Abstract: Serratia plymuthica strain A30, BCCM Deposit No. LMG P-26170, its analogues or functionally equivalent strains thereto, provides a biological control agent against plant disease caused by a bacterial pathogen, particularly a soft rot, e.g. blackleg. The pathogen is Dickeya spp., Pectobacterium spp., and Ralstonia spp.; including Dickeya sp. biovar 3 strain. The deposited strain and its variants are formulated in an agriculturally or horticulturally acceptable diluent, carrier, filler or adjuvant. Plants or plant parts, particularly potato tubers, containing the deposited strain provide useful propagation material free of soft rot or blackleg disease.

Abstract: Method for manufacturing a tissue-engineered construct, such as a heart valve, comprising the steps of providing a-cell-seeded scaffold in a bioreactor chamber which bioreactor chamber is divided by the cell-seeded scaffold into a first compartment and a second compartment, subjecting the cell-seeded scaffold to a flow of nutrient medium within the bioreactor chamber for developing the cell-seeded scaffold to a tissue structure and next to the tissue construct, applying a dynamic pressure difference to the developing tissue structure by the flow of nutrient medium to induce dynamic strain on the tissue structure.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing of a microneedle array comprising the steps of selecting a soft production mold comprising a set of microscopic incisions defining geometry of the microneedles, said soft production mold being capable of providing the microneedle array integrated into a base plate; using a filler material for abundantly filling the microscopic incisions of the soft production mold thereby producing the microneedle array with pre-defined geometry integrated into the base plate; wherein for the filler material a water or alcohol based ceramic or polymer-ceramic slurry is selected. The invention further relates to a microneedle array, a composition comprising a microneedle array, a system for enabling transport of a substance through a barrier and a system for measuring an electric signal using an electrode.

Abstract: The invention provides a lab-on-a-chip device comprising a micro channel for a fluid, wherein the micro channel comprises a circumferential channel wall, wherein the channel wall comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and a floating third electrode. The device can be used in a method for the analysis of an analyte fluid comprising flowing the analyte fluid through the channel of the electronic lab-on-a-chip device by measuring an electric signal between the first and the second electrode, especially measuring the electrical impedance between the first electrode and the second electrode. This may be used for instance for the analyses of mammalian semen.

Abstract: An analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is described. This ADC converts an analog signal into a digital value using a two-pass digitization process. In a first operation, coarse digitization is performed by an averaging converter based on a set of references. Then, in a second operation, fine digitization is performed by either another averaging converter or the same averaging converter based on a subset of the set of references that is progressively closer to an instantaneous value of the analog signal. For example, the coarse digitization may be performed by a low-resolution ADC stage and the fine digitization may be performed by a sigma-delta ADC, such as a single-bit sigma-delta ADC. Moreover, the other averaging converter may use dynamic element matching to shuffle reference elements used to generate the subset. In this way, the ADC may provide high resolution with reduced nonlinearity and quantization noise.

Abstract: Intravascular ultrasound techniques provide for intravascular imaging using contrast agents and nonlinear techniques. An ultrasound imaging device for detecting internal properties of a target body comprises an ultrasound transducer positioned at a distal end portion of a catheter, for transmitting excitation pulses and for receiving echo signals. A signal processor analyses echo signals at harmonics and/or subharmonics of the transmit frequency. The catheter may include a contrast agent delivery conduit extending along the catheter, the delivery conduit having an exit orifice proximal to the ultrasound transducer. The device may discriminate between echo signals respectively arising from interaction with tissue and from the interaction with contrast agent. The device may generate an image of the site of interest using non-linear components of the received ultrasound echo signals.

Abstract: The present invention relates to conjugates comprising a peptide of at least 10 amino acid residues comprising the amino acid sequence GITELKKL for induction of potent humoral and cellular immune responses when administered to subjects having antibodies against tetanus toxoid. In one embodiment the invention relates to a prophylactic and therapeutic vaccine and in a further embodiment the invention relates to the treatment or prevention of cancer or an infectious disease.

Abstract: A system for monitoring a fetus during gestation comprises an input for receiving a plurality of electric signals measured on a surface of a maternal body; and a processor for providing a fetal electrocardiogram based on the received electric signals and based on an orientation of the fetus, wherein the fetal electrocardiogram represents a projection of a fetal cardiac potential vector according to a predetermined projection direction that is fixed with respect to the fetus. The fetal vector electrocardiogram is projected according to the projection direction. An at least partial representation of a fetal vector electrocardiogram is provided in dependence on the plurality of electric signals and indicative of a time path of an electrical field vector generated by a fetal heart of the fetus.

Abstract: The invention relates to the production of biofuels, proteins, peptides and other value-added compounds from crude carbon sources. The inventors identified genes encoding novel pentose transporters, in particular transporters of L-arabinose and/or D-xylose. Regulation of the Aspergillus niger genes by xlnR and araR was instrumental in the identification of these genes and their substrate specificities. Provided are novel pentose transporters and their encoding nucleic acids. Also provided are host cells (over)expressing a transporter, and industrial applications thereof, for instance in biofuel production.

Abstract: A method for generating hardness information of tissue subject to a varying pressure. The method comprises receiving signals from the tissue from a sensor for measuring the deformation of the tissue in a measuring plane defined by the sensor, which sensor, during a varying pressure exerted on the tissue, is moved along the tissue in a direction transverse to the measuring plane; identifying strain of the tissue from the resulting signals; and relating the strain to elasticity and/or hardness parameters of the tissue. The method may comprise the step of displaying elasticity and/or hardness parameters of a tissue surface or tissue volume part extending practically parallel to the direction of motion of the sensor.

Abstract: An electrothermal frequency-locked loop (EFLL) circuit is described. This EFLL circuit includes an oscillator in a feedback loop. A drive circuit in the EFLL circuit generates a first signal having a fundamental frequency, and an electrothermal filter (ETF) in the EFLL circuit provides a second signal based on the first signal. This second signal has the fundamental frequency and a phase (relative to the first signal) that corresponds to a temperature-dependent time constant of the ETF. Moreover, a sensing component in the EFLL circuit determines a parameter associated with a temperature of the ETF. For example, the parameter may be the temperature or may be other than the temperature, such as the fundamental frequency and/or the phase of the second signal.

Abstract: The invention relates to a material that can be used for magnetic refrigeration, wherein the material substantially has the general formula (AYB1-Y)2+?CWDXEZ Wherein: A is selected from Mn and Co; B is selected from Fe and Cr; of C, D and E at least two are different, have a non-vanishing concentration and are selected from P, B, Se, Ge, Ga, Si, Sn and Sb; wherein at least one of C, D and E is Ge or Si; W, X, Y and Zeach is a number in the range 0-1, and W+X+Z=1; and?is a number from (?0.1)-(+0.1).

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing of a microneedle array comprising the steps of selecting a soft production mold comprising a set of microscopic incisions defining geometry of the microneedles, said soft production mold being capable of providing the microneedle array integrated into a base plate; using a filler material for abundantly filling the microscopic incisions of the soft production mold thereby producing the microneedle array with pre-defined geometry integrated into the base plate; wherein for the filler material a water or alcohol based ceramic or polymer-ceramic slurry is selected. The invention further relates to a microneedle array, a composition comprising a microneedle array, a system for enabling transport of a substance through a barrier and a system for measuring an electric signal using an electrode.

Abstract: A phase detection circuit determines phase difference between a periodic signal and a reference signal of substantially equal frequency. The circuit includes: a source input receiving the periodic signal; a feedback signal generator providing a feedback signal (PFB) with substantially the same frequency as the reference signal; a phase difference circuit coupled to the source input node and a second signal input node coupled to the feedback signal generator, determining an error signal from phase difference between the periodic signal and PFB; an integrator circuit integrating the error signal into an integration signal; and a digitizing circuit digitizing the integration signal. The feedback signal generator is coupled to the digitizing circuit, providing PFB based on the digitized integration signal, and selecting the phase of PFB from a number of fixed phases. The phase detection circuit generates a time-average of the phase of PFB selected from the plurality of fixed phases.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of preserving a sensor in a container, said sensor comprising a sensing area of metallic or a semi-conducting material covered with molecules having a MW>100 Dalton, said molecules being bound to the material wherein at least the sensing area of the layer is kept submerged in a storage solution, said storage solution having a composition that consists for at least 80% by volume of at least one compound chosen from water, ethanol, triethylene glycol and isopropanol, with the provisios that if the concentration of ethanol is at least 80 vol. % of the storage solution ethanol is present in a concentration of no more than 93% by volume of the storage solution; if water is present, it is present in a concentration of less than 80% by volume of the storage solution. The invention also relates to a container containing a sensor and a storage solution.

Abstract: A liposomal composition, preferably a vaccine, comprising liposomes formed of liposome forming compounds, containing coentrapped polysaccharide antigen and T-cell dependent protein carrier, such as tetanus toxoid or diphtheria toxin modified to render it non-toxic. The invention is of use in the production of vaccines against Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae or Neisseria meningitidis.

Abstract: Provided herein are Pulse-Inversion (PI) sequences that provide for fundamental frequency suppression in nonlinear imaging applications. In an embodiment, a weighting scheme is applied to the received echo pulses resulting from transmit pulses of alternating polarity to reduce the effect of transducer motion. In an embodiment, a three-pulse weighting scheme is applied to a PI sequence. In other embodiments, different combinations of the three-pulse weighting scheme are applied to a PI sequence.

Abstract: A method and a device determine a physical property of a medium, such as a concentration of a substance in the medium. The device includes a light source; a probe with optical fibers positioned alongside each other, with a first optical fiber delivering radiation from the light source to a sample and collecting first backscattered radiation from the sample, and with a second optical fiber collecting second backscattered radiation; a spectrometer for producing first and second signals based on the first and second backscattered radiation; and a processor which determines a differential backscatter signal from the first and second signals and to calculate the physical property by curve fitting the measured differential backscatter signal to a backscatter function. Depending on whether the diameter of the optical fibers is smaller or greater than the mean free path of photons in the sample, different backscatter functions are used.

Abstract: An oscillator device for generating an oscillator signal, includes a heater arrangement, a first switching element, a temperature sensor, signal process means, and voltage controlled oscillator; an output of the temperature sensor being connected to an input of the signal processing means, and an output of the signal processing means being connected to an input of the voltage controlled oscillator. The first switching element is arranged for receiving the oscillator signal from the voltage controlled oscillator and for providing a heater drive signal to either a first heater element or a second heater element of the heater arrangement based on the oscillator signal. The signal processing means comprise a synchronous demodulator.

Abstract: A scintillating material Cs(2-z)RbzLiLn(1-x)X6:xCe3+, where X is either Br or I, Ln is Y or Gd or Lu or Sc or La, where z is greater or equal to 0 and less or equal to 2, and x is above 0.0005 useful for detecting neutrons in a sample of radiation.