In the context of upcoming large-scale structure surveys such as Euclid, it is of prime importance to quantify the effect of peculiar velocities on geometric probes. Hence, the formalism to compute ...in redshift space the geometrical and topological one-point statistics of mildly non-Gaussian 2D and 3D cosmic fields is developed. Leveraging the partial isotropy of the target statistics, the Gram-Charlier expansion of the joint probability distribution of the field and its derivatives is reformulated in terms of the corresponding anisotropic variables. In particular, the cosmic non-linear evolution of the Minkowski functionals, together with the statistics of extrema, is investigated in turn for 3D catalogues and 2D slabs. The amplitude of the non-Gaussian redshift distortion correction is estimated for these geometric probes. In 3D, gravitational perturbation theory is implemented in redshift space to predict the cosmic evolution of all relevant Gram-Charlier coefficients. Applications to the estimation of the cosmic parameters σ(z) and β = f/b
1 from upcoming surveys are discussed. Such statistics are of interest for anisotropic fields beyond cosmology.
In order to assess the characteristics with respect to surface strength of thin hard coatings of the Micro Slurry-jet Erosion (MSE) test which we have developed, the erosion behaviors of PVD TiN ...coating were studied. The MSE tests were conducted impacting a slurry-jet consisting of angular alumina particles with an average size of 1.2 μm or 41 μm, and spherical alumina particles with an average diameter of 3 μm, perpendicular to the specimen surface. The variations of the eroded surface profiles and the erosion depths were measured, and the eroded surfaces were observed using SEM, AFM and TEM. The erosion rates and the morphology of the eroded surface depend strongly on the size and shape of the erodent particles. For tiny angular particles, the main erosion mechanism is impact fatigue and sub-micro-cutting, while plastic deformation and micro-crack propagation due to fatigue are the main erosion mechanism for tiny spherical particles. On the contrary, in the case of large angular particles, brittle fracture followed by cutting due to large impact forces is the main characteristic. The depth to which the impacts of particles have an influence depends on the size and shape of the particles; the range of influence is from several tens of nanometers for tiny particles to several hundreds of nanometers for large angular particles. From these findings, it is concluded that the MSE test can be used to evaluate the properties related to various strengths by selection of the appropriate erodent particles.
Tongue muscle damage impairs speaking and eating, thereby degrading overall health and quality of life. Skeletal muscles of the body are diverse in embryonic origin, anatomic location, and gene ...expression profiles. Responses to disease, atrophy, aging, or drugs vary among different muscles. Currently, most muscle studies are focused on limb muscles and the tongue is neglected. The regenerative ability of tongue muscle remains unknown, and thus there is need for tongue muscle research models. Here, we present a comprehensive characterization of the spatiotemporal dynamics in a mouse model of tongue muscle regeneration and establish a method for the isolation of primary tongue-derived satellite cells. We compare and contrast our observations with the tibialis anterior (TA) limb muscle. Acute injury was induced by intramuscular injection of cardiotoxin, a cytolytic agent, and examined at multiple timepoints. Initially, necrotic myofibers with fragmented sarcoplasm became infiltrated with inflammatory cells. Concomitantly, satellite cells expanded rapidly. Seven days postinjury, regenerated myofibers with centralized nuclei appeared. Full regeneration, as well as an absence of fibrosis, was evident 21 d postinjury. Primary tongue-derived satellite cells were isolated by enzymatic separation of tongue epithelium from mesenchyme followed by magnetic-activated cell sorting. We observed that tongue displays an efficient regenerative response similar to TA but with slightly faster kinetics. In vitro, tongue-derived satellite cells differentiated robustly into mature myotubes with spontaneous contractile behavior and myogenic marker expression. Comparison of gene expression signatures between tongue and TA-derived satellite cells revealed differences in the expression of positional-identity genes, including the HOX family. In conclusion, we have established a model for tongue regeneration useful for investigations of orofacial muscle biology. Furthermore, we showed that tongue is a viable source of satellite cells with unique properties and inherited positional memory.
Growth and characterization of methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) single crystals for X-ray detector application are reported. The inverse temperature crystallization (ITC) technique was employed to ...grow large-size bulk crystals by repeated seeding. By optimizing the molar ratio of starting materials and strictly controlling the solvent and growth temperatures, up to <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">10\times 10\times </tex-math></inline-formula> 3 mm dimension single crystals with different natural facets were obtained. The optical bandgap was 1.49 eV as determined from the Tauc plot. We evaporated gold electrode on the top and bottom sides of the (100) crystal facet to fabricate a planar-type detector. The bulk resistivity of the crystal was estimated to be <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">5\times 10^{7} \Omega \cdot {\mathrm{ cm}} </tex-math></inline-formula> from the current-voltage (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">I </tex-math></inline-formula>-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">V </tex-math></inline-formula>) measurement at room temperature and in dark conditions. The X-ray detection test further confirmed that these detectors show strong and stable X-ray responses. These results suggest an easy and low-cost method to obtain large-area and shaped single crystals for future X-ray detector development.
Abstract Background Despite recent improvements in early detection, progress in surgical techniques, and development of chemoradiation therapies, prognosis of esophageal cancer remains poor. The aim ...of the present study was to assess whether Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS), an inflammation-based prognostic score, has prognostic value independent of conventional clinicopathological criteria in patients undergoing curative resection for esophageal cancer, even in elderly patients. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the database of 141 consecutive patients with histologically verified esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who underwent potentially curative surgery in our institute, between January 2006 and December 2014. GPS and neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were calculated. Results On multivariate analysis, TNM stage (p < 0.0001) and GPS (p = 0.041) were independently associated with worse prognosis in overall patients with esophageal cancer. Multivariate analysis evaluated the prognostic factors in two different patient groups: patients younger than 70 years (non-elderly) and those aged 70 years or more (elderly). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that TNM stage (p = 0.0003) was an only independent risk factor for a worse prognosis among non-elderly group. Meanwhile, multivariate analysis demonstrated that TNM stage (p = 0.001) and GPS (p = 0.043) were the independent risk factor for a worse prognosis among elderly group. Conclusion The present study demonstrated that GPS is associated with prognosis and can be considered as an independent prognostic marker in patients who underwent esophagectomy. Moreover, the GPS has the advantage of being simple to measure, routinely available and well standardized. But the present study failed to confirm the NLR as a significant predictor of survival following resection for esophageal cancer.
Although there are some new criteria for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression with immunohistochemistry/fluorescence in situ hybridisation (IHC/FISH) in gastric cancer, the ...method is still ambiguous and is somewhat dependent on the subjective qualities of the evaluator.
We used droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) to evaluate HER2 amplification in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples and cell-free serum circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) in 25 patients with gastric cancer.
The concordance rate of HER2 amplification examined in FFPE samples with ddPCR and IHC/FISH was 92% (23 out of 25). The concordance rate of FFPE with ctDNA was not high (62.5%); however, patients who were HER2-positive by ctDNA had significantly shorter survival compared with HER2-negative patients.
Our results demonstrated that this ddPCR method was as effective as IHC/FISH and therefore might become a standard method for analysing not only FFPE but also ctDNA.
Abstract Background Recent studies have revealed significant relationships between the lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) ...and survival in various cancers. The purpose of this study was to confirm whether the LMR, NLR, and PLR have prognostic values, independent of clinicopathological criteria, in patients undergoing curative resection for esophageal cancer. Methods The LMR, NLR and PLR were calculated in 147 consecutive patients who underwent curative esophagectomy between January 2006 and December 2014. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis was conducted to identify the optimal cutoff values of each biomarkers. Results In multivariate analysis for cancer-specific survival (CSS), pTNM stage (p<0.0001) and low LMR (p=0.0081) were selected as independent prognostic factor. Similarly, pTNM stage(p<0.0001) and low LMR (p=0.0225) were found to be independent prognostic factor for overall survival (OS). There was no significant relationship between LMR, NLR and PLR and survival in patients with stage I or II, however, significant relationships between LMR and CSS or OS were observed in patients with stage III esophageal cancer. Conclusions LMR can be used as a novel predictor of postoperative CSS and OS in patients with esophageal cancer and that it may be useful in identifying patients with a poor prognosis even after radical esophagectomy.
Summary
Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute illness of early childhood characterized by prolonged fever, diffuse mucosal inflammation, indurative oedema of the hands and feet, a polymorphous skin rash ...and nonsuppurative lymphadenopathy. The histopathological findings in KD comprise panvasculitis with endothelial necrosis, and the infiltration of mononuclear cells into small and medium‐sized blood vessels. The levels of many proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines and adhesion molecules can be elevated in sera from children with KD at the acute stage. Although many immunological studies on KD involving peripheral blood have been reported, the data obtained remain controversial. This review focuses on the immune response of peripheral blood lymphocytes and monocytes/macrophages during acute KD.
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