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Environmental remediation by an integrated microwave/UV illumination method. V. Thermal and nonthermal effects of microwave radiation on the photocatalyst and on the photodegradation of rhodamine-B under UV/Vis radiation.

The photocatalyzed degradation (PD) of the cationic rhodamine-B (RhB) dye was examined in aqueous TiO2 dispersions using UV/Vis illumination assisted by microwave radiation (PD/MW). The initial degradation by the PD/MW method is compared to the PD method and to the thermally assisted PD method using conventional heating (PD/TH). Total organic carbon (TOC) assays show that the efficiency of complete mineralization of the dye follows PD/MW > PD/TH > PD > MW. In all cases, microwave radiation alone had no effect on the loss of TOC. The degradation involving microwave radiation was especially efficient when coupled to UV irradiation. By contrast, the extent of degradation of RhB involving suitable excited states through visible irradiation of the dye was rather inefficient when coupled to microwave radiation. Contact angle measurements on the TiO2 photocatalyst particles indicate that microwave radiation also causes an increase in the hydrophobic character of the TiO2 surface, with consequences on the adsorption mode of the dye substrate and thus on the overall mechanism of degradation. Deethylated RhB intermediates were identified by an electrospray ESI ionization mass spectral technique in the positive ion mode and subsequently confirmed by HPLC/absorption spectroscopy. Computer simulations led to estimates of frontier electron densities of all atoms of the RhB structure, affording inferences as to the position of radical attack on RhB. The nitrogen atoms of the dye were all converted to NH4+ ions. The major difference between the thermally assisted PD/TH method and the microwave-assisted PD/MW method showed that nonthermal effects from the microwave radiation impact significantly on the nature of the photocatalyst surface. These effects led to a more efficient photodegradation and mineralization of the dye substrate.

Adsorption↗

Mechanism-based inactivation of human liver microsomal cytochrome P-450 IIIA4 by gestodene.

A series of 17 alpha-acetylenic steroids was examined with regard to ability to inactivate human liver microsomal cytochrome P-450 (P-450) IIA4, an enzyme involved in the oxidation of a number of drugs, carcinogens, and steroids, including estrogens and progestogens. Of the eight compounds tested, gestodene was found to be particularly active as a mechanism-based inactivator of P-450 IIIA4. Inhibition of both microsomal nifedipine oxidation and 17 alpha-ethynylestradiol (EE) 2-hydroxylation was dependent upon NADPH and gestodene concentration. Rates of inactivation were pseudo first order-values of kinactivation = 0.4 min-1 and Ki = 46 microM and a partition ratio of 9 were calculated. The kinactivation is approximately 50-fold greater than estimated for EE and is one of the highest reported for P-450 mechanism-based inactivators. Spectrally detectable P-450 was also destroyed in microsomes, but several experiments indicate that little covalent binding to amino acid residues of P-450 IIIA4 occurs. Microsomal inactivation of P-450 could be blocked by the presence of other P-450 IIIA4 substrates, and several activities catalyzed by other P-450s were not inhibited under conditions in which greater than 90% of P-450 IIIA4 was inactivated. Consideration of structure/activity relationships among the 17 alpha-acetylenic steroids examined indicates that the delta 15 double bond is critical but is not in itself sufficient for the inactivation process, which is postulated to result from attack of P-450 on the substituted acetylenic carbon and lead to porphyrin N-alkylation. The effectiveness of this mechanism-based inactivator may account for reports of increased estrogen and steroid levels in some women using gestodene in oral contraceptives.

Contraceptives, Oral↗

Spectral sensitivity of single cones in the retina of Macaca fascicularis.

Colour vision depends on the wavelength-dependent absorptions of three different photolabile pigments each located in a particular type of retinal cone. The spectral absorption of primate cones has been examined by microspectrophotometry, but this method gives information only at wavelengths where the absorption is relatively strong. Here we have analysed the absorption of two of the cones over a wider range of wavelengths by recording their electrical responses to monochromatic light. The observations were made on the retina of the monkey Macaca fascicularis, an animal thought to have cone pigments like those of man. The measured spectral sensitivities of the red-sensitive ('red') and green-sensitive ('green') cones agreed well with estimates of the cone pigment absorptions derived from colour-matching experiments in humans. At long wavelengths the sensitivity of the red cones was found to decline more rapidly than that of the green. This behaviour, attributable to the cone pigment molecules themselves, explains the paradoxical hue shift, in which a light of very long wavelength is perceived to be identical to a light of shorter wavelength.

Action Potentials↗

Isolation and characterization of new mutagens from fried ground beef.

Frying of ground beef at 250 degrees C results in the formation of a series of mutagenic heterocyclic amines, possibly as many as 10 distinct compounds. In this study, the mutagens are separated by aqueous/acid extraction from the beef, XAD adsorption, acid/neutral/base-liquid/liquid extraction, preparative reverse phase h.p.l.c., normal phase h.p.l.c., and analytical reverse phase h.p.l.c. Identification is by low and high resolution mass spectrometry, u.v. absorption spectroscopy and nitrite sensitivity assays. More than 30% of the mutagenic material is identified as 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (MeIQx). The previously described beef mutagen, 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ) contributes less than 12% of the total mutagenicity at high temperatures (300 degrees C) and less than 4% at lower temperatures. In addition to MeIQx major mutagens are seen with molecular ions at m/z 227 (C12H13N5), 209 (C13H11N3), and 176 (C9H12N4). Two very polar and two non-polar peaks making a relatively minor contribution to the total mutagenicity (less than 16% total) have not yet been identified. Estimates of the mass of these mutagens in the original cooked beef were made from the mass spectral analysis and the mutagenic recoveries. From one kilogram of cooked ground beef, 1.0 micrograms MeIQx, 0.02 micrograms of IQ, and up to 1.5 micrograms of additional mutagens are formed.

Hot Temperature↗

Radiometry and laser safety standards.

The application of occupational limits (ELs) in the outdoor laser environment requires an understanding of the radiometric methods required to evaluate field exposures with respect to the ELs. The limiting aperture required to adequately specify the EL must always be kept in mind. Since all exposure limits are defined as a function of time, electro-optical detectors and instrumentation must have an adequate temporal response and have an absence of saturation effects. As a field-expedient method thermally sensitive paper can also be employed to estimate the output radiant exposure of pulsed lasers. For evaluating potential ocular hazards in the retinal hazard spectral region (400 to 1400 nm), one should employ a 7-mm aperture. For evaluating potential hazards to the skin and the cornea, a 1-mm limiting aperture is justified. Although the impact of the 1-mm limiting aperture is to reduce the limiting power which is considered safe--the accessible emission limit for Class 1 laser products, it nevertheless is justified for field exposure of the eye, as has been shown in recent experimental studies of corneal injury.

Accident Prevention↗

A pseudojoint estimation of time delay and scale factor for M-wave analysis.

A pseudojoint estimation of time scale and time delay between an unknown deterministic transient type signal and a reference signal is proposed. The method is based on the separation between the estimations of the two dependent parameters. The time autocorrelation function (TACF) preserves the time scale and is invariant with respect to the time delay between the signals. The time scale factor can, thus, be estimated independently from time delay using the TACFs of the two signals. After estimating the time scale factor, the signal can be scaled by the estimated amount. The time delay is then estimated without bias due to the time scale factor. To obtain high resolution joint estimates, the time scale factor is estimated in the scale domain from the scale transforms of the TACFs of the two signals. The proposed method has low computational cost. Moreover, the results on synthetic signals show good performance of the method with respect to the Cramér-Rao Lower Bound and the joint Maximum Likelihood Estimation. A possible application of the technique to the analysis of electromyogram (EMG) signals detected during electrically elicited contractions is also presented. In a few representative cases, it is shown that the time scale estimate reveals myoelectric manifestations of muscle fatigue and is less affected by M-wave truncation than spectral EMG attributes.

Algorithms↗

Estimation of a photon energy spectrum for a computed tomography scanner.

Estimated photon energy spectra are derived from transmission measurements using aluminium, copper, and sodium iodide absorbers. Two spectral models are proposed. One is based on a previously published model that analyzes the electron's penetration into the anode, and the production and attenuation of bremsstrahlung photons. The second model does not include details regarding the underlying physics, but treats the spectrum as a sum of delta functions. A nonlinear regularization method is used to overcome ill conditioning in the second model. Both models fit the transmission data to an accuracy of 0.30%, which is consistent with the experimental error. A quantitative comparison of the models is made by calculating the average and variance (over the derived energy spectra) of several relevant mass attenuation coefficients. The maximum variation in the average and variance was 1.5% and 3.2%, respectively, indicating that the spectra exhibit similar attenuation and beam hardening properties. The spectra were tested with a simulation that predicts scanner CT numbers for phantom measurements consisting of dilutions of sodium iodide in a water equivalent background. The agreement between simulation and experiment ranged from 1.5% at 220 HU to 4.4% at 1700 HU.

Aluminum↗

Detection of temporal gaps in sinusoids by elderly subjects with and without hearing loss.

Thresholds for the detection of temporal gaps in sinusoidal signals were measured as a function of frequency (100-2000 Hz) and level in 15 elderly hearing-impaired subjects and 11 elderly subjects with near-normal hearing at frequencies below 2000 Hz. The sinusoids were presented in a background noise intended to mask spectral splatter associated with the gap. In a separate experiment, auditory filter shapes and detection efficiency were estimated for the same subjects using the notched-noise method, at center frequencies of 100, 200, 400, and 800 Hz. The gap thresholds at higher signal levels were similar for the two groups of subjects at all center frequencies tested. The mean gap thresholds were slightly higher than those obtained previously from young normally hearing subjects, but this was mainly due to the results of a few subjects with large gap thresholds; the majority of the elderly subjects had gap thresholds within the normal range. Thus reduced temporal resolution does not seem to be an inevitable consequence of aging. Gap thresholds at low center frequencies tended to be positively correlated with the equivalent rectangular bandwidth (ERB) of the auditory filter, the opposite of what would be expected if the auditory filter played a role in limiting gap detection. Detection efficiency, as estimated from the notched-noise experiment, was poorer for both groups of elderly subjects than for young normal listeners, but detection efficiency was not significantly correlated with gap thresholds.

Aged↗

Detection of temporal gaps in sinusoids: effects of frequency and level.

Thresholds for the detection of gaps in sinusoidal signals were measured as a function of frequency (100-2000 Hz) and level (25-85 dB SPL) in 11 normally hearing subjects. The sinusoids were presented in a background noise intended to mask spectral splatter associated with the gap. In a separate experiment, auditory filter shapes and detection efficiency were estimated for the same 11 subjects using the notched-noise method, at center frequencies of 100, 200, 400, and 800 Hz. Gap thresholds varied only slightly with frequency over the range 400-2000 Hz, but increased markedly at 200 and 100 Hz. At all center frequencies, gap thresholds were almost invariant with level for levels above 55 dB SPL. Gap thresholds increased at low levels, reaching values about 50% greater than their asymptotic values at a sensation level of about 20 dB. The decrease in auditory filter bandwidth with decreasing center frequency does not seem sufficient to account for the increase in gap thresholds. Also, individual gap thresholds at a given center frequency were not significantly correlated with the bandwidth of the auditory filter at that center frequency, as would be expected if the auditory filter played a role in limiting gap detection. Detection efficiency decreased with decreasing center frequency. Individual differences in detection efficiency were significantly correlated with gap thresholds. However, changes in detection efficiency with frequency do not seem to be of the right form to account for the increase in gap thresholds at low frequencies. It seems likely that there is a central sliding temporal integrator which integrates over longer times at lower center frequencies.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

Time course of intracellular edema and epileptiform activity following prenatal cerebral ischemia in sheep.

The role of edema in the pathogenesis of hypoxic-ischemic injury in the immature brain is controversial. We studied 15 chronically instrumented fetal sheep following transient cerebral ischemia, to estimate changes in extracellular space using an impedance technique, to quantify the electroencephalogram with real-time spectral analysis, and to assess histologic outcome 3 days after the insult. These measurements were made in the parasagittal cortex. There was a rapid loss of extracellular space from 5 +/- 2 minutes after the onset of ischemia. Following 10 minutes of ischemia (n = 7) the intracellular edema peaked but then quickly resolved (6 +/- 4 minutes), and mild selective neuronal loss was seen. In contrast, the swelling was biphasic after 30-40 minutes of ischemia (n = 8). The early edema resolved slowly (28 +/- 12 minutes) but incompletely, and secondary swelling began at 7 +/- 2 hours and peaked at 28 +/- 6 hours. The early swelling was the more severe. Postinsult epileptiform activity began at 8 +/- 2 hours and peaked at 10 +/- 3 hours; later there was laminar necrosis of the underlying cortex. The secondary decrease of extracellular space indicates that a progressive loss of membrane function started with the onset of postischemic epileptiform activity. The increased metabolic load of the epileptiform activity may have worsened this delayed deterioration.

Animals↗

Biophysical properties of the pelt of a diurnal marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus), and its role in thermoregulation.

Numbats are unusual marsupials in being exclusively diurnal and termitivorous. They have a sparse (1921 hairs cm(-2)) and shallow (1.19 mm) pelt compared with other marsupials. Coat reflectivity is low (19%) for numbats compared with nocturnal marsupials, but absorptivity is similar to that of diurnal North American ground squirrels (72%), indicating that the coat of the numbat may be adapted for acquisition of solar heat. Numbat coat thermal resistance decreases significantly with wind speed from 45.9 s m(-1) (at 0.5 m s(-1)) to 29.8 s m(-1) (at 3 m s(-1)). Erecting the fur significantly increases pelt depth (6.5 mm) and coat resistance (79.2-64.2 s m(-1)) at wind speeds between 0.5 m s(-1) and 3 m s(-1). Numbat coat resistance is much lower than that of other marsupials, and wind speed has a greater influence on coat resistance for numbats than for other mammals, reflecting the low pelt density and thickness. Solar heat gain by numbats through the pelt to the level of the skin (60-63%) is similar to the highest value measured for any mammal. However the numbat's high solar heat gain is not associated with the same degree of reduction in coat resistance as seen for other mammals, suggesting that its pelt has structural and spectral characteristics that enhance both solar heat acquisition and endogenous heat conservation. Maximum solar heat gain is estimated to be 0.5-3.6 times resting metabolic heat production for the numbat at ambient temperatures of 15-32.5 degrees C, so radiative heat gain is probably an important aspect of thermoregulation for wild numbats.

Acclimatization↗

Matrix approach to quantitative refractive index analysis by Fourier domain optical coherence tomography.

The rapid development in the field of optical coherence tomography has demanded increasingly sophisticated numerical models to enable the interpretation of image data and extract quantitative results. We use a matrix formulation of Fresnel's equations for multilayered media to extract layer-dependent thickness and refractive index directly from Fourier domain optical coherence tomography spectrograms. An eigenanalysis spectral decomposition approach is used to constrain the least squares fitting algorithm, avoiding the need for initial estimates of the parameter values. We demonstrate this novel quantitative analysis approach by using a multilayered phantom and show good agreement with the known layer parameter values. This approach introduces a powerful tool for the analysis of layer-dependent optical properties that could have an important role in the differentiation of healthy and diseased tissue.

Algorithms↗

Correlation of Fourier spectral shift-determined hepatic acoustic attenuation coefficients with liver biopsy findings.

We calculated hepatic acoustic attenuation coefficients (ACs) in 13 patients who had liver biopsies and in 3 normal subjects by means of Fourier spectral analysis of reflected ultrasound signals from increasing depths in the liver. The ACs were correlated with estimated percentage area occupied by fat in the liver biopsies; linear regression analysis revealed a correlation coefficient of r = .78 (p less than .001). The presence of fibrosis did not correlate with AC.

Biopsy, Needle↗

Technical principles of spectral- and vectorkinetocardiography.

The use of calibrated spectral, narrow-band spectral abd vectorkinetocardiography is suggested for clinical practice. Dependence of the KCG frequency characteristics and vector orientation on the functional state of the myocardium was established. The numerical characteristics of spectral kinetocardiographic data proved to be fit for use during treatment. They provide for a more objective estimation of the mechanical cardiac activity including machine-data processing.

Humans↗

[A model of constant color perception for continuous spectral functions].

A trichromatic model is proposed of constant pattern of colour perception (MCCP) for scenes with a single illumination source. In MCCP functions of the source emission, surface reflection, photoacceptor sensitivity are approximated by the normal distribution curves. MCCP characteristics "colour tone", "cleanness", and "lightness" organize its output colour metric by the human's pattern, and in a wide range of spectral composition of illumination they are invariant under these changes. Special colorimetric regime of MCCP work which estimates the colour of visual stimulus permits a comparison between the efficiencies of two proposed algorithms of visual information processing for MCCP.

Color Perception↗

[The characteristics of the autonomic regulation of the heart rate in patients with IHD and ventricular arrhythmias under obzidan therapy].

Propranolol hydrochloride was administered to 30 patients with stable angina pectoris suffering from coronary heart disease (CHD). Of them 18 patients had ventricular extrasystole, 12 had ventricular tachycardia. All the patients underwent resting ECG, bicycle ergometry, transesophageal pacing, 24-h ECG monitoring. Vegetative cardiac regulation was determined using mathematical analysis of at least 100 successive intervals R-R at rest before and after therapy (120 mg day of propranolol hydrochloride). The authors estimated characteristics of the variance analysis and two secondary values--stress index and centralization index calculated by spectral characteristics of the rhythm. Only in CHD patients with ventricular tachycardia the treatment shifted the vegetative tone in the direction of parasympathetic nervous system. It is concluded that propranolol hydrochloride affects cardiac rhythm depending on the initial condition of vegetative regulation of cardiac activity.

Adult↗

[Estimating cardiovascular age of civil flying personnel by means of heart rate and blood pressure variability analysis].

Objective. To estimate the cardiovascular age of civil flying personnel by means of heart rate and blood pressure variability analysis and to evaluate its significance in aviation medicine. Method. First, heart rate variability (HRV), blood pressure variability (BPV) and spontaneous baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) were analyzed among 89 healthy civil flying personnel by using conventional AR spectral analysis and sequence method respectively. Then, principal component analysis was conducted over original and derived variables of HRV and BPV spectral and BRS data. Finally, by the use of multiple regression in which the chronological age acted as the dependent variable and the components significantly related to age were used as the regressors, the equation for estimating the cardiovascular age was established. Result. Only seven principal components can exactly reflect the same information of autonomic regulatory function which was embodied in the 17 variables of HRV and BPV spectral and BRS parameters. Among the seven principal components, the PC2orig, PC4orig and PC2deri were negatively correlated with chronological age (P<0.05), whereas the PC3orig was positively correlated with the chronological age (P<0.01). The cardiovascular age derived from the equation was significantly correlated with the chronological age of the civil flying personnel (r= 0.73, P<0.01). Conclusion. The cardiovascular age estimated by means of a multi-variate analysis of HRV, BPV and BRS can be treated as a comprehensive indicator reflecting the age dependency of autonomic regulatory function of cardiovascular system in healthy civil flying personnel, and its interpretation and significance in application are surely worthy of further and fully dedicated efforts.

Adult↗

Application of autoregressive methods to multigate spectral analysis.

Multigate analysis is known to be capable of detecting accurate blood velocity profiles from human vessels. Experimental systems so far presented in the literature use time-domain frequency estimations and, more recently, the fast Fourier transform (FFT) for real-time analysis of Doppler signals from multiple range cells. This experimental study is aimed at evaluating the application of an autoregressive (AR) method (Burg algorithm) to multigate Doppler analysis. Both in vitro and in vivo results were collected with a commercial Duplex scanner coupled with a prototype multigate unit developed in our laboratory. The same multigate signals are, thus, processed according to both the FFT and the Burg algorithms. The related spectral and maximum frequency profiles are reported and statistically compared. AR, implemented with the Burg algorithm, is demonstrated to be a way to perform multigate spectral analysis with reduced spectral variance, suitable for maximum velocity profile extraction through a simple threshold.

Artifacts↗