Search results for "threshold"

Self-sustained coherent phonon generation in optomechanical cavities

2016

Optical forces can set tiny objects in states of mechanical self-sustained oscillation, spontaneously generating periodic signals by extracting power from steady sources. Miniaturized self-sustained coherent phonon sources are interesting for applications such as mass-force sensing, intra-chip metrology and intra-chip time-keeping among others. In this paper, we review several mechanisms and techniques that can drive a mechanical mode into the lasing regime by exploiting the radiation pressure force in optomechanical cavities, namely stimulated emission, dynamical back-action, forward stimulated Brillouin scattering and self-pulsing.

Photoelectrical properties of thin films of DMABI derivatives

2011

Organic thin films with semiconducting properties have been intensively studied in nowadays due to very promising applications in organic electronics, for example, organic photovoltaic. Among organic semiconductors, group of indandiones with their photoelectrical properties, thermal and chemical stability are good candidates for use in design of novel molecular electronic devices. We have investigated photoconductivity quantum efficiency and its spectral dependence of two dimetilaminobenzylidene-1,3-indandione derivatives. Values of the photoconductivity threshold energy and optical energy gap are obtained. These results are compared with calculated transfer energy gap estimated according t…

An acute exposure to ozone impairs human olfactory functioning

2018

Ozone is a ubiquitous and irritant gas. We questioned whether an acute exposure to 0.2 ppm ozone impaired olfactory functioning.Healthy, normosmic subjects were exposed according to a parallel group design either to 0.2 ppm ozone (n = 15) or to sham (n = 13) in an exposure chamber for two hours. Possible irritating effects were assessed by questionnaire (range 0-5). The detection threshold of n-butanol was measured with the Sniffin' Sticks test before and after exposure. Olfactory thresholds were logarithmized and a two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measurements was carried out to test the effects of exposure (ozone vs. sham) and time (before vs. after exposure). Additional…

Peripheral Acute Pain Mechanisms

1995

Many studies in several species, including humans, have identified a subset of primary afferent nerve fibres that are activated by potential or actual tissue-damaging stimuli. Discharge patterns of these nociceptive afferents faithfully reproduce some aspects of the applied stimuli (e.g. shape of the stimulus-response function) but not others (e.g. time-course of a sustained stimulus). Since primary nociceptive afferents provide the input to the central nervous system, their encoding properties have to be considered when studying central processing. On the other hand, pain perception correlates with some aspects of nociceptor discharges (e.g. fatigue with repetition of brief heat pulses), b…

Capsaicin differentially modulates voltage-activated calcium channel currents in dorsal root ganglion neurones of rats

2005

It is discussed whether capsaicin, an agonist of the pain mediating TRPV1 receptor, decreases or increases voltage-activated calcium channel (VACC) currents (ICa(V)). ICa(V) were isolated in cultured dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurones of rats using the whole cell patch clamp method and Ba 2+ as charge carrier. In large diameter neurones (>35Am), a concentration of 50AM was needed to reduce ICa(V) (activated by depolarizations to 0 mV) by 80%, while in small diameter neurones (30Am), the IC50 was 0.36 AM. This effect was concentration dependent with a threshold below 0.025 AM and maximal blockade (>80%) at 5AM. The current–voltage relation was shifted to the hyperpolarized direction with an…

Gadd45α modulates aversive learning through post‐transcriptional regulation of memory‐related mRNA s

2018

Abstract Learning is essential for survival and is controlled by complex molecular mechanisms including regulation of newly synthesized mRNAs that are required to modify synaptic functions. Despite the well‐known role of RNA‐binding proteins (RBPs) in mRNA functionality, their detailed regulation during memory consolidation is poorly understood. This study focuses on the brain function of the RBP Gadd45α (growth arrest and DNA damage‐inducible protein 45 alpha, encoded by the Gadd45a gene). Here, we find that hippocampal memory and long‐term potentiation are strongly impaired in Gadd45a‐deficient mice, a phenotype accompanied by reduced levels of memory‐related mRNAs. The majority of the Ga…

Pain elicited by blunt pressure: neurobiological basis and clinical relevance.

2002

Somatic Symptom Perception From a Predictive Processing Perspective: An Empirical Test Using the Thermal Grill Illusion.

2020

OBJECTIVE In a predictive processing perspective, symptom perceptions result from an integration of preexisting information in memory with sensory input. Physical symptoms can therefore reflect the relative predominance of either sensory input or preexisting information. In this study, we used the thermal grill illusion (TGI), which applies interlaced warm and cool temperatures to the skin to create a paradoxical heat-pain experience. Assuming that the TGI compared with single-temperature stimulation relies more importantly on an active integration process of the brain to create this paradoxical sensation, we tested the hypothesis whether a manipulation of the expectations during TGI would …

The direct effect of magnetic tape ® on pain and lower-extremity blood flow in subjects with low-back pain: A randomized clinical trial

2021

Low-back pain has a high impact on the world population, and solutions are in demand. The behavior of specific physiological processes has been modified using magnetic fields, whether for pain relief, bone consolidation, or improvement of vascularization. The use of tape with magnetic properties could help in these cases. A double-blind randomized clinical trial was designed to use Magnetic Tape® versus placebo Kinesio tape. Blood flow variables were evaluated using pulsed power Doppler ultrasound. Resistance index, pulsatility index, systolic velocity, and diastolic velocity were measured. The pressure pain threshold was measured using algometry in 22 subjects. The results reveal significa…

The veridical perception of object temperature with varying skin temperature.

1988

The effect of skin-adaptation temperature on object-temperature perception was investigated, using the method of dichiric matching, in an attempt to determine whether veridical perception of physical object temperature occurs in human subjects. Observers were presented with a test temperature on one hand and required to find a matching temperature, that is, one that produced the same sensation, on the other, differently adapted, hand. Using equality of test and matching temperatures as a criterion of veridical perception, it was found that the latter improves with ΔT, the difference between object temperature and skin-adaptation temperature. It is postulated that when ΔT is close to zero, v…