Clinical, imaging, and pathological characteristics of congenital infiltrating lipomatosis of the face

Congenital infiltrating lipomatosis of the face (CILF) is a rare congenital disease of the head and neck region. In this study, the cases of 20 patients diagnosed with CILF were reviewed retrospectively to analyse the characteristics of the disease. The symptoms, signs, and clinical progression were investigated. Radiological changes were analysed according to the distribution of the trigeminal nerve. The pathological features of the fatty facial lesions, jaw hyperplasia, and lingual lesions were further identified. All 20 patients demonstrated hemifacial hypertrophy at birth. None had a family history of the disease. Significant radiological features of CILF (prevalence ≥90%) included thickened buccal subcutaneous fat, palatal submucosal fat, and temporal subcutaneous fat, maxillary tuberosity heteroplasia, and fatty infiltration of the masseteric intermuscular space. With regard to the trigeminal nerve, the frontal branch region (CNV1) was rarely affected, while the maxillary (CNV2) and mandibular (CNV3) branch regions showed considerable changes. Pathologically, CILF was observed to be characterized by the infiltration of mature adipose tissue into the adjacent buccal soft tissue, osteal remodelling surrounded by sheets of mature lipocytes and supporting fibrovascular stroma, and lingual hamartoma. In summary, CILF exhibits distinct characteristics that are related to the regions controlled by the maxillary and mandibular branches of the trigeminal nerve, suggesting that CILF may be associated with early neural development.

Increase in body temperature in pediatric patients after costal cartilage harvest in microtia reconstruction: A retrospective observational study

BACKGROUND

Previous evidence has clearly shown that maintaining normothermia in children undergoing surgery is difficult and is associated with adverse outcomes. Therefore, this study aimed to retrospectively analyze the changes in body temperature over time in 2 different types of microtia reconstruction surgeries, namely, embedding, and elevation surgeries.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective chart review of patients who underwent microtia reconstruction (embedding and elevation) between July 2012 and February 2015 (n = 38). The changes in body temperature between the 2 types of surgeries were compared.

RESULTS

During microtia reconstruction, the body temperature in the embedding surgery group was significantly higher than that in the elevation surgery group from 1 hour after the start of surgery to 1 day after the surgery (P < .001). Time, group, and time-group interaction were associated with an increase in body temperature (P < .001) but not the warming method.

CONCLUSION

We found an increase in body temperature in patients with microtia who underwent embedding surgery (autologous costal cartilage harvest surgery), and this was related to the type of surgery and not to the warming method. Therefore, further research is warranted to determine the cause of the increase in body temperature during this surgery.

Postoperative propofol bolus treatment did not affect recovery time in patients with emergence agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia in pediatric patients undergoing strabismus surgery: Prospective nonrandomized case-control study

BACKGROUND

The incidence of emergence agitation (EA) after sevoflurane anesthesia is high, especially in pediatric strabismus surgery. However, research thus far has focused on the pharmacological prophylaxis of EA and administering drugs to pediatric patients without EA is problematic. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the use of propofol after sevoflurane anesthesia affects recovery time in patients with EA.

METHODS

After obtaining informed written consent, 113 children (aged 2-12 years) with the American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status of I or II who underwent strabismus surgery were enrolled. Patients were divided into 2 groups; upon arrival at the postanesthetic care unit (PACU), patients who had EA (pediatric anesthesia emergence delirium [PAED] scale score ≥14) were treated with 1.0 mg/kg 1% propofol (group P: n = 30). Patients who did not have EA (PAED scale score <14, group C: n = 83) were taken care of in the PACU without propofol administration.

RESULTS

There was no difference in the PAED scale scores between the 2 groups from 10 minutes to discharge from the PACU (P > .05). There was no difference in PACU stay time between the 2 groups (P > .05).

CONCLUSIONS

We concluded that propofol administration for intense EA alleviated EA symptoms and prevented an increase in the duration of PACU stay due to EA in children undergoing strabismus surgery under sevoflurane anesthesia.

Experimental Evidence of Intrinsic Current Generation by Turbulence in Stationary Tokamak Plasmas

High-β_{θe} (a ratio of the electron thermal pressure to the poloidal magnetic pressure) steady-state long-pulse plasmas with steep central electron temperature gradient are achieved in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak. An intrinsic current is observed to be modulated by turbulence driven by the electron temperature gradient. This turbulent current is generated in the countercurrent direction and can reach a maximum ratio of 25% of the bootstrap current. Gyrokinetic simulations and experimental observations indicate that the turbulence is the electron temperature gradient mode (ETG). The dominant mechanism for the turbulent current generation is due to the divergence of ETG-driven residual flux of current. Good agreement has been found between experiments and theory for the critical value of the electron temperature gradient triggering ETG and for the level of the turbulent current. The maximum values of turbulent current and electron temperature gradient lead to the destabilization of an m/n=1/1 kink mode, which by counteraction reduces the turbulence level (m and n are the poloidal and toroidal mode number, respectively). These observations suggest that the self-regulation system including turbulence, turbulent current, and kink mode is a contributing mechanism for sustaining the steady-state long-pulse high-β_{θe} regime.

Integration of full divertor detachment with improved core confinement for tokamak fusion plasmas

Divertor detachment offers a promising solution to the challenge of plasma-wall interactions for steady-state operation of fusion reactors. Here, we demonstrate the excellent compatibility of actively controlled full divertor detachment with a high-performance (βN ~ 3, H98 ~ 1.5) core plasma, using high-βp (poloidal beta, βp > 2) scenario characterized by a sustained core internal transport barrier (ITB) and a modest edge transport barrier (ETB) in DIII-D tokamak. The high-βp high-confinement scenario facilitates divertor detachment which, in turn, promotes the development of an even stronger ITB at large radius with a weaker ETB. This self-organized synergy between ITB and ETB, leads to a net gain in energy confinement, in contrast to the net confinement loss caused by divertor detachment in standard H-modes. These results show the potential of integrating excellent core plasma performance with an efficient divertor solution, an essential step towards steady-state operation of reactor-grade plasmas.

First Evidence of Local E×B Drift in the Divertor Influencing the Structure and Stability of Confined Plasma near the Edge of Fusion Devices

The structure of the edge plasma in a magnetic confinement system has a strong impact on the overall plasma performance. We uncover for the first time a magnetic-field-direction dependent density shelf, i.e., local flattening of the density radial profile near the magnetic separatrix, in high confinement plasmas with low edge collisionality in the DIII-D tokamak. The density shelf is correlated with a doubly peaked density profile near the divertor target plate, which tends to occur for operation with the ion B×∇B drift direction away from the X-point, as currently employed for DIII-D advanced tokamak scenarios. This double-peaked divertor plasma profile is connected via the E×B drifts, arising from a strong radial electric field induced by the radial electron temperature gradient near the divertor target. The drifts lead to the reversal of the poloidal flow above the divertor target, resulting in the formation of the density shelf. The edge density shelf can be further enhanced at higher heating power, preventing large, periodic bursts of the plasma, i.e., edge-localized modes, in the edge region, consistent with ideal magnetohydrodynamics calculations.

Promising High-Confinement Regime for Steady-State Fusion

A reproducible stationary high-confinement regime with small "edge-localized modes" (ELMs) has been achieved recently in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, which has a metal wall and low plasma rotation as projected for a fusion reactor. We have uncovered that this small ELM regime is enabled by a wide edge transport barrier (pedestal) with a low density gradient and a high density ratio between the pedestal foot and top. Nonlinear simulations reveal, for the first time, that the underlying mechanism for the observed small ELM crashes is the upper movement of the peeling boundary induced by an initial radially localized collapse in the pedestal, which stops the growth of instabilities and further collapse of the pedestal, thus providing a physics basis for mitigating ELMs in future steady-state fusion reactors.

Design of Langmuir probe diagnostic system for the upgraded lower tungsten divertor in EAST tokamak

In order to achieve long-pulse H-mode plasma scenario over 400 s with high heating power in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) device, the lower graphite divertor will be upgraded into a tungsten (W) divertor with active water cooling, which consists of the W/Cu monoblock units and the W flat-tile units as the divertor plasma facing components. As a fundamental diagnostic tool, the divertor Langmuir probe (Div-LP) diagnostic system will be upgraded accordingly. This paper presents the design of two kinds of new Div-LP systems, which are planned to be utilized on the W/Cu monoblock units and the W flat-tile units for the upgraded lower tungsten divertor, respectively, including their structures and preliminary poloidal and toroidal layouts. The Div-LP diagnostic system can measure the plasma parameters with the schemes of triple-probe, double-probe, and single-probe, to obtain the spatial and temporal distribution of plasma behavior on the divertor targets, which is useful for the discharge control and operation in EAST. In addition, the thermal analysis of the two kinds of probe assemblies is also carried out by using the three-dimensional finite element code ANSYS, which is aimed to get the optimal designs to withstand the long-pulse and high-power operation in EAST future experiments.

Edge toroidal charge exchange spectra analysis in the EAST

An edge toroidal charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (eCXRS) diagnostic has been deployed successfully on the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) recently, providing edge plasma ion temperature and toroidal rotation. Edge CXRS on EAST typically monitors the carbon vi (529.059 nm, n = 8 → 7) spectral line. Spectral lines emitted from other different impurities that appeared in the wavelength ranges of 528 nm-530 nm illustrate the need to revise the edge change exchange spectra analysis in this region. Since the eCXRS sightlines end on the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) stainless steel antenna, the passive Fe lines coming from the antenna could be recorded by eCXRS diagnostic when ICRF is used. A revised edge toroidal charge exchange spectra analysis including Fe spectral lines is presented. The accuracy of eCXRS measurement has been improved by the revised spectra analysis.

Retarding field analyzer for the EAST plasma boundary

A novel bi-directional Retarding Field Analyzer (RFA) probe has been installed on a fast reciprocating drive system on the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) to measure the ion temperature and fast electron fluxes. A Langmuir probe assembly was added on the top of the RFA head to control the RFA position relative to the last closed flux surface and to have a possibility to measure the electron density and temperature as well. Except the ion temperature, the fast electron fluxes from both ion and electron drift sides have been measured during lower hybrid current drive. The RFA probe has been also used to measure the fast electrons associated with edge localized modes (ELMs), indicating their substantial presence in the scrape-off-layer plasma of EAST.

Status of neutron diagnostics on the experimental advanced superconducting tokamak

Neutron diagnostics have become a significant means to study energetic particles in high power auxiliary heating plasmas on the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST). Several kinds of neutron diagnostic systems have been implemented for time-resolved measurements of D-D neutron flux, fluctuation, emission profile, and spectrum. All detectors have been calibrated in laboratory, and in situ calibration using ²⁵²Cf neutron source in EAST is in preparation. A new technology of digitized pulse signal processing is adopted in a wide dynamic range neutron flux monitor, compact recoil proton spectrometer, and time of flight spectrometer. Improvements will be made continuously to the system to achieve better adaptation to the EAST's harsh γ-ray and electro-magnetic radiation environment.

Upgrade of Langmuir probe diagnostic in ITER-like tungsten mono-block divertor on experimental advanced superconducting tokamak

In order to withstand rapid increase in particle and power impact onto the divertor and demonstrate the feasibility of the ITER design under long pulse operation, the upper divertor of the EAST tokamak has been upgraded to actively water-cooled, ITER-like tungsten mono-block structure since the 2014 campaign, which is the first attempt for ITER on the tokamak devices. Therefore, a new divertor Langmuir probe diagnostic system (DivLP) was designed and successfully upgraded on the tungsten divertor to obtain the plasma parameters in the divertor region such as electron temperature, electron density, particle and heat fluxes. More specifically, two identical triple probe arrays have been installed at two ports of different toroidal positions (112.5-deg separated toroidally), which can provide fundamental data to study the toroidal asymmetry of divertor power deposition and related 3-dimension (3D) physics, as induced by resonant magnetic perturbations, lower hybrid wave, and so on. The shape of graphite tip and fixed structure of the probe are designed according to the structure of the upper tungsten divertor. The ceramic support, small graphite tip, and proper connector installed make it possible to be successfully installed in the very narrow interval between the cassette body and tungsten mono-block, i.e., 13.5 mm. It was demonstrated during the 2014 and 2015 commissioning campaigns that the newly upgraded divertor Langmuir probe diagnostic system is successful. Representative experimental data are given and discussed for the DivLP measurements, then proving its availability and reliability.

Low-to-High Confinement Transition Mediated by Turbulence Radial Wave Number Spectral Shift in a Fusion Plasma

A new model for the low-to-high (L-H) confinement transition has been developed based on a new paradigm for turbulence suppression by velocity shear [G. M. Staebler et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 055003 (2013)]. The model indicates that the L-H transition can be mediated by a shift in the radial wave number spectrum of turbulence, as evidenced here, for the first time, by the direct observation of a turbulence radial wave number spectral shift and turbulence structure tilting prior to the L-H transition at tokamak edge by direct probing. This new mechanism does not require a pretransition overshoot in the turbulent Reynolds stress, shunting turbulence energy to zonal flows for turbulence suppression as demonstrated in the experiment.

Edge multi-energy soft x-ray diagnostic in Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak

A multi-energy soft x-ray (ME-SXR) diagnostic has been built for electron temperature profile in the edge plasma region in Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) after two rounds of campaigns. Originally, five preamplifiers were mounted inside the EAST vacuum vessel chamber attached to five vertically stacked compact diode arrays. A custom mechanical structure was designed to protect the detectors and electronics under constraints of the tangential field of view for plasma edge and the allocation of space. In the next experiment, the mechanical structure was redesigned with a barrel structure to absolutely isolate it from the vacuum vessel. Multiple shielding structures were mounted at the pinhole head to protect the metal foils from lithium coating. The pre-amplifiers were moved to the outside of the vacuum chamber to avoid introducing interference. Twisted copper cooling tube was embedded into the back-shell near the diode to limit the temperature of the preamplifiers and diode arrays during vacuum vessel baking when the temperature reached 150 °C. Electron temperature profiles were reconstructed from ME-SXR measurements using neural networks.

New steady-state quiescent high-confinement plasma in an experimental advanced superconducting tokamak

A critical challenge facing the basic long-pulse high-confinement operation scenario (H mode) for ITER is to control a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instability, known as the edge localized mode (ELM), which leads to cyclical high peak heat and particle fluxes at the plasma facing components. A breakthrough is made in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak in achieving a new steady-state H mode without the presence of ELMs for a duration exceeding hundreds of energy confinement times, by using a novel technique of continuous real-time injection of a lithium (Li) aerosol into the edge plasma. The steady-state ELM-free H mode is accompanied by a strong edge coherent MHD mode (ECM) at a frequency of 35-40 kHz with a poloidal wavelength of 10.2 cm in the ion diamagnetic drift direction, providing continuous heat and particle exhaust, thus preventing the transient heat deposition on plasma facing components and impurity accumulation in the confined plasma. It is truly remarkable that Li injection appears to promote the growth of the ECM, owing to the increase in Li concentration and hence collisionality at the edge, as predicted by GYRO simulations. This new steady-state ELM-free H-mode regime, enabled by real-time Li injection, may open a new avenue for next-step fusion development.

Photoluminescence study on polar nanoregions and structural variations in Pb(Mg₁/₃Nb₂/₃)O₃ ₋ PbTiO₃ single crystals

We report polar nanostructure and electronic transitions in relaxor ferroelectric Pb(Mg₁/₃Nb₂/₃)O₃ ₋ PbTiO (PMN-PT) single crystals around morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) region by variable-temperature (80-800 K) photoluminescence (PL) spectra and low-wavenumber Raman scattering (LWRS). The discontinuous evolution from peak positions and intensity of luminescence emissions can be corresponding to formation of polar nanoclusters and phase transitions. Six emissions have been derived from PL spectra and show obvious characteristics near phase transition temperatures, which indicates that PL spectral measurement is promising in understanding the microcosmic mechanism. The Raman mode at 1145 cm(-1) indicates that temperature dependent luminescence phenomena can be modulated by thermal quenching.

New edge coherent mode providing continuous transport in long-pulse H-mode plasmas

An electrostatic coherent mode near the electron diamagnetic frequency (20-90 kHz) is observed in the steep-gradient pedestal region of long pulse H-mode plasmas in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, using a newly developed dual gas-puff-imaging system and diamond-coated reciprocating probes. The mode propagates in the electron diamagnetic direction in the plasma frame with poloidal wavelength of ∼8  cm. The mode drives a significant outflow of particles and heat as measured directly with the probes, thus greatly facilitating long pulse H-mode sustainment. This mode shows the nature of dissipative trapped electron mode, as evidenced by gyrokinetic turbulence simulations.

Energy requirements of Dorper crossbred ewe lambs

The ME and NE requirements of Dorper crossbred ewe lambs grown from 35 to 50 kg BW were assessed in a comparative slaughter trial. Thirty-five ewe lambs (33.5 ± 0.6 kg BW) of F1 crosses of purebred Dorper and thin-tailed Han sheep were used: 7 lambs were slaughtered at the start of the trial to provide baseline measures of body composition and 7 lambs were fed ad libitum and slaughtered when they reached 43 kg BW to provide intermediate measures of body composition. The remaining 21 lambs were divided into 3 groups of 7 lambs each and fed a pelleted mixed diet (concentrate:roughage = 44:56, DM basis) for ad libitum intake or 65 or 45% of ad libitum intake. All 3 groups were slaughtered when the ad libitum group reached 50 kg BW. Total body energy, N, fat, ash, and moisture content were measured. In a separate trial, 15 ewe lambs (39.5 ± 0.7 kg BW) of F1 crosses of purebred Dorper and thin-tailed Han sheep were housed in metabolism cages to evaluate the ME value of the diet at each of the 3 levels of feed intake. In vivo methane production was measured by open-circuit respirometry along with the collection of all feces and urine. The daily NEm requirement of the ewe lambs was 280 kJ/kg metabolic BW (BW(0.75)) or 292 kJ/kg metabolic shrunk BW (SBW(0.75)), whereas the daily ME requirement for maintenance was 418 kJ/kg BW(0.75) or 437 kJ/kg SBW(0.75), with a partial efficiency of ME utilization for maintenance of 0.67. The NEg requirement ranged from 1.37 to 3.94 MJ/d for ADG from 100 to 250 g BW, and the partial efficiency of ME utilization for gain was 0.44. The NE and ME requirements of Dorper × thin-tailed Han crossbred ewe lambs were lower than the recommendations of the United States' nutritional system.

Magnetic topology changes induced by lower hybrid waves and their profound effect on edge-localized modes in the EAST tokamak

Strong mitigation of edge-localized modes has been observed on Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, when lower hybrid waves (LHWs) are applied to H-mode plasmas with ion cyclotron resonant heating. This has been demonstrated to be due to the formation of helical current filaments flowing along field lines in the scrape-off layer induced by LHW. This leads to the splitting of the outer divertor strike points during LHWs similar to previous observations with resonant magnetic perturbations. The change in the magnetic topology has been qualitatively modeled by considering helical current filaments in a field-line-tracing code.

New dual gas puff imaging system with up-down symmetry on experimental advanced superconducting tokamak

Gas puff imaging (GPI) offers a direct and effective diagnostic to measure the edge turbulence structure and velocity in the edge plasma, which closely relates to edge transport and instability in tokamaks. A dual GPI diagnostic system has been installed on the low field side on experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST). The two views are up-down symmetric about the midplane and separated by a toroidal angle of 66.6°. A linear manifold with 16 holes apart by 10 mm is used to form helium gas cloud at the 130×130 mm (radial versus poloidal) objective plane. A fast camera is used to capture the light emission from the image plane with a speed up to 390,804 frames/s with 64×64 pixels and an exposure time of 2.156 μs. The spatial resolution of the system is 2 mm at the objective plane. A total amount of 200 Pa.L helium gas is puffed into the plasma edge for each GPI viewing region for about 250 ms. The new GPI diagnostic has been applied on EAST for the first time during the recent experimental campaign under various plasma conditions, including ohmic, L-mode, and type-I, and type-III ELMy H-modes. Some of these initial experimental results are also presented.

First evidence of the role of zonal flows for the L-H transition at marginal input power in the EAST tokamak

A quasiperiodic Er oscillation at a frequency of <4 kHz, much lower than the geodesic-acoustic-mode frequency, with a modulation in edge turbulence preceding and following the low-to-high (L-H) confinement mode transition, has been observed for the first time in the EAST tokamak, using two toroidally separated reciprocating probes. Just prior to the L-H transition, the Er oscillation often evolves into intermittent negative Er spikes. The low-frequency Er oscillation, as well as the Er spikes, is strongly correlated with the turbulence-driven Reynolds stress, thus providing first evidence of the role of the zonal flows in the L-H transition at marginal input power. These new findings not only shed light on the underlying physics mechanism for the L-H transition, but also have significant implications for ITER operations close to the L-H transition threshold power.

Fast reciprocating probe system on the EAST superconducting tokamak

A new fast reciprocating probe system (FRPS) has been built and installed on the outer midplane of the EAST tokamak to investigate the profiles of the boundary plasma parameters such as electron density and temperature. The system consists of a two-stage motion drive mechanism: slow motion and fast motion. The fast motion is powered by a servo motor, which drives the probe horizontally up to 50 cm to scan the edge region of the EAST tokamak. The maximum velocity achieved is 2 m/s. High velocity and flexible control of the fast motion are the remarkable features of this FRPS. A specially designed connector installed at the front end of the probe shaft makes it easy to install or replace the probe head on FRPS. During the latest experimental campaign in the spring of 2010, a probe head with seven tips, including two tips for a Mach probe, has been used. An example is given for simultaneous profile measurements of the plasma temperature, plasma density, and the plasma flow velocity.

Observation of confined current ribbon in JET plasmas

We report the identification of a localized current structure inside the JET plasma. It is a field-aligned closed helical ribbon, carrying current in the same direction as the background current profile (cocurrent), rotating toroidally with the ion velocity (corotating). It appears to be located at a flat spot in the plasma pressure profile, at the top of the pedestal. The structure appears spontaneously in low density, high rotation plasmas, and can last up to 1.4 s, a time comparable to a local resistive time. It considerably delays the appearance of the first edge localized mode.

Changes in the expression of Fas on T lymphocytes after allogeneic fetal thymus transplantation in systemic lupus erytematosus mice

BACKGROUND

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disorder that can produce inflammation in many organ systems. The rate of spontaneous apoptosis in lymphocytes from human SLE patients has been reported to be increased both in vivo and in vitro. Studies of fetal thymus transplantation in an autoimmune syndrome indicate that cellular immunity can be reconstituted and regulatory T cell functions can be normalized.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to assess changes in Fas expression on T lymphocytes following fetal thymus transplant.

METHODS

(B/CxB6) F1 (H-2d/h) female F1 mice were assigned to groups designated transplantation, normal, and control. Mice in the transplantation and control groups received parental BALB/c lymphocytes intravenously. Thirty days after injection of the lymphocytes, each F1 mouse in the transplantation group received a fetal thymus graft under the right renal capsule. Mice in the control group did not receive thymus transplant and mice in the normal group received neither parental lymphocytes nor a fetal thymus graft. All mice received cyclosporin A at 2 mg/kg daily for the first 12 days after transplantation or starting on the corresponding day. Thirty days after thymus transplantation, F1 mice were sacrificed and expression of Fas in peripheral blood lymphocytes was analyzed by flow cytometry.

RESULTS

The percentage of CD4Fas+ T lymphocytes was significantly increased in the control group and the transplantation group compared with the normal group. Corresponding significant differences were observed for CD8Fas+, CD4CD25Fas', and CD45RB(low)Fas+ T lymphocytes.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, we found that fetal thymus transplantation had a significant effect on the expression of Fas by T cell subtypes in SLE mice.

Direct measurement of poloidal long-wavelength E x B flows in the HT-7 tokamak

The poloidal long-wavelength E x B time-varying flows were directly measured using a forked Langmuir probe in the HT-7 tokamak. Low-frequency (<10 kHz) E x B flows were observed at the plasma edge, which possess many of the characteristics of zonal flows, including a poloidal long-wavelength (k(theta)rho(i) approximately 0) and narrow radial extent (k(r)rho(i) approximately 0.1). The cross bicoherence of turbulent Reynolds stress indicates the existence of nonlinear three-wave coupling processes and the generation of low-frequency E x B flows. The estimated flow-shearing rate is of the same order of magnitude as the turbulence decorrelation rate and may thus regulate the fluctuation level and thereby the turbulence-driven transport.

[The role of NO/ET and the effect of electroacupuncture on injuried gastric mucosa in rats]

The aim of the present work is to observe changes in endothelium-derived factors--nitric oxide (NO) and endothelin (ET), with special reference to the regulative role of electroacupuncture (EA) in injured gastric mucosa of rat by ethanol. It was found that gastric mucosal blood flow (GMBF), transmucosal potential difference (PD) and the content of NO in the serum all decreased (P < 0.01), while the content of ET in the plasma and the lesion index (LI) of gastric mucosa increased (P < 0.01). After administration of L-Arg and SNP, the content of NO and GMBF increased significantly (P < 0.01), whereas the content of ET and LI decreased (P < 0.01). These effects were enhanced by EA at ZuSanLi (ST-36) points, which, however, were inhibited by NO biosynthetic inhibitor--L-NNA. The latter effect could be reversed by concurrent administration of L-Arg. The above results suggest that NO plays a critical part in protecting gastric mucosa against injury, which is also responsible for the protective effect of EA on injury of gastric mucosa.

[Chronic toxic effects of aluminum on nervous system in rabbits]

Twenty-one male rabbits were administered with alum (aluminum potassium sulfate) for 32 weeks to study the accumulative toxic effects of aluminum in food additives on central nervous system. Results showed aluminum levels in blood and brain tissue of the animals increased significantly with intake of alum (P < 0.01). Blood zinc levels, and activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) correlated negatively with aluminum levels in blood and brain, and SOD activity correlated negatively to accumulative aluminum deposit and positively to lipid oxide level in brain. Pathological examinations showed lesions in gyrus centralis anterior, gyrus hippocampi and spinal cord of the animals got more severely and extensively with aluminum intake and brain aluminum content, with disarrangement of neurofilaments and neurotubule, and deformation of synaptic structures.

Preliminary study on aluminum content of foods and aluminum intake of residents in Tianjin

Aluminum contents of 64 kinds mof foods in Tianjin were determined. The results showed that the aluminum levels in different kinds of foods varied greatly, and most foodstuffs from natural sources (including contamination from food processing) contained less than 10 mg/kg. Aluminum contents were higher in foodstuffs of plant origin, especially dry beans containing large amounts of aluminum naturally. Lower concentration of aluminum seemed to be present in foodstuffs of animal origin. It was estimated that the potential daily intake of aluminum per person from natural dietary sources in Tianjin was about 3.79 mg. This estimated figure of dietary aluminum intake was very close to the measured data from 24 daily diets of college students, which was 4.86 +/- 1.72 mg. Considering all the potential sources of natural aluminum in foods, water and the individual habitual food, it would appear that most residents in Tianjin would consume 3-10 mg aluminum daily from natural dietary sources.

[Preliminary study of aluminum content of foods and aluminum intake of residents in Tianjin]

Aluminum content of 64 kinds of foods in Tianjin was determined. The results showed that the aluminum levels in different kinds of food varied greatly, and most foodstuffs from natural sources (including contamination from food processing) contained less than 10 mg/kg. Aluminum content was higher in foodstuffs of plant origin, especially dry beans contained larger amounts of aluminum naturally. It was estimated that most Tianjin inhabitants would consume 3-10 mg aluminum daily from natural sources, there being no significant difference between urban and rural inhabitants.

[The preliminary study on aluminum toxicity to mice]

Mice were tested orally to study the toxic effects of Al on their skeleton and brain. The results showed that the Al content in brain increased along with its intake increase, but pathological examination of brain revealed no apparent change between test and control groups. Relative femur weight of mice in the highest dose group was lower than those of the other groups (P less than 0.05). The bone Al content was increased along with Al intake increase (P less than 0.05). There was negative correlation between the bone Al content and relative femur weight (P less than 0.05), and positive correlation between the bone Al content and the Al intake (P less than 0.01). Pathological examination of femurs revealed that the pathological changes of osteoporosis and osteoblast atrophy tended to increase while both Al intake and bone Al content were increased.

Comparison of pre- and postoperative radiation in the combined treatment of carcinoma of maxillary sinus

A series of 50 patients with cancer of the maxillary sinus treated by either preoperative or postoperative radiation from February, 1958 to June, 1974 is presented. In the postoperative group the patients were either free from recurrence, of if there was recurrence, the tumor was less than 0.5 cm in diameter. In the preoperative group, 23 of 36 patients survived for more than five years (64%). In the postoperative group, 4 of 14 patients survived for more than five years (26%). There is an obvious superiority in the preoperative radiation group. The surgical complication rate in the preoperative group was 29% as compared to 14% in the postoperative group. Although the incidence of complications in the preoperative group is higher, we believe it is worth attempting in clinical practice because of the more favourable survival rates.