We investigated the diagnostic value of a new system, the Innotrac Aio!™ immunoassays for troponin, myoglobin and CK-MB, in 270 samples from patients with ACS, after bypass surgery (CABG) or with ...stable heart failure in comparison to the respective Roche assays.
The values of the cardiac markers assessed by the respective assays correlated (cTnT/cTnI Rho = 0.94, myoglobin Rho = 0.87, CK-MB Rho = 0.84). If values were dichotomised, we found a high concordance of test positive and negative classified patients by troponins with the respective assays.
There is strong evidence that the Innotrac Aio!™ system for cTnI measurement can be used reliably.
Improving energy performance of buildings is one of the most important tasks
for reaching sustainability. Assessing building energy consumption is
performed more often with specialized simulation ...tools. Sensitivity analysis
proved to be a valuable tool for creating more reliable and realistic
building energy models and better buildings. This paper briefly describes the
methodology for running global sensitivity analysis and tools that can be
used, and presents the results of such an analysis conducted for winter
period, daily, on input variables covering a real building's operation,
control and occupant related parameters that affect both thermal comfort and
heating energy consumption. Two sets of inputs were created. The only
difference between these sets is an addition of clothing insulation and
occupant heat gain as input variables. The reference building was simulated
for three distinctive winter weeks. Two additional input variables have an
effect especially on thermal comfort, but they do not disturb the relative
order of other influential input variables. The common influential variables
for both energy consumption and thermal comfort were identified and are: air
handling unit sup-ply temperature and airflow rate and control system related
parameters. This can help in future research into implementing the
simulation-assisted optimized operation in real buildings.
Allelopathic potential of Allium ursinum L Djurdjevic, Lola; Dinic, Anka; Pavlovic, Pavle ...
Biochemical systematics and ecology,
2004, Letnik:
32, Številka:
6
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Allium ursinum L. (wild garlic) represents a widely distributed plant species in beech and mixed beech–fir forests of Serbia. It forms dense populations in which the other species are either sparsely ...present or absent. Its allelopathic influences were studied using both the seeds and seedlings of test plants (lettuce, amaranth and wheat) and by analyzing phenolic acids and total phenolics in the leaves, bulbs and soil. Aqueous extract and volatile compounds of the bulbs were stronger inhibitors of seed germination and seedling growth compared to those of the leaves. The soil and phenolic-containing fraction of the soil under
Allium ursinum also inhibited seed germination and growth of test plant seedlings. The bulbs and the leaves were found to contain 2.30 mg/g and 3.24 mg/g (dry weight) of total free phenolics, respectively, and the same amount of bound phenol forms (1.0 mg/g). Among allelopathic matter in bulb and leaf extracts,
p-coumaric, ferulic,
p-hydroxybenzoic and vanillic acids as free and bound forms were identified (25.43–87.93 μg/g). The soil contained 0.16 mg/g free and 1.61 mg/g total bound phenolics and
p-coumaric, ferulic,
p-hydroxybenzoic, vanillic and syringic acids as free (1.00–9.65 μg/g) and bound forms (26.45–44.76 μg/g) were found. These results suggest that
A. ursinum influences other herbaceous plants in plant community via soil and volatile compounds which inhibit seed germination and plant growth.
Nowadays, two most often used methods for rolling bearings condition monitoring are thermographic inspection and vibrodiagnostic.
However, analysis of the relevant literature has shown that so far ...there is no established correlation between rolling bearings surface temperatures and measured radial vibration intensities. These variables also strongly depend on rolling bearing’s service life and it’s environmental operating conditions, especially in case of open pit coal mine conveyor idler’s rolling bearings; where high concentration of debris particles (such as surface dust, dirt and excavated coal) is present.
Taking into account previously listed facts; the main goal of the presented research results was to establish statistically significant correlation between listed variables: rolling bearings surface temperatures, radial vibration intensities, service life and concentration level of debris particles in bearing grease. In order to achieve this goal, specific experimental methodology was developed and implemented. Obtained results were then processed using standardized statistical software and appropriate correlation was generated and later verified in praxis.
At this moment, developed experimental methodology is applied only to open pit coal mine conveyor idler’s rolling bearings, but its principles are universal, so with minor modifications it could be used for prediction of any of listed variables for different kinds of rolling bearings, operating in different environments.
Abstract Interferons are produced following neural damage as part of the inflammatory response and may thus affect neural stem cell function. We compared the effects of interferon-γ and interferon-β ...on the proliferation and differentiation of adult murine neural progenitors. Both interferons inhibited neurosphere proliferation due to cell cycle arrest in G1 but only interferon-γ induced neuronal differentiation. Both interferons induced differential phosphorylation of STAT proteins and a modest and late upregulation of the cell cycle regulator p27 but not several other likely cell cycle regulators. Thus in neural progenitor cells, anti-proliferative effects of interferons are not necessarily linked to differentiation.
Background:
Chronic immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is characterised by antibody‐mediated platelet destruction, shortened platelet survival (PS) and impaired platelets production. Platelet kinetic ...study (PKS) assesses in vivo the mean PS, platelet production and the platelet sequestration site. Thrombopoietin receptor agonists (TPO‐RA) increase platelets counts (PC) in majority of chronic ITP patients. Moreover, some patients could retain stabile response after TPO‐RA discontinuation, which is attributed to the immunomodulatory effects of the drugs. Addressing this issue only a few studies have been done assessing the effect of TPO‐RA on PKS parameters.
Aims:
To evaluate the effects of TPO‐RA on PKS parameters.
Methods:
Ten patients with chronic ITP, median age 55.3 years (range 12–72), gender (f: n = 7, m: n = 3), splenectomised 6/10, were treated with TPO‐RA (eltrombopag, n = 7, romiplostim, n = 3). Response was assessed according to the criteria of the International Working Group (IWG) on ITP. Autologous 111Induim‐oxinate‐labeled PKS were performed in all patients before and 5 months after TPO‐RA therapy initiation.
Results:
A good treatment response was achieved in 8/10 of patients (eltrombopag, n = 6, romiplostim, n = 2). Two refractory patients were treated with TPO‐RA and low dose prednisolone. Baseline median parameters were as follows: PC 6.5x109/L (range 1–17), PS 0.5 days (range 0.1–1.6, normal: 7–10), platelet production ratio 0.65 (range 0.01–3.2, normal 1 ± 0.2), platelet turnover 30875 Plt/μL/day (range 1731–103500). The post−treatment PKS showed significantly higher median PC of 62.5x109/L (range 5–501) (p = 0.013) and median platelet production ratio of 1.8 (range 0.5–37.9) (p = 0.05). However, median PS of 0.7 days (range 0.1–2.9) (p = 0.09), as well as platelet turnover of 58471.5 Plt/μL/day (range 2800–462236) (p = 0.086) and platelet destruction site remained unaltered. It is of note that two refractory patients (N08 and N010 in table) increased their platelet production (platelet production ratio and platelet turnover), while their PS remained reduced. It is of note that there was no clear correlation between PC and PS. Nevertheless, PC correlated only with platelet turnover prior (p = 0.006) and after TPO‐RA therapy (p = 0.029).
Summary/Conclusion:
Our prospective study in which PKS was performed initially and during TPO‐RA therapy suggests that TPO‐RA could increase PC by augmented production. Further studies on larger cohorts are needed to confirm this idea.
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