Label-Free Quantitative Proteomics Reveals Differences in Molecular Mechanism of Atherosclerosis Related and Non-Related to Chronic Kidney Disease

The major cause of mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is atherosclerosis related to traditional and non-traditional risk factors. However, the understanding of the molecular specificity that distinguishes the risk factors for classical cardiovascular disease (CVD) and CKD-related atherosclerosis (CKD-A) is far from complete. In this study we investigated the disease-related differences in the proteomes of patients with atherosclerosis related and non-related to CKD. Plasma collected from patients in various stages of CKD, CVD patients without symptoms of kidney dysfunction, and healthy volunteers (HVs), were analyzed by a coupled label-free and mass spectrometry approach. Dysregulated proteins were confirmed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). All proteomic data were correlated with kidney disease development and were subjected to bioinformatics analysis. One hundred sixty-two differentially expressed proteins were identified. By directly comparing the plasma proteomes from HVs, CKD, and CVD patients in one study, we demonstrated that proteins involved in inflammation, blood coagulation, oxidative stress, vascular damage, and calcification process exhibited greater alterations in patients with atherosclerosis related with CKD. These data indicate that the above nontraditional risk factors are strongly specific for CKD-A and appear to be less essential for the development of “classical” CVD.     

A new approach for anthropometric design applied to a blast cabin

Common anthropometric design methods require extensive experimentation in order to determine the final design. Even with the help of technical supports this procedure is very lengthy since it requires numerous test cycles in order to create a design which meets all requirements. In addition, it is difficult to determine an objective evaluation scale for the comparison of different designs.

The method described in this paper is based on a completely different strategy that permits designing an object analytically by means of a simple algorithm. In ‘free-style’ experiments the body position movements of real persons can be interpreted as most favourable under certain conditions. The measurement of these parameters and subsequent mathematical processing leads directly to the final design without further experimentation. Consequently even complex objects can be designed in a single cycle.

The method was developed for the redesign of a blast cabin. It was possible to design a cabin with fixed dimensions that can be operated without problems by people of almost all heights, either in a standing or a sitting position. It could be shown that most dimensions did not necessarily correspond to body height.     

Optimal optical design of thin-film photovoltaic devices

In this paper we report the results of an effort to develop a design tool to optimise any solar cell with thin-film structure. An optical admittance analysis which takes into account the interference effects in the multilayer thin-film system is discussed. This method provides a technique for calculating the optical properties of a thin-film device with a multilayer configuration. It also allows us to explore the nature and magnitude of optical losses in p-i-n type single or multi-junction a-Si : H solar cells, and to optimise the structure of such cells to utilise enhanced interference effects to obtain the maximum possible utilisation of incident solar radiation.     

Genetic Associations of Alcohol Dehydrogenase With Alcohol Use Disorders and Endophenotypes in White College Students.

Associations of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) gene polymorphisms (ADH1B*2 and ADH1C*1) with a lifetime alcohol use disorder (AUD) were examined in White college students. Alcohol-related endophenotypes likely to be influenced by elevations in acetaldehyde were also assessed. Individuals with an ADH1B*2 allele had lower rates of AUDs, consumed a lower maximum number of drinks in a 24-hr period, reported a greater level of response to alcohol, were more likely to have experienced alcohol-induced headaches following 1 or 2 drinks, and reported more severe hangovers than those lacking this allele. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that enhanced sensitivity to alcohol and lower levels of alcohol use reflect the mechanism by which ADH1B*2 protects against developing an AUD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The FKBP5 Gene Affects Alcohol Drinking in Knockout Mice and Is Implicated in Alcohol Drinking in Humans

FKBP5 encodes FK506-binding protein 5, a glucocorticoid receptor (GR)-binding protein implicated in various psychiatric disorders and alcohol withdrawal severity. The purpose of this study is to characterize alcohol preference and related phenotypes in Fkbp5 knockout (KO) mice and to examine the role of FKBP5 in human alcohol consumption. The following experiments were performed to characterize Fkpb5 KO mice. (1) Fkbp5 KO and wild-type (WT) EtOH consumption was tested using a two-bottle choice paradigm; (2) The EtOH elimination rate was measured after intraperitoneal (IP) injection of 2.0 g/kg EtOH; (3) Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was measured after 3 h limited access of alcohol; (4) Brain region expression of Fkbp5 was identified using LacZ staining; (5) Baseline corticosterone (CORT) was assessed. Additionally, two SNPs, rs1360780 (C/T) and rs3800373 (T/G), were selected to study the association of FKBP5 with alcohol consumption in humans. Participants were college students (n = 1162) from 21–26 years of age with Chinese, Korean or Caucasian ethnicity. The results, compared to WT mice, for KO mice exhibited an increase in alcohol consumption that was not due to differences in taste sensitivity or alcohol metabolism. Higher BAC was found in KO mice after 3 h of EtOH access. Fkbp5 was highly expressed in brain regions involved in the regulation of the stress response, such as the hippocampus, amygdala, dorsal raphe and locus coeruleus. Both genotypes exhibited similar basal levels of plasma corticosterone (CORT). Finally, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in FKBP5 were found to be associated with alcohol drinking in humans. These results suggest that the association between FKBP5 and alcohol consumption is conserved in both mice and humans.     

Development of error-compensating UI for autonomous production cells

This contribution deals with the impact of human error on the overall system reliability in flexible manufacturing systems (FMS). Autonomous production cells are used to illustrate an error-compensating system design on the basis of Sheridan's (1997) paradigm of supervisory control. In order to specify human errors and their effects in terms of system disturbances, a taxonomy of system disturbances is recommended. This taxonomic approach was derived by a value benefit analysis and is based on HEDOMS (Human Error and Disturbance Occurrence in Manufacturing Systems) with slight modifications and Reason's GEMS (Generic Error Modelling System). The taxonomy is used for data acquisition. Next, a risk priority equivalent to FMEA (Failure Mode and Effect Analysis) is introduced to structure the data according to their relevance. Then, Vicente's and Rasmussen's guidelines (1987) for an ecological interface design are related to the paradigm of supervisory control. On the basis of these guidelines four case studies are presented to show their successful applicability for interface design in FMS.     

Ergonomics in the design and evaluation of a system for "postal video letter coding"

In co-operation with the German Central Post Office for Technological Development, the authors designed and investigated the task of and workplace for "Postal video-letter-coding". Experiments including measures of performance, errors, heart rate, arrhythmia, EMG's, and EOG's were used to experiment with variations in the design of displays, codes, keyboards, shifts and rest pauses. As a result of this work the following recommendations have been made by the authors and accepted by the authorities: An optimal display configuration has been developed with two vertically arranged tv displays. Coding-rules are to be simplified by modifications of the postcode. The usual flat keyboard has been replaced by an inclined and angular keyboard. Night-shifts must be avoided because of the tedious nature of the task. A work-rest-schedule of 50 min work and 10 min rest is proposed. In 1978 the complete work-system-design will be introduced in the standard postal service.