Megalopolis is a group of densely populated metropolitan areas that combine to form an urban complex. Since China introduced the economic reforms in late 1970s, the Chinese urban system has experienced unprecedented growth. The process of urbanisation prevailed in the 1980s, and the process of predominantly large city growth appeared to continue through 1990s and 2000s. In this study, the magni...

Two new Delta and Sigma glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) in the Hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), were characterized and transcription profiles described. The deduced amino acid sequences for the two M. destructor Delta GSTs (MdesGST-1 and MdesGST-3) showed high similarity with other insect Delta GSTs including the conserved catalytic serine residue. The deduced amino...

Silicon nanowire (SiNW) sensors have been developed by using top-down fabrication that is CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) compatible for resistive chemical detection with fast response and high sensitivity. Top-down fabrication by electron beam lithography and reactive ion etching of a silicon on insulator (SOI) substrate enables compatibility with the CMOS fabrication process, a...

Ab initio/DFT analysis of the conformational properties of free Ac-Ala-NMe(2) (N-acetyl-L-alanine-N',N'-dimethylamide) in terms of the N-H.O, N-H.N, C-H.O hydrogen bonds and C(delta+) = O(delta-) dipole attractions was performed. The Ala residue combined with the C-terminal tertiary amide prefers an extended conformation and that characteristic of the (i + 1)th position of the betaVIb turn. The...

An 18 yr old previously well male Taiwanese was admitted with malaise, anorexia, and jaundice for two weeks. Results of liver tests were compatible with acute hepatitis. On day 1, he was seronegative for HBsAg, IgM anti-HAV, IgM anti-HBc, IgM anti-CMV, and IgM EBV capsid Ab, but positive for anti-delta in association with anti-HBc and anti-HBs. At follow up on day 5 HBsAg converted to positive ...

Two new Delta and Sigma glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) in the Hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), were characterized and transcription profiles described. The deduced amino acid sequences for the two M. destructor Delta GSTs (MdesGST-1 and MdesGST-3) showed high similarity with other insect Delta GSTs including the conserved catalytic serine residue. The deduced amino...

We measured the ability to infer structure from motion (SFM) in several directions in three-dimensional color space. Only motion cues are useful to subjects in performing this three-dimensional shape-identification task. We report the following results: (1) SFM performance is at chance for equiluminant stimuli that isolate short-wavelength-sensitive cones. Hence the short-wavelength-sensitive-c...

In an effort to find novel agents which selectively target the kappa opioid receptor (KOPR), we modified the furan ring of the highly potent and selective KOPR agonist salvinorin A. Introduction of small substituents at C-16 was well tolerated. 12-epi-Salvinorin A, synthesized in four steps from salvinorin A, was a selective partial agonist at the KOPR. No clear SAR patterns were observed for C...

In this paper, we will report the development of an ultrahigh resolution MR-compatible SPECT system that can be operated inside a pre-existing clinical MR scanner for simultaneous dual-modality imaging of small animals. This system is constructed with 40 small-pixel CdTe detector modules assembled in a fully stationary ring SPECT geometry. We have experimentally demonstrated that this system is...