| 1. |
- Aamodt, K., et al.
(författare)
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The ALICE experiment at the CERN LHC
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Instrumentation. - 1748-0221. ; 3:S08002
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) is a general-purpose, heavy-ion detector at the CERN LHC which focuses on QCD, the strong-interaction sector of the Standard Model. It is designed to address the physics of strongly interacting matter and the quark-gluon plasma at extreme values of energy density and temperature in nucleus-nucleus collisions. Besides running with Pb ions, the physics programme includes collisions with lighter ions, lower energy running and dedicated proton-nucleus runs. ALICE will also take data with proton beams at the top LHC energy to collect reference data for the heavy-ion programme and to address several QCD topics for which ALICE is complementary to the other LHC detectors. The ALICE detector has been built by a collaboration including currently over 1000 physicists and engineers from 105 Institutes in 30 countries, Its overall dimensions are 16 x 16 x 26 m(3) with a total weight of approximately 10 000 t. The experiment consists of 18 different detector systems each with its own specific technology choice and design constraints, driven both by the physics requirements and the experimental conditions expected at LHC. The most stringent design constraint is to cope with the extreme particle multiplicity anticipated in central Pb-Pb collisions. The different subsystems were optimized to provide high-momentum resolution as well as excellent Particle Identification (PID) over a broad range in momentum, up to the highest multiplicities predicted for LHC. This will allow for comprehensive studies of hadrons, electrons, muons, and photons produced in the collision of heavy nuclei. Most detector systems are scheduled to be installed and ready for data taking by mid-2008 when the LHC is scheduled to start operation, with the exception of parts of the Photon Spectrometer (PHOS), Transition Radiation Detector (TRD) and Electro Magnetic Calorimeter (EMCal). These detectors will be completed for the high-luminosity ion run expected in 2010. This paper describes in detail the detector components as installed for the first data taking in the summer of 2008.
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| 2. |
- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(författare)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy in higher eukaryotes
- 2008
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Ingår i: Autophagy. - : Landes Bioscience. - 1554-8627 .- 1554-8635. ; 4:2, s. 151-175
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Research in autophagy continues to accelerate,1 and as a result many new scientists are entering the field. Accordingly, it is important to establish a standard set of criteria for monitoring macroautophagy in different organisms. Recent reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose.2,3 There are many useful and convenient methods that can be used to monitor macroautophagy in yeast, but relatively few in other model systems, and there is much confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure macroautophagy in higher eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers of autophagosomes versus those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway; thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from fully functional autophagy that includes delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of the methods that can be used by investigators who are attempting to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as by reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that investigate these processes. This set of guidelines is not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to verify an autophagic response.
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| 7. |
- Mauro, Z., et al.
(författare)
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Effect of carbon nanofibers on flammability of polyurethane foams
- 2009
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Ingår i: Changing times. New opportunities. Are you prepared?. - 9781934551059
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Untreated flexible polyurethane foams (PUFs) are prone to rapid fire growth due to their low density and thermal conductivity. Furthermore, the low viscosity of the decomposition products generates severe dripping that increases the fire hazard related to the combustion of PUFs. In fact, this downward flow of flaming liquid often results in a pool-fire that promotes flame propagation and boosts the rate of heat release (HRR) due to a significant increase in the burning area and to feed-back between the flame on the pool-fire and the residual foam. In this work the effect of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) on the HRR is investigated with special attention given to melt dripping phenomena. A modified cone calorimeter test has been developed for this purpose. It is shown that CNFs form an entangled fiber network which eliminates melt dripping and decreases the HRR.
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| 8. |
- Moglianetti, Mauro, et al.
(författare)
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Interaction of sodium dodecyl sulfate and high charge density comb polymers at the silica/water interface
- 2009
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Ingår i: Soft Matter. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1744-6848 .- 1744-683X. ; 5:19, s. 3646-3656
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The structures of interfacial layers formed from mixtures of comb polymers, comprising a high charge density cationic backbone and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) side-chains, with the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) at the silica/water interface, have been determined using neutron reflectivity measurements. The use of mixtures in which only the isotopic composition of the surfactant is changed has made it possible to determine the interfacial volume fraction profiles for both the polymer and the surfactant. For the polymer with 90% of the segments charged and 10% of the segments carrying PEO side-chains, there are four regimes of interfacial behavior with increasing surfactant composition of the bulk solution. First there is adsorption of surfactant to the polymer-covered surface, then, slightly above polymer charge stoichiometry, there is adsorption of near-neutral polymer/surfactant complexes followed by the adsorption of polymer/surfactant aggregates, with a well-defined internal structure. If the concentration of SDS is increased directly from below polymer charge stoichiometry to above the cmc, micelles or polymer/micelle complexes interact with the pre-existing polymer layer. Increasing the fraction of segments carrying PEO side-chains to 25% suppresses the formation of charge-neutral polymer/surfactant complexes at the interface. There is an increase in the adsorption of surfactant, which interacts with the pre-existing layer of polymers. This results in the surface aggregation of SDS and a swelling of the PEO side-chains from a mushroom to a brush-like configuration.
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| 10. |
- Pertl, Leonhard, et al.
(författare)
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Exports and Productivity : Comparable Evidence for 14 Countries
- 2007
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Ingår i: Policy Research Working Papers. - New York : World Bank. - 1813-9450.
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Rapport (refereegranskat)abstract
- The authors use comparable micro level panel data for 14 countries and a set of identically specified empirical models to investigate the relationship between exports and productivity. The overall results are in line with the big picture that is by now familiar from the literature: Exporters are more productive than non-exporters when observed and unobserved heterogeneity are controlled for, and these exporter productivity premia tend to increase with the share of exports in total sales; there is strong evidence in favour of self-selection of more productive firms into export markets, but nearly no evidence in favour of the learning-by-exporting hypothesis. The authors document that the exporter premia differ considerably across countries in identically specified empirical models. In a meta-analysis of their results the authors find that countries that are more open and have more effective government report higher productivity premia. However, the level of development per se does not appear to be an explanation for the observed cross-country differences.
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| 11. |
- Sperzel, Johannes, et al.
(författare)
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Performance evaluation of a right atrial automatic capture verification algorithm using two different sensing configurations.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Pacing and clinical electrophysiology : PACE. - : Wiley. - 1540-8159 .- 0147-8389. ; 32:5, s. 579-87
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: This acute data collection study evaluated the performance of a right atrial (RA) automatic capture verification (ACV) algorithm based on evoked response sensing from two electrode configurations during independent unipolar pacing. METHODS: RA automatic threshold tests were conducted. Evoked response signals were simultaneously recorded between the RA(Ring) electrode and an empty pacemaker housing electrode (RA(Ring)-->Can) and the electrically isolated Indifferent header electrode (RA(Ring)-->Ind). The atrial evoked response (AER) and the performance of the ACV algorithm were evaluated off-line using each sensing configuration. An accurate threshold measurement was defined as within 0.2 V of the unipolar threshold measured manually. Threshold tests were designed to fail for small AER (< 0.35 mV) or insufficient signal-to-artifact ratio (SAR < 2). Manual threshold measurements were obtained during RA unipolar and bipolar pacing and compared across device indications. RESULTS: Data were collected from 38 patients with RA bipolar leads from four manufacturers. AER signals were analyzed from 34 patients who were indicated for a pacemaker (five), implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (11), or cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemaker (six) or defibrillator (12). The minimum AER amplitude was larger (P < 0.0001) when recorded from RA(Ring)-->Can (1.6+/-0.9 mV) than from RA(Ring)-->Ind (1.3+/-0.8 mV). The algorithm successfully measured the pacing threshold in 96.8% and 91.0% of tests for RA(Ring)-->Can and RA(Ring)-->Ind, respectively. No statistical difference between the unipolar and bipolar pacing threshold was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The RA(Ring)-->Can AER sensing configuration may provide a means of implementing an independent pacing/sensing method for ACV in the RA. RA bipolar pacing therapy based on measured RA unipolar pacing thresholds may be feasible.
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| 12. |
- Viale, Giuseppe, et al.
(författare)
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Chemoendocrine compared with endocrine adjuvant therapies for node-negative breast cancer: predictive value of centrally reviewed expression of estrogen and progesterone receptors--International Breast Cancer Study Group.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. - 1527-7755. ; 26:9, s. 1404-10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PURPOSE: To centrally assess estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) levels by immunohistochemistry and investigate their predictive value for benefit of chemo-endocrine compared with endocrine adjuvant therapy alone in two randomized clinical trials for node-negative breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: International Breast Cancer Study Group Trial VIII compared cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluorouracil (CMF) chemotherapy for 6 cycles followed by endocrine therapy with goserelin with either modality alone in pre- and perimenopausal patients. Trial IX compared three cycles of CMF followed by tamoxifen for 5 years versus tamoxifen alone in postmenopausal patients. Central Pathology Office reviewed 883 (83%) of 1,063 patients on Trial VIII and 1,365 (82%) of 1,669 on Trial IX and determined ER and PgR by immunohistochemistry. Disease-free survival (DFS) was compared across the spectrum of expression of each receptor using the Subpopulation Treatment Effect Pattern Plot methodology. RESULTS: Both receptors displayed a bimodal distribution, with substantial proportions showing no staining (receptor absent) and most of the remainder showing a high percentage of stained cells. Chemo-endocrine therapy yielded DFS superior to endocrine therapy alone for patients with receptor-absent tumors, and in some cases also for those with low levels of receptor expression. Among patients with ER-expressing tumors, additional prediction of benefit was suggested in absent or low PgR in Trial VIII but not in Trial IX. CONCLUSION: Low levels of ER and PgR are predictive of the benefit of adding chemotherapy to endocrine therapy. Low PgR may add further prediction among pre- and perimenopausal but not postmenopausal patients whose tumors express ER.
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| 14. |
- Viale, Giuseppe, et al.
(författare)
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Prognostic and predictive value of centrally reviewed Ki-67 labeling index in postmenopausal women with endocrine-responsive breast cancer: results from Breast International Group Trial 1-98 comparing adjuvant tamoxifen with letrozole.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. - 1527-7755. ; 26:34, s. 5569-75
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PURPOSE: To evaluate the prognostic and predictive value of Ki-67 labeling index (LI) in a trial comparing letrozole (Let) with tamoxifen (Tam) as adjuvant therapy in postmenopausal women with early breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Breast International Group (BIG) trial 1-98 randomly assigned 8,010 patients to four treatment arms comparing Let and Tam with sequences of each agent. Of 4,922 patients randomly assigned to receive 5 years of monotherapy with either agent, 2,685 had primary tumor material available for central pathology assessment of Ki-67 LI by immunohistochemistry and had tumors confirmed to express estrogen receptors after central review. The prognostic and predictive value of centrally measured Ki-67 LI on disease-free survival (DFS) were assessed among these patients using proportional hazards modeling, with Ki-67 LI values dichotomized at the median value of 11%. RESULTS: Higher values of Ki-67 LI were associated with adverse prognostic factors and with worse DFS (hazard ratio [HR; high:low] = 1.8; 95% CI, 1.4 to 2.3). The magnitude of the treatment benefit for Let versus Tam was greater among patients with high tumor Ki-67 LI (HR [Let:Tam] = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.39 to 0.72) than among patients with low tumor Ki-67 LI (HR [Let:Tam] = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.57 to 1.15; interaction P = .09). CONCLUSION: Ki-67 LI is confirmed as a prognostic factor in this study. High Ki-67 LI levels may identify a patient group that particularly benefits from initial Let adjuvant therapy.
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| 15. |
- Visscher, Corine M, et al.
(författare)
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Diagnostic accuracy of temporomandibular disorder pain tests : a multicenter study
- 2009
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Ingår i: Journal of Orofacial Pain. - 1064-6655 .- 1945-3396. ; 23:2, s. 108-114
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AIMS: To estimate the diagnostic accuracy of the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD) clinical examination and of the dynamic/static tests for the recognition of TMD pain. Since the diagnosis of TMD pain is especially complicated in persistent orofacial pain patients, the test outcomes in persistent TMD pain patients were contrasted to those in two control groups: a group of persistent dental pain patients and a group of pain-free subjects. METHODS: In 125 persistent TMD pain patients, 88 persistent dental pain patients, and 121 pain-free subjects, a blind and standardized clinical examination was performed. RESULTS: For the RDC/TMD, sensitivity (88%) was high and specificity was low (pain-free group: 71%; dental pain group: 45%). For the dynamic/static tests, sensitivity was 65% and specificities were 91% and 84%, respectively. Comparing the outcomes of the two examinations showed higher positive likelihood ratios for dynamic/static tests (P < .001), and lower negative likelihood ratios for the RDC/TMD examination (P < .01). CONCLUSION: For the confirmation of a suspicion of TMD pain, it is better to rely on positive dynamic/static tests. To confirm the absence of TMD pain, it is better to rely on a negative RDC/TMD examination.
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