Hydrophobic sponge structure‐based triboelectric nanogenerators using an inverse opal structured film for sustainable energy harvesting over a wide range of humid atmosphere have been successfully ...demonstrated. The output voltage and current density reach a record value of 130 V and 0.10 mA cm−2, respectively, giving over 10‐fold power enhancement, compared with the flat film‐based triboelectric nanogenerator.
Laser‐assisted field evaporation is studied in a large number of compounds, including amorphous and crystalline phase change materials employing atom probe tomography. This study reveals significant ...differences in field evaporation between amorphous and crystalline phase change materials. High probabilities for multiple events with more than a single ion detected per laser pulse are only found for crystalline phase change materials. The specifics of this unusual field evaporation are unlike any other mechanism shown previously to lead to high probabilities of multiple events. On the contrary, amorphous phase change materials as well as other covalently bonded compounds and metals possess much lower probabilities for multiple events. Hence, laser‐assisted field evaporation in amorphous and crystalline phase change materials reveals striking differences in bond rupture. This is indicative for pronounced differences in bonding. These findings imply that the bonding mechanism in crystalline phase change materials differs substantially from conventional bonding mechanisms such as metallic, ionic, and covalent bonding. Instead, the data reported here confirm a recently developed conjecture, namely that metavalent bonding is a novel bonding mechanism besides those mentioned previously.
Bond breaking is characterized by laser‐assisted field evaporation in atom probe tomography. This reveals different bond breaking mechanisms, where large numbers of fragments are only observed for crystalline phase change materials (PCMs). This finding is related to the recently conjectured mechanism of metavalent bonding. Instead, amorphous PCMs, other covalently bonded compounds, and metals form much fewer fragments.
Considering the potential applications of all‐polymer solar cells (all‐PSCs) as wearable power generators, there is an urgent need to develop photoactive layers that possess intrinsic mechanical ...endurance, while maintaining a high power‐conversion efficiency (PCE).Herein a strategy is demonstrated to simultaneously control the intercalation behavior and nanocrystallite size in the polymer–polymer blend by using a newly developed, high‐viscosity polymeric additive, poly(dimethylsiloxane‐co‐methyl phenethylsiloxane) (PDPS), into the TQ‐F:N2200 all‐PSC matrix. A mechanically robust 10wt% PDPS blend film with a great toughness was obtained. Our results provide a feasible route for producing high‐performance ductile all‐PSCs, which can potentially be used to realize stretchable all‐PSCs as a linchpin of next‐generation electronics.
A mechanically robust photoactive layer, namely 10PDPS is achieved, enabling not only a high PCE of 6.87 % in conventional all‐PSCs but also a reliable PCE of 5.60 % in graphene electrode‐based flexible devices, for which 90 % of its PCE is retained after 100 bending cycles at a bending radius of 3 mm.
The FDA-approved small-molecule drug dasatinib is currently used as a treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). However, the effects of dasatinib on microglial and/or astrocytic neuroinflammatory ...responses and its mechanism of action have not been studied in detail.
BV2 microglial cells, primary astrocytes, or primary microglial cells were treated with dasatinib (100 or 250 nM) or vehicle (1% DMSO) for 30 min or 2 h followed by lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 200 ng/ml or 1 μg/ml) or PBS for 5.5 h. RT-PCR, real-time PCR; immunocytochemistry; subcellular fractionation; and immunohistochemistry were subsequently conducted to determine the effects of dasatinib on LPS-induced neuroinflammation. In addition, wild-type mice were injected with dasatinib (20 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.) daily for 4 days or 20 mg/kg, orally administered (p.o.) daily for 4 days or 2 weeks) or vehicle (4% DMSO + 30% polyethylene glycol (PEG) + 5% Tween 80), followed by injection with LPS (10 mg/kg, i.p.) or PBS. Then, immunohistochemistry was performed, and plasma IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α levels were analyzed by ELISA.
Dasatinib regulates LPS-induced proinflammatory cytokine and anti-inflammatory cytokine levels in BV2 microglial cells, primary microglial cells, and primary astrocytes. In BV2 microglial cells, dasatinib regulates LPS-induced proinflammatory cytokine levels by regulating TLR4/AKT and/or TLR4/ERK signaling. In addition, intraperitoneal injection and oral administration of dasatinib suppress LPS-induced microglial/astrocyte activation, proinflammatory cytokine levels (including brain and plasma levels), and neutrophil rolling in the brains of wild-type mice.
Our results suggest that dasatinib modulates LPS-induced microglial and astrocytic activation, proinflammatory cytokine levels, and neutrophil rolling in the brain.
Label-free biosensing methods that rely on the use of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) have attracted great attention as a result of their simplicity, high sensitivity, and relatively low ...cost. However, in-situ analysis of real samples using these techniques has remained challenging because colloidal nanoparticles (NPs) can be unstable at certain levels of pH and salt concentration. Even in the case of a chip-type LSPR sensor that can resolve the instability problem by employing NPs immobilized on the substrate, loading of a sample to sensor chip with exact volume control can be difficult for unskilled users. Herein, we report an optical-fiber-based LSPR aptasensor that can avoid these problems and serve as a portable and simple system for sensitive detection of a small mycotoxin, ochratoxin A (OTA), in real samples. The optical fiber coated with aptamer-modified gold nanorods (GNRs) is simply dipped into a solution containing OTA and subjected to LSPR analysis. Quantitative analysis of OTA is performed by measuring the spectral red shift of the LSPR peak of GNRs. Under optimized conditions, the LSPR peak shift displays a linear response (R2 = 0.9887) to OTA in the concentration range from 10pM to 100nM, with a limit of detection of 12.0pM (3S). The developed sensor shows a high selectivity for OTA over other mycotoxins such as zearalenone (ZEN) and ochratoxin B (OTB), and shows an accurate detection capability for OTA in real grape juice samples.
•Simple and in situ measurement of OTA was possible by dipping a sensing probe into solution samples.•Wide dynamic range from 10pM to 100nM was achieved.•Limit of detection (LOD) for OTA was reached to 12.0pM (3S).•OTA in grape juice could be successfully analyzed with good recoveries.
Aims
To determine the potential association between the use of either glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptor agonists (GLP‐1RAs) or dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 (DPP‐4) inhibitors, and the risk of thyroid cancer ...in individuals with type 2 diabetes.
Materials and Methods
This population‐based cohort study used claims data from the Korean National Health Insurance Database, 2014‐2020. Two distinct cohorts were established to compare each incretin‐based drug with sodium‐glucose cotransporter‐2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, chosen as active comparators because of their previous non‐association with thyroid cancer, and their common usage as add‐on therapy to metformin along with GLP‐1RAs and DPP‐4 inhibitors. The first cohort included 21 722 new users of GLP‐1RAs and 326 993 new users of SGLT2 inhibitors, whereas the second cohort included 904 300 DPP‐4 inhibitor new users and 112 017 SGLT2 inhibitor new users. The outcome was the time to incident thyroid cancer. Weighted Cox proportional models were used to estimate hazard ratios of thyroid cancer incidence associated with incretin‐based drugs of interest.
Results
The use of GLP‐1RAs was not associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer (weighted hazard ratio 0.98, 95% confidence interval 0.62‐1.53) compared with that of SGLT2 inhibitors. Using DPP‐4 inhibitors was also not associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer (0.95, 0.79‐1.14) compared with that of SGLT2 inhibitors. No significant effect modifications were observed across subgroup analyses. Sensitivity analyses, including alternative outcome definition analysis of medullary thyroid cancer, were consistent with the primary analysis results.
Conclusions
GLP‐1RAs and DPP‐4 inhibitors were not associated with an increased risk of thyroid cancer in individuals with type 2 diabetes.
Some western countries recently have shown a slowdown in the incidence of allergic diseases after worldwide increasing trends, but there are few data from Asian populations concerning changing trend ...of allergic diseases. We evaluated the recent trends in the prevalence of asthma and other allergic diseases in Korea.
From the database of Korean National Health Insurance, a nationwide diagnostic data from 2009 to 2014 were extracted and the national prevalence was analyzed.
The prevalence per 1000 people of atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma in 2014 was 19.0, 133.1, and 36.3, respectively. The prevalence of three diseases was highest in the age group under 10 as, 95.0, 384.1, and 132.1 per 1000 people, while the prevalence in the over-10-year-group was only 11.6, 109.5, and 27.3, respectively. The prevalence of atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis gradually decreased with older age, but the prevalence of asthma showed a re-increasing pattern from the age group 30–39 and reached another peak for the age group 70–79. During the study period, the prevalence of asthma and atopic dermatitis showed decreasing tendency. In contrast, the prevalence of allergic rhinitis steadily increased until 2013, especially in the age group under 10.
The national prevalence of atopic dermatitis, and asthma did not show noticeable increase any more in Korea. However, the prevalence of allergic rhinitis still on the rise until recently, especially in the age group under 10. This is the first report in Asia suggesting a slowdown of the incidence of allergic diseases.
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Cough is an essential defence mechanism 1. However, chronic cough is a significant cause of morbidity, seriously impairing quality of life 2. Previously, chronic cough was considered a consequence of ...various diseases, such as asthma/eosinophilic bronchitis, rhinitis and gastro-oesophageal acid reflux disease 3, 4. Recent evidence, however, suggests that chronic cough is a clinical syndrome with distinct intrinsic pathophysiology characterised by neuronal hypersensitivity 5-7. Here, we estimated the worldwide epidemiological burden of chronic cough irrespective of putative diagnosis in general adult populations using a comprehensive systematic literature review.
Preterm birth (PTB) refers to delivery before 37 weeks of gestation. Premature neonates exhibit higher neonatal morbidity and mortality rates than term neonates; therefore, predicting and preventing ...PTB are important. In this study, we investigated the potential of using short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels, specific vaginal microbiota-derived metabolites, as a biomarker in predicting PTB using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Cervicovaginal fluid (CVF) was collected from 89 pregnant women (29 cases of PTB vs. 60 controls) without evidence of other clinical infections, and SCFA levels were measured. Furthermore, the PTB group was divided into two subgroups based on birth timing after CVF sampling: delivery ≤ 2 days after sampling (
= 10) and ≥2 days after sampling (
= 19). The concentrations of propionic acid, isobutyric acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, hexanoic acid, and heptanoic acid were significantly higher in the PTB group than in the term birth (TB) group (
< 0.05). In particular, the concentrations of propionic acid, isobutyric acid, hexanoic acid, and heptanoic acid were continuously higher in the PTB group than in the TB group (
< 0.05). In the delivery ≤ 2 days after sampling group, the propionic acid, isobutyric acid, hexanoic acid, and heptanoic acid levels were significantly higher than those in the other groups (
< 0.05). This study demonstrated a significant association between specific SCFAs and PTB. We propose these SCFAs as potential biomarkers for the prediction of PTB.
Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) are life-threatening diseases; however, it is hard to estimate their incidence due to the rarity of these diseases. We evaluated ...the incidence of SJS and TEN using a nationwide administrative database.
We used a national medical insurance review system (Health Insurance Review and Assessment) database which contained the claim data of the entire nation from 2009 to 2013 to estimate the accurate incidence of SJS and TEN in Korea. The diagnostic codes of L511 (SJS) or L512 (TEN) from the International Classification of Diseases-10th revision were used to define the target study population. We also retrospectively followed up a 2011 SJS and TEN cohort for 24 months in order to assess the in-hospital mortality, related complications and total claims cost due to SJS and TEN.
A total of 1,167 (938 SJS and 229 TEN) cases were newly diagnosed from 2010 to 2013. The age- and sex-standardized annual incidences estimated in this study were 3.96 to 5.03 in SJS and 0.94 to 1.45 in TEN per million. There was no significant change in annual incidence throughout the study periods. When analyzed by 10-year age groups, the annual incidence was the lowest in group 20-29 years and the highest in group 70 for both SJS and TEN. Based on the 2011 cohort analysis, the in-hospital mortality were 5.7 and 15.1% for SJS and TEN, respectively. The mortality increased with age, particularly, after 40 years of age. Among the complications related with SJS or TEN, ocular sequelae was the most common (43.1 and 43.4% of SJS and TEN patients, respectively) followed by urethral sequelae (5.7 and 9.4% of SJS and TEN patients, respectively).
Overall, our data suggest that SJS, and TEN are infrequent but constantly arise throughout the years.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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