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Monosomy for the X-chromosome is associated with an atherogenic lipid profile.

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Men typically have a more atherogenic lipid profile than women characterized by higher low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and triglyceride levels and reduced lipid particle size, contributing to a greater risk for coronary disease. To determine whether X-chromosomal gene dosage affects lipid metabolism independent of sex steroid effects, we compared lipid profiles in age- and body mass-matched young women with ovarian failure, differing only in X-chromosome dosage. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PATIENTS: Women with premature ovarian failure associated with monosomy X or Turner syndrome (TS, n = 118) were compared with women with 46,XX premature ovarian failure (n = 51) in an in-patient clinical research center unit at the National Institutes of Health. These women were normally on estrogen replacement treatment but discontinued the estrogen 2 wk before study. MAJOR OUTCOMES: Fasting lipid levels and nuclear magnetic resonance lipid particle profiles in the two study groups were the major outcomes. RESULTS: Average age and body mass were similar in the two groups of women, but LDL cholesterol (P = 0.001) and triglyceride levels (P = 0.0005) were higher in the TS group. Also among women with TS, average LDL particle size was reduced (P < 0.0001) and LDL particle concentration increased, with a 2-fold increase in the smallest particle categories (P < 0.0001). Whereas total high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were similar, high-density lipoprotein particle size was significantly smaller in women with TS, compared with women with premature ovarian failure (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Women with 45,X with ovarian failure exhibit a distinctly more atherogenic lipid profile than 46,XX women with ovarian failure, suggesting that the second X-chromosome contributes to a more salutary lipid profile in normal women, independent of sex steroid effects.

Atherosclerosis↗

Effects of resistive training on lipoprotein-lipid profiles: a comparison to aerobic exercise training.

A recent surge of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies dealing with resistive training and lipid profiles have produced conflicting results. The majority of cross-sectional studies demonstrate a reduced HDL cholesterol level or elevated total cholesterol to HDL ratio in strength trained athletes as compared with endurance trained athletes. Because of selection biases from many of these studies, there is a lack of control for factors that may influence lipids and lipoproteins, such as age, body composition, diet, and anabolic-androgenic steroid use. Most investigators have reported improved lipoprotein-lipid profiles from resistive training programs. However, many of these studies have design flaws or limitations that make their conclusions questionable. The most serious design flaws include the combination of no control group and only one blood sample taken before and after training, the use of subjects who have low risk profiles, and the lack of control for dietary effects. In a recent study in which we attempted to control for these factors, no changes in lipid profiles were observed after 20 wk of resistive training among individuals at risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). A group serving as reference controls who participated in aerobic-type exercise training during the same time period reduced their plasma triglyceride levels but did not alter their cholesterol or lipoprotein levels. No changes in any lipids or lipoproteins were observed in a group of inactive controls. Thus, resistive training does not appear to alter lipoprotein-lipid profiles among individuals at risk for CHD.

Adolescent↗

Plasmid profiles of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from horses.

Plasmid profiles of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from horses were examined. Thirty-nine strains of K. pneumoniae capsular type 1 (K1) isolated from cervical swabs of mares suffering from metritis, and from semen of stallions showed similar plasmid profile patterns, and all strains possessed a 125 megadaltons (Md) plasmid. There was no difference in plasmid profiles between the heavily-encapsulated and the less heavily-encapsulated strains of K. pneumoniae K1. Non-capsulated variants derived from the strains of K1 showed the same plasmid profile pattern as the parent strains. Plasmid profiles of K. pneumoniae other than K1 were various, and none of these strains possessed the 125 Md plasmid.

Animals↗

The development of a Children's Implant Profile.

The decision to provide a child with a cochlear implant is quite complex, as it must include consideration not only of the implant itself but also of the habilitative services necessary following the surgical procedure. To provide a systematic means of selecting hearing-impaired children for cochlear implants, a team at Children's Hearing Institute, Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, developed the Children's Implant Profile (ChIP). There is no one profile of a successful implant user--at least 11 factors appear to contribute to successful implantation. In the ChIP, each factor is evaluated on a three-point scale: (1) no concern, (2) mild-to-moderate concern, and (3) great concern. A profile showing "no concern" on all 11 factors denotes clear acceptability of the child as an implant candidate. A profile including several ratings in the "mild-to-moderate concern" category suggests a need for further study to determine if improvements could be made in projected outcomes before initiating surgical procedures. Finally, ratings of "great concern," especially on more than one factor, indicate a very limited probability of successful implant outcomes, at least at the time of evaluation. A case study is presented to demonstrate the relationship between the evaluated factors and to show how the profile is used to address and remedy areas of concern.

Child↗

Optimization of diffraction grating profiles in fabrication by electron-beam lithography.

We propose a new design method for periodic diffraction gratings to be fabricated with direct-writing electron-beam lithography. When the grating has a small period, the proximity effect of electron scattering restricts the grating profile after developing. Our design method optimizes the electron-dose profile and grating profile simultaneously to obtain the desired diffraction efficiency under the restriction of the proximity effect. The optimization is made with rigorous electromagnetic grating analysis and the resist development simulator. When we designed the diffraction grating with a period of 1.0 microm to obtain the highest efficiency of the first-order diffracted light of a 633-nm wavelength, the calculated grating profile was really different from the profile optimized only with rigorous electromagnetic grating analysis. Moreover, the diffraction grating of the electron-beam resist was fabricated according to the simulation result. The estimated diffraction efficiency was 82%, and the measured efficiency was 70%.

Journal Article↗

Effects of a nonuniform vertical profile of chlorophyll concentration on remote-sensing reflectance of the ocean.

Numerical simulations of radiative transfer were used to examine the effects of a nonuniform vertical profile of the inherent optical properties of the water column associated with the vertical profile of chlorophyll concentration, Chl(z), on the spectral remote-sensing reflectance, Rrs(gamma), of the ocean. Using the Gaussian function that describes the Chl(z) profile, we simulated a relatively broad range of open-ocean conditions characterized by the presence of a subsurface Chl maximum at depths greater than or equal to 20 m. The simulations for a vertically nonuniform Chl(z) were compared with reference simulations for a homogeneous ocean whose Chl was identical to the surface Chl of inhomogeneous cases. The range of values for the Gaussian parameters that produce significant differences in Rrs(gamma) (> 5%) was determined. For some vertical structures of Chl(z) considered, the magnitude of Rrs(gamma) and the blue-to-green band ratios of Rrs(gamma) differ significantly from the reference values of homogeneous ocean (> 70% in extreme cases of low surface chlorophyll of 0.02 mg m(-3) and shallow pigment maximum at 20 m). The differences are small or negligible when the nonuniform profiles are characterized by a surface Chl greater than 0.4 mg m(-3) or a depth of Chl maximum greater than 45 m (65 m in extremely clear waters with a surface Chl of 0.02 mg m(-3) or less). The comparison of modeling results with the current algorithm for retrieving the global distribution of chlorophyll from satellite imagery of ocean color suggests that strong effects of the subsurface chlorophyll maximum on reflectance at low surface chlorophyll concentrations can lead to a severalfold overestimation in the algorithm-derived surface chlorophyll. Examples of field data from the Sea of Japan and the north polar Atlantic Ocean are used to illustrate various nonuniform pigment profiles and their effect on the blue-to-green ratio of Rrs(gamma).

Journal Article↗

Laser beam shaping profiles and propagation.

We consider four families of functions--the super-Gaussian, flattened Gaussian, Fermi-Dirac, and super-Lorentzian--that have been used to describe flattened irradiance profiles. We determine the shape and width parameters of the different distributions, when each flattened profile has the same radius and slope of the irradiance at its half-height point, and then we evaluate the implicit functional relationship between the shape and width parameters for matched profiles, which provides a quantitative way to compare profiles described by different families of functions. We conclude from an analysis of each profile with matched parameters using Kirchhoff-Fresnel diffraction theory and M2 analysis that the diffraction patterns as they propagate differ by small amounts, which may not be distinguished experimentally. Thus, beam shaping optics is designed to produce either of these four flattened output irradiance distributions with matched parameters will yield similar irradiance distributions as the beam propagates.

Journal Article↗

Wide-aperture no-moving-parts optical beam profiler using liquid-crystal displays.

To the best of our knowledge, we demonstrate the first no-moving-parts largest aperture profiler design that is also cost effective. Specifically exploited is the large-scale production of thin-film transistor liquid-crystal displays (LCDs) to produce a high intrinsic reliability low-cost profiler. Today, the maximum beam diameter under test can reach 70 cm using 117 cm diagonal LCDs. Experiments conducted with the laboratory LCD profiler include 1D and 2D knife-edge profiling, 2D pinhole profiling, and beam divergence measurements.

Journal Article↗

Geometrical theory to predict eccentric photorefraction intensity profiles in the human eye.

In eccentric photorefraction, light returning from the retina of the eye is photographed by a camera focused on the eye's pupil. We use a geometrical model of eccentric photorefraction to generate intensity profiles across the pupil image. The intensity profiles for three different monochromatic aberration functions induced in a single eye are predicted and show good agreement with the measured eccentric photorefraction intensity profiles. A directional reflection from the retina is incorporated into the calculation. Intensity profiles for symmetric and asymmetric aberrations are generated and measured. The latter profile shows a dependency on the source position and the meridian. The magnitude of the effect of thresholding on measured pattern extents is predicted. Monochromatic aberrations in human eyes will cause deviations in the eccentric photorefraction measurements from traditional crescents caused by defocus and may cause misdiagnoses of ametropia or anisometropia. Our results suggest that measuring refraction along the vertical meridian is preferred for screening studies with the eccentric photorefractor.

Computer Simulation↗

True chemical composition profiles at polymer interphases: recovery from measurements distorted by instrumental broadening.

The determination of chemical composition profiles at polymer interphases is an important issue at the moment of elucidating the physical mechanisms that operate in polymer diffusion processes and for calculating diffusion parameters. Several techniques are available to measure these profiles, the most common being forward recoil spectroscopy, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, nuclear reaction analysis, confocal Raman microspectroscopy (CRM), and scanning infrared microscopy. However, all these techniques are affected by the limited resolution of the experimental setup, which in practice produces a rounding effect on the sharp corners of the composition profile; this may lead to incorrect conclusions regarding the measurements. In this work an inverse technique is proposed to correct this undesirable effect in the profiles. The inversion is performed on a model of the measuring process, which includes the instrumental broadening function, a quantitative representation of the limited resolution. The proposed methodology was tested using numerically generated experiments and genuine experimental runs obtained from CRM measurements at interphases of polymer bilayers. In all cases, the recovered profiles were close to the expected ones. In the truly experimental results diffusion tails are observed behind and ahead of the diffusion front before the numerical treatment of the data. These tails may be caused by a genuine mass diffusion or by an artifact. After the numerical treatment the tails disappear and a sharp interphase is recovered, a result one expects for the polymer pairs under study.

Computer Simulation↗

Advances in the Raman depth profiling of polymer laminates.

The use of Raman microspectroscopy to depth profile multi-layered polymer laminates is becoming increasingly popular. However, the results are generally degraded by aberrations introduced by the change in refractive index at the air/sample interface. Recent research has suggested that the use of an immersion oil and suitable objective can reduce this effect. This study evaluates this proposal by comparing depth profiling results on a multi-layer poly(styrene)/poly(methylmethacrylate) (PS/PMMA) laminate polymer from both dry metallurgical objectives and immersion objectives (used in combination with an oil of suitable refractive index). The immersion technique enabled successful depth profiling to the full working distance of the objective (100 microm), showing clear and distinct variations in 11 different layers within the laminate; a dry metallurgical objective used for comparison achieved poor resolution of only two layers. This is the first demonstration of depth profiling within a polymer laminate to this depth. The depth profiling results are compared to results obtained by sectioning the PS/PMMA sample after setting it in resin.

Journal Article↗

Dual beam light profile microscopy: a new technique for optical absorption depth profilometry.

Light profile microscopy (LPM) is a recently developed technique of optical inspection that is used to record micrometer-scale images of thin-film cross-sections on a direct basis. In single beam mode, LPM provides image contrast based on luminescence, elastic, and/or inelastic scatter. However, LPM may also be used to depth profile the optical absorption coefficient of a thin film based on a method of dual beam irradiation presented in this work. The method uses a pair of collimated laser beams to consecutively irradiate a film from two opposing directions along the depth axis. An average profile of the beam's light intensity variation through the material is recovered for each direction and used to compute a depth-dependent differential absorbance profile. This latter quantity is shown from theory to be related to the film's depth-dependent optical absorption coefficient through a simple linear model that may be inverted by standard methods of numerical linear algebra. The inverse problem is relatively well posed, showing good immunity to data errors. This profilometry method is experimentally applied to a set of well-characterized materials with known absorption properties over a scale of tens of micrometers, and the reconstructed absorption profiles were found to be highly consistent with the reference data.

Journal Article↗

Profile of immune cells in axillary lymph nodes predicts disease-free survival in breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: While lymph node metastasis is among the strongest predictors of disease-free and overall survival for patients with breast cancer, the immunological nature of tumor-draining lymph nodes is often ignored, and may provide additional prognostic information on clinical outcome. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We performed immunohistochemical analysis of 47 sentinel and 104 axillary (nonsentinel) nodes from 77 breast cancer patients with 5 y of follow-up to determine if alterations in CD4, CD8, and CD1a cell populations predict nodal metastasis or disease-free survival. Sentinel and axillary node CD4 and CD8 T cells were decreased in breast cancer patients compared to control nodes. CD1a dendritic cells were also diminished in sentinel and tumor-involved axillary nodes, but increased in tumor-free axillary nodes. Axillary node, but not sentinel node, CD4 T cell and dendritic cell populations were highly correlated with disease-free survival, independent of axillary metastasis. Immune profiling of ALN from a test set of 48 patients, applying CD4 T cell and CD1a dendritic cell population thresholds of CD4 > or = 7.0% and CD1a > or = 0.6%, determined from analysis of a learning set of 29 patients, provided significant risk stratification into favorable and unfavorable prognostic groups superior to clinicopathologic characteristics including tumor size, extent or size of nodal metastasis (CD4, p < 0.001 and CD1a, p < 0.001). Moreover, axillary node CD4 T cell and CD1a dendritic cell populations allowed more significant stratification of disease-free survival of patients with T1 (primary tumor size 2 cm or less) and T2 (5 cm or larger) tumors than all other patient characteristics. Finally, sentinel node immune profiles correlated primarily with the presence of infiltrating tumor cells, while axillary node immune profiles appeared largely independent of nodal metastases, raising the possibility that, within axillary lymph nodes, immune profile changes and nodal metastases represent independent processes. CONCLUSION: These findings demonstrate that the immune profile of tumor-draining lymph nodes is of novel biologic and clinical importance for patients with early stage breast cancer.

Adult↗

Concentration-dependent profiles for describing the scatter of results of interlaboratory surveys.

In an interlaboratory survey for the quantitative determination of a clinical chemical quantity, samples of the same specimen are analysed in different laboratories. If the number of participating laboratories is sufficiently large, then the differences between the 50th percentile (median) and e. g. the 25th and 75th percentiles of the results give a very reliable impression of the range of interlaboratory scatter for the particular analytical technique. Results from a relatively large number of interlaboratory surveys, in which specimens containing different concentrations of the analyte are investigated, can be handled in the same way. If the resulting differences between the chosen percentiles are plotted against the median, and the corresponding two regression lines (upper and lower) are drawn, the results are asymmetric scatter profiles covering the concentration range of the specimen collective. Numerous options are available. Thus, a profile's power of characterizing the scatter correctly can be improved by weighing of the results. Moreover, scatter profiles can be based on different variables of the survey, such as the analytical method, or the observation period, etc. They may be based on the total collective of all results for a given quantity, or they can be constructed for subcollectives of results obtained with a single analytical method. Further, it is possible to present the results of all subcollectives in a single pair of scatter profiles. This latter type of analysis provides profiles of the average scatter for a collective of different analytical methods, which are unaffected by any systematic differences that may exist between the methods.

Blood Chemical Analysis↗

Oxygen profiles in membranes.

Transmembrane profiles of molecular oxygen in lipid bilayers are not only significant for membrane physiology and pathology, but also are essential to the determination of membrane protein structure by site-directed spin labeling. Oxygen profiles obtained with spin-labeled lipid chains have a Boltzmann sigmoidal dependence on the depth into each lipid leaflet, which represents a two-compartment distribution between outer and inner regions of the membrane, with a transfer free energy that depends linearly on distance from the dividing planes. Transmembrane profiles for intramembrane polarity, and for water penetration into the membrane, have an identical form, but are of the reverse sign. Comparison with recently published oxygen profiles from a site-specifically spin-labeled alpha-helical transmembrane peptide validates the use of spin-labeled lipids for all these profiles and provides the necessary bridge to generate the full bilayer from a single lipid leaflet.

Biophysics↗

[The effects of sphincteroplasty on manometric profile of common bile duct and the duodenum (author's transl)].

A simultaneous manometric monitoring of the common bile duct (CBD) and the duodenum were performed 2 weeks after choledocholithotomy on 15 patients whose common bile ducts were explored without sphincteroplasty and 30 patients with sphincteroplasty. These manometric studies were carried out by open-tip catheters intubated into the CBD and duodenum through the T-tube at the operation. In patients without sphincteroplasty, no effects of the duodenal pressure on a CBD pressure profile were recognized, while a synchronized pressure profile of the CBD and the duodenum was obtained in patients with sphincteroplasty. By stimulation with morphine (Morphine sulfate; 0.17 mg/Kg iv bolus), waxing and waning of the pressured in the CBD without sphincteroplasty were observed with 20 cmH2O in maximum at about 13 minutes after injection. However, in the CBD with sphincteroplasty, scale-over increase of the pressure curve was seen immediately after duodenal contraction caused by morphine stimulation. A direct infusion of 5 ml of 0.1 N hydrochloride to the duodenum causes hyperperistalsis of the duodenum, which made a synchronized pressure profile in the CBD with sphincteroplasty but made no remarkable change in a pressure profile of the CBD without sphincteroplasty. These findings conclude that the sphincter of Oddi plays an important role as a "pressure barrier" between the CBD and the duodenum, and that with the destruction of this sphincter by sphincteroplasty, a pressure profile of the CBD becomes close to that of the duodenum. This simultaneous manometric study of the CBD and the duodenum might be one of most valuable methods for evaluation of completeness of the sphincteroplasty.

Ampulla of Vater↗

Lysotypes and plasmidial profile of Salmonella serovar typhimurium isolated from children with enteric processes in the cities of Rio de Janeiro, RJ, and Salvador, BA - Brazil.

The lysotypes, plasmidial profiles, and profiles of resistance to antimicrobial agents were determined in 111 Salmonella Typhimurium strains isolated from feces and blood of children treated in Rio de Janeiro and in Salvador. Six distinct lysotypes (19, 41, 97, 105, 120 and 193) were recognized, with a predominance of lysotype 193 (59.7%) in Rio de Janeiro and of phage type 105 (38.4) in Salvador. Approximately 86.7% of the lysotype 193 strains presented multiple resistance to more than six antimicrobial agents, whereas 93% of lysotype 105 strains were fully susceptible. More than 90% of the strains presented plasmids distributed into 36 different profiles in Rio de Janeiro and into 10 profiles in Salvador. A 40 MDa plasmid was the most frequent (47%) in the strains from Rio de Janeiro, whereas a 61 MDa plasmid predominated (14.5%) in Salvador. Combined analysis of plasmid profile and classification into lysotypes (especially those belonging to types 105 and 103, proved to be more discriminatory than the other methods applied).

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗

Typing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa from hospitalized patients: a comparison of susceptibility and biochemical profiles with genotype.

Typing techniques are essential for understanding hospital epidemiology, permitting the elucidation of the source of infection and routes of bacterial transmission. Although DNA-based techniques are the "gold standard" for the epidemiological study of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, antibiotic profiles and biochemical results are used because they are easy to perform and to interpret and relatively inexpensive. Antibiotypes (susceptibility profiles) and biotypes (biochemical profiles) were compared to genotypes established by DNA restriction enzyme analysis in 81 clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa from three hospitals in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The epidemiological relationship among patients was also evaluated. Susceptibility and restriction profiles were discrepant in more than 50% of the cases, and many antibiotypes were observed among isolates from the same genotype. Furthermore, susceptibility profiles did not allow the distinction of isolates from unrelated genotypes. Since a large number of isolates (63%) yielded the same biochemical results, only 10 biotypes were detected, showing that this typing method has a low discriminatory power. On the other hand, DNA restriction enzyme typing allowed us to establish 71 distinct types. Epidemiological data about the relation among P. aeruginosa isolates were not conclusive. The results of the present study indicate that the only method that can establish a clonal relation is DNA restriction enzyme typing, whereas the other methods may cause misleading interpretations and are inadequate to guide proper infection control measures.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗