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Critical technical infrastructures constitute the backbone of society by providing essential services to vital societal functions and the community at large, hence it is of essence that these are resilient. Critical infrastructures, e.g. power systems, telecommunication systems and railway systems, are designed and operated based on different philosophies of where to put the resilience emphasis, r
BACKGROUND AND AIM Non-stop stair ascending at maximum speed is required to reach a safe refuge level from deep underground structures, such as subways and in high-rise buildings in an emergency evacuation situation. Endurance of stair climbing and identifying the time of the onset of leg’s local muscle fatigue (LMF) are interests in evacuation research. The objective of this laboratory study was
This paper summarizes and elaborates on some new results on the optimal absorption in small spherical suspensions based on electrophoretic (plasmonic) resonances and lossy surrounding media. The main application here is to study the physical limitations for radio frequency absorption in gold nanoparticle (GNP) suspensions and its potential to achieve GNP targeted hyperthermia in cancer therapy. Nu
Background: The absence of interleukin-25 (IL-25) favors the induction of Th1 and Th17 immune responses in mice. Th1 immune responses have been associated with the pathology of atherosclerosis, a lipid and inflammation driven disease of the arterial wall. Purpose of research: To evaluate the effect of IL-25 on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (hPBMCs) in the presence and absence of oxidize
It has become increasingly clear that the individual genetic background influences susceptibility to metal toxicity. Genetic variation in genes that regulate metal toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics influence the degree of metal accumulation and retention in the body, as well as toxic effects. Moreover, factors that regulate gene expression, so-called epigenetic factors, have been identified as tar
The University of Vermont College of Medicine and the Vermont Lung Center, in collaboration with the NHLBI, Alpha-1 Foundation, American Thoracic Society, European Respiratory Society, International Society for Cell Therapy, and the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, convened a workshop, "Stem Cells and Cell Therapies in Lung Biology and Lung Diseases, " held July 29 to August 1, 2013 at the Universit
Context: Lynch syndrome (LS) is a cancer-predisposing syndrome caused by germline mutations in genes involved in DNA mismatch repair (MMR). Patients are at high risk for several types of cancer, but pituitary tumors have not previously been reported.Case: A 51-year-old man with LS (MSH2 mutation) and a history of colon carcinoma presented with severe Cushing disease and a locally aggressive pituit
Multiconfigurational second order perturbation theory was employed in order to describe the ground and excited states of negatively charged fullerenes C60 and fullerene dimers C120. The calculations were performed for all possible spin states. The obtained results can be used to understand the electronic structure of fullerides.
BACKGROUND: It is still not clear whether anastomotic leakage after anterior resection for rectal cancer affects long-term functional outcome. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate how anastomotic leakage following anterior resection for rectal cancer influences defecatory, urinary, and sexual function. DESIGN: In this retrospective population-based cohort study, patients were identified through
The β-catenin/Wnt signaling pathway plays an important role in all stages of T cell development. Nemo-like kinase (NLK) is an evolutionary conserved serine/threonine kinase and a negative regulator of the Wnt signaling pathway. NLK can directly phosphorylate histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1), as well as T cell factor/lymphoid enhancer-binding factor (TCF/LEF), causing subsequent repression of target g
Imaging the spray formation region of atomizing sprays is particularly challenging due to the presence of a variety of irregular liquid structures such as ligaments, liquid blobs, droplets, liquid sheets and a possible liquid core. The number and concentration of those liquid bodies dictate the presence of liquid/air interfaces, which are responsible to undesired scattering effects. The resulting
Although the use of location-based data (location coupled with semantic information) within Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and from Earth Observation (e.g. satellite) sources has been long established for decision makers, this has only recently been reflected in the construction sector with a more recent move from Computer Aided Design (CAD) to Building Information Modelling. BIM has opene
This paper describes the assessment of the cost efficiency of risk mitigation measures for terrorist attacks with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) for an iconic bridge structure. The assessment is performed with a decision theoretical framework building upon very recent advances in the framework of the COST Action TU1402 on Quantifying the Value of Structural Heath Monitoring. The decision scen
The fatigue deterioration modeling for welded steel structures subjected to high cycle fatigue is presented in the current document. The aim of this paper is to formulate approaches based on actual research results for the phases fatigue crack initiation, fatigue propagation and fatigue failure. The physical characteristics of the approaches are discussed in combination with the associated uncerta
A reliability-based approach to inspection planning for welded steel structures subjected to high cycle fatigue is presented in the current document. Inspections are an effective means to control the progress of fatigue deterioration and the presented approach allows to determine the minimum required inspection effort so that the considered structure complies with the given risk acceptance criteri
Inhomogeneous magnetic transfer (ihMT) is more sensitive to myelin macromolecules than standard MT proxies. Measuring ihMT in the multi-parameter mapping protocol allows calculating ihMT from MT saturation (MTsat) maps and thus inherently correct for the undesired dependencies on flip angle and the longitudinal relaxation rate. Further validation of this new ihMT metric requires measurement of MPM
Diabetes is a complex and multifactorial disease that affects millions of people worldwide, reducing the quality of life significantly, and results in grave consequences for our health care system. In type 2 diabetes (T2D), the lack of β-cell compensatory mechanisms overcoming peripherally developed insulin resistance is a paramount factor leading to disturbed blood glucose levels and lipid metabo
Background: The dysregulation of B cell activation is prevalent during naturally acquired immunity against malaria. Osteopontin (OPN), a protein produced by various cells including B cells, is a phosphorylated glycoprotein that participates in immune regulation and has been suggested to be involved in the immune response against malaria. Here we studied the longitudinal concentrations of OPN in in
This paper is about the socio-technical findings of a project that was carried out for an organisation in the educational sector. The main aim of the project was to explore the possibilities of developing a mobile Augmented Reality authoring tool that educators would use to create AR experiences in attempt to improve their teaching methods. A novel ‘solution’ was designed and prototyped, which ini
Sustainability is rarely implemented in employee work practices in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The authors note that SMEs should implement sustainability practices as integrated part of work activities to ensure long term success. This paper describes an empirical study of SMEs sustainability on employee real work practices. A relevant perspective is offered by the triple bottom lin
