Την τελευταία δεκαετία, η επεξεργασία υφασμάτων με πλάσμα έχει αποκτήσει μεγάλο τεχνολογικό ενδιαφέρον καθώς μπορεί να χρησιμοποιηθεί σε διάφορα στάδια της επεξεργασίας. Η οξείδωση της επιφάνειας, η ενίσχυση της υδροφιλίας ή της υδροφοβικότητας της και η αντιμικροβιακή δράση, είναι κάποια παραδείγματα τέτοιων εφαρμογών. Τα πλεονεκτήματα της τεχνικής του πλάσματος σε σύγκριση με άλλες τεχνικές είναι ότι είναι φιλική προς το περιβάλλον και ταυτόχρονα οικονομική αφού μειώνει τις απαιτήσεις σε νερό και ενέργεια. Παρόλα αυτά δεν υπάρχουν στη βιβλιογραφία επαρκείς μελέτες σχετικά με τους βασικούς μηχανισμούς που διέπουν τη διεργασία. Σε αυτή την κατεύθυνση επικεντρώσαμε στη μελέτη της επίδρασης του πλάσματος He/O2 σε χαμηλές πιέσεις με στόχο την ενίσχυση της υδροφιλίας της επιφάνειας, στη διερεύνηση της επίδρασης του C2F6 πλάσματος για την ενίσχυση της υδροφοβικότητας καθώς και στο σχηματισμό PEO-like υμενίων για την βελτίωση της αντιμικροβιακής δράσης της επιφάνειας. Πιο συγκεκριμένα, μελετήθηκε η επίδραση του ποσοστού οξυγόνου στο μείγμα του αερίου, του χρόνου επεξεργασίας, της συνολικής πίεσης και της ισχύος του πλάσματος στην μεταβολή των επιφανειακών ιδιοτήτων και κυρίως στην ενίσχυση της υδροφιλικότητας πολυεστερικών υφασμάτων πριν και μετά από το αποκολλάρισμα τους. Για τη μελέτη της υδροφοβικότητας πραγματοποιήθηκαν πειράματα ως προς την συνολική πίεση, το χρόνο διεργασίας και την απόσταση των ηλεκτροδίων. Τέλος, για την ενίσχυση της αντιμικροβιακής δράσης της επιφάνειας μελετήθηκε η συνολική πίεση, η ισχύς καθώς και το ποσοστό του οξυγόνου στο μίγμα. Οι αλλαγές που λαμβάνουν χώρα στην αέρια φάση και ο πιθανότερος μηχανισμός στον οποίο οφείλονται οι αλλαγές στην επιφάνεια του υποστρώματος μελετήθηκαν με την εφαρμογή διαγνωστικών τεχνικών του πλάσματος. Έτσι ηλεκτρικές μετρήσεις πραγματοποιήθηκαν για τον υπολογισμό της καταναλισκόμενης ισχύος και της εμπέδησης της εκκένωσης ενώ παράλληλα, πραγματοποιήθηκαν οπτικές μετρήσεις με στόχο την καταγραφή των ειδών που παράγονται στην εκκένωση και την κατανομή τους στον χώρο. Από την άλλη μεριά για τη μελέτη των δομικών και φυσικοχημικών μεταβολών που υφίσταται η επιφάνεια κατά την επεξεργασία της με πλάσμα χρησιμοποιήθηκαν ηλεκτρονιακή μικροσκοπία σάρωσης και φασματοσκοπία φωτοηλεκτρονίων από ακτίνες Χ. Τέλος, μετρήσεις του ρυθμού απορρόφησης σταγόνας, γωνίες αδιαβροχίας και προσρόφηση πρωτεϊνών χρησιμοποιήθηκαν ως μέτρο εκτίμησης της υδροφιλίας, της υδροφοβικότητας και της αντιμικροβιακής δράσης αντίστοιχα. Τα βέλτιστα αποτελέσματα παρουσιάζονται και συζητούνται σαν συνάρτηση των ιδιοτήτων του πλάσματος / The last decade, the treatment of polyester textiles using plasma techniques has gained a lot of technological interest. The surface oxidation, the enhancement of hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity and the deposition of antibacterial films are examples of technological plasma applications. The benefits of using the plasma techniques are enormous. The major ones are that is an environmental friendly method and at the same time is economical due to the reduction of energy and water consumption. Although, in the bibliography there are not sufficient studies relevant to the basic mechanism of the plasma treatment/deposition. In this direction, we focused our study on the effect of plasma He/O2 treatment in low values of pressure, targeting the enhancement of surface hydrophilicity, on the deposition conditions of Teflon-like and peo-like films, targeting the enhancement of hydrophobicity and antibacterial effect respectively. In more details, it was examined the effect of oxygen percentage in He/O2 mixture, the discharge time, the total pressure and the power in the alteration of surface properties. Furthermore, experiments were implemented in different pressure, discharge time, power and distance electrode conditions in order to achieve better hydrophobicity. At last, as far as the deposition of peo-like coatings were concerned, power, pressure and oxygen percentage were parameters under investigation. The alterations which took place in the gas phase and the most possible treatment/deposition mechanism were studied using diagnostic techniques such as electrical and optical measurements. On the other hand, for the investigation of physicochemical alterations on the surface, measurements such as xps, water droplet absorption and WCA were implemented. The best results are presented and are discussed as a function of plasma properties.

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of pediatric nephrolithiasis (kidney stones) has been increasing over the past several years. While environmental factors, such as poor fluid intake, high-salt diet, and obesity, can play a role, underlying metabolic factors account for at least one-third of cases of nephrolithiasis. Nephrolithiasis and related disorders, such as nephrocalcinosis and hypercalciuria, can lead to long-term kidney problems, including renal scarring, acute and chronic kidney disease, decreased renal function, or end-stage renal disease. The best treatment is prevention and is best guided by knowing the underlying cause. The majority of kidney stones are primarily comprised of calcium, and abnormal calcium metabolism and regulation can lead to nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, and hypercalciuria. Vitamin D is an important factor in calcium regulation in the body. The physiologically active form of vitamin D is 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D), which increases serum calcium by stimulating intestinal absorption of calcium, increasing renal calcium reabsorption, and mobilizing calcium from bone. Excess 1,25(OH)2D has been shown to be associated with hyperabsorption of calcium in the intestine, nephrolithiasis, hypercalcemia, and hypercalciuria. Production of 1,25(OH)2D requires hydroxylation of 25-hydroxyvitamin D by the kidney enzyme 1α-hydroxylase, which is regulated in turn by serum calcium, parathyroid hormone (PTH), and by 1,25(OH)2D itself. Tight control of 1,25(OH)2D levels is maintained in part by the breakdown of 1,25(OH)2D by the enzyme 24-hydroxylase, which is encoded by the gene CYP24A1. In the past few years, CYP24A1 mutations leading to decreased activity of 24-hydroxylase have been implicated in some cases of idiopathic infantile hypercalcemia as well as nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, and hypercalciuria. The prevalence of 24-hydroxylase deficiency is not known, and the spectrum of its clinical manifestations is not yet fully understood. Our study aims to describe the clinical characteristics of patients with laboratory findings suggestive of 24-hydroxylase deficiency, specifically high-normal or elevated serum 1,25(OH)2D. We aimed to determine the prevalence of elevated 1,25(OH)2D among pediatric patients with nephrolithiasis, and to compare clinical outcomes and biochemical findings in patients with normal versus elevated 1,25(OH)2D. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study was a retrospective chart review. To determine the prevalence of high-normal (56-75 pg/mL) and high (>75 pg/mL) serum 1,25(OH)2D, we reviewed electronic medical records of patients seen in the Boston Children's Hospital Stone Clinic. We identified 346 patients who were evaluated for nephrolithiasis, were under 18 years of age at the time of presentation, and had at least one measurement of 1,25(OH)2D. Patients were classified based on their highest measured level of 1,25(OH)2D. To determine the clinical characteristics of patients with elevated 1,25(OH)2D, we reviewed clinical records and laboratory data of patients at Boston Children's Hospital with a diagnosis of nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, or hypercalciuria. We identified 83 patients who met our inclusion criteria: age of onset <18 years, at least one measurement of 1,25(OH)2D, and a pre-treatment urine solute analysis. Data collected included demographic information, diagnoses, family history of kidney disease, treatments, laboratory data, and urine solute analyses. We compared findings in patients with normal 1,25(OH)2D (≤55 pg/mL) versus elevated 1,25(OH)2D (>55 pg/mL). RESULTS: Of 346 children with nephrolithiasis in whom 1,25(OH)2D was measured, 100 (28.9%) had high 1,25(OH)2D, and an additional 120 (34.7%) had high-normal 1,25(OH)2D. To determine the clinical characteristics of elevated 1,25(OH)2D, we analyzed the data of 40 patients with normal 1,25(OH)2D and 43 patients with elevated 1,25(OH)2D who had a history of nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, or hypercalciuria. Seventy-five children had nephrolithiasis, and 25/37 (67.6%) of children with elevated 1,25(OH)2D had a recurrence of nephrolithiasis, compared to only 9/38 (23.7%) of children with normal 1,25(OH)2D (p < .001). Urine calcium/creatinine ratio did not differ between the two groups. However, linear regression analysis showed an association between 1,25(OH)2D levels and urine calcium/creatinine ratio. Important secondary findings included a younger age of onset, higher serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and lower parathyroid hormone levels in patients with elevated 1,25(OH)2D. CONCLUSIONS: Important clinical findings of this study were the increased rate of recurrence and the younger age of onset in patients with elevated 1,25(OH)2D. While we recognize that mutations in CYP24A1 do not account for the majority of cases of elevated 1,25(OH)2D, we do advocate for special consideration for these patients. In the absence of a commercially-available assay for 24-hydroxylase activity, children with nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, or hypercalciuria and elevated 1,25(OH)2D should be closely monitored for recurrence or worsening of symptoms. Furthermore, we advise caution in the use of vitamin D repletion in at-risk patients.

As communication becomes more and more vital in defending a country’s borders, better radios are needed. When the Swedish armed forces saw that their existing radios took too much bandwidth in their net, they knew that something had to be done. The existing radio, called Ra 180 RAP, was modified so that it could send X.25 messages into a network. This significantly reduced the use of bandwidth, as a packet switched network only uses the bandwidth when sending info. This final thesis has been aimed to create a system that can test the X.25 function in the upgraded, so called CI-RAP, radio. This system will come in handy both when upgrading and later when performing service on the radios.

ANALYSIS OF PREVALENCE OF VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY IN ADULTS Author: Jana Nováková Supervisor: PharmDr. Eva Zimčíková, PhD. INTRODUCTION Estimated vitamin D deficiency occurs in up to 1/3 of the population. Vitamin D deficiency occurs in a number of diseases and in different countries of the world. AIMS The aim of the theoretical part of the diploma thesis was to get acquainted with vitamin D and its deficit in general. The objective of the practical part was to map vitamin D levels in adults, to assess prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, to determine if vitamin D levels fluctuate over the course of the year depending on age or gender and how they are related to individual illnesses. METHODS PubMed and Embase database search was performed to find evidence on vitamin D deficiency in adults. Only studies in humans, published in English in the period from 2000 to 2016 were included. Non-systematic review was provided, the quality of the studies was not evaluated. RESULTS Overall, 84 studies were included. Most of the studies enrolled healthy adults (n = 34). Among the studies concerning various diseases, musculoskeletal disorders were the most prevalent (n = 13). The highest prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was seen in the study from USA (in healthy adults) using cut-off value for deficiency ≤ 50...

Objectives: To assess the association between serum 25(OH)D and body mass index (BMI) in pre- and early-adolescents and to determine whether this association varies by demographic/clinical characteristics. Methods: Vitamin D status was determined using serum 25(OH)D in healthy pre- and early adolescents in Pittsburgh, PA (deficiency=/mL, insufficiency=12-/mL, sufficiency=≥20 ng/mL). Adiposity was quantified using BMI percentile (normal=<85th, overweight=>85th-95th, obese=>95th). The relationship between serum 25(OH)D and adiposity was assessed in the total population and after stratification by gender, race, Fitzpatrick skin type, age, and Tanner stage. Results: 294 children (mean age 10.2 + 2.1 years; 60% African American; median serum 25(OH)D=27.0 ng/mL) were studied. Serum 25(OH)D was significantly lower in obese (n=72) vs. overweight (n=48) and normal weight (n=171) participants at 23.6, 29.5, and 28.2 ng/mL, respectively; p=0.015. This trend remained significant for early adolescents but did not differ after stratification by other demographic/clinical characteristics. A significant negative correlation was found between BMI and serum 25(OH)D (r = -0.315; p=0.000). Regression analysis predicted that 25% of the variance in serum 25(OH)D levels was attributed to BMI, gender, race, skin type, age, pubertal status, daily vitamin D and calcium intake, sun exposure, and sunscreen use, with Tanner stage being the only significant independent predictor. Conclusions: A significant inverse association between serum 25(OH)D and adiposity was observed in a population of pre- and early adolescents. This relationship was stronger in early adolescents. A meta-analysis to further explore this association in pediatric populations is warranted.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a leading cause of liver transplantation and hepatocellular carcinoma worldwide. HCV, like all obligate parasites, relies on host pathways to facilitate its pathogenesis. In particular, the virus possesses an intimate link with hepatic lipid metabolism, promoting a lipid-rich cellular environment conducive to HCV propagation. Clinically, these metabolic perturbations manifest as steatosis in over 50% of patients. The majority of research to-date examining how the virus co-opts hepatic lipid pathways has been focused on coding genes and their protein products. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression, which have been implicated in virtually every cellular process. Through interactions with partially complementary mRNAs, each individual miRNA has the capacity to repress the expression of hundreds of genes and induce significant regulatory effects. Herein, we demonstrate that hepatic miRNAs, including miR-7, miR-27a/b, miR-130b, and miR-185, act as crucial regulatory molecules to the maintenance of hepatic lipid homeostasis. These miRNAs cooperate to regulate fatty acid and cholesterol metabolism. HCV modulates the expression of a subset of these miRNAs (miR-27a/b, miR-130b, and miR-185) to promote hepatocellular lipid accumulation and the HCV life cycle. There appears to be a broad viral requirement for lipids, and the mammalian innate immune response strategically targets host metabolic pathways to restrict virus’ access to key lipid species. We demonstrate that 25-hydroxycholesterol, a broadly anti-viral oxysterol produced as part of the innate anti-viral response, activates miR-185 expression in the liver to deplete virus infected cells of lipids. HCV appears to actively counteract this anti-viral response by suppressing miR-185 expression. Collectively, our results highlight the role of microRNAs in hepatic lipid metabolism and the immunometabolic response to viral infection.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive, autoimmune neurodegenerative disorder affecting nearly 350,000 people in the United States and resulting in significant disability. As an immunomodulator, vitamin D may play a role in the development of MS. Previous studies have observed an inverse association of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels and MS risk in younger populations; however, whether this relationship persists in older adults remains unclear. We prospectively investigated the association between predicted 25(OH)D level and incident MS in the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) (n=121,701) and NHS II (n=116,430). 25(OH)D levels were predicted using validated regression models that include important determinants of vitamin D status, including race, UV-B flux (based on state of residence), physical activity, body mass index, dietary vitamin D intake, alcohol consumption and post-menopausal hormone use. Data on these factors were self-reported on NHS and NHS II questionnaires starting in 1986 and 1991, respectively, and updated every 2-4 years. MS diagnoses were ascertained by self-report and confirmed by medical records. Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for age, ethnicity, latitude of residence at age 15, and BMI at age 18 were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR)s and 95% confidence intervals (CI)s in each cohort. During up to 18 years of follow-up, we documented 179 definite/probable cases of MS with first symptoms after baseline. Multivariable HRs comparing highest and lowest quintiles of predicted 25(OH)D were 1.09 (95% CI: 0.40-2.96) in the NHS and 0.52 (95% CI: 0.28-0.95) in the NHS II. Higher predicted plasma 25(OH)D may be modestly associated with lower risk of MS, primarily in younger women.

The purpose of this thesis is to design FSK modem for Packet communication. In accordance with accessible literature was constructed functioning circuit schema and subsequently there was constructed a motherboard which is mainly assembled from SMD technology. It makes this modem mobile and very easy usable in terrain. Modem communicates with PC via USB bus. Also this bus is used as power source for this device. Communication between modem and PC is realized by KISS protocol and connection with tranciever is realized by AX.25 protocol.

Objectives: In recent years, vitamin D deficiency has been recognized increasingly often in patients, and different supplement regimens have been prescribed to treat it. There has been no consensus on treatment regimens. This study was conducted to determine the management of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in outpatient adults in northeast Tennessee. Methods: A retrospective record review was conducted in an internal medicine teaching clinic for patients seen from July 2007YJuly 2008 in Johnson City, Tennessee. A total of 626 nonelectronic charts listed with vitamin D measurements were used in the analysis. Data regarding the level of vitamin D, whether treatment was prescribed, dose and duration of treatment prescribed, and repeat levels of vitamin D, if any were ordered, were collected. Vitamin D deficiency was defined as levels G20 ng/mL; vitamin D insufficiency was defined as levels ranging from 20 to 29.9 ng/mL. Results: Of the 626 patients, 325 (52%) were vitamin D deficient or insufficient. Of these 325 patients, 184 were given a low-dose supplement and 54 received a high-dose supplement. Eighty-seven were either not prescribed any replacement or the dose was unknown (not documented in the chart). The mean change in serum vitamin D levels was significantly different for the high dose compared with the low dose prescribed. There was no significant sex difference in response to the dose given. On average, those who were vitamin D deficient experienced a greater change than those who were insufficient and a greater change, on average, was observed in those who received a higher dose. Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are highly prevalent. Clinicians tended to prescribe a high dose of treatment for lower levels of serum vitamin D. The response is higher in high-dose treatment. Documentation regarding whether vitamin D supplements were given or the dose of supplements was given and followed up with repeat levels of vitamin D after treatment was poor.

BACKGROUND:: Vitamin D deficiency is increasingly being recognized as a highly prevalent and undertreated problem. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in hospitalized adults in northeast Tennessee. METHODS:: A prospective cohort study was conducted on 99 inpatients admitted to an internal medicine teaching service from July through October 2006 at a single private hospital in Johnson City, Tennessee. A single measurement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D was performed on all patients. RESULTS:: Of the 99 patients, 53% were vitamin D deficient or insufficient (30% deficient with a level of <20 ng/mL and 23% insufficient with a level between 20ĝ€"29.9 ng/mL). The highest frequency of deficiency was in females <50 years. CONCLUSION:: Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in all age groups and in both females and males in this population. Clinicians should consider measuring the vitamin D level of all inpatients on a routine basis.