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Background Light-emitting diode (LED) phototherapy and water bath therapy have beneficial effect on atopic dermatitis (AD)-like skin disease. However, not all current treatments work well and alternative therapies are need. The contribution of combination therapy with low-dose 850 nm LED and water bath was investigated on dermatophagoides farina (Df)-induced dermatitis in NC/Nga mice. Methods Low-dose LED (10, 15, and 20 J/cm2) irradiation, water bath (36 ± 1°C) were administered separately and together to the Df-induced NC/Nga mice in acrylic jar once a day for 2 weeks. Results Combined therapy with low-dose LED therapy and water bath therapy significantly ameliorated the development of AD-like skin lesions. These effects were correlated with the suppression of total IgE, NO, histamine, and Th2-mediated immune responses. Furthermore, combination therapy significantly reduced the infiltration of inflammatory cells and the induction of thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) in the skin lesions. The beneficial therapeutic effects of this combination therapy might regulate by the inhibition of various immunological responses including Th2-mediated immune responses, inflammatory mediators such as IgE, histamine, and NO, as well as inflammatory cells. Conclusions The combination therapy of LED and water bath might be used as an efficacious, safe, and steroid-free alternative therapeutic strategy for the treatment of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The synthesis of donor-acceptor type semiconducting copolymers is described. Quinoxaline (QX) or difluorinated quinoxaline (DFQX) derivatives serve as electron acceptors, while thiophene (T) or selenophene (Se) serve as electron donors. Alternating polymers are synthesized through Stille cross-coupling, and their thermal stability, optical and electrochemical properties, field-effect carrier mobilities, film crystallinities, and photovoltaic performances are investigated. The intramolecular charge transfer between the electron-donating and electron-accepting units in the backbone induces absorption from 450 to 750 nm. The optical band-gap energies of the polymers are between 1.65 and 1.73 eV, and depend on the polymer structure. Organic photovoltaic cells fabricated using a polymer composed of DFQX and selenophene (PSe-DFQX) exhibit a power conversion efficiency of 5.14% with an open-circuit voltage of 0.78 V, a short-circuit current density of 11.71 mA/cm2, and fill factor of 0.57 under AM 1.5 G irradiation (100 mW cm−2). © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015, 53, 1904-1914 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During laparoscopic surgery for colorectal or gastric cancers, locating the tumor for excision is difficult owing to it being obscured by mucous membranes. Therefore, a clip can be installed around the tumor, which can be located using a sensor. Most of the clip–detectors developed thus far can only detect tumors in either the colon or stomach and require a wire to connect the clip and detector. This study designs a clip and detector that can locate a tumor in the stomach and colon. The clip contains a neodymium magnet that generates a magnetic field, and the detector includes a Colpitts oscillator that allows magnetic coupling of the clip and detector. After installing the prepared clip at the tumor location, the detector is used to locate the clip. To test the clip and detector, we conducted animal experiments, during which four clips were installed in the colon and stomach of a mini pig. We succeeded in locating the clips within 2.17 and 3.14 s in the stomach and colon, respectively, which were shorter than the detection times reported in previous studies. The demand for laparoscopic surgery and endoscopes is predicted to increase owing to this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Proton‐exchange membrane water electrolyzers with active and stable non‐precious catalysts are necessary to produce cheap and efficient hydrogen from water electrolysis. In this study, Ni‐Mo‐P ternary alloy catalysts with a wide composition range are fabricated by electrodeposition. Their activity and stability as hydrogen evolution catalysts are evaluated at the level of both half and single cells. We prove that the morphologies, crystalline structures, and electronic status of the electrodeposited catalysts, which play important roles in the catalytic activity and stability, significantly vary with the compositions of the ternary system. The best performing NiMoP catalyst with an optimal composition exhibited a half‐cell performance of 28 mV overpotential at −10 mA cm−2 and a single‐cell performance of 2 Vcell at 1.87 A cm−2, which is superior to the previously reported NiP‐ and MoP‐based electrolyzers. Due to the addition of corrosion‐resistant P, the NiMoP catalyst exhibited exceptional stability of 3 mV h−1 for 48 hours at 1 A cm−2. As a result, the novel ternary Ni‐Mo‐P catalyst prepared by a simple and low‐cost synthesis method is a strongly promising candidate for non‐precious hydrogen evolution catalysts in proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional study.Objectives: The aim of this study was to analyze types and cost of care for scoliosis and present health care utilization by patients to provide data on the standard treatment and cost for scoliosis in South Korea.Summary Of Background Data: Scoliosis is defined as an abnormally laterally curved spine with a Cobb angle of ≥10°.Data are lacking on which treatments are popular for general scoliosis and which service categories incur the most cost in South Korea.Methods: Data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service-National Patient Sample were used. In total, 108,643 final cases and 32,362 patients in South Korea who received Western medicine care or Korean medicine care at least once with scoliosis (ICD-10 code M41) as the principal diagnosis during January 2010 to December 2018 comprised the study sample. We analyzed health care utilization according to certain factors (e.g., age, sex, payer type, type of visit, and medical institution), health care utilization by service category and service code, and medication prescriptions filled by private or hospital pharmacies.Results: Patients aged 24 years or younger most frequently utilized health care services, with more female (64.84%) than male patients (35.16%). Most patients received only Western medicine care (92.18%), whereas 6.56% only received Korean medicine care. Most cases (99.37%) corresponded to outpatient. Regarding service category, treatment and surgery, examination, special equipment and radiologic diagnosis accounted for a substantial percentage. Regarding service code, cost of examination, imaging, and physiotherapy comprised a high percentage of Western medicine, whereas cost of examination, acupuncture, and cupping therapy accounted for a high percentage of Korean medicine. The most commonly prescribed medications for scoliosis in pharmacies were anti-inflammatory analgesics (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), antacids, and skeletal muscle relaxers.Conclusion: The findings can be used as foundational data for experts such as health care policymakers, clinicians, and researchers.Level of Evidence: 4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite high vaccination coverage, measles outbreaks have been reported in measles elimination countries, especially among healthcare workers in their 20 and 30 s. This study was designed to identify measles-susceptible individuals and to evaluate whether primary or secondary vaccine failure occurred during measles outbreak response immunization (ORI) activities.Methods: The study population was divided into three groups as follows: natural immunity group (Group 1), vaccine-induced immunity group (Group 2), and vaccine failure group (Group 3). We evaluated the immunogenicity of measles among healthcare workers using three methods-enzyme-linked immunoassays, plaque reduction neutralization tests, and avidity assays. The results were assessed at baseline, 4 weeks after, and 6 months after the completion of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination.Results: In total, 120 subjects were enrolled, with 40 subjects in each group. The median age of Group 3 was 29 years, which was significantly lower than that of the other groups. The baseline negative measles virus (MeV) IgG in Group 3 increased to a median value of 165 AU/mL at 4 weeks after ORI and was lower than that in Groups 1 and 2. The median neutralizing antibody titer was highest in Group 1, and this was significantly different from that in Group 2 or Group 3 at 4 weeks (944 vs. 405 vs. 482 mIU/mL, P = 0.001) and 6 months (826 vs. 401 vs. 470, P = 0.011) after ORI. The rates of high MeV avidity IgG were highest in Group 2, and these were significantly different from those in Groups 1 or 3 at 4 weeks (77.5 vs. 90% vs. 88.6%, P = 0.03) and 6 months (81 vs. 94.8 vs. 82.1%, P = 0.01) after ORI.Conclusions: Considering the MeV-neutralizing antibodies and IgG avidity after MMR vaccination in measles-susceptible group, vaccine failure is inferred as secondary vaccine failure, and further data regarding the maintenance of immunogenicity are needed based on long-term data. The MeV-neutralizing antibody levels were highest in the natural immunity group, and the primary vaccine-induced immunity group showed the highest rates of high MeV IgG avidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this paper is to examine the computational approaches for predicting both of the overall sound pressure level (OASPL) at a few locations and acceleration power spectral density (APSD) of surrounding thin plates due to the aero-acoustic pressure generated by a cold jet with M = 1.8. First, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), particularly delayed detached eddy simulation, are applied to predict the OASPL at the near-field and compute the acoustic properties. Second, the linearized boundary element method (BEM), that is, the Helmholtz-Kirchhoff method is utilized to propagate the pressure and obtain the OASPL at the far-field. Finally, the finite element method is implemented to predict the APSD for a clamped thin plate based on the optimal triangle membrane element, discrete Kirchhoff triangle plate bending element, and Newmark- β time integration scheme. Using the present CFD and BEM, the OASPLs are compared with the experimental results measured by microphones at both the near- and far-fields, respectively. Moreover, APSDs are compared with the experimental results obtained by an accelerometer at a few different locations. Although OASPLs are overestimated because of the coarse meshes in the higher-angle area and low order scheme of the present CFD analysis, the present integrated aero-vibro-acoustic analysis is capable of predicting the OASPL and APSD generated by a cold jet with M = 1.8. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A smart city is an urban area that collects data from various devices to effectively manage urban resources. The smart city IoT infrastructure connects numerous devices to an Internet-protocol-based low-power wireless network, shares massive amounts of data, and facilitates the development of new services. Message queuing telemetry transport (MQTT), a lightweight exchange protocol for the IoT environment, uses a publish and subscribe structure via a centralized broker to share data. The extent of edge computing provides distributed and closer resources to the data source while maintaining low transmission costs. However, a centralized MQTT data broker is unsuitable for distributed edge resources and could result in high latency, traffic, and bottleneck risk. Therefore, we proposed a distributed MQTT broker optimized architecture. A distributed MQTT broker for edge resources could reduce network traffic and data delivery latency by only managing consumed topics in the network. We formulate an integer non-linear program to optimize container placement and avoid wasting edge computing resources. We compared our proposed architecture to the existing distributed MQTT middleware architecture with greedy and random container placement through extensive simulation. Our methods show better performance in lowering deployment failure ratio, power consumption, network usage, and synchronization overhead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structural proteins of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) consist of nucleocapsid protein C and envelope glycoprotein Ems (E0), E1 and E2. Among them, E2, the most immunogenic of the CSFV glycoproteins, induces a protective immune response in swine. In this study, to determine the optimal expression conditions of glycoprotein E2 using baculovirus system, we investigated the influence of insect cells and media to the expression of recombinant E2. Recombinant virus containing glycoprotein E2 coding gene was constructed with bApGOZA DNA. Expression of the glycoprotein E2 was analyzed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis using anti-CSFV E2 monoclonal antibodies. Expression of glycoprotein E2 in Sf21 cells was first observed after 3 days and reached a maximum on the 5th day after infection. Furthermore, the highest levels of glycoprotein E2 expression were observed at multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 5. When three different insect cell lines (Sf21, High-Five and Se301) were tested, High-Five cells showed the highest production. In addition, four different serum-free and serum-supplemented media, respectively, were tested for the expression of glycoprotein E2 and the budded virus (BV) titers. As a result, serum-supplemented medium provided the best conditions for protein production and the BV yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This survey investigated Korean physician attitudes toward the herpes zoster (HZ) vaccine. A total of 400 physicians answered a self-reported questionnaire. Most physicians knew that HZ poses a significant socioeconomic burden and had good know ledge about HZ and its vaccine. Physicians who did not recommend HZ vaccine were concerned about costs (90.7%, 78/86) and doubted the effectiveness of the vaccine (58.1%, 50/86). Patient demand had a profound effect on physicians decisions; 84.9% (73/86) of them who said not recommending HZ vaccine reported that they would provide the vaccine upon patient request. In conclusion, educational initiatives should be targeted toward both physicians and patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we developed calcium alginate hydrogel-based magnetic springs containing magnetically aligned Fe 2 O 3 magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) to render them responsive toward magnetic fields. Under a low-frequency magnetic field, a torque was exerted on the springs propelling them along their long axis. In contrast, under a high-frequency alternating magnetic field (AMF) of 200 kHz, the temperature of the spring increased up to 45 °C, making them suitable for magnetic hyperthermia. Moreover, the heat caused thermal stresses, resulting in the spring's mechanical deformation (shrinkage) that accelerated the drug release. Based on the observation of CO 2 using mass spectra, we verified the boundary conditions prevailing during thermal deformation and thermal cracking. In the AMF condition, a spring temperature of 43 °C was attained, and the drug release was about 35% higher than that of physiological temperature (37 °C). In addition, the mechanical and thermal properties of the magnetic hydrogel were investigated based on the concentration and alignment of MNP, because these properties affect the locomotion the drug release mechanism of the hydrogel. Ultimately, the viability of the spring for active targeted heating and drug release was verified via various in-vitro tests. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Serotype 3 and 19A were still most prevalent in adults in the era vaccines. • Ceftriaxone non-susceptible rate was high (32.5%) in invasive pneumococci. • Serotypes 11A/E and 19A pneumococci showed low ceftriaxone susceptibility. • Ceftriaxone non-susceptibility was related to sequence type 166 and 320. Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality in children and elderly populations. Serotype distribution and antibiotic susceptibility of IPD isolates are changing with the implementation of pneumococcal vaccination and increasing antibiotic use worldwide. We aimed to determine serotype distribution, antibiogram, and molecular epidemiology of pneumococci in the late stage of PCV13 era. Prospective multicenter IPD surveillance study was conducted for adults aged ≥ 19 years from July 2019 to June 2021. Clinical and epidemiologic data were collected. In addition, antibiotic susceptibility test, serotype identification and multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) was taken for pneumococcal isolates. A total of 160 IPD cases were collected with mean age of 65.1 years (male, 72.5%). Serotyping was taken for 116 available pneumococcal isolates. PCV13 and PPSV23 serotypes were 32.8% (n = 38) and 56.0% (n = 65), respectively. Serotype 3 (13.8%) and 19A (9.5%) were the most common causative agents of IPD, followed by serogroup 11 (6.9%), 23A (6.9%), 10A (4.3%), and 15B (4.3%). Notably, 32.5% of invasive pneumococcal isolates were non-susceptible to ceftriaxone. Serotypes 11A, 11E and 19A pneumococci showed high ceftriaxone non-susceptible rate (80%, 100% and 81.8% respectively), and they were related to sequence type (ST) 166 and ST320. In comparison, most serotype 3 isolates were ceftriaxone susceptible and related to ST180. PCV serotypes, especially 3 and 19A, are still prevalent in adult IPDs, suggesting that individual PCV13 immunization would be necessary for the elderly people and chronically ill patients. Ceftriaxone non-susceptible rate was remarkably high in invasive pneumococcal isolates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports detailing the clinical characteristics, viral load, and outcomes of patients with normal initial chest CT findings are lacking. We sought to compare the differences in clinical findings, viral loads, and outcomes between patients with confirmed COVID-19 who initially tested negative on chest CT (CT negative) with patients who tested initially positive on chest CT (CT positive). The clinical data, viral loads, and outcomes of initial CT-positive and CT-negative patients examined between January 2020 and April 2020 were retrospectively compared. The efficacy of viral load (cyclic threshold value [Ct value]) in predicting pneumonia was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under the curve (AUC). In total, 128 patients underwent initial chest CT (mean age, 54.3 ± 19.0 years, 50% male). Of those, 36 were initially CT negative, and 92 were CT positive. The CT-positive patients were significantly older (P <.001) than the CT-negative patients. Only age was significantly associated with the initial presence of pneumonia (odds ratio, 1.060; confidence interval (CI), 1.020-1-102; P =.003). In addition, age (OR, 1.062; CI, 1.014–1.112; P =.011), fever at diagnosis (OR, 6.689; CI, 1.715–26.096; P =.006), and CRP level (OR, 1.393; CI, 1.150–1.687; P =.001) were significantly associated with the need for O2 therapy. Viral load was significantly higher in the CT-positive group than in the CT-negative group (P =.017). The cutoff Ct value for predicting the presence of pneumonia was 27.71. Outcomes including the mean hospital stay, intensive care unit admission, and O2 therapy were significantly worse in the CT-positive group than in the CT-negative group (all P <.05). In conclusion, initially CT-negative patients showed better outcomes than initially CT-positive patients. Age was significantly associated with the initial presence of pneumonia, and viral load may help in predicting the initial presence of pneumonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastrokine 1 (GKN1) plays an important role in maintaining gastric mucosa integrity. Here, we investigated whether gastrokine 2 (GKN2) contributes to the homeostasis of gastric epithelial cells by regulating GKN1 activity. We analyzed cell viability, proliferation, and death in AGS cells transfected with GKN1, GKN2, GKN1 plus GKN2 using MTT, BrdU incorporation, and apoptosis assays, respectively. In addition, the expression levels of the cell cycle- and apoptosis-related proteins, miR-185, DNMT1, and EZH2 were determined. We also compared the expression of GKN1, GKN2, and CagA in 50 non-neoplastic gastric mucosae and measured GKN2 expression in 169 gastric cancers by immunohistochemistry. GKN2 inhibited anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities, miR-185 induction, and anti-epigenetic modifications of GKN1. There was a positive correlation between GKN1 and GKN2 expression ( P = 0.0074), and the expression of GKN1, but not GKN2, was significantly lower in Helicobacter pylori CagA-positive gastric mucosa ( P = 0.0013). Interestingly, ectopic GKN1 expression in AGS cells increased GKN2 mRNA and protein expression in a time-dependent manner ( P = 0.01). Loss of GKN2 expression was detected in 126 (74.6%) of 169 gastric cancers by immunohistochemical staining and was closely associated with GKN1 expression and differentiation of gastric cancer cells ( P = 0.0002 and P = 0.0114, respectively). Overall, our data demonstrate that in the presence of GKN2, GKN1 loses its ability to decrease cell proliferation, induce apoptosis, and inhibit epigenetic alterations in gastric cancer cells. Thus, we conclude that GKN2 may contribute to the homeostasis of gastric epithelial cells by inhibiting GKN1 activity. J. Cell. Physiol. 229: 762-771, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chylothorax or chylous ascites is rare manifestation of tuberculosis. We report a case of simultaneous chylothorax and chylous ascites due to tuberculosis. A 17-year-old girl was admitted with fever, abdominal distention and dyspnea. Chest and abdominal computed tomography revealed bilateral pleural effusion, multifocal nodular consolidation on both lung fields and copious ascites and multiple necrotic lymphadenopathy in the abdominal cavity. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was isolated from sputum and pleural fluid. The patient was treated with anti-tuberculosis medication. Pleural effusion and ascites improved with the medication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Estrogens affect articular cartilage metabolism via estrogen receptors (ER) in chondrocytes and are believed to play an important role in the pathophysiology of osteoarthritis (OA). The aim of this study is to determine whether the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the estrogen receptor-β (ER-β) is associated with an increased susceptibility to knee OA. Methods: The possible influence of the SNP of the ER-β was investigated in 286 OA patients and 294 healthy subjects as controls. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism(RFLP) assay and a PCR-single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) assay were used to identify the Rsa polymorphism genotype among healthy controls and OA patients, respectively. Results: For rs1256049 (Rsa), frequencies of genotypes GG, GA, and AA were 49.0% (144/294), 43.5% (128/ 294), and 7.5% (22/294) in healthy controls, and 35.3% (101/286), 45.5% (130/286), and 19.2% (55/286) in OA patients. Frequencies of alleles G and A among healthy controls were 70.7% (416/588) and 29.3% (172/ 588); whereas those among OA patients were 58.0% (332/572) and 42.0% (240/572). Statistically significant differences in allele and genotype frequencies of rs1256049 were observed between OA patients and controls (P<0.0001). In particular, the risk of OA was significantly increased in carriers with the rs1256049A allele and rs1256049 AA homozygotes. Conclusions: These results suggest a close association of rs1256049 ER-β polymorphisms with susceptibility to OA in the Korean population. Clinical relevance: The rs1256049 polymorphism of the estrogen receptor-β gene can potentially be used to identify genetically high-risk subgroup of osteoarthritis in advance and to understand pathogenesis of osteoarthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been reported that an indigenous quorum quenching bacterium, Rhodococcus sp. BH4, which was isolated from a real plant of membrane bioreactor (MBR) has promising potential to control biofouling in MBR. However, little is known about quorum quenching mechanisms by the strain BH4. In this study, various characteristics of strain BH4 were investigated to elucidate its behavior in more detail in the mixed liquor of MBR. The N-acyl homoserine lactone hydrolase (AHL–lactonase) gene of strain BH4 showed a high degree of identity to qsdA in Rhodococcus erythropolis W2. The LC-ESI-MS analysis of the degradation product by strain BH4 confirmed that it inactivated AHL activity by hydrolyzing the lactone bond of AHL. It degraded a wide range of N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs), but there was a large difference in the degradation rate of each AHL compared to other reported AHL–lactonase-producing strains belonging to Rhodococcus genus. Its quorum quenching activity was confirmed not only in the Luria-Bertani medium, but also in the synthetic wastewater. Furthermore, the amount of strain BH4 encapsulated in the vessel as well as the material of the vessel substantially affected the quorum quenching activity of strain BH4, which provides useful information, particularly for the biofouling control in a real MBR plant from an engineering point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We have engineered a metallic architecture with high surface area and ultralow density for applications related to electrochemical supercapacitors. This is achieved first by design and fabrication of new annular collector template for electrospinning process, then the extrusion of polystyrene (PS) nanofiber through the fabricated annulus collector template followed by electroless plating of nanofiber assembly with gold and silver. The resultant three dimensional structures were characterized by optical microscopy (OM), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The OM images suggest that the fabrication process causes the electrospun fibers to be hinged to one another, maximizing contact junctions enhancing mechanical stability. The coated structure has a superior surface area, is robust, and is freestanding – making it an attractive architectural design for an electrode. The SEM images show interlocking of nanofibers to one another, further indicating the potential application for this system as a high surface area, low density charge collector ideal for nanostructured growths. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Highlights: [•] NH2-terminal and BRICHOS domain of GKN1 inhibited tumor cell growth. [•] NH2-terminal and BRICHOS domain of GKN1 regulated cell cycle. [•] NH2-terminal and BRICHOS domain of GKN1 inhibited epigenetic regulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: IL-23 is produced by antigen presenting cells and plays critical roles in immune response in rheumatoid arthritis. In this study, we investigated whether the RhoA/Rho-kinase pathway is required to elevate TLR2-mediated IL-23 production in synovial macrophages from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and then examined the suppressive effect of cilostazol on these pathways. IL-23 production was elevated by lipoteichoic acid (LTA), a TLR2 ligand, and this elevation was more prominent in RA macrophages than in those from peripheral blood of normal control. LTA increased the activation of RhoA in association with increased the nuclear translocation of NF-κB and its DNA-binding activity. Pretreatment of RA macrophages with the pharmacological inhibitors exoenzyme C3 (RhoA), Y27632 (Rho-kinase) or BAY11-7082 (NF-κB) inhibited IL-23 production by LTA. Inhibition of the RhoA/Rho-kinase pathway by these drugs attenuated NF-κB activation. Cilostazol suppressed the TLR2-mediated activation of RhoA, decreased NF-κB activity with down-regulated IL-23 production, and these effects were reversed by Rp-cAMPS, as an inhibitor of cAMP-dependent protein kinase. The expression of IL-23, which colocalized with CD68(+) cells in knee joint of CIA mice, was significantly attenuated by cilostazol along with the decreased severity of arthritis. Taken together, the RhoA/Rho-kinase pathway signals TLR2-stimulated IL-23 production in synovial fluid macrophages via activation of NF-κB. Thus it is summarized that cilostazol suppresses TLR2-mediated IL-23 production by suppressing RhoA pathway via cAMP-dependent protein kinase activation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Poly [3,3‴-didodecylquaterselenophene] (PQS) and poly[3,3‴-didodecylquaterselenophene-alt-didodecylquaterthiophene] (PQSQT), have been synthesized by using a Stille cross-coupling reaction. The weight-averaged molecular weights (M w ) of PQS and PQSQT were found to be 18,900Da and 22,300Da with polydispersity indices of 1.71 and 1.99, respectively. Photophysical measurements found the low bandgaps of 1.73eV for PQS and 1.86eV for PQSQT. The field-effect mobilities of PQS and PQSQT were determined to be 6.0×10−3 and 0.05cm2/Vs, respectively. The influence of the selenium and sulfur atoms in the polymer backbones were investigated with regard to device performances. The polymers were combined with the PC71BM ([6,6]-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester) acceptor to fabricate bulk heterojunction solar cells with power conversion efficiencies of 0.73–2.37% under AM 1.5G (100mW/cm2) conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Glucose metabolism is a mechanism by which energy is produced in form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by mitochondria and precursor metabolites are supplied to enable the ultimate enrichment of mature metabolites in the cell. Recently, glycolytic enzymes have been shown to have unconventional but important functions. Among these enzymes, pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) plays several roles including having conventional metabolic enzyme activity, and also being a transcriptional regulator and a protein kinase. Compared with the closely related PKM1, PKM2 is highly expressed in cancer cells and embryos, whereas PKM1 is dominant in mature, differentiated cells. Posttranslational modifications such as phosphorylation and acetylation of PKM2 change its cellular functions. In particular, PKM2 can translocate to the nucleus, where it regulates the transcription of many target genes. It is notable that PKM2 also acts as a protein kinase to phosphorylate several substrate proteins. Besides cancer cells and embryonic cells, astrocytes also highly express PKM2, which is crucial for lactate production via expression of lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA), while mature neurons predominantly express PKM1. The lactate produced in cancer cells promotes tumor progress and that in astrocytes can be supplied to neurons and may act as a major source for neuronal ATP energy production. Thereby, we propose that PKM2 along with its different posttranslational modifications has specific purposes for a variety of cell types, performing unique functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incremental peritoneal dialysis (iPD) can be useful in patients with residual renal function (RRF). RRF was well preserved and similar survival was shown in iPD compared to conventional PD (cPD) in previous study. However, the long-term survival of iPD remains unclear compared to cPD in diabetic patients. This study evaluated whether patient survival, hospitalization and peritonitis, and PD survival in iPD were lower than cPD or not. We conducted a 12-year retrospective observational study of 303 PD patients (232 cPD and 71 iPD) using propensity score matching by age, gender, and diabetes mellitus (DM). Finally, 78 cPD patients and 39 iPD patients were included and 44 patients had DM. Incremental PD was defined as starting PD with two or three manual exchanges per day. The median duration of iPD was 24.1 months and iPD had higher RRF than cPD. Compared to cPD, the patient survival, PD survival and hospitalization benefits were not found in iPD but diabetic iPD patients had significantly longer survival and less hospitalization. Cumulative risk for peritonitis was lower iPD and PD duration of iPD was longer than those of cPD. The iPD was an independent factor associated with survival in patients with DM. Incremental PD may be a safe PD modality to initiate and maintain PD in less uremic patients with tolerable RRF. Incremental PD would be a benefit for survival in diabetic patients. Further prospective studies are necessary to confirm the effectiveness of iPD in PD patients with similar RRF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the value of a new Revised Cardiac Risk Index (RCRI) that includes consideration of QRS fragmentation (fQRS) as a predictor of cardiac events in patients undergoing noncardiac vascular surgery. Four hundred sixty-seven consecutive patients admitted for noncardiac vascular surgery were studied. Patients were allocated to RCRI 0, 1, 2, or ≥3 groups according to the sum of diabetes, renal insufficiency, and histories of ischemic heart disease, congestive heart failure, and cerebrovascular disease. They were then reallocated to fragmented RCRI (fRCRI) 0, 1, 2, or 3 groups after including a score of 1 or 0 corresponding to the presence or absence of fQRS. A major adverse cardiac event (MACE) was defined as a composite of death, myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, and percutaneous coronary intervention before noncardiac vascular surgery. During index hospitalization, MACE developed in 38 patients (8.1%). fQRS was present in 169 (36.2%), and it was significantly greater in patients with MACE than in those without MACE (63.2% vs 34.3%, p <0.001). The proportions of RCRI 0, 1, 2, and 3 were 46.9% (n [ 219), 35.3% (n [ 165), 12.4% (n [ 58), and 5.4% (n [ 25), respectively. When fRCRI data were included, 28 patients (48.3%) in RCRI 2 were reclassified as fRCRI ≥3. By multivariate logistic regression analysis, fRCRI (odds ratio 1.529, 95% confidence interval 1.035 to 2.258, p [ 0.033) and a left ventricular ejection fraction <50% independently predicted in-hospital MACE. In conclusion, fRCRI is an independent predictor of in-hospital MACE in patients undergoing noncardiac vascular surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lactic acidosis is a common cause of high anion gap metabolic acidosis. Sodium bicarbonate may be considered for an arterial pH <7.15 but paradoxically depresses cardiac performance and exacerbates acidosis by enhancing lactate production. This study aimed to evaluate the cause and mortality rate of lactic acidosis and to investigate the effect of factors, including sodium bicarbonate use, on death. Methods: We conducted a single center analysis from May 2011 through April 2012. We retrospectively analyzed 103 patients with lactic acidosis among 207 patients with metabolic acidosis. We used SOFA and APACHE II as severity scores to estimate illness severity. Multivariate logistic regression analysis and Cox regression analysis models were used to identify factors that affect mortality. Results: Of the 103 patients with a mean age of 66.1±11.4 years, eighty-three patients (80.6%) died from sepsis (61.4%), hepatic failure, cardiogenic shock and other causes. The percentage of sodium bicarbonate administration (p = 0.006), catecholamine use, ventilator care and male gender were higher in the non-survival group than the survival group. The non-survival group had significantly higher initial and follow-up lactic acid levels, lower initial albumin, higher SOFA scores and APACHE II scores than the survival group. The mortality rate was significantly higher in patients who received sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarbonate administration (p = 0.016) was associated with higher mortality. Independent factors that affected mortality were SOFA score (Exp (B) = 1.72, 95% CI = 1.12–2.63, p = 0.013) and sodium bicarbonate administration (Exp (B) = 6.27, 95% CI = 1.10–35.78, p = 0.039). Conclusions: Lactic acidosis, which has a high mortality rate, should be evaluated in patients with metabolic acidosis. In addition, sodium bicarbonate should be prescribed with caution in the case of lactic acidosis because sodium bicarbonate administration may affect mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chronic non-specific low back pain is the most common medical problem for which patients seek complementary and alternative medical treatment, including bee venom acupuncture. However, the effectiveness and safety of such treatments have not been fully established by randomized clinical trials. The aim of this study is to determine whether bee venom acupuncture is effective for improving pain intensity, functional status and quality of life of patients with chronic non-specific low back pain. Methods/design: This study is a randomized, double-blinded, sham-controlled clinical trial with two parallel arms. Fifty-four patients between 18 and 65 years of age with non-radicular chronic low back pain experiencing low back pain lasting for at least the previous three months and ≥4 points on a 10-cm visual analog scale for bothersomeness at the time of screening will be included in the study. Participants will be randomly allocated into the real or sham bee venom acupuncture groups and treated by the same protocol to minimize non-specific and placebo effects. Patients, assessors, acupuncturists and researchers who prepare the real or sham bee venom acupuncture experiments will be blinded to group allocation. All procedures, including the bee venom acupuncture increment protocol administered into predefined acupoints, are designed by a process of consensus with experts and previous researchers according to the Standards for Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture. Bothersomeness measured using a visual analogue scale will be the primary outcome. Back pain-related dysfunction, pain, quality of life, depressive symptoms and adverse experiences will be measured using the visual analogue scale for pain intensity, the Oswestry Disability Index, the EuroQol 5-Dimension, and the Beck's Depression Inventory. These measures will be recorded at baseline and 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Discussion: The results from this study will provide clinical evidence on the efficacy and safety of bee venom acupuncture in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A new conjugated polymer containing pentaselenophene (5Se) electron donor moieties was designed for use in polymer solar cells and synthesized via a Stille coupling reaction. The structure, optical properties, electrochemical properties, hole mobility, photovoltaic properties, and AFM morphology of the homopolymer (P5Se) and the donor–acceptor copolymer (P5SeDTDPP) with a diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) acceptor were investigated and are discussed. The polymers showed good solubility, film-forming properties, and thermal stabilities. P5Se exhibited a broad absorption across the visible range, 400–700nm, which is a prerequisite for photovoltaic applications. P5SeDTDPP yielded a broader absorption spectrum, enhanced π–π interactions, and a lower band gap compared to P5Se, due to the enhanced intramolecular charge transfer interactions between the donating moiety (pentaselenophene) and the DPP accepting moiety. Solution-processed field effect transistors fabricated from these polymers displayed p-type organic thin film transistor characteristics. P5Se and P5SeDTDPP exhibited typical p-type organic semiconductor characteristics with hole mobilities of 2.3×10−3 and 1.2×10–2 cm2 V−1 s−1, respectively. Photovoltaic devices were fabricated using polymer:PCBM blends in ITO/PEDOT:PSS/blend/Al structures. The P5SeDTDPP device exhibited an open circuit voltage (V OC) of 0.44V, a short circuit current (J SC) of 10.67mA/cm2, a fill factor (FF) of 0.51, and a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.40% under AM 1.5G (100mW/cm2) conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the clinical manifestations and treatment outcomes of abdominal wall endometriosis (AWE). Materials and methods: Patients diagnosed with AWE at the Gil Medical Center from January 2002 to September 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. Results: Thirty-seven women were treated for AWE during the study period. Median age was 34 (range 24-45) years, and median duration from last pelvic surgery until symptom onset was 30 (range 6-96) months. The most common initial symptom was a palpable mass (36, 97.2 %), followed by cyclic or spontaneous pain (21, 56.8 %). Preoperative diagnoses were accurate in 20 of 29 patients (68.9 %), who underwent a preoperative imaging study. The accuracy of abdominal US was 80 % (12/15). All patients underwent wide excision, and the median tumor size was 3.5 (range 1.0-10.0) cm. One patient experienced recurrence at 34 months postoperatively. Conclusions: Physicians should be aware of AWE in any woman presenting with palpable mass and/or pain at the abdominal wall, especially after pelvic surgery. Adequate preoperative estimation and wide excision might be essential for the treatment of AWE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 38-year-old man presented to our Emergency Department with acute severe abdominal pain; 3 days after, a mesenteric mass had been detected by abdomino-pelvic computed tomography. Emergency laparotomy revealed a mesenteric mass with focal surface rupture. Microscopically, the mesenteric mass was composed of fibroblast-like spindle cells with intervening marked collagen deposits. These spindle cells were positive for nuclear β-catenin and negative for CD34, c-kit, smooth muscle actin, and S-100 protein. We diagnosed the mesenteric lesion as deep fibromatosis, consistent with mesenteric fibromatosis (MF). Serial sections of the ruptured portion showed abscess formation with a peripheral radiating pattern of microcolonies, proven to be actinomycosis by Grocott's methenamine silver stain and gram staining. One glandular fragment was found in the adhered muscle layers and a foreign body reaction was seen within the abscess cavity. We speculate that MF involved the serosal adhesions between the adjacent bowel walls and the subsequent fibrous pulling might have created the connection between the bowel lumen and the bowel wall. This disrupted barrier led to the Actinomyces infection. To our knowledge, this is the first report of sporadic MF leading to the formation of an abscess cavity with rupture and actinomycosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Arylenevinylene based bis(arylhalide) monomers were synthesized as low band gap electron-accepting blocks, and were copolymerized with 9,9-dioctyl-2,7-fluorene or 9-(heptadecan-9′-yl)-2,7-carbazole diboronic esters as electron-donating blocks using Suzuki coupling polymerization. Four alternating copolymers were synthesized through the combination of two different bis(arylhalide)s and diboronic esters, and their optical, thermal and electrochemical properties were characterized. The intra-molecular charge transfer interaction between the electron donating and electron accepting blocks in the polymeric backbone induced a broad absorption from 300 to 650nm. The optical band gap energies of the polymers were measured from their absorption onsets to be 1.97–2.18eV depending on the polymer structure. Bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices were fabricated using the synthesized polymers as the electron donors and 6,6-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC70BM) as the electron acceptor. One of these devices showed a high power conversion efficiency of 3.22%, with an open-circuit voltage of 0.74V, a short-circuit current of 10.60mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 0.41 under air mass (AM) 1.5 global (1.5G) illumination conditions (100mW/cm2). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Nasal NK/T-cell lymphoma (NKTL) is a highly aggressive disease. Although radiotherapy is the first-line of treatment for NKTL, the clinical outcome is poor. Thus, there is a need for an effective radiosensitizer to improve the survival rate of patients. NF-κB activation contributes to cell survival as well as chemo- and radio-resistance in various cancer cells. In NKTL, the constitutive activation of NF-κB is also a critical factor. In the present study, we used two EBV-expressing NKTL cell lines (Hank-1 and NK-92) to evaluate the radiosensitizing effect of methotrexate (MTX), highlighting the role of NF-κB. Combined treatment of MTX and IR significantly induced apoptosis and growth inhibition in both NKTL cells. The synergistic cytotoxicity was correlated with blocking nuclear NF-κB and suppressing expression of NF-κB-mediated anti-apoptotic proteins. These data suggest that the combined treatment with MTX and IR can inhibit IR-induced NF-κB activation in NKTL cells. Taken together, co-treatment with MTX and IR may provide a therapeutic advantage for patients with NKTL. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Although chronic effects of exercise on endothelial function are established, the impact of acute exercise on flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) of brachial artery has not been elucidated yet. Methods: Eighty-six young healthy volunteers were prospectively enrolled from January 2011 to December 2011. The subjects completed FMD tests at rest and immediately after treadmill exercise test. Primary outcome was the impact of acute exercise on FMD, measured by the difference of FMD before and after exercise. Secondary outcomes were the relationship of gender and exercise habit with FMD. Results: Seventy-four subjects who met the eligibility criteria were included for analysis. Thirty-five (47.3%) were male, and the mean age was 22.7±2.7 years. FMD was reduced after exercise (8.98±4.69 to 7.51±4.03%; P=0.017) and the reduction was found in female group (10.36±5.26 to 7.62±3.71%; P=0.002) but not in male group. Post-exercise FMD was significantly impaired in subjects who did not exercise regularly (6.92±3.13% versus 8.95±5.33%; P=0.003). The decrease of FMD after exercise was greater in female group (-2.75±5.28% versus 0.27±3.24%; P=0.003) and was associated with exercise habit (β=2.532; P=0.027). Conclusions: In healthy young subjects, FMD was reduced after a bout of acute exercise. The impact of acute exercise showed significant differences according to gender and exercise habit. FMD impairment after acute exercise was observed in females and subjects without regular exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Given a number of 2-DE gel images of the same kind, identifying the spot of each image for the same protein is an important task to monitor the expression level change of the protein. For this purpose, the gel-based two-dimensional electrophoresis method (2-DE) is widely used since it separates thousands of proteins in a sample cost-effectively. However, this approach suffers from inherent noises and irregular geometric distortions of spots observed in a 2-DE gel image. This paper proposes a probability-based error filtering method that can find more reliable spot-matching results, so that the accuracy of protein expression analysis can be improved. The performance of the proposed method is analyzed by various experiments on real 2-DE gel images of human liver tissues. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We demonstrate to decorate carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with metal alloy nanoparticles by flash light from a xenon lamp highlighting dramatically simplified process and ultrafast speed of millisecond. By managing the pulse energy of the irradiation, we customize the nucleation and growth rates of homogeneous binary and ternary nanoparticles with Pt–Ru and Pt–Ru–Mo thin layers that are e-beam deposited onto CNTs. No damage of CNTs during the light-induced nanogranulation is guaranteed by the rapid and surface-localized heating mechanism. The fabricated nanoparticle/CNT nanostructures are characterized using variety of microscopic and spectroscopic techniques such as SEM, TEM and Raman spectroscopy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An effective, general protocol for the Diversity-Oriented Synthesis (DOS) of 2,4,6-trisubstituted piperidine congeners has been designed and validated. The successful strategy entails a modular approach to all possible stereoisomers of the selected piperidine scaffold, exploiting Type II Anion Relay Chemistry (ARC), followed in turn by intramolecular SN2 cyclization, chemoselective removal of the dithiane moieties and carbonyl reductions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We synthesized oleic acid capped tetrapod nanocrystals of CdSe, CdTe and type II heterostructured CdTe/CdSe to investigate the effects of nanocrystal compositions and type II heterojunction on the photovoltaic properties of hybrid solar cells. The hybrid solar cell based on the blend of CdSe tetrapod nanocrystals and P3HT with a weight ratio of 6:1 showed the maximum power conversion efficiency of 1.03% under AM 1.5G condition, and the maximum incident photon to current conversion efficiency of the solar cell was 43% at 415nm. Although CdTe and CdTe/CdSe tetrapod nanocrystals showed relatively poor performance, the power conversion efficiency and the short circuit current density of the hybrid solar cell based on type II heterostructured CdTe/CdSe tetrapod nanocrystals was 4.4 and 3.9 times higher than that of the solar cell based on CdTe tetrapod nanocrystals, respectively. These results can be explained by the effects of nanocrystal compositions and type II heterojunction on the photovoltaic properties of hybrid solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three novel alternating copolymers containing 9,9-dioctylfluorene and thiophene derivatives, poly[(9,9-dioctylfluorene-2,7-diyl)-alt-(4,4'-bis(3''-hexyl-2''thienyl)-biphenyl-5”,5''-diyl)] (P1), poly[(9,9-dioctylfluorene-2,7-diyl)-alt-(5,5'-bis(3''-hexyl-2”thienyl)-2,2'-bithiophenyl-5”,5''-diyl)] (P2), and poly[(9,9-dioctylfluorene-2,7-diyl)-alt-(5,5'-bis(3''-hexyl-2''thienyl)-2,2'-biselenophenyl-5”,5''-diyl)] (P3) were synthesized by a palladium-catalyzed Suzuki polymerization. The synthesis, thermal stability, as well as the optical and electrochemical properties of these polymers are systematically investigated. The polymers were thermally stable up to 400°C, and readily soluble in common organic solvent. The absorption and emission maxima of the copolymers varied according to the type of incorporated aromatic group (thiophene, selenophene, or phenylene). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have fabricated organic solar cells using highly conductive poly 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene: poly styrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), which are modified by adding 5 wt. -% ethylene glycol (EG) as an anode without using transparent conducting oxide (TCO). The conductivity of the modified PEDOT:PSS (PEDOT:PSS-EG) film with ethylene glycol (EG) additive was enhanced by three orders of magnitude. With the modified PEDOT:PSS film, we investigated the transmittance of visible range light at various film thicknesses and device performance levels on ITO-free organic solar cells-based highly conductive polymer anodes. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) was governed by the series resistance, which directly determines a short circuit current density (Jsc). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A good clustering method should provide flexible scalability on the number of dimensions as well as the size of a data set. This paper proposes a method of efficiently tracing the clusters of a high-dimensional on-line data stream. While tracing the one-dimensional clusters of each dimension independently, a technique which is similar to frequent itemset mining is employed to find the set of multi-dimensional clusters. By finding a frequently co-occurred set of one-dimensional clusters, it is possible to trace a multi-dimensional rectangular space whose range is defined by the one-dimensional clusters collectively. In order to trace such candidates over a multi-dimensional online data stream, a cluster-statistics tree (CS-Tree) is proposed in this paper. A k-depth node(k ⩽ d) in the CS-tree is corresponding to a k-dimensional rectangular space. Each node keeps track of the density of data elements in its corresponding rectangular space. Only a node corresponding to a dense rectangular space is allowed to have a child node. The scalability on the number of dimensions is greatly enhanced while sacrificing the accuracy of identified clusters slightly. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: About 10% of patients with gallbladder (GB) stones also have concurrent common bile duct (CBD) stones. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) after removal of CBD stones using endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is the most widely used method for treating coexisting gallbladder and common bile duct stones. We evaluated the optimal timing of LC after ERCP according to clinical factors, focusing on preoperative relief of jaundice. Methods: A total of 281 patients who underwent elective LC after ERCP because of choledocholithiasis and cholecystolithiasis from January 2010 to April 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. We compared the hospital stay, perioperative morbidity, and rate of surgical conversion to open cholecystectomy according to the relief of jaundice before surgery. These enrolled patients were divided into two groups: relief of jaundice before surgery (group 1, n = 125) or not (group 2, n = 156). Results: The initial total bilirubin level was higher in group 1; however, there were no significant differences in the other baseline characteristics including age, sex, American Society of Anesthesiologists score, previous surgical history, white blood cell count, C-reactive protein, and operative time between the two groups. There was also no significant difference in postoperative hospital stay between the two groups (4.5 ± 3.3 vs. 5.5 ± 5.6 days, p = 0.087). However, after ERCP, the waiting time until LC was significantly longer in group 1 (5.0 ± 4.9 vs. 3.5 ± 2.4 days, p < 0.001). There were no statistical differences in the conversion rate (3.2% vs. 3.8%, p = 0.518) or perioperative morbidity (4.0% vs. 5.8%, p = 0.348), either. Conclusions: LC would not be delayed until the relief of jaundice after ERCP since there were no significant differences in perioperative morbidity or surgical conversion rate to open cholecystectomy. Early LC after ERCP may be feasible and safe in patients with cholangitis and cholecystolithiasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to confirm the application possibility to the molecular electronic device, the morphological property of arachidic acid (AA) was investigated. We have determined morphology by BAM and AFM. π-A curves investigated surface pressure of this LB film from liquid to solid state ranged between 40 to 45 mN/m. BAM images investigated the different states of AA LB film. When the surface pressure reaches at 40 mN/m, the monolayer was deposited onto the hydrophilic glass substrates by Y-type deposition. We investigated morphological property of arachidic acid by AFM. As a result, we obtained the frequency characteristic and morphology of LB films from controlling the deposited layers. In this paper, I review this subject mainly based on our recent results in merocyanine dye. LB films of merocyanine dye, mixed with arachidic acid, exhibit J-aggregate formation and have been serving as typical systems in revealing the physical and structural aspects of nano-sized molecular aggregates constructed as muiltilayers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The formation of horseradish peroxidase-lipid Langmuir–Blodgett film and its applicability as a biosensor have been studied. HRP was spread directly onto the subphase covered with a layer of lipid in LB trough. Our experimental results showed that surface pressure of this film from liquid to solid state ranged between 15 to 25 mN/m. At surface pressure of 25 mN/m, the monolayer was successfully transferred onto the gold surface. In addition, electrochemical properties of this film showed that protein molecules still kept their natural structure and can give a well electrocatalytic activity to H2O2. As an H2O2 biosensor, this LB film was able to detect concentration of H2O2 which were 3×10−7 M. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An acoustic finite element model of a bridge is developed to evaluate the noise generated by the traffic-induced vibration of the bridge. The dynamic response of a multi-girder bridge, modeled by a three-dimensional (3-D) frame element model, is analyzed with a 3-axle (8 degrees of freedom (DOF)) truck model and a 5-axle (13 DOF) tractor-trailer. The flat plate element is used to analyze the acoustic pressure due to the fluid–structure interactions between the vibrating surface and contiguous acoustic fluid medium. The radiation fields of noise with a specified distribution of vibrating velocity and pressure on the structural surface are also computed using the Kirchhoff–Helmholtz integral. Among the diverse parameters affecting the dynamic response of a bridge, vehicle velocity, vehicle weight, and spatial distribution of the road surface roughness are found to be the main factors that increase the level of vibration noise. In an attempt to illustrate the influence of the structural vibration noise of a bridge to total noise level around the bridge, the random function is used to generate the vehicle noise source including the engine noise and the rolling noise between the road and tire. The results show that the low-frequency noise produced by the vibrating bridge members amplifies the high-frequency vehicle noise by 4–7 dB. In addition, the amplification rate of noise increases with traveling speed and vehicle weight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glia contribute to synapse elimination through phagocytosis in the central nervous system. Despite the important roles of this process in development and neurological disorders, the identity and regulation of the "eat‐me" signal that initiates glia‐mediated phagocytosis of synapses has remained incompletely understood. Here, we generated conditional knockout mice with neuronal‐specific deletion of the flippase chaperone Cdc50a, to induce stable exposure of phosphatidylserine, a well‐known "eat‐me" signal for apoptotic cells, on the neuronal outer membrane. Surprisingly, acute Cdc50a deletion in mature neurons causes preferential phosphatidylserine exposure in neuronal somas and specific loss of inhibitory post‐synapses without effects on other synapses, resulting in abnormal excitability and seizures. Ablation of microglia or the deletion of microglial phagocytic receptor Mertk prevents the loss of inhibitory post‐synapses and the seizure phenotype, indicating that microglial phagocytosis is responsible for inhibitory post‐synapse elimination. Moreover, we found that phosphatidylserine is used for microglia‐mediated pruning of inhibitory post‐synapses in normal brains, suggesting that phosphatidylserine serves as a general "eat‐me" signal for inhibitory post‐synapse elimination. SYNOPSIS: Neuronal‐specific deletion of the flippase chaperone Cdc50a leads to exposure of phosphatidylserin on neuronal outer membranes causing specific loss of inhibitory post‐synapses and seizures. Microglial phagocytosis via the phagocytic receptor MERTK promotes inhibitory post‐synapse elimination in Cdc50a cKO brains. Inhibitory post‐synapses in normal juvenile brains also use phosphatidylserine for synapse elimination, suggesting that phosphatidylserine exposure functions as an "eat‐me" signal for microglia‐dependent inhibitory post‐synapse elimination. Neuronal Cdc50a deletion induces rapid lethality with appearance of audiogenic seizure.Neuronal Cdc50a deletion causes the specific loss of inhibitory post‐synapses without affecting other synapses.Ablating microglia or deleting microglial Mertk rescues the loss of inhibitory post‐synapses and seizure behaviors in Cdc50a cKO mice.Microglial Mertk deletion increases the number of phosphatidylserine‐exposed inhibitory post‐synapses in the wild‐type juvenile brains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Enhanced environmental cleaning alone failed to reduce carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) acquisition in an intensive care unit. • The ventilator utilization ratio increased the CRAB colonization pressure. • Inexperienced nurses may be associated with increased CRAB acquisition. To evaluate the impact of enhanced environmental cleaning (two times per day) compared with conventional cleaning on the acquisition of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) in a highly endemic intensive care unit (ICU). The intervention consisted of alternating environmental cleaning and conventional cleaning every 3 months during the study period from July 2018 to June 2019. CRAB acquisition was assessed using incidence and prevalence rates, and colonization pressure. The incidence rates of CRAB with and without enhanced cleaning were 16.3 and 13.9 cases per 1000 population, respectively; and the prevalence rates were 66.9 and 61.7 cases per 1000 population, respectively. Colonization pressure was 53.3% with enhanced cleaning and 51.3% without enhanced cleaning. No association was found between enhanced environmental cleaning and the incidence (P =0.156), prevalence (P =0.888) and colonization pressure (P =0.825) of CRAB acquisition. The ventilator utilization ratio increased the colonization pressure of CRAB acquisition (P =0.010, β coefficient=0.37). The proportion of new nurses with <3 years of clinical practice experience was positively correlated with the incidence and prevalence of CRAB acquisition. Enhanced environmental cleaning alone failed to reduce CRAB acquisition in a highly endemic ICU. The ventilator utilization ratio may be of more importance than environmental cleaning. Inexperienced nurses may need to be monitored regarding infection control activities in addition to hand hygiene adherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is known that the pathological features of acute irritant contact dermatitis are specific according to the irritant. However, in chronic irritant contact dermatitis, it is not clear whether specific patterns exist. To investigate whether the specific pathology of acute irritant contact dermatitis is sustained in chronic irritant contact dermatitis, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and croton oil were applied 3× a week for 2 weeks on the dorsal skin of hairless mice using Finn Chambers. The pathologic changes induced by irritants at various concentrations were evaluated using H&E and Luna’s staining, as well as immunohistochemistry for 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU), keratin 6 and loricrin. Our results showed that epidermal hyperplasia and inflammatory infiltration were relatively marked in the groups treated with higher concentrations of irritants. These features were more prominent in the 1% croton oil treated group than in the 0.25% SLS treated group. However, lower concentrations of irritants resulted in very similar histological changes, characterized by epidermal hyperplasia with minimal inflammatory infiltration, irrespective of the chemical. Our results suggest that the histological responses to irritants vary with concentration in cumulative irritation, as in acute irritation, but repetitive mild irritation may evoke common histological changes, characterized by epidermal hyperplasia with minimal inflammatory infiltration, irrespective of the chemical used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]