ml and to 36 U/ml at six months and then remained negative for six years. Many drugs have been considered as possibly causing APS but only in a limited number of patients. To our knowledge this is the first case of drug-induced APS with complete disappearance of high titers of anti-β2GP1 antibodies after minocycline withdrawal.
This case also illustrates the need to monitor the levels of antiphospholipid antibodies, even though initial values are high and confirmed after 12 weeks.
To study the natural history of preneoplastic lesions in the bronchial mucosa of the individuals at risk.
White light and autofluorescence bronchoscopy examinations have been done in 52 individuals ...harboring 134 preneoplastic lesions (WHO criteria). End points were the development of carcinoma in situ (CIS) or squamous cell cancer (SCC) or the highest category of dysplasia up until March 1, 2003 for the remaining preneoplastic lesions.
Distribution and outcome of preneoplastic lesions have been found to be unrelated to various risk factors such as smoking history, past history of cancer, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Nonstepwise changes of preneoplastic lesions are seen. Regression rate has been 54%. Progression to CIS/SCC has been 13.4% (18 of 134) and was for severe dysplasia, significantly higher (P < 0.003) than preneoplastic lesions showing lower-grade dysplasia (squamous metaplasia, mild and moderate dysplasia). Time to progression was not significantly different. However, when analyzed per individual, no significant difference of progression rate between individuals with or without severe dysplasia was seen (39% versus 26%; P = 0.36).
The 54% regression rate of all preneoplastic lesions, 26% to 39% progression rate to CIS/SCC of individuals with lower-grade dysplasia or severe dysplasia with no significant difference in progression rate and time to progression combined with nonstepwise histologic changes unrelated to the initial histologic grading indicate that one cannot differentiate the potentially more malignant preneoplastic lesions among the many preneoplastic lesions present in the bronchial mucosa. The initial WHO classification of any preneoplastic lesion cannot be reliably used for accurate risk assessment of field carcinogenesis.
Objectives
To evaluate whether there is an increased risk for noise-induced hearing loss at high altitude rsp. in hypobaric hypoxia.
Methods
Thirteen volunteers got standard audiometry at 125, 250, ...500, 750, 1000, 1500, 2000, 3000, 4000, 6000, and 8000 Hz before and after 10 min of white noise at 90 dB. The system was calibrated for the respective altitude. Measurements were performed at Kathmandu (1400 m) and at Gorak Shep (5300 m) (Solo Khumbu/Nepal) after 10 days of acclimatization while on trek. Temporary threshold shift (TTS) was analyzed by descriptive statistics and by factor analysis.
Results
TTS is significantly more pronounced at high altitudes. Acclimatization does not provide any protection of the inner ear, although it increases arterial oxygen saturation.
Conclusion
The thresholds beyond which noise protection is recommended (> 80 dB) or necessary (> 85 dB) are not sufficient at high altitudes. We suggest providing protective devices above an altitude of 1500 m (“ear threshold altitude”) when noise level is higher than 75 dB and using them definitively above 80 dB. This takes the individual reaction on hypobaric hypoxia at high altitude into account.
To assess the safety of a polyethylene glycol (PEG) 4000 laxative without additional salts in pediatric patients.
This was a 3-month multicenter, randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, ...lactulose-controlled, parallel study enrolling 96 ambulatory constipated children aged 6 months to 3 years, treated daily with 4-8 g PEG or 3.33 g-6.66 g lactulose. Total protein, albumin, iron, electrolytes, and vitamins B9 (folates), A and D (25OHD3) were measured in blood before and after treatment (day 84) in a central laboratory.
The percentage of children with at least one value out of normal range at day 84 with respect to baseline status (with or without at least one value out of normal range), i.e. the primary endpoint, was 87% and 90% in the PEG and lactulose groups, respectively, without any difference between groups. The whole blood parameters showed no qualitative or quantitative treatment-related changes. Vitamin A values were above normal range in 56% and 41% of children at baseline versus 33% and 36% at day 84 in the PEG and lactulose groups, respectively. Iron values were similarly under normal range in 47% and 51% at baseline versus 42% and 51% at day 84. Clinical tolerance was similar for both treatments except for vomiting and flatulence, which were significantly higher with lactulose. Significantly higher improvements were evidenced with PEG regarding stool consistency, appetite, fecaloma and use of additional laxatives.
This 3-month study in 96 constipated children aged 6 months to 3 years confirms the long-term tolerance of PEG 4000 in pediatrics and indicates a PEG efficacy similar to or greater than that of lactulose.