H2/Cl2 fuel cell for co-generation of electricity and HCl

A H₂/Cl₂ fuel cell system with an aqueous electrolyte and gas diffusion electrodes has been investigated and the effects of electrolyte concentration and temperature on the open circuit voltage (OCV) and cell performance have been evaluated. Furthermore, the kinetics and long-term stability of Pt as electrocatalyst have been studied under various conditions. In addition, the long-term stability of Rh electrocatalyst has been evaluated. The OCV obtained showed that the Cl₂ reduction is more reversible than O₂ reduction. The ohmic drop was determining the cell performance at high current densities. An output power of about 0.5 W cm^–2 was achieved with this system.     

Klinefelter syndrome affects mostly boys. An underdiagnosed chromosome abnormality

Although Klinefelter's syndrome is the most common sex chromosome anomaly, affecting one in 5-800 boys, our knowledge of the syndrome is still poor. This is reflected in the paucity of published literature as compared, for example, with the vastly greater number of publications on Turner's syndrome with its lower incidence of 1/2,500 girls. Klinefelter's syndrome is manifestly underdiagnosed. Existing knowledge mainly derives from cases characterised by prominent symptomatology. Early diagnosis is important if additional support and resources are to be made available to the patient and his family. Testosterone replacement therapy should be initiated as soon as clinical and laboratory evidence becomes available. In selected cases, testosterone treatment can be started already during adolescence. At present, there is no established treatment for the infertility which almost always accompanies the condition.     

Systemic mastocytosis associated with acute myeloid leukaemia: report of two cases and detection of the c-kit mutation Asp-816 to Val

A subset of patients with systemic mastocytosis (SM) develop acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). However, little is known about the biology of such leukaemias and their relationship to the mast cell (MC) lineage. We report on two female patients who suffered from SM and AML. According to FAB criteria, the leukaemias were classified as AML-M4 (patient 1) and AML-MO (patient 2). The coexistence of the two distinct neoplasms (AML and SM) was demonstrable by immunostaining of serial bone marrow (BM) sections with monoclonal antibodies (mAb). In particular, the MC infiltrates were found to react with mAb against MC-tryptase and MC growth factor receptor c-kit (CD117), but not with mAb to CD15 or CD34. In contrast, the AML blasts were immunoreactive for CD15 (patient 1) or CD34 (patient 2), but did not express tryptase. The c-kit point mutation Asp-->Val at codon 816, considered to play a role in the transformation of MC progenitors, was detected in patient 1 in a BM cell fraction containing 4% MC. However, no c-kit mutation was found in pure AML blasts (<1% MC). These findings argue against an evolution of the AML clone from neoplastic MC or MC-committed progenitors.     

Do hair bulb melanocytes undergo apoptosis during hair follicle regression (catagen)?

The glycogen concentration in liver is altered in various pathophysiologic states. In fasted rats, it is higher in diabetic, and lower in adrenalectomized rats compared to control animals. In fed rats, it is lower in diabetic, and little changed in adrenalectomized animals compared to controls. We were interested in determining whether the activity of glycogenin, a self-glycosylating protein that initiates the synthesis of new glycogen molecules, could explain these differences in liver glycogen concentration. Glycogenin activity was measured by the incorporation of 14C-glucose from UDP-U-14C-glucose into an acid-precipitable product before and after amylase treatment of liver extracts. The glycogenin activity was similar in normal, diabetic and adrenalectomized fasted animals, regardless of the hepatic glycogen concentration. In fasted rats, glycogenin was present predominantly as the free-form of the enzyme, i.e., not attached to an amylase-digestible glycan, presumably glycogen. In contrast, in fed rats, the majority, if not all of the glycogenin was incorporated into a glycogen-like (proteoglycan) molecule. Proteoglycan synthase activity, previously identified in normal fed rats, also was present in diabetic and adrenalectomized fed rats, and the activity was similar. Thus, the altered ability to store hepatic glycogen in diabetic fed and fasted and adrenalectomized fasted rats cannot be explained by decreases in glycogenin or proteoglycan synthase activities, at least as measured using the present assays.     

Women in child development: Themes from the SRCD Oral History Project.

Research in child development has emerged as a major intellectual discipline and a topic of great interest and importance to society. The Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) has been the leading scholarly society concerned with the advancement of this research. As part of its focus on a history of the field, the SRCD has undertaken an oral history project in which prominent members are interviewed. Of the 102 completed interviews, 47 are women's accounts, which document important contributions women have made to child development. The experiences reported by individual participants reflect themes in the general history of women in psychology and child development during the early and mid-1900s. Women encountered obstacles to their efforts, even as they were supported by others and struggled to achieve prominence amid the sometimes ambiguous or conflicting circumstances that characterized women's entry into child development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Treatment effectiveness of parent management training in Norway: A randomized controlled trial of children with conduct problems.

This study was a randomized control trial (RCT) of Parent Management Training--The Oregon Model (PMTO) in Norway. A sample representing all health regions of Norway and consisting of 112 children with conduct problems and their families participated in the study. Families were randomly assigned to either PMTO or a regular services comparison group. PMTO was delivered via existing children's services, and families were recruited using the agencies' regular referral procedures, making this the first effectiveness study of PMTO and the first RCT of PMTO conducted outside of the United States. Using a multiagent-multimethod approach, results showed that PMTO was effective in reducing parent-reported child externalizing problems, improving teacher-reported social competence, and enhancing parental discipline. Age level and gender modified the effects of PMTO treatment on other outcomes. In a path model, participation in PMTO was associated with improved parental discipline, and effective discipline predicted greater child compliance, fewer child-initiated negative chains, and lower levels of child externalizing problems. Findings are presented along with a discussion of the implications for practice and research and the challenges accompanying effectiveness trials. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Esophagectomy for unsuccessful antireflux operations

BACKGROUND: Primary antireflux surgery provides excellent symptom relief in most patients. Unfortunately, the results of redo surgery are less predictable. In these patients, esophageal injury from long-standing reflux of gastric contents and operative trauma from previous failed antireflux procedures results in progressive deterioration in esophageal propulsion, poor clearance of reflux episodes, mucosal damage, and, in some cases, stricture formation. For the past 16 years, we have selectively used esophageal resection and replacement instead of another reoperation in these challenging patients. METHODS: Seventeen patients with end-stage esophageal body dysfunction and one or more previously unsuccessful antireflux procedures underwent esophagectomy and reconstruction by colon interposition in 15 patients and jejunum interposition in 2 patients. The indications for esophagectomy rather than a redo antireflux procedure were a global loss of effective esophageal motility in 13 and a nondilatable stricture in four. Their outcome was compared with that of 32 patients with adequate motility and 18 with a similar global loss of motility who had a redo antireflux procedure. Perioperative complications after esophagectomy were recorded, and long-term outcome was assessed by means of a standardized questionnaire at a median of 7 years after the operation. RESULTS: Patients with profound esophageal body dysfunction who underwent esophageal resection had outcomes similar to those with normal motility who underwent a redo antireflux procedure. Those with profound esophageal motility dysfunction who underwent a redo antireflux procedure had a worse outcome than those who underwent resection. Esophageal resection and replacement was performed without mortality or graft failure. All patients who underwent resection stated that their preoperative symptoms were relieved completely (n = 6) or improved (n = 10). Thirteen patients (81%) were able to eat three meals a day, and 12 patients (75%) enjoyed an unrestricted diet. Two thirds of the patients were at or above their ideal body weight, and 88% were fully satisfied with the outcome of the procedure. CONCLUSION: Patients with end-stage esophageal body dysfunction who have had a previous unsuccessful antireflux procedure can be treated by esophageal resection with a high expectation of success.     

Design of ultra-low-cost UHF RFID tags for supply chain applications

The availability of inexpensive CMOS technologies that perform well at microwave frequencies has created new opportunities for automated material handling within supply chain management (SCM) that in hindsight, be viewed as revolutionary. This article outlines the system architecture and circuit design considerations that influence the development of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags through a case study involving a high-performance implementation that achieves a throughput of nearly 800 tags/s at a range greater than 10 m. The impact of a novel circuit design approach ideally suited to the power and die area challenges is also discussed. Insights gleaned from first-generation efforts are reviewed as an object lesson in how to make RFID technology for SCM, at a cost measured in pennies per tag, reach its full potential through a generation 2 standard.     

Born Global or Born to Run? The Long-Term Growth of Born Global Firms

Born global firms have stimulated substantial academic attention as regards their start up but research has neglected their subsequent, ongoing internationalisation. This contribution extends analysis from the inception and childhood to the growth and maturity of such firms. We investigate whether born global are also “born to run” companies; we also try to reconcile the analysis of international new ventures in international entrepreneurship studies with the approaches based on fast growing firms and gazelles. We initially present the latest advances in the modelling of accelerated internationalisation over time; we then discuss and develop a conceptual framework and a model that captures the variables that affect born global firms’ evolution in an holistic perspective; finally, we match case study analysis with the framework and discuss our findings. The results show two groups of firms that differ significantly in long-term internationalisation paths and growth cycles. We highlight turning points in these paths and discuss the drivers which lead to sustained high growth. The characteristics of the entrepreneurial/management teams, strategic partnerships and the entry in complex markets are the main differentiators in growth patterns, irrespectively of the industry. The “openness” of the founders and the early preparation for growth determine both the extent of organizational learning and the speed at which it is developed and used. We see said learning and its speed in development and use as the underlying, necessary mechanism of sustained high growth.