RBL cells provide a useful model of the IgE and antigen-dependent stimulus-secretion coupling of mast cells and basophils. We have measured cellular deformability to investigate the participation of cytoskeletal mechanical changes. Cross-linking cell-surface IgE-receptor complexes with multivalent ligands not only triggered secretion but also caused the cells to stiffen, i.e., to become more re...

The general concept of deployable structures based on pantographs that are deployed and stiffened by means of cables is applied to the design of the support structure for a large mesh re ̄ ector. The two main components of this structure are a cable-stiffened pantographic ring that deploys and pretensions a cable network that, in turn, provides a series of stiff, geometrically accurate support p...

This paper presents the fracture analyses conducted on the FAA/NASA stiffened and unstiffened panels using the STAGS (STructural Analysis of General Shells) code with the critical crack-tip-opening angle (CTOA) fracture criterion. The STAGS code with the “plane-strain” core option was used in all analyses. Previous analyses of wide, flat panels have shown that the high-constraint conditions aro...

Guillain-Barrè syndrome (GBS) is usually associated with symmetrical weakness, and therefore asymmetrical weakness may confuse diagnosis. We report on a patient with GBS subsequent to Campylobacter jejuni enteritis who had asymmetrical weakness with CNS involvement. The patient tested positive for anti-ganglioside antibodies, including anti-GM1 IgM, anti-GD1b IgG, and anti-GT1a IgG. Patients wi...

OBJECTIVES This study examines the relationship between the morphology of the lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LTV) and asymmetrical development of the hip joints in dogs. METHODS A total of 4000 dogs which had been consecutively scored for canine hip dysplasia were checked for the presence of a LTV. A LTV was noted in 138 dogs and classified depending on the morphology of the transverse pr...

Hybridization is an important evolutionary force in plants, but the mechanisms underlying it have not been well studied for many groups. In particular, the drivers of non-random patterns of interspecific gene flow (asymmetrical hybridization) remain poorly understood, especially in the seed-free vascular plants. Here, we examine patterns of asymmetrical hybridization in two widespread fern hybr...