Aaron J. Owens

Classification of malnutrition by statistical analysis of quantitative two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of plasma proteins

An attempt to use the relative concentrations of major plasma proteins for clinical assessment of severe malnutrition is described. Quantitative two-dimensional gel electrophoresis was used to measure the concentrations of 24 major proteins in small aliquots of plasma obtained from children, aged 0 to 3 years, who were patients and outpatients in Liberian hospitals. Fifteen had a clinical diagnosis of kwashiorkor, 36 were diagnosed with marasmus, and 18 were controls. There were also 5 controls from the United States. The individuals were placed in six groups; kwashiorkor, kwashiorkor who died during treatment, marasmus, marasmus who died, Liberian controls, and U.S. controls. The amount of protein in each spot in the two-dimensional gels was estimated by measuring bound stain using a laser scanner and computerized image analysis. We found very low serum transferrin levels in malnourishment, in agreement with reports from other investigators. All of the data for 24 protein variables were pooled for factor analysis; the mean factor scores for each group differed, with the kwashiorkor groups furthest from the controls. Results of discriminant analysis using the amounts of different numbers of protein variables (3 to 24) were compared for posterior assignment of individuals to groups. The validity of the method was tested by analysis of plasma aliquots obtained from patients following initiation of therapy and which were not a part of the training set. Predictive performance (prognosis of patient survival) depended upon the number of protein variables used. Although artifactual fitting of the data is expected to contribute to performance as the number of variables is increased, use of as many as 7 variables may be justified, even with our small patient groups. Possible use of these results for development of a practical clinical test is discussed.

Kinetic Analysis of Chlorofluorocarbon Discharges

The fundamental plasma kinetics of chlorofluorocarbon discharges have been studied experimentally and modeled. Electrical impedance analysis of the plasma discharge during the etching process was used to estimate the average electron energy and the electron concentration. Assuming the electron-impact generation of reactant species is the rate limiting step, the etching rate of polysilicon etching was modeled using a simplified expression for the electron-impact rate coefficient for dissociation and the experimentally estimated electron densities and electron energies. Dissociative electron attachment should play a significant role in the production of etchant species at low electron energies. The lower threshold energy and the larger cross-section (σ) for dissociative attachment of chlorofluorocarbons (σ max ,∼6×10 -18 cm 2 at ∼ 3 eV for CF 3 Cl) in coomprpsanrtison to that of fluorocarbons (σ max ∼0.8×10 -18 cm 2 at ∼7 eV for CF 4 ), increases the significance of this machanism in chlorofluorocarbon discharges. In addition, the production of appreciable concentrations of C1 - could influence the transport of positive ions to the electrode surfaces.

Continuum Modeling of Charged Particle Transport: RF Breakdown and Discharges of SF 6

Continuity equations for the concentration of electrons, positive ions, and negative ions were constructed and solved to predict rf breakdown voltages and the electrical properties of SF, discharges.These balances for the three types of charged species include terms for convection (electric field-driven fluxes), diffusion, and reactions (ionization, electron attachment, and negative-positive ion recombination).The mobilities, diffusivities, and reaction rate coefficients necessary for the rf discharge model are based on reported measurements and calculations of these parameters in dc electric fields.The electric fields developed in the rf discharge are calculated from Poissons equation and applied voltage conditions.Predictions based on this model are compared with measured rf breakdown characteristics of SF 6 .