Search results for "STED"

Performance of the COBAS AMPLICOR HCV MONITOR Test, Version 2.0, an Automated Reverse Transcription-PCR Quantitative System for Hepatitis C Virus Loa…

2000

ABSTRACT A clinical evaluation of an automated quantitative PCR assay, the COBAS AMPLICOR HCV MONITOR test, version 2.0 (v2.0), was carried out to assess the performance of this test in comparison with that of the previous, manual version, the AMPLICOR HCV MONITOR test, and with that of nested PCR. Serial dilutions of serum samples infected with genotype 1b, 2a, or 3, as well as synthetic RNA transcripts and serum samples derived from 87 patients with chronic hepatitis C and infected with genotype 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, or 5, were analyzed to determine the ability of the system to efficiently quantify various hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes. These experiments showed that the COBAS AMP…

Cost-Effectiveness of Pneumococcal Vaccination of Older People: A Study in 5 Western European Countries

1999

Pneumococcal vaccination of older persons is thought to be cost-effective in preventing pneumococcal pneumonia, but evidence of clinical protection is uncertain. Because there is better evidence of vaccination effectiveness against invasive pneumococcal disease, we determined the cost-effectiveness of pneumococcal vaccination of persons agedor =65 years in preventing hospital admission for both invasive pneumococcal disease and pneumococcal pneumonia in 5 western European countries. In the base case analyses, the cost-effectiveness ratios for preventing invasive disease varied from approximately 11,000 to approximately 33,000 European currency units (ecu) per quality-adjusted life year (QAL…

The Impact of Exchange Rate Fluctuations on Profit Margins: The UK Car Market, 1971–2002

2007

We investigate the impact on profit margins of exchange rate fluctuations in order to examine optimal pricing policy by source countries in the UK car market. We first estimate a nested logit deman...

Income Equality and Income Taxation

1994

In every society the distribution of income plays an essential role — not only for economists but also for social scientists and politicians. Most people agree that the laissez-faire allo-cation is not equitable but that some redistribution using taxes has to take place. Most of the literature has supposed that a Bergson- Samuelson social welfare function is the appropriate tool for capturing social values in such analyses. However, there are some objections against this approach. First, interpersonal comparability of the individual utilities is needed — an extremely strong and questionable claim. Second, most writers have worked with a concave transformation of individual cardinal utilitie…

Substitution of carcinogenic solvent dichloromethane for the extraction of volatile compounds in a fat-free model food system

2016

International audience; Dichloromethane is known as a very efficient solvent, but, as other halogenated solvents, is recognized as a hazardous product (CMR substance). The objective of the present work is to propose substitution solvent for the extraction of volatile compounds. The most important physico-chemical parameters in the choice of an appropriate extraction solvent of volatile compounds are reviewed. Various solvents are selected on this basis and on their hazard characteristics. The selected solvents, safer than dichloromethane, are compared using the extraction efficiency of volatile compounds from a model food product able to interact with volatile compounds. Volatile compounds …

A Bayesian direction-of-arrival model for an undetermined number of sources using a two-microphone array.

2014

Sound source localization using a two-microphone array is an active area of research, with considerable potential for use with video conferencing, mobile devices, and robotics. Based on the observed time-differences of arrival between sound signals, a probability distribution of the location of the sources is considered to estimate the actual source positions. However, these algorithms assume a given number of sound sources. This paper describes an updated research account on the solution presented in Escolano et al. [J. Acoust. Am. Soc. 132(3), 1257-1260 (2012)], where nested sampling is used to explore a probability distribution of the source position using a Laplacian mixture model, whic…

Reduction of spherical-aberration impact in microscopy by wavefront coding

2009

In modern high-NA optical scanning instruments, like scanning microscopes, the refractive-index mismatch between the sample and the immersion medium introduces a significant amount of spherical aberration when imaging deep inside the specimen, spreading out the impulse response. Since such aberration depends on the focalization depth, it is not possible to achieve a static global compensation for the whole 3D sample in scanning microscopy. Therefore a depth-variant impulse response is generated. Consequently, the design of pupil elements that increase the tolerance to this aberration is of great interest. In this paper we report a hybrid technique that provides a focal spot that remains alm…

Evaluation of a Completely Robotized Neurosurgical Operating Microscope

2012

BACKGROUND Operating microscopes are essential for most neurosurgical procedures. Modern robot-assisted controls offer new possibilities, combining the advantages of conventional and automated systems. OBJECTIVE We evaluated the prototype of a completely robotized operating microscope with an integrated optical coherence tomography module. METHODS A standard operating microscope was fitted with motors and control instruments, with the manual control mode and balance preserved. In the robot mode, the microscope was steered by a remote control that could be fixed to a surgical instrument. External encoders and accelerometers tracked microscope movements. The microscope was additionally fitted…

TREATMENT OF WEEE - WASTE OF ELECTRIC AND ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENTS - BY MICROWAVE - INDUCED PYROLYSIS

Improvement of interaction in and properties of PMMA-MWNT nanocomposites through microwave assisted acid treatment of MWNT

2013

Soluble derivatives of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) embedded in a poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA) matrix forming thick, homogeneous and transparent nanocomposites, were prepared and characterized. A new photo-assisted method using microwaves, to purify the MWNTs from amorphous carbon and synthesis catalyst clusters, was tested in a sulphonitric mix. This method shortened the processing time compared to other methods. Pristine and functionalized MWNTs were introduced into the MMA, then in situ photo-polymerized. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD), as well as Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), Raman and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy w…