Ni-based superalloys offer resistance to high-temperature oxidation in different industrial sectors. These alloys can also be deposited as coatings onto metallic substrates by means of different ...techniques. In this work, a diode laser with carefully selected process parameters was used to generate Inconel 625 coatings onto ferritic and stainless steel substrates. The coatings obtained were exposed to high-temperature treatment in air and different exposition times were studied. The evolution of the coatings microstructure was analysed and depth-sensing indentation tests were performed to measure the evolution of elastic modulus and hardness with the exposition time. Finally, mechanical properties and microstructural changes were correlated. The results revealed that the average mechanical properties and the microstructure of the coatings were not affected by the steel used as the substrate. The treatment at 520°C increased the amount of carbides and brought to the appearance of Laves phases. The treatment at 800°C promoted the formation of mainly δ and Laves phases. These microstructural evolutions involved changes in the values of the mechanical properties of the coatings, which could control their response under operating conditions.
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•The dendritic microstructure of the Inconel 625 clads was modified as a result of the high-temperatures exposition in air.•The exposition to high temperature produced the formation of carbides and secondary phases in the interdendritic zones.•The clads treated at high temperature showed higher values of elastic modulus and hardness than those as-deposited.•Higher values of elastic modulus and hardness were measured after the heat treatment at 520°C than to 800°C.•The elastic modulus of the secondary phases and carbides generated at high temperature were estimated.
We report a large family with a temporal partial epilepsy syndrome inherited in an autosomal dominant mode, with a penetrance of about 80%. This epilepsy syndrome is benign, with age of onset in the ...second or third decade of life. It is characterized by rare partial seizures, usually secondarily generalized, arising mostly during sleep, without postictal confusion. There is a good response to the antiepileptic therapy but often a recurrence of seizures after drug withdrawal. The partial component, visual (lights, colors, and simple figures) or auditory (buzzing or “humming like a machine”), the existence of temporo‐occipital interictal electroencephalographic epileptiform abnormalities, and the hypoperfusion in the temporal lobe detected by interictal hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime–technetium 99m (HMPAO‐Tc99m) single‐photon emission computed tomography, strongly suggest a lateral temporal lobe origin. The genetic analysis found linkage to chromosome 10q, and localized a gene in a 15‐cM interval that overlaps a previously found localization for partial epilepsy in a large three‐generation family. This syndrome could be called autosomal dominant lateral temporal epilepsy. Ann Neurol 1999;45:182–188
The aim of this study was to characterize the EEG alterations in inter-band interactions along the Alzheimer's disease (AD) continuum. For this purpose, EEG background activity from 51 healthy ...control subjects, 51 mild cognitive impairment patients, 50 mild AD patients, 50 moderate AD patients, and 50 severe AD patients was analyzed by means of bispectrum. Three inter-band features were extracted from bispectrum matrices: bispectral relative power (BispRP), cubic bispectral entropy (BispEn), and bispectral median frequency (BispMF). BispRP results showed an increase of delta and theta interactions with other frequency bands and the opposite behavior for alpha, beta-1, and beta-2. Delta and theta interactions, along with the rest of the spectrum, also experimented a decrease of BispEn with disease progression, suggesting these bands interact with a reduced variety of components in advanced stages of dementia. Finally, BispMF showed a consistent reduction along the AD continuum in all bands, which is reflective of an interaction of the global spectrum with lower frequency bands as the disease develops. Our results indicate a progressive decrease in inter-band interactions with the severity of the disease, especially those involving high frequency components. Since inter-band coupling oscillations are related to complex and multi-scaled brain processes, these alterations likely reflect the neurodegeneration associated with the AD continuum.
Tetrahydropyrans are abundantly found in marine natural products. The interesting biological properties of these compounds and their analogues make necessary the development of convenient procedures ...for their synthesis. In this paper, an atom economy access to tetrahydropyrans by intramolecular acid-mediated cyclization of silylated alkenols is described. p-TsOH has shown to be an efficient reagent to yield highly substituted tetrahydropyrans. Moreover, excellent diastereoselectivities are obtained both for unsubstituted and alkylsubstituted vinylsilyl alcohols. The methodology herein developed may potentially be applied to the synthesis of marine drugs derivatives.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder. Although a definite diagnosis is only possible by necropsy, a differential diagnosis with other types of dementia and with ...major depression should be attempted. The aim of this study was to analyse the electroencephalogram (EEG) background activity of AD patients to test the hypothesis that the regularity of the AD patients' EEG is higher than that of age-matched controls. We recorded the EEG from 19 scalp electrodes in 11 AD patients and 11 age-matched controls. Two different methods were used to estimate the regularity of the EEG background activity: spectral entropy (SpecEn) and sample entropy (SampEn). We did not find significant differences between AD patients and control subjects' EEGs with SpecEn. On the other hand, AD patients had significantly lower SampEn values than control subjects (p < 0.01) at electrodes P3, P4, O1 and O2. Our results show an increase of EEG regularity in AD patients. These findings suggest that nonlinear analysis of the EEG with SampEn could yield essential information and may contribute to increasing the insight into brain dysfunction in AD in ways which are not possible with more classical and conventional statistical methods.
This paper presents the extension of a meta-model (MAM5) and a framework based on the model (JaCalIVE) for developing intelligent virtual environments. The goal of this extension is to develop ...augmented mirror worlds that represent a real and virtual world coupled, so that the virtual world not only reflects the real one, but also complements it. A new component called a smart resource artifact, that enables modelling and developing devices to access the real physical world, and a human in the loop agent to place a human in the system have been included in the meta-model and framework. The proposed extension of MAM5 has been tested by simulating a light control system where agents can access both virtual and real sensor/actuators through the smart resources developed. The results show that the use of real environment interactive elements (smart resource artifacts) in agent-based simulations allows to minimize the error between simulated and real system.
The transition from paediatric to adult neurology consultations in patients with epilepsy must be understood as a process in which the patient acquires independence in the management of their disease ...and faces new issues related to adulthood. The aim of this study is to gather the opinion of experts in epilepsy on this transition in order to issue recommendations.
Using a Delphi consensus process, 54 paediatric and adult neurologists with expertise in epilepsy expressed their degree of agreement on 38 statements on about the transition from paediatric to adult consultations, grouped into the following sections: (1) preparation and moments prior to transition; (2) transition process; and (3) moments after the transition and follow-up.
After 2 rounds, consensus was reached for 33 statements (86.8%). For the remaining 5 statements (13.2%), there was neither agreement nor disagreement. Among the subjects for which consensus was strongest was the involvement of the patient and family, who must be provided sufficient information to resolve their doubts and concerns. Before referral, the clinical report must be reviewed to ensure that it contains all relevant information on the disease. During the first follow-up visits after the transition, the patient's knowledge should be brought up to date in order to promote their autonomy.
The clinical report, early preparation, and complete case review are considered fundamental in the process of transition from paediatric to adult neurology care.
La transición desde neuropediatría a las consultas de neurología para adultos en pacientes con epilepsia ha de entenderse como un proceso en el que el paciente adquiere una independencia en el manejo de la enfermedad y afronta nuevos aspectos relacionados con la edad adulta. El objetivo de este estudio es conocer la opinión de expertos en epilepsia sobre esta transición para poder ofrecer recomendaciones.
Mediante un consenso Delphi, 54 neuropediatras y neurólogos expertos en epilepsia mostraron su grado de acuerdo en 38 aseveraciones sobre la transición de pediatría a la consulta de adultos agrupadas en los siguientes bloques: 1) preparación y momento previo a la transición; 2) durante la transición; y 3) momento posterior a la transición y seguimiento.
Tras dos rondas, se alcanzó un consenso en el acuerdo en 33 aseveraciones (86,8%). En las 5 aseveraciones restantes (13,2%) no hubo ni acuerdo ni desacuerdo. Entre los acuerdos más importantes destaca la implicación del paciente y la familia a los que es necesario aportar información suficiente para disipar sus dudas y miedos. Antes de la derivación, se ha de comprobar que el informe clínico contiene toda la información relevante de la enfermedad. Durante las primeras visitas de seguimiento tras la transición, se han de actualizar los conocimientos de los pacientes para lograr su autonomía.
El informe clínico, la preparación anticipada y la revisión completa del caso se consideran fundamentales en el proceso de transición de pediatría a la consulta de adultos.
As our cities become more complex and traffic demand grows, managing such traffic efficiently becomes challenging. Hence, solutions that allow building upon the current traffic light systems and that ...can be readily deployed are of global interest. In this work, we address the challenge of improving traffic light management at intersections. We propose an agent-based traffic light control system where an agent, one per intersection, dynamically regulates the light’s phase cycle depending on the current traffic conditions. To this end, we will rely on Deep Networks to adequately train agents to make good decisions. Simulation results in a realistic scenario using SUMO show that our proposed approach can significantly reduce waiting times, improving transit times by 44% compared to the standard fixed-timing method. Additionally, to assess the effectiveness and reliability of our control algorithm, we introduce new performance metrics.
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•A distributed neural network-based agent system optimizes traffic in superblocks.•Every agent manages one intersection using deep Q-learning with experience replay.•Each agent optimizes its intersection and reduces vehicle waiting times.•Compared with fixed time, our algorithm achieves a 44% reduction in waiting times.•Thanks to deep Q-networks, changes in agents’ actions allow traffic light adaptation.
Autosomal dominant lateral temporal epilepsy (EPT; OMIM 600512) is a form of epilepsy characterized by partial seizures, usually preceded by auditory signs. The gene for this disorder has been mapped ...by linkage studies to chromosomal region 10q24. Here we show that mutations in the LGI1 gene segregate with EPT in two families affected by this disorder. Both mutations introduce premature stop codons and thus prevent the production of the full-length protein from the affected allele. By immunohistochemical studies, we demonstrate that the LGI1 protein, which contains several leucine-rich repeats, is expressed ubiquitously in the neuronal cell compartment of the brain. Moreover, we provide evidence for genetic heterogeneity within this disorder, since several other families with a phenotype consistent with this type of epilepsy lack mutations in the LGI1 gene.
In the USA, genetically admixed populations have the highest asthma prevalence and severe asthma exacerbations rates. This could be explained not only by environmental factors but also by genetic ...variants that exert ethnic-specific effects. However, no admixture mapping has been performed for severe asthma exacerbations.
We sought to identify genetic variants associated with severe asthma exacerbations in Hispanic/Latino subgroups by means of admixture mapping analyses and fine mapping, and to assess their transferability to other populations and potential functional roles.
We performed an admixture mapping in 1124 Puerto Rican and 625 Mexican American children with asthma. Fine-mapping of the significant peaks was performed via allelic testing of common and rare variants. We performed replication across Hispanic/Latino subgroups, and the transferability to non-Hispanic/Latino populations was assessed in 1001 African Americans, 1250 Singaporeans and 941 Europeans with asthma. The effects of the variants on gene expression and DNA methylation from whole blood were also evaluated in participants with asthma and in silico with data obtained through public databases.
Genomewide significant associations of Indigenous American ancestry with severe asthma exacerbations were found at 5q32 in Mexican Americans as well as at 13q13-q13.2 and 3p13 in Puerto Ricans. The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1144986 (
) showed consistent effects for severe asthma exacerbations across Hispanic/Latino subgroups, but it was not validated in non-Hispanics/Latinos. This SNP was associated with
DNA methylation and
gene expression levels.
Admixture mapping study of asthma exacerbations revealed a novel locus that exhibited Hispanic/Latino-specific effects and regulated
and
.
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