Prevalence of alcohol-related pathologies at autopsy: Estonian Forensic Study of Alcohol and Premature Death.

AIMS: Alcohol can induce diverse serious pathologies, yet this complexity may be obscured when alcohol-related deaths are classified according to a single underlying cause. We sought to quantify this issue and its implications for analysing mortality data. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional study included 554 men aged 25-54 in Estonia undergoing forensic autopsy in 2008-09. MEASUREMENTS: Potentially alcohol-related pathologies were identified following macroscopic and histological examination. Alcohol biomarkers levels were determined. For a subset (26%), drinking behaviour was provided by next-of-kin. The Estonian Statistics Office provided underlying cause of death. FINDINGS: Most deaths (75%) showed evidence of potentially alcohol-related pathologies, and 32% had pathologies in two or more organs. The liver was most commonly affected [60.5%, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 56.3-64.6] followed by the lungs (18.6%, 95% CI = 15.4-22.1), stomach (17.5%, 95% CI = 14.4-20.9), pancreas (14.1%, 95% CI = 11.3-17.3), heart (4.9%, 95% CI = 3.2-7.0) and oesophagus (1.4%, 95% CI = 0.6-2.8). Only a minority with liver pathology had a second pathology. The number of pathologies correlated with alcohol biomarkers (phosphatidylethanol, gamma-glytamyl transpeptidase in blood, ethylglucuronide, ethylsulphate in urine). Despite the high prevalence of liver pathology, few deaths had alcoholic liver disease specified as the underlying cause. CONCLUSION: The majority of 554 men aged 25-54 undergoing forensic autopsy in Estonia in 2008-09 showed evidence of alcohol-related pathology. However, the recording of deaths by underlying cause failed to capture the scale and nature of alcohol-induced pathologies found

Onset of dielectric modes at 110K and 60K due to local lattice distortions in non-superconducting YBa_{2}Cu_{3}O_{6.0} crystals

We report the observation of two dielectric transitions at 110K and 60K in the microwave response of non-superconducting YBa_{2}Cu_{3}O_{6.0} crystals. The transitions are characterized by a change in polarizability and presence of loss peaks, associated with overdamped dielectric modes. An explanation is presented in terms of changes in polarizability of the apical O atoms in the Ba-O layer, affected by lattice softening at 110K, due to change in buckling of the Cu-O layer. The onset of another mode at 60K strongly suggests an additional local lattice change at this temperature. Thus microwave dielectric measurements are sensitive indicators of lattice softening which may be relevant to superconductivity.Comment: 5 pages, 3 ps format figure

Path integrals approach to resisitivity anomalies in anharmonic systems

Different classes of physical systems with sizeable electron-phonon coupling and lattice distortions present anomalous resistivity behaviors versus temperature. We study a molecular lattice Hamiltonian in which polaronic charge carriers interact with non linear potentials provided by local atomic fluctuations between two equilibrium sites. We study a molecular lattice Hamiltonian in which polaronic charge carriers interact with non linear potentials provided by local atomic fluctuations between two equilibrium sites. A path integral model is developed to select the class of atomic oscillations which mainly contributes to the partition function and the electrical resistivity is computed in a number of representative cases. We argue that the common origin of the observed resistivity anomalies lies in the time retarded nature of the polaronic interactions in the local structural instabilities.Comment: 4 figures, to appear in Phys.Rev.B, May 1st (2001

Bicuspid Aortic Valve Stenosis and the Effect of Vitamin K2 on Calcification Using F-Sodium Fluoride Positron Emission Tomography/Magnetic Resonance:The BASIK2 Rationale and Trial Design

BASIK2 is a prospective, double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial investigating the effect of vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7;MK7) on imaging measurements of calcification in the bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) and calcific aortic valve stenosis (CAVS). BAV is associated with early development of CAVS. Pathophysiologic mechanisms are incompletely defined, and the only treatment available is valve replacement upon progression to severe symptomatic stenosis. Matrix Gla protein (MGP) inactivity is suggested to be involved in progression. Being a vitamin K dependent protein, supplementation with MK7 is a pharmacological option for activating MGP and intervening in the progression of CAVS. Forty-four subjects with BAV and mild–moderate CAVS will be included in the study, and baseline 18F-sodiumfluoride (18F-NaF) positron emission tomography (PET)/ magnetic resonance (MR) and computed tomography (CT) assessments will be performed. Thereafter, subjects will be randomized (1:1) to MK7 (360 mcg/day) or placebo. During an 18-month follow-up period, subjects will visit the hospital every 6 months, undergoing a second 18F-NaF PET/MR after 6 months and CT after 6 and 18 months. The primary endpoint is the change in PET/MR 18F-NaF uptake (6 months minus baseline) compared to this delta change in the placebo arm. The main secondary endpoints are changes in calcium score (CT), progression of the left ventricularremodeling response and CAVS severity (echocardiography). We will also examine the association between early calcification activity (PET) and later changes in calcium score (CT)

Polarons and bipolarons in strongly interacting electron-phonon systems

The Holstein Hubbard and Holstein t--J models are studied for a wide range of phonon frequencies, electron--electron and electron--phonon interaction strengths on finite lattices with up to ten sites by means of direct Lanczos diagonalization. Previously the necessary truncation of the phononic Hilbert space caused serious limitations to either very small systems (four or even two sites) or to weak electron--phonon coupling, in particular in the adiabatic regime. Using parallel computers we were able to investigate the transition from `large' to `small' polarons in detail. By resolving the low--lying eigenstates of the Hamiltonian and by calculating the spectral function we can identify a polaron band in the strong--coupling case, whose dispersion deviates from the free--particle dispersion at low and intermediate phonon frequencies. For two electrons (holes) we establish the existence of bipolaronic states and discuss the formation of a bipolaron band. For the 2D Holstein t--J model we demonstrate that the formation of hole--polarons is favoured by strong Coulomb correlations. Analyzing the hole--hole correlation functions we find that hole binding is enhanced as a dynamical effect of the electron--phonon interaction.Comment: 23 pages (Revtex) with 13 figures (ps, uuencoded

Blood and Tissue Ammonium-nitrogen Levels and Tissue Water in Pregnant Urea-treated Rabbits

Ammonia is produced by the normal cellular metabolic processes in mammals; however, ammonia can produce deleterious effects which are well known to many research fields. Ammonia when administered or absorbed at a slow rate may be tolerated in vast quantities by most living organisms. Relatively minute blood ammonium-nitrogen (BAN) levels are present because mammals have efficient systems for excreting ammonia or converting it to non-toxic end products. Normal BAN levels originate mainly from cellular metabolism and bacterial degradation of nitrogenous substrates in the alimentary tract lumen. Impaired detoxification processes (hepatic functional insufficiency and/or portal system shunts) promote elevated BAN levels when ammonium ions are introduced too rapidly, when ammonia quantities are excessive, or when highly toxic ammonium compounds are introduced. Deleterious actions of markedly elevated BAN levels indicate graded responses in various tissues. Many of these tissue responses have not been evaluated in relation to elevated BAN levels. The purpose of this study was to investigate BAN and tissue ammonium-nitrogen (TAN) levels and percent tissue water in pregnant rabbits when administered massive urea doses by gavage route

Abstract Markov Random Fields

Markov random fields are known to be fully characterized by properties of their information diagrams, or I-diagrams. In particular, for Markov random fields, regions in the I-diagram corresponding to disconnected vertex sets in the graph vanish. Recently, I-diagrams have been generalized to F-diagrams, for a larger class of functions F satisfying the chain rule beyond Shannon entropy, such as Kullback-Leibler divergence and cross-entropy. In this work, we generalize the notion and characterization of Markov random fields to this larger class of functions F and investigate preliminary applications. We define F-independences, F-mutual independences, and F-Markov random fields and characterize them by their F-diagram. In the process, we also define F-dual total correlation and prove that its vanishing is equivalent to F-mutual independence. We then apply our results to information functions F that are applied to probability distributions. We show that if the probability distributions are Markov random fields for the same graph, then we formally recover the notion of an F-Markov random field for that graph. We then study the Kullback-Leibler divergence on specific Markov chains, leading to a visual representation of the second law of thermodynamics.Comment: 50 pages, 7 figure

Lattice dynamics effects on small polaron properties

This study details the conditions under which strong-coupling perturbation theory can be applied to the molecular crystal model, a fundamental theoretical tool for analysis of the polaron properties. I show that lattice dimensionality and intermolecular forces play a key role in imposing constraints on the applicability of the perturbative approach. The polaron effective mass has been computed in different regimes ranging from the fully antiadiabatic to the fully adiabatic. The polaron masses become essentially dimension independent for sufficiently strong intermolecular coupling strengths and converge to much lower values than those tradition-ally obtained in small-polaron theory. I find evidence for a self-trapping transition in a moderately adiabatic regime at an electron-phonon coupling value of .3. Our results point to a substantial independence of the self-trapping event on dimensionality.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure

The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment: Exploring Fundamental Symmetries of the Universe

The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early Universe, the dynamics of the supernova bursts that produced the heavy elements necessary for life and whether protons eventually decay --- these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our Universe, its current state and its eventual fate. The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment (LBNE) represents an extensively developed plan for a world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions. LBNE is conceived around three central components: (1) a new, high-intensity neutrino source generated from a megawatt-class proton accelerator at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, (2) a near neutrino detector just downstream of the source, and (3) a massive liquid argon time-projection chamber deployed as a far detector deep underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. This facility, located at the site of the former Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota, is approximately 1,300 km from the neutrino source at Fermilab -- a distance (baseline) that delivers optimal sensitivity to neutrino charge-parity symmetry violation and mass ordering effects. This ambitious yet cost-effective design incorporates scalability and flexibility and can accommodate a variety of upgrades and contributions. With its exceptional combination of experimental configuration, technical capabilities, and potential for transformative discoveries, LBNE promises to be a vital facility for the field of particle physics worldwide, providing physicists from around the globe with opportunities to collaborate in a twenty to thirty year program of exciting science. In this document we provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess.Comment: Major update of previous version. This is the reference document for LBNE science program and current status. Chapters 1, 3, and 9 provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess. 288 pages, 116 figure