Human Neuroepithelial Cells Express NMDA Receptors

L-glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter, binds to both ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptors. In certain parts of the brain the BBB contains two normally impermeable barriers: 1) cerebral endothelial barrier and 2) cerebral epithelial barrier. Human cerebral endothelial cells express NMDA receptors; however, to date, human cerebral epithelial cells (neuroepithelial cells) have not been shown to express NMDA receptor message or protein. In this study, human hypothalamic sections were examined for NMDA receptors (NMDAR) expression via immunohistochemistry and murine neuroepithelial cell line (V1) were examined for NMDAR via RT-PCR and Western analysis. We found that human cerebral epithelium express protein and cultured mouse neuroepithelial cells express both mRNA and protein for the NMDA receptor. These findings may have important consequences for neuroepithelial responses during excitotoxicity and in disease.     

Excitation and propagation of surface waves on a viscoelastic half-space with application to medical diagnosis

An analytical solution is developed for the problem of surface wave generation on a linear viscoelastic half-space by a finite rigid circular disk located on the surface and oscillating normal to it. The solution is an incremental advancement of theoretical work reported in articles focused on seismology. Since the application of interest here is medical diagnostics, the solution is verified experimentally using a viscoelastic phantom with material properties comparable to biological soft tissue. Findings suggest that prior estimates in the literature of the shear viscosity in human soft tissue may not be accurate in the low audible frequency range. Measurement of wave motion on the skin surface caused by internal biological functions or external stimuli has been studied by a few researchers for rapid, nonintrusive diagnosis of a variety of specific medical ailments. It is hoped that the developments reported here will advance these techniques and also provide insight into related diagnostic methods, such as sonoelastic imaging and other methodologies that utilize disease-related variations in tissue shear elasticity or variations in density due to gaseous inclusions.     

Boundary element model for simulating sound propagation and source localization within the lungs

An acoustic boundary element (BE) model is used to simulate sound propagation in the lung parenchyma. It is computationally validated and then compared with experimental studies on lung phantom models. Parametric studies quantify the effect of different model parameters on the resulting acoustic field within the lung phantoms. The BE model is then coupled with a source localization algorithm to predict the position of an acoustic source within the phantom. Experimental studies validate the BE-based source localization algorithm and show that the same algorithm does not perform as well if the BE simulation is replaced with a free field assumption that neglects reflections and standing wave patterns created within the finite-size lung phantom. The BE model and source localization procedure are then applied to actual lung geometry taken from the National Library of Medicine's Visible Human Project. These numerical studies are in agreement with the studies on simpler geometry in that use of a BE model in place of the free field assumption alters the predicted acoustic field and source localization results. This work is relevant to the development of advanced auscultatory techniques that utilize multiple noninvasive sensors to construct acoustic images of sound generation and transmission to identify pathologies.     

Anomalies in a Lithium Niobate Stoichiometric Crystal in the Temperature Range 100–400 K

Optics and Spectroscopy - We show that the differences in the anomalous temperature behaviors of thermoluminescence and line intensities in the Raman spectra of congruent and stoichiometric lithium...     

Anionic cellulose beads for drug encapsulation and release

Cellulose beads were prepared from water-based solvent and oxidised by modified Anelli’s reaction at 20– $80\,^\circ \hbox {C}$ for 2–48 h (Fig. 1). The maximum amount of anionic groups (AGs) was $1.85\,\hbox {mmol}\,\hbox {g}^{-1}$ . The distribution of AGs was verified by absorption of cationic dyes and imaging with confocal fluorescent microscopy. Structural changes were studied spectroscopically and with electron microscopy. Oxidation of the beads drastically increased the swelling capacity of air-dried beads. Uptake of model drug was more than doubled in never-dried beads. This is due to the changes in pore size distribution, mainly opening and widening of the closed pores and narrow cavities. Release profiles of the drug were studied at physiological pH of 7.4 and showed a controlled release rate independently of the amount of the drug encapsulated and amount of AGs.     

Neutrino production of same-sign dimuons at the Fermilab Tevatron

The rate of neutrino- and antineutrino-induced prompt same-sign dimuon production in steel was measured using a sample of μ^?μ^? events and 25 μ⁺μ⁺ events withP _μ>9 GeV/c, produced in 1.5 millionv _μ and 0.3 million \(\overline {v_\mu }\) induced charged-current events with energies between 30 GeV and 600 GeV. The data were obtained with the Chicago-Columbia-Fermilab-Rochester (CCFR) neutrino detector in the Fermilab Tevatron Quadrupole Triplet Neutrino Beam during experiments E 744 and E 770. After background subtraction, the prompt rate of same-sign dimuon production is (0.53±0.24)×10^?4 perv _μ charged-current event and (0.52±0.33)×10^?4 per \(\overline {v_\mu }\) charged-current event. The kinematic distributions of the same-sign dimuon events after background subtraction are consistent with those of the non-prompt background due to meson decays in the hadron shower of a charged-current event. Calculations ofc \(\bar c\) gluon bremsstrahlung, based on improved measurements of the charm mass parameter and nucleon structure functions by the CCFR collaboration, yield a prompt rate of (0.09±0.39)×10^?4 perv _μ charged-current event. In this case,c \(\bar c\) gluon bremsstrahlung is probably not an observable source of prompt same-sign dimuons.     

Compressed liquid densities and excess molar volumes for (CO2 + 1-pentanol) binary system at temperatures from 313 to 363 K and pressures up to 25 MPa

Measurements of compressed liquid densities for 1-pentanol and for {CO₂ (1) + 1-pentanol (2)} system were carried out at temperatures from 313 K to 363 K and pressures up to 25 MPa. Densities were measured for binary mixtures at 10 different compositions, x₁ = 0.0816, 0.1347, 0.3624, 0.4651, 0.6054, 0.7274, 0.8067, 0.8573, 0.9216, and 0.9757. A vibrating tube densimeter was used to perform density measurements using two reference calibration fluids. The uncertainty is estimated to be better than ±0.2 kg · m^?3 for the experimental density measurements. For each mixture and for 1-pentanol, the experimental densities were correlated using an explicit volume equation of six parameters and an 11-parameter equation of state (EoS). Excess molar volumes were determined for the (CO₂ + 1-pentanol) system using 1-pentanol densities calculated from the 11-parameter EoS and CO₂ densities calculated from a multiparameter reference EoS.