Introduction: Prehospital sepsis alerts assist paramedics in identifying patients with sepsis and in communicating this diagnosis to receiving facilities. Following the prospective implementation study of our regional systemic inflammatory response syndrome-based alert criteria (Alert), the purpose of this sub-study was to determine the cause of Alert false negatives (patients without an Alert that subsequently met sepsis criteria in the Emergency Department (ED)). Additionally, the sensitivity of the Alert for detecting sepsis was compared to the Quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) and Hamilton Early Warning Score (HEWS). Methods: This study was an additional analysis of the prospective Alert implementation study. Included patients were ≥ 18 years old, transported by a regional Emergency Medical Service and met severe sepsis or septic shock criteria (SS/SS, 2012 Surviving Sepsis Guidelines) in regional EDs in 2013. False negative patients were identified prospectively and reviewed by comparing paramedic determined Alert status to the retrospective application of the Alert criteria to Paramedic Call Report (PCR) data. The Alert sensitivity was first calculated from prospective data, then retrospective sensitivities of the Alert, qSOFA and HEWS were calculated by retrospectively applying these tools to PCRs, using ED diagnosis of SS/SS as reference standard. Results: In 2013, 229 patients met SS/SS criteria in the ED and had PCRs available; 115 (50.2%) were male and median age [interquartile range] was 76.0 [63.0-84.0]. Of 229, 149 (65.0%) arrived in the ED without an Alert (false negatives) and 46 (30.9%) of these met Alert criteria retrospectively and were therefore missed by paramedics. Sensitivity of the Alert was 34.9% when applied by paramedics and 41.5% when applied retrospectively to PCRs. The retrospective sensitivities of the qSOFA and HEWS were 37.6% and 67.7%, respectively. Conclusion: In ED patients diagnosed with SS/SS who arrived with no Alert, the majority (69.1%) were missed by the Alert criteria, rather than by paramedic application of the tool. The Alert had a sensitivity of 34.9%. When applied retrospectively and compared to the Alert, qSOFA had similar sensitivity and HEWS had increased sensitivity. Future research should focus on deriving improved alerts or implementing those with higher accuracy, such as HEWS.

Studies of schizophrenia with functional MRI showed hyper- and hypoactivations in various brain regions including the prefrontal cortex. Functional abnormalities have also been reported in first-degree relatives of schizophrenic patients. The aim of this study was to examine working memory related brain functions in healthy subjects, schizophrenic patients and unaffected relatives and to determine the influence of psychopathology on these processes.

A parametric n-back working memory task and functional MRI were used to examine 61 schizophrenic patients on antipsychotic medication, 11 nonpsychotic relatives of schizophrenic patients and a comparison group of 61 healthy subjects. The task difficulty was incrementally increased using a parametric task (0-back, 1-back, 2-back, and 3-back) to examine the relationship between working memory load, performance, and brain activity.

The results indicated that during the attention task (0-back) behavioral responses of patients and healthy subjects hardly differed but BOLD responses were considerably enhanced in schizophrenic patients. With increasing task difficulty differences between groups in BOLD responses diminished whereas behavioral deficits of patients increased. The examination of attention-independent working memory-functions (2- vs. 0-back) produced hypoactivations in patients, especially in frontal, temporal and subcortical brain regions. Behavioral performance and neural responses of unaffected relatives of schizophrenic patients were intermediate between schizophrenic patients and controls indicating slight brain dysfunctions. In addition, compensatory strategies were demonstrated.

These findings suggest that the genetic risk for schizophrenia is accompanied by neural inefficiency which is associated with cognitive deficits, especially in difficult tasks.

Nicosulfuron, mesotrione, dicamba plus diflufenzopyr, and carfentrazone are postemergence herbicides from different chemical families with different modes of action. An association between the sensitivity of sweet corn to these herbicides was observed when 143 F3 : 4 families (F4 plants) derived from of a cross between Cr1 (sensitive inbred) and Cr2 (tolerant inbred) were evaluated in greenhouse trials. The ratio of tolerant : segregating : sensitive families was not significantly different from a 3 : 2 : 3 ratio, which would be expected if a single gene conditioned herbicide response. Families cosegregated for responses to these herbicides. In field studies with 60 F3 : 5 families in 2005 and 120 F3 : 5 families in 2007, responses to these herbicides and foramsulfuron and primisulfuron were associated. Responses to bentazon in field trials were similar to the aforementioned herbicides for tolerant families, but differences were noted for families that were sensitive or segregated for responses to nicosulfuron, foramsulfuron, primisulfuron, mesotrione, dicamba plus diflufenzopyr, and carfentrazone. The gene(s) affecting herbicide sensitivity in Cr1 maps to the same region of chromosome 5S as a previously sequenced cytochrome P450 gene, where alleles previously designated nsf1 and ben1 were associated with sensitivity to nicosulfuron and bentazon and appear to be the result of a 392–base-pair insertion mutation. This work supports the hypothesis that a single recessive gene or closely linked genes in the sweet corn inbred Cr1 condition sensitivity to multiple cytochrome P450 enzyme-metabolized herbicides.

The objective of this study was to determine whether altered maternal energy supply during mid-gestation results in differences in muscle histology or genes regulating fetal adipose and muscle development. In total, 22 Angus cross-bred heifers (BW=527.73±8.3 kg) were assigned randomly to the three dietary treatments providing 146% (HIGH; n=7), 87% (INT; n=7) or 72% (LOW; n=8) of the energy requirements for heifers from day 85 to day 180 of gestation. Fetuses were removed via cesarean section at day 180 of gestation and longissimus muscle (LM) and subcutaneous fat were collected and prepared for analysis of gene expression. Samples from the LM and semitendinosus (ST) were evaluated for muscle fiber diameter, area and number. The right hind limb was dissected and analyzed to determine compositional analysis. Fetal growth and muscle histology characteristics of the LM and ST were similar among treatments. Preadipocyte factor-1 expression was up-regulated in fetal LM (P<0.05) of HIGH fetuses as compared with INT, whereas LOW fetuses showed increased CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein-β (C/EBP-β) expression in LM as compared with INT (P<0.05). Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γand C/EBP-α did not differ as a result of dietary treatment in LM or subcutaneous fat samples. There was a tendency for increased expression of fatty acid synthase in LM of LOW fetuses as compared with INT (P<0.10). Myogenin was more highly expressed (P<0.05) in LM of the LOW fetuses, whereas μ-calpain expression was increased in the HIGH treatment compared with INT. A tendency for increased expression of IGF-II was observed for both LOW and HIGH fetuses compared with INT (P<0.10). Expression of stearoyl-CoA desaturase, myoblast determination protein 1, myogenic factor 5, myogenic regulatory factor-4, m-calpain, calpastatin, IGF-I and myostatin was similar between treatments. Collectively, these results suggest that fetal growth characteristics are not affected by the level of maternal nutritional manipulation imposed in this study during mid-gestation. However, differences in expression of fetal genes regulating adipose and muscle tissue growth and development could lead to differences in postnatal composition and warrants further investigation.

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the relationship between the fractional amplitudes of the EEG derived from power spectral analysis (PSA) of the electroencephalogram (EEG) and depth of coma measured clinically with the Glasgow Coma Score, and to assess the accuracy of PSA in predicting long-term outcome. Thirty-two patients rendered unconscious by blunt head injury (mean (GCS = 7) had intermittent EEG recordings daily from 1-10 days post injury. There was a significant correlation between fractional amplitude of the EEG and the GCS. The rate and magnitude of change in the EEG and GCS were also correlated. There were significant differences in PSA parameters between improved and deteriorated patient groups at the termination of monitoring (p = .02) and in the change of PSA parameters over time (p = .02). Using linear discriminant analysis of PSA parameters, the accuracy of outcome prognostication based on the six month outcome was approximately 75%. Accurate classification of outcome was possible in a number of patients in whom there was little or no change in the GCS during the period of monitoring.

We present near-infrared integral field observations of the super star cluster in the amorphous galaxy NGC1705. Data have been collected with SINFONI mounted on the VLT. Adaptive optics was used under good seeing conditions. Mosaics of the cluster and its immediate surrounding have been constructed. The cluster is not spatially resolved. Its radius is smaller than 2.85 ± 0.50pc. The K-band spectrum of the cluster is dominated by strong CO absorption bandheads. It is typical of a Galactic K 4–5 supergiant. Its age is estimated to be 12 ± 6Myr. The large error bar is rooted in the uncertainties of the input physics and ingredients of different evolutionary models.

A year-long intervention trial was conducted to characterise the responses of multiple biomarkers of Se status in healthy American adults to supplemental selenomethionine (SeMet) and to identify factors affecting those responses. A total of 261 men and women were randomised to four doses of Se (0, 50, 100 or 200 μg/d as l-SeMet) for 12 months. Responses of several biomarkers of Se status (plasma Se, serum selenoprotein P (SEPP1), plasma glutathione peroxidase activity (GPX3), buccal cell Se, urinary Se) were determined relative to genotype of four selenoproteins (GPX1, GPX3, SEPP1, selenoprotein 15), dietary Se intake and parameters of single-carbon metabolism. Results showed that supplemental SeMet did not affect GPX3 activity or SEPP1 concentration, but produced significant, dose-dependent increases in the Se contents of plasma, urine and buccal cells, each of which plateaued by 9–12 months and was linearly related to effective Se dose (μg/d per kg0·75). The increase in urinary Se excretion was greater for women than men, and for individuals of the GPX1 679 T/T genotype than for those of the GPX1 679 C/C genotype. It is concluded that the most responsive Se-biomarkers in this non-deficient cohort were those related to body Se pools: plasma, buccal cell and urinary Se concentrations. Changes in plasma Se resulted from increases in its non-specific component and were affected by both sex and GPX1 genotype. In a cohort of relatively high Se status, the Se intake (as SeMet) required to support plasma Se concentration at a target level (Sepl-target) is: .

Deep far-infrared photometric surveys studying galaxy evolution and the nature of the cosmic infrared background are a key strength of the Herschel mission. The PACS Evolutionary Probe (PEP) guaranteed time key program obtains deep photometric surveys of some of the key extragalactic multiwavelength fields at wavelengths between 70 and 160 μm. This contribution gives an overview of first science results, illustrating the potential of Herschel in providing calorimetric star formation rates for various high redshift galaxy populations, thus testing and superseding previous extrapolations from other wavelengths, and enabling a wide range of galaxy evolution studies.

The Herschel Key Project SHINING performs a study of the ISM in star forming and active infrared bright galaxies (starbursts, AGN, (U)LIRGs, interacting and low metallicity galaxies) at local and intermediate redshifts. Here we present some surprising and promising first results from parts of this programme, including spatially resolved PDR diagnostics, line deficit diagnostics, and large scale molecular outflows traced by the OH molecule.

With differential equations in the neighbourhood of an irregular singular point, it sometimes happens that formal solutions may converge. For example, this occurs for Bessel's equation at∞ when the parameter is half of an odd integer. In addition, there are some classical theorems of Perron and Lettenmeyer which give sufficient conditions for the existence of linearly independent analytic solutions at (generally) an irregular singular point. Using the principle of reduction of order, such a solution may be used to transform the differential equation into one whose coefficient matrix is triangularly blocked with an (n – 1) and 1-block on the diagonal. The solutions of the given differential equation can thus be obtained by solving a lower dimensional differential equation plus quadrature.

A total of 701 comets received names between July 2005 and June 2008. Comets observed only from the SOHO and STEREO missions, as well as further comets recognized from the long-defunct SOLWIND satellite, accounted for 520 of these names.

After a brief discussion it was agreed that this membership is well distributed in terms of geography, gender, and fields of planetary work.

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2007 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA, August 5 – August 9, 2007

On July 11, 2006, our distinguished colleague Ross M. Lence passed away. Ross had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in August of 2005, and even in his most difficult moments this last year, he continued to grace our lives with his good cheer and to engage in that activity he most loved, teaching.