Epidemiology and Clinical Profile of Behcet’s Disease in a Sub-Saharan Country: About Five Observations

Behçet’s disease (BD) is a multi-systemic vasculitis characterized by a triad made up of oral aphthosis, genital aphthosis and uveitis which may or may not be associated with visceral involvement. Other times described in the ancient silk road, BD is increasingly found in countries south of the Sahara with the mixing of populations. Our objective was to describe the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of BD in an African country. Methodology: This was a five-year retrospective study in the internal medicine department of Donka National Hospital. We used international criteria finding BD. Urinary dipstick was use for finding kidney disease. Result: During the period, five cases of Behçet’s disease were collected. The average age was 35 years old. The male sex was more represented with 3 out of 5 cases. The most common clinical manifestation was oral aphthosis in all patients (100%), followed by genital aphthosis in 4 cases (80%). The other clinical manifestations observed were uveitis in 3 cases (60%), joint manifestations such as arthralgia in 3 cases (60%) and neurological manifestations such as chronic headache in one case (20%). HLA-B51 was found in two cases. The pattergic test done in two patients came back positive (100%). The patients received colchicine and oral corticosteroid therapy. Two patients were lost to sight. We deplored a death probably in a neuro-Behçet table before the rebellious headaches. Conclusion: Behçet’s disease is a multi-systemic vasculitis that must be evoked and managed quickly in a tropical environment, especially since the prognosis, vital and functional prognosis can be engaged.

Elimination of Wind Wave Effects on Sub-Bottom Profiler Record

With the presence of wind waves, the swaying of survey vessel may effect the quality of sub-bottom profiler records and, therefore, it is necessary to correct the distortions induced by wave action. A major issue is to distinguish wind wave effect and real bedforms such as sand waves. In this paper, a bandstop filter is designed according to the frequency features of wind wave effect to treat the distortion of seabed topography by wind waves. The technique is used to correct the sub-bottom profile in order to eliminate the wave-induced distortions for the sub-bottom profile records from the Yangtze Estuary. This study shows that the undulate seabed record is resulted from wave action, rather than the presence of sand waves, and the filtration technique helps to eliminate the wave effect and recover the real morphology of seabed and the sediment sequence underneath. In addition, a method for data processing is proposed for the case that the record indeed represents a combination of wave effects and real bedforms.

Charge-Transfer and SERS Coupling on TiO2

We report the SERS enhancements of Raman forbidden surface modes of TiO2 in different sized TiO2 crystals. This current study utilizes the relationship between the vibronic coupling and the degree of charge-transfer to explain the differences of Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) enhancements. Our study shows a direct correlation between the degree of charge-transfer and vibronic coupling. This relationship suggests that charge-transfer between the N-719 dye and TiO2 due to vibronic coupling plays a fundamental role in SERS enhancements. Furthermore, this study shows a strong dependence of the enhancements of the N-719 dye molecular modes to that of the surface modes. This indicates that the mechanism that governs the enhancements of the surface modes in TiO2 crystals most likely also dictates the enhancements of the N-719 dyes.

2 kHz High Power Smart Transducer for Acoustic Sub-bottom Profiling Applications

在这研究， 2 kHz Tonpilz 投影机用 Terfenol-D 被设计并且在 ATILA 当模特儿。为为研究建模的目的，一个放射的头团更好展出，这被决定了在 136 公里直径播送当前的反应(TCR ) ，在回声发生在 2.4 kHz 和 118 dB re 的山峰价值的地方在 1 m 的 1 Pa/A 发生在 12 kHz。另外，在从头团的中心的 46 公里距离的门栓在 2.4 kHz，和 115.3 dB re 的山峰价值提供回声在 1m 的 1 Pa/A 发生在 11.5 kHz。这个优化图案与 3 公里厚度的聚氨酯被制作并且塑造。原型在海洋技术(NIOT ) 的国家研究所的声学的测试设备(ATF ) 被测试为它的在水下表演。基于结果，基本回声决心是 2.18 kHz 和 182 dB re 的 TCR 的山峰价值在 1m 的 1 Pa/A 发生在 14 kHz。RS 的最大的价值被发现是在在 2.1 kHz 的频率的 1m 的 190 dB re 1V/Pa。

Depth Profile Study of Electroless Deposited Sb2S3 Thin Films Using XPS for Photovoltaic Applications

Sb2S3 has gained tremendous research recently for thin film solar cell absorber material because of their easy synthesis, unique electrical and optical properties. The stoichiometry and composition of electroless Sb2S3 thin films were analyzed using XPS depth profile studies. The surface layers were found nearly stoichiometric. On the other hand, the inner layer was rich in antimony composition making it more conductive electrically.

XPS Depth Profile Study of Sprayed Ga2O3 Thin Films

Ga2O3 thin films were fabricated by spray pyrolysis method using gallium acetylacetonate as source material and water as oxidizer. The films were annealed at 450°C for 60 minutes in argon atmosphere. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profile studies were carried out to analyze the stoichiometry and composition of sprayed as-deposited and annealed Ga2O3 thin films. Surface layers and the inner layers of as-deposited and annealed films were found nearly stoichiometric.

Profile and Precipitation Retrievals and Validation Based on Geostationary Sub-Millimeter Atmospheric Sounder

The key factors of temporal and spatial resolution for typhoon observation played an important role in the design of radiometer used for observing typhoon. The NCEP (National Centres for Environmental Prediction) operational global analysis data prepared operationally every six hours were used as the initial field for mesoscale weather research and forecasting model (WRF) and drove the model to output atmospheric parameters such as hydrometeor content, temperature and humidity profiles at different time, which were inputs for the Atmospheric Radiative Transfer Simulator (ARTS) to calculate brightness temperature observed from geostationary earth orbit at oxygen absorption and water absorption band. The atmospheric humidity and temperature profiles of typhoon domain were retrieved from geostationary sub-millimetre atmospheric sounder. The results show that the profile retrievals using BP-NN algorithm have a best agreement with those from radiosonde, which is less than 20% and 1 K of root mean square error, respectively. For precipitation rate retrievals, much better agreement with rain gauge and ECMWF datasets, the RMS is between 0.84 to 32.4 mm/h for sea surface 0.89 and 36.13 mm/h for land surface according to the classification by precipitation type.

Antimicrobial Resistance,Virulence Profile,and Molecular Characterization of Listeria monocytogenes Isolated from Ready-to-eat Food in China,2013-2014

We aimed to investigate the potential pathogenic profile and antibiotic resistance of Listeria monocytogenes isolated from ready-to-eat food in China.Antimicrobial resistance was determined by broth microdilution following the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute protocol Molecular serotyping,virulence,and resistance genes were identified using PCR.Multi-locus

An Analysis of Average Pulsar Profiles and A Study of the ρ-P relation of Pulsars

Using the method of Gaussian Fit Separation of Average Profile (GF-SAP), we re-examine the average profiles of nine pulsars at several frequencies, ranging from 408-1642 MHz. This method enables us to obtain the number of components for each pulsar, and the parameters for each component, the width, position and amplitude. The ρ-P relation for the inner cone and outer cone are studied separately, and the results are, respectively, ρ = p-0.51±0.05 and ρ= p-0.42±0.06 The results can be interpreted as a confirmation of the double-cone structure of pulsar emission beams. The altitudes of emission region, and the radius-to-frequency-map (RFM) are also examined; for the outer cone, we obtained γ(v) ∝v-0.19±0.09.

The circ_0002538/miR-138-5p/plasmolipin axis regulates Schwann cell migration and myelination in diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Circular RNAs(circRNAs)play a vital role in diabetic peripheral neuropathy.However,their expression and function in Schwann cells in individuals with diabetic peripheral neuropathy remain poorly understood.Here,we performed protein profiling and circRNA sequencing of sural nerves in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy and controls.Protein profiling revealed 265 differentially expressed proteins in the diabetic peripheral neuropathy group.Gene Ontology indicated that differentially expressed proteins were mainly enriched in myelination and mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation.A real-time polymerase chain reaction assay performed to validate the circRNA sequencing results yielded 11 differentially expressed circRNAs.circ_0002538 was markedly downregulated in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy.Further in vitro experiments showed that overexpression of circ_0002538 promoted the migration of Schwann cells by upregulating plasmolipin(PLLP)expression.Moreover,overexpression of circ_0002538 in the sciatic nerve in a streptozotocin-induced mouse model of diabetic peripheral neuropathy alleviated demyelination and improved sciatic nerve function.The results of a mechanistic experiment showed that circ_0002538 promotes PLLP expression by sponging miR-138-5p,while a lack of circ_0002538 led to a PLLP deficiency that further suppressed Schwann cell migration.These findings suggest that the circ_0002538/miR-138-5p/PLLP axis can promote the migration of Schwann cells in diabetic peripheral neuropathy patients,improving myelin sheath structure and nerve function.Thus,this axis is a potential target for therapeutic treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

A search for evidence of small-scale inhomogeneities in dense cores from line profile analysis

In order to search for intensity fluctuations on the HCN（1-0） and HCO＋（1-0） line pro- files, which could arise due to possible small-scale inhomogeneous structure, long-term observations of high-mass star-forming cores S140 and S199 were carried out. The data were processed by the Fourier filtering method. Line temperature fluctuations that exceed the noise level were detected. Assuming the cores consist of a large number of randomly moving small thermal fragments, the total number of frag- ments is - 4 × 106 for the region with linear size - 0.1 pc in S140 and - 106 for the region with linear size - 0.3 pc in S 199. Physical parameters of fragments in S 140 were obtained from detailed modeling of the HCN emission in the framework of the clumpy cloud model.

Environmental Profile of NO_xReduction by a Photocatalytic Surface Coating and a Vehicle Catalytic Converter

Nitrogen oxides (NOx) in urban air close to ground have significant health implications. Restrictions in traffic, mandatory use of catalytic converters on vehicles, and novel photocatalytic coatings on surfaces contribute to reducing the level of NOx in cities. The aim of this study is to establish environmental profiles of NOx removal by a Three-Way Catalyst (TWC) car converter and by a photocatalytic surface coating (for asphalt and concrete pavements) for fostering technological development in reducing the levels of NOx in urban air. We assessed the environmental performance for the removal of 1 kg NOx by the two technologies with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA;EF.3 impact assessment method). In order to do so, we established Life-Cycle-Inventory (LCI) data representing production, operation and end-of-life of the two technologies based on data from literature and industry. The production of photocatalytic surface coatings, used on concrete and asphalt, has environmental loads two orders of magnitude lower than the environmental benefits of NOx reduction expressed as a reduction in Photochemical Ozone Formation (POF), Acidification (A), and Terrestrial Eutrophication (TE). The vehicle catalytic converter shows similar results except that the use of rare earth elements in the production constitutes a significant load to Freshwater Ecotoxicity (FET) and that additional use of fuel during operation induces a modest Climate Change (CC) impact. For both technologies, the environmental benefits of reducing NOx far exceed any adverse environmental aspects of the production of the technologies.

Growth Performance and Serum Lipids Profile of Clarias gariepinus Catfish Following Experimental Dietary Exposure to Fumonisin B1

Fumonisin B1 (FB1) is produced by fungus of the genus Fusarium (Fusarium verticiloides and F. proliferatum), and occurs predominantly in maize. The consumption of feed contaminated with FB1 has been reported to cause deleterious effects in some fish species. This study was designed to determine the effects of dietary FB1 on growth and lipids profile of Clarias gariepinus. 450 juvenile catfish were stocked into 5 groups of tanks consisting of 3 tanks per group and fed one of five diets amended with FB1 (0.0 mg;10.0 mg;20.0 mg;40.0 mg and 80.0 mg FB1/kg) for 56 days. At time point’s day 7, 14, 28 and 56, five fish were sampled from each tank weighted, length measured and bled for of lipids profile determinations. Results show that there was a significant reduction (P < 0.05), in the mean body length of the fish fed diets amended with various amounts of FB1 compared with those fed control diet;also, there was a significant reduction (P < 0.05) in the weight gain of fishes fed diets amended with FB1 compared with the control. The specific growth rate and the feed conversion ratio at 56 days shows fish fed 0.0 mg FB1/kg had the highest specific growth rate (0.39 ± 0.14%/day) and the lowest feed conversion ratio (0.59 ± 0.01) whereas, fish fed 80.0 mg FB1/kg had the least specific growth rate (0.07% ± 0.01%/day) and the highest feed conversion ratio (1.95 ± 0.11). Dietary FB1 caused significant increases (P < 0.05) in serum cholesterol, HDL-C;LDL-C;triglycerides and the sphinganine-sphingosine ratio. Dietary FB1 at an inclusion rate ≥ 20 mg FB1/kg of diet produced significant reduction in weight gain and hyperlipidemia marked by hypercholesterolemia, increased blood high-density lipid cholesterol, increased blood low-density lipid cholesterol, elevated blood triglycerides and elevated sphinganine-sphingosine ratio.

Theoretical Study on the Mechanism of a New Synthesis Reaction of 1,3,5-Substituted-1,2,4-triazoles by Carboxylic Acids,Amidines,and Hydrazines

The synthesis of 1,3,5-substituted-1,2,4-triazoles from α-imino-3-pyridine formic acid,acetamidine and anisole hydrazine as a model reaction in this paper and the synthesis mechanism of 1,3,5-substituted-1,2,4-triazole compounds from carboxylic acids,amidines and hydrazines have been first investigated with the B3 LYP/6-311＋＋G＊＊ method.According to the potential energy profile,it can be predicted that the course of the reaction consists of five reactions containing six elementary reactions.The α-imino-3-pyridine formic acid and acetamidine form first an intermediate product through a dehydration reaction; the intermediate product further combines with hydrogen ion to form a positive ion; the positive ion reacts with anisole hydrazine by a dehydration reaction to form another positive ion; then,followed by two isomerization reactions,the final reaction with the acetate ion（Ac-） produces the final product.The research results reveal the laws of synthesis reaction of 1,3,5-substituted-1,2,4-triazoles by the carboxylic acids,amidines,hydrazines and their derivatives on theoretical level.It provides the systemic theoretical basis for the synthesis,development and application of 1,3,5-substituted-1,2,4-triazole compounds.

XPS Study of Electroless Deposited Sb2Se3 Thin Films for Solar Cell Absorber Material

As a thin film solar cell absorber material, antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) has become a potential candidate recently because of its unique optical and electrical properties and easy fabrication method. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to determine the stoichiometry and composition of electroless Sb2Se3 thin films using depth profile studies. The surface layers were analyzed nearly stoichiometric. But the abundant amount of antimony makes the inner layer electrically more conductive.

Investigation of Sprayed Lu2O3 Thin Films Using XPS

Spray pyrolysis method was used to deposit Lutetium Oxide (Lu2O3) thin films using lutetium (III) chloride as source material and water as oxidizer. Annealing was carried out in argon atmosphere at 450°C for 60 minutes of the films. To investigate the composition and stoichiometry of sprayed as-deposited and annealed Lu2O3 thin films, depth profile studies using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was done. Nearly stoichiometric was observed for both annealed and as-deposited films in inner and surface layers.

南海北部陆坡神狐海域浅地层与单道地震剖面联合解释--水合物区沉积地层特征

本文通过南海北部陆坡神狐海域浅地层、单道地震剖面联合解释,发现了一系列与天然气水合物密切相关的海底异常地貌、地层结构。在精细浅地层剖面上发现了陆坡丘状体、浅部断层以及由连续强反射层、声空白补丁、局部增强反射和声空白带构成的海底浅部含气带。浅部含气带位于海底之下34—82m,通过其空间分布位置判断,认为气体来源于深部天然气水合物的分解。在单道地震剖面上识别出麻坑、气体渗漏柱、褶皱、模拟海底反射(BSR,bottom simulating reflector)等结构。BSR位于我国首次钻取的天然气水合物样品深度之下,判断其为该区水合物稳定带底界。依据ODP1148站深海钻井的地层厚度、沉积速率、测年等资料进行地层划分,识别出渐新世、中新世等地层界面,初步建立了神狐海域水合物区沉积地层年代标尺。地层年代划分结果表明BSR、褶皱、首次钻取的水合物样品位于晚中新世至上新世地层内,以上地层成为南海北部神狐海域天然气水合物勘探重点目标层位。

DTA-6000声学深拖系统在富钴结壳探测中的应用

富钴结壳作为一种潜在的海洋矿产资源逐渐引起人们的关注,研究发现海山微地形是影响富钴结壳分布的重要因素。DTA-6000声学深拖系统是我国具有自主知识产权的第一套深海拖曳观测系统,其最大工作深度6 000m,该设备上安装的高分辨率测深侧扫声纳和浅地层剖面仪能够分别获得高分辨率的海底地形地貌和浅地层剖面。它的测深覆盖范围600m,侧扫覆盖范围800m。声学深拖系统因其高效和价格优势,被列为富钴结壳资源调查的常规设备。大洋29航次中,DTA-6000声学深拖系统在采薇海山完成2条测线共约50km海山斜坡的探测,获得了高分辨率的地形地貌数据和浅地层剖面数据。介绍DTA-6000声学深拖系统及其在富钴结壳探测中的应用,并对探测结果进行了分析。

海底管道综合探测技术及东方1-1管道不稳定因素

海底管道在海洋油气工业中发挥着重要作用,必须定期或适时检测管道状态以保障其安全运营,这是海底科学新的研究领域。介绍了海底管道综合调查技术(包括侧扫声纳、多波束测深、浅地层剖面等)的基本原理及其在东方1-1海底管道调查中的应用,并利用调查结果分析了威胁该管道安全的主要因素。调查结果表明,管道周围海床冲刷和沙波移动均可造成管道悬跨,威胁管道安全,并提出了加强安全监测建议。