Complex Permittivity of Planar Building Materials Measured With an Ultra-Wideband Free-Field Antenna Measurement System.

Building materials are often incorporated into complex, multilayer macrostructures that are simply not amenable to measurements using coax or waveguide sample holders. In response to this, we developed an ultra-wideband (UWB) free-field measurement system. This measurement system uses a ground-plane-based system and two TEM half-horn antennas to transmit and receive the RF signal.

Rat milk and dietary long arginine3 insulin-like growth factor I promote intestinal growth of newborn rat pups.

Newborn rat pups were artificially reared by the pup in cup (PIC) method to determine whether dietary long arginine3 IGF-I (long R3 IGF-I), an IGF-I analog with high receptor affinity and low IGF binding protein (IGFBP) affinity, had efficacy on intestinal growth. IGF effects are mediated by IGFBP and receptor interactions, hence dietary-induced changes in intestinal IGF-II receptor patterns and IGFBP-3 message levels were investigated. Intestinal micrographs of pups fed rat milk replacer (RMR) for 3 d showed flattened villi with low cell counts and appeared similar to newborn intestines.

Involvement of prolactin in the REM sleep-promoting activity of systemic vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP).

The involvement of pituitary prolactin (PRL) in systemic vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)-induced sleep was studied. Male rats were implanted with electrodes for EEG-recording, with brain thermistors to record cortical temperature (Tcrt) and with chronic intracardial catheters to obtain blood samples and to deliver substances. One group of rats (n = 8) received normal rabbit serum (NS)+physiological saline (SAL) on the baseline day and was injected with NS+VIP on the experimental day.

Hormones and growth factors in milk.

Research dealing with hormones/growth factors in milk has progressed rapidly during the last 10 yr from their identification in milk to their regulation of various functions in the maternal organism and in the neonate. Many hormones, growth factors, and bioactive substances present in the maternal organism are present in colostrum and milk, often exceeding concentrations that occur in maternal plasma. Some appear in milk in different, sometimes multiple, forms from that found in maternal serum, reflecting to some extent synthesis and posttranslational processing by mammary tissue.

Milk-borne factors affect survival, intestinal growth and development in newborn rats.

Early milk of rats contains high concentrations of many hormones and growth factors. Studies were undertaken to evaluate the physiological effects of early rat milk infranatant, insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) upon the growth and development of intestinal tissues in newborn rat pups. In one study, pups were artificially reared for 3 days (d2-d5) then fostered back to the dam.