382,020 research outputs found
Practical application of on-line partial discharge monitoring technique on 500kV shunt reactor
No full textConsidering the damage mechanism of oil-impregnated paper insulation in power transformers, shunt reactors and other high voltage electrical apparatus caused by partial discharge, a concept of “destructive partial discharge” is introduced in this paper. The intensity of this discharge is regarded as several thousands pico-coulomb (pC) and may cause the insulation a fatal damage. An oil-paper insulation is usually able to withstand this type of partial discharge for a period of time prior to failure. This provides engineers a time window to detect it. This paper describes an on-line partial discharge monitoring system for 500kV shunt reactors. The commission results from 3 single-phase shunt reactors either connected or disconnected to the grid showed that the on-line partial discharge detecting system has a high noise immunising ability. Two years later after the installation, a pre-warning signal was received from one shunt reactor indicating the existence of an intermittent discharge. The acoustic emission system located its position at the low end of the high voltage bushing in the oil. Dissolved gasses analysis (DGA) in the oil suggested the presence of partial discharge, as acetylene (C2H2) was as high as 20ppm. PD activity was further confirmed by a physical examination on the reactor
Pharmacoeconomic analysis of adjuvant oral capecitabine vs intravenous 5-FU/LV in Dukes' C colon cancer: the X-ACT trial
No full textOral capecitabine (Xeloda<sup>®</sup>) is an effective drug with favourable safety in adjuvant and metastatic colorectal cancer. Oxaliplatin-based therapy is becoming standard for Dukes' C colon cancer in patients suitable for combination therapy, but is not yet approved by the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in the adjuvant setting. Adjuvant capecitabine is at least as effective as 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin (5-FU/LV), with significant superiority in relapse-free survival and a trend towards improved disease-free and overall survival. We assessed the cost-effectiveness of adjuvant capecitabine from payer (UK National Health Service (NHS)) and societal perspectives. We used clinical trial data and published sources to estimate incremental direct and societal costs and gains in quality-adjusted life months (QALMs). Acquisition costs were higher for capecitabine than 5-FU/LV, but higher 5-FU/LV administration costs resulted in 57% lower chemotherapy costs for capecitabine. Capecitabine vs 5-FU/LV-associated adverse events required fewer medications and hospitalisations (cost savings £3653). Societal costs, including patient travel/time costs, were reduced by >75% with capecitabine vs 5-FU/LV (cost savings £1318), with lifetime gain in QALMs of 9 months. Medical resource utilisation is significantly decreased with capecitabine vs 5-FU/LV, with cost savings to the NHS and society. Capecitabine is also projected to increase life expectancy vs 5-FU/LV. Cost savings and better outcomes make capecitabine a preferred adjuvant therapy for Dukes' C colon cancer. This pharmacoeconomic analysis strongly supports replacing 5-FU/LV with capecitabine in the adjuvant treatment of colon cancer in the UK
Mutation frequencies following the 5-FU-, 4NQO-, and CPT-treatment.
No full textA), C), and E) The frequencies of overall Lys+ mutations following treatments with 5-FU (10 μM), CPT (100 μM), or 4NQO (0.2 μg/mL), respectively, for 24 hrs. B), D), and F) The frequencies of the uracil-dependent A>C and T>G mutations following treatments with 5-FU, CPT and 4NQO, respectively. Error bars indicate 95% confidence intervals. The number of cultures used to determine the frequencies of mutations and the numerical values of the median mutation frequencies and the confidence intervals represented as graphs in this figure are listed in S4 Table.</p
Mi Fu, 1051-1107
No full textMi Fu was born in Kiangsu and entered official life as secretary of the Board of Rites and Court painter. He founded s chool of painting characterised by its bold and vigorous brush-work, and yet delicate in the composition of its exquisite landscapes. He wrote poetry, critical essays and colophons as well as leaving important treatises on paintings and calligraphy
Branching fraction and CP asymmetry of the decays B+→K0Sπ+ and B+→K0SK+
No full textAn analysis of B+ → K0
Sπ+ and B+ → K0
S K+ decays is performed with the LHCb experiment. The pp
collision data used correspond to integrated luminosities of 1 fb−1 and 2 fb−1 collected at centre-ofmass
energies of
√
s = 7 TeV and
√
s = 8 TeV, respectively. The ratio of branching fractions and the
direct CP asymmetries are measured to be B(B+ → K0
S K+
)/B(B+ → K0
Sπ+
) = 0.064 ± 0.009 (stat.) ±
0.004 (syst.), ACP(B+ → K0
Sπ+
) = −0.022 ± 0.025 (stat.) ± 0.010 (syst.) and ACP(B+ → K0
S K+
) =
−0.21 ± 0.14 (stat.) ± 0.01 (syst.). The data sample taken at
√
s = 7 TeV is used to search for
B+
c
→ K0
S K+ decays and results in the upper limit ( fc · B(B+
c
→ K0
S K+
))/( fu · B(B+ → K0
Sπ+
)) <
5.8 × 10−2 at 90% confidence level, where fc and fu denote the hadronisation fractions of a ¯b
quark
into a B+
c or a B+ meson, respectively
Sphingius hainan Zhang, Fu & Zhu 2009
No full textSphingius hainan Zhang, Fu & Zhu, 2009 Figs. 8–13 Sphingius hainan Zhang, Fu & Zhu, 2009: 34, f.1–8. Material examined. 3 3 2♀, CHINA: Hainan Province, Mt. Jianfengling [N 18.62°, E 108.98°], May 28, 2009, S. T. Guo and X. X. Zhang leg. (MHBU); 1 3 (holotype), CHINA: Hainan Province, Changjiang County, Mt. Bawangling, November 5, 2008, M. S. Zhu leg. (MHBU). Diagnosis. In comparing Chinese Sphingius species, such as S. sinensis (Schenkel, 1963) and S. zhangi Zhang, Fu & Zhu, 2009, with the female of S. hainan, we find the epigyne of S. hainan has a large anterior hood (Fig. 9) while S. sinensis with two small anterior hoods (Zhang et al. 2009: fig. 18); and additionally, the epigynal hood of S. hainan is half-oval shaped (Fig. 9), while S. zhangi has a hood nearly rectangle-shaped (Zhang et al. 2009: fig. 27). Table Ι. Leg measurements of Sphingius deelemanae sp. n., male. Figures 8–Ι3. Sphingius hainan Zhang, Fu & Zhu, 2009. 8 Female body, dorsal view 9 Epigyne, ventral view Ι0 Vulva, dorsal view ΙΙ Left male palp, prolateral view Ι2 Same, ventral view Ι3 Same, retrolateral. b bursa c conductor co copulatory opening e embolus h hood ma median apophysis s spermatheca sd sperm duct st subtegulum t tegulum ta tibial apophysis. Scale bars: 1 mm (8); 0.5 mm (9–13). Comparing S. hainan with the seven Sphingius species with known females found in nearby south east Asian countries, S. hainan can be distinguished from S. penicillus (Thailand), by having a large anterior hood (Fig. 9) while S. penicillus with a small anterior hoods (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 850). S. hainan is also very similar to S. vivax (Thorell, 1897) (Myanmar, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines) in the conformation of the male palpal organ, but can be distinguished from S. vivax by having a longer and thicker male palpal retrolateral tibial apophysis (Fig. 13), by the bulb with apical membranous conductor (Fig. 12), and by the shape of the median apophysis (Fig. 12). S. hainan can also be distinguished from S. songi (Thailand), S. gothicus (Thailand) and S. punctatus (Thailand, Indonesia), by having a half-oval shaped epigynal hood (Fig. 9) while epigynal hood M-shaped in S. songi, triangle-shaped in S. gothicus, and nearly rectangle-shaped in S. punctatus (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: figs. 855, 845, 866). S. hainan can be distinguished from S. octomaculatus (Myanmar) and S. gracilis (Myanmar), by having a large anterior hood (Fig. 4) while the latter two without anterior hood (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: figs. 861, 837). Comparing S. hainan with the seven Sphingius species with known females found in nearby south east Asian countries, S. hainan can be distinguished from S. penicillus (Thailand), by having a large anterior hood (Fig. 9) while S. penicillus with a small anterior hood (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 850). S. hainan can also be distinguished from S. songi (Thailand), S. gothicus (Thailand), S. vivax (Myanmar, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines) and S. punctatus (Thailand, Indonesia), by having a half-oval shaped epigynal hood (Fig. 9) while the epigynal hood rather ‘M-shaped’ in S. songi (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 855), triangle-shaped in S. gothicus (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 845), large and dome shaped in S. vivax (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 842) and nearly rectangle-shaped in S. punctatus (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: fig. 866). S. hainan can be distinguished from S. octomaculatus (Myanmar) and S. gracilis (Myanmar), by having a large anterior hood (Fig. 4) while the latter two without anterior hood (Deeleman-Reinhold 2001: figs. 861, 837). Description. Female. Body length 5.00–5.53. One specimen was measured, total length 5.53: carapace 2.52 long, 2.07 wide; abdomen 3.01 long, 1.80 wide. Carapace ovoid in dorsal view (Fig. 8), deep reddish brown, with numerous small granulations, lateral and posterior margins with angular granulations. Eyes in two transverse rows; AER slightly recurved, PER straight or slightly recurved in dorsal view and longer than AER. Eye diameters: AME 0.13, ALE 0.12, PME 0.14, PLE 0.13. Eye interdistances: AME–AME 0.13, AME–ALE 0.19, PME–PME 0.50, PME–PLE 0.17; MOA 0.33 long, front width 0.29, back width 0.28. Chelicerae with three promarginal and two retromarginal teeth, anterior side with a tubercle. Endites brown, longer than wide, constricted at middle on lateral margin, anterior edge with clear serrula and scopula. Labium slightly rectangular, anterior margin with a slight concavity centrally. Sternum light brown, shield-shaped, covered with sparse granulations, posterior margin slightly extending between coxae IV, lateral margin with precoxal triangles and intercoxal sclerites. Space above the coxae and below the carapace with longitudinal, sclerotized pleural bars. Legs brown, anterior tibiae and metatarsi spineless, tarsi I–III almost as long as metatarsi. Leg spination: femora I-II with one small dorsal spines, tibia III v2-2-2, p 0-1-1, r 0-0-1; metatarsus III v 2-0-0; tibia IV v 1-1- 1, p0-0-1, r 0-0-1, metatarsus IV p0-1-0, v 2-1-0, r 0-1-0. Leg formula: 4123 (Table 2). Abdomen ovoid (Fig. 8), dark brown, light brown centrally; dorsal scutum covering nearly all, and dorsum with one pair of muscular impression on middle part. Venter of abdomen yellow brown, epigastric scutum tripartite (to some degree, at least in the color) divided into a central plate and two lateral plates, postgenital scutum relatively small, about two thirds of abdomen length, venter with two rows of longitudinal lines of spots. Epigyne as illustrated (Figs. 9–10). Epigynal plate oval-rectangular, anterior half concave and posterior half convex. Anterior atrial hood arch-shaped (Fig. 9). Copulatory openings situated in the corners of the depression, leading through funnel-shaped ducts to the spermathecae and bursae. Spermathecae posteriorly (Fig. 10), large, globose; bursae anteriorly, smaller globose, thin-walled; a short connecting tube between the anterior bursa and posterior spermatheca. Male (holotype). The male has been described by Zhang et al. (2009). Male palp as illustrated (Figs. 11–13). Distribution. Hainan.Published as part of Feng, Zhang & Fu, Jianying, 2010, A new species of the genus Sphingius (Araneae, Liocranidae) from China, and first description of the female: Sphingius hainan Zhang, Fu & Zhu, 2009, pp. 23-31 in ZooKeys 49 (49) on pages 27-30, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.49.391, http://zenodo.org/record/57667
Synthesis of liver-targeting dual-ligand modified GCGA/5-FU nanoparticles and their characteristics in vitro and in vivo
No full textMingrong Cheng,1,2,* Xiaoyan Gao,3,* Yong Wang,4,* Houxiang Chen,5 Bing He,6 Yingchun Li,2 Jiang Han,1 Zhiping Zhang11Department of General Surgery, Pudong New Area District Zhoupu Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Endoscopy, 3Department of Plastic Surgery, Pudong New Area District Zhoupu Hospital, Shanghai, People's Republic of China; 4School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 5Zhejiang Huafon Fiber Research Institute, Zhejiang Huafon Spandex Co, Ltd, Wenzhou, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of General Surgery, Shanghai Fifth People’s Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China *These authors equally contributed to this research Abstract: Nanoparticle drug delivery systems using polymers hold promise for clinical applications. We synthesized dual-ligand modified chitosan (GCGA) nanoparticles using lactic acid, glycyrrhetinic acid, and chitosan to target the liver in our previous studies. We then synthesized the GCGA/5-FU nanoparticles by conjugating 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) onto the GCGA nanomaterial, which had a mean particle size of 239.9 nm, a polydispersity index of 0.040, a zeta potential of +21.2 mV, and a drug loading of 3.90%. GCGA/5-FU nanoparticles had good slow release properties, and the release process could be divided into five phases: small burst release, gentle release, second burst release, steady release, and slow release. Inhibitory effects of GCGA/5-FU on tumor cells targeted the liver, and were time and dose dependent. GCGA nanoparticles significantly prolonged the efficacy of 5-FU on tumor cells, and alleviated the resistance of tumor cells to 5-FU. GCGA/5-FU nanoparticles were mostly concentrated in the liver, indicating that the GCGA nanoparticles were liver targeting. GCGA/5-FU nanoparticles significantly suppressed tumor growth in orthotopic liver transplantation mouse model, and improved mouse survival. Keywords: liver cancer, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, 5-fluorouraci
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: The Fu Research Group
No full textThe Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) publicizes the Fu Research Group's four main chemistry project areas: asymmetric nucleophilic catalysis with planar-chiral heterocycles; new chiral ligands for transition metal-catalyzed reactions; palladium-catalyzed coupling reactions; and chemistry of boron heterocycles. For each project link, visitors can find concise descriptions with helpful diagrams and selected publications in pdf format. Visitors can also view images of the Group's laboratory facilities
Metronomic S-1 dosing and thymidylate synthase silencing have synergistic antitumor efficacy in a colorectal cancer xenograft model
No full textAbstractMetronomic chemotherapy is currently considered an emerging therapeutic option in clinical oncology. S-1, an oral formulation of Tegafur (TF), a prodrug of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), is designed to improve the antitumor activity of 5-FU in tandem with reducing its toxicity. Clinically, metronomic S-1 dosing has been approved for the standard first- and second-line treatment of metastatic or advanced stage of colorectal (CRC). However, expression of intratumor thymidylate synthase (TS), a significant gene in cellular proliferation, is associated with poor outcome to 5-FU-based chemotherapeutic regimens. In this study, therefore, we examined the effect of a combination of TS silencing by an RNA interfering molecule, chemically synthesized short hairpin RNA against TS (shTS), and 5-FU on the growth of human colorectal cancer cell (DLD-1) both in vitro and in vivo. The combined treatment of both shTS with 5-FU substantially inhibited cell proliferation in vitro. For in vivo treatments, the combined treatment of metronomic S-1 dosing with intravenously injected polyethylene glycol (PEG)-coated shTS-lipoplex significantly suppressed tumor growth, compared to a single treatment of either S-1 or PEG-coated shTS-lipoplex. In addition, the combined treatment increased the proportion of apoptotic cells in the DLD-1 tumor tissue. Our results suggest that metronomic S-1 dosing combined with TS silencing might represent an emerging therapeutic strategy for the treatment of patients with advanced CRC
Gemcitabine: Progress in the treatment of pancreatic cancer
No full textUnresectable pancreatic cancer has a dismal prognosis with a median survival of 3-5 months in untreated disease. Since the introduction of gemcitabine, pancreatic cancer may no longer be regarded a chemotherapy-resistant tumor. Treatment with single-agent gemcitabine achieved clinical benefit and symptoms improvement in 20-30% of patients. While 1-year survival was observed in 2% of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-treated patients, it was raised to 18% by single-agent gemcitabine. Good treatment tolerability and low incidence of side effects are clear advantages of single-agent gemcitabine. Improvement of efficacy is, however, expected from combination treatment. Gemcitabine and cisplatin given as first-line treatment in three studies achieved a median survival of 7.4-8.3 months. One-year survival was raised to 28% as reported in one study. Comparable activity was obtained by a combination of gemcitabine with 5-FU. Nine studies using gemcitabine in combination with standard-dose or high-dose 5-FU reported a median survival ranging from 5.5 to 13 months. Notwithstanding these promising results, recommendations regarding palliative chemotherapy of pancreatic cancer remain tentative and still need confirmation by presently ongoing phase III trials. Inclusion of pancreatic cancer patients into clinical trials should be a major goal. Outside clinical trials, patients should present with an adequate PS (Karnofsky-performance index greater than or equal to 70) to qualify for chemotherapy. Copyright (C) 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel
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