Bimetallic catalysts can undergo segregation or redistribution of the metals driven by oxidizing and reducing environments. Bragg coherent diffraction imaging (BCDI) was used to relate displacement ...fields to compositional distributions in crystalline Pt-Rh alloy nanoparticles. 3D images of internal composition showed that the radial distribution of compositions reverses partially between the surface shell and the core when gas flow changes between O2 and H2. Our observation suggests that the elemental segregation of nanoparticle catalysts should be highly active during heterogeneous catalysis and can be a controlling factor in synthesis of electrocatalysts. In addition, our study exemplifies applications of BCDI for in situ 3D imaging of internal equilibrium compositions in other bimetallic alloy nanoparticles.
Insulin resistance is a cornerstone of obesity-related complications such as type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. A high rate of lipolysis is known to be ...associated with insulin resistance, and inhibiting adipose tissue lipolysis improves obesity-related insulin resistance. Here, we demonstrate that inhibition of serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine 5-HT) signaling through serotonin receptor 2B (HTR2B) in adipose tissues ameliorates insulin resistance by reducing lipolysis in visceral adipocytes. Chronic high-fat diet (HFD) feeding increased Htr2b expression in epididymal white adipose tissue, resulting in increased HTR2B signaling in visceral white adipose tissue. Moreover, HTR2B expression in white adipose tissue was increased in obese humans and positively correlated with metabolic parameters. We further found that adipocyte-specific Htr2b-knockout mice are resistant to HFD-induced insulin resistance, visceral adipose tissue inflammation, and hepatic steatosis. Enhanced 5-HT signaling through HTR2B directly activated lipolysis through phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase in visceral adipocytes. Moreover, treatment with a selective HTR2B antagonist attenuated HFD-induced insulin resistance, visceral adipose tissue inflammation, and hepatic steatosis. Thus, adipose HTR2B signaling could be a potential therapeutic target for treatment of obesity-related insulin resistance.
Lumbar herniated intervertebral disc (HIVD) is a common chronic disease, and in Korea many patients use Korean medicine (KM) for treatment. However, KM clinical practice guideline (CPG) for HIVD ...remain poor. Therefore, this aim is to describe the KM approach for managing HIVD in Korea from an evidence-based medicine (EBM) perspective.
A systematic review was undertaken of literature focusing on key areas of KM practice aimed at managing HIVD. The evidence obtained was based on the study design and the risk of bias. Recommendations were formulated, taking the quality, quantity, and level of the evidence into consideration, as well as the likely clinical impact and the applicability of the evidence to KM practice in Korea. Preliminary CPGs were then recommended for the application of KM for the management of HIVD. After several rounds of expert consensus meetings, the final guideline was endorsed by relevant professional committees.
The final recommendation was made based on a draft of the recommendations of the working group during the consensus process. A total of 15 recommendation statements were made regarding KM treatments for HIVD, which included acupuncture (n=3), pharmacopuncture (n=3), herbal medicine (n=3), chuna (n=2), moxibustion (n=2), and cupping therapy (n=2).
Following on from the above development, we sought to carry out a high-quality follow-up KM clinical study with the objective of improving HIVD patients understanding of medical treatments for the condition. Also, future research in this area will formally examine the success of the guideline’s implementation.
Self-quantification services are applications of Internet of things (IoT) that quantitatively record almost all aspects of human life and surrounding environment in order to understand his or her ...various status by analyzing the relationship of collected data. The authors introduce the overview and the challenges of self-quantification services. The high-level requirements are then defined and categorized into three. The relationship among high-level requirements and corresponding challenges is described afterwards. We conclude the paper by emphasizing the need of proper standards to ensure interoperability of self-quantification services and applications over Internet of things.
The development of wireless technologies allowed users to access nearby devices whenever and wherever they want. The Internet of Things (IoT) allows home electronics to be connected to each other, ...and its impact is expanding to a new domain called the wearable devices. Meanwhile, it is still not common for a wearable device to interact with any nearby devices since they are operated in different platforms especially when devices are manufactured by different vendors. It would be more problematic as the number of wearable devices and vendors are expected to grow dramatically in the near future. Thus, to leverage interoperability, a global standard for wearable devices is highly recommended. Under these circumstances, Standards Developing Organizations (SDO) such as ITU-T, ISO/IEC JTC 1, W3C, and OIC have recently initiated works in relation to wearable devices. The authors have analyzed the relevant standardization and provided strategic action points to foster global standardization on the Internet of wearable things.
We determined the relationship between the progression of immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) and the A1818T polymorphism in intron 2 of Angiotensin II type 2 receptor (AT2R) gene, which might play ...protective roles in the pathogenesis of IgAN. Patients with biopsy-proven IgAN were recruited from the registry of the Progressive REnal disease and Medical Informatics and gEnomics Research (PREMIER) which was sponsored by the Korean Society of Nephrology. A1818T polymorphism of AT2R gene was analyzed with PCR-RFLP method and the association with the progression of IgAN, which was defined as over 50% increase in baseline serum creatinine level, was analyzed with survival analysis. Among the 480 patients followed for more than 10 months, the group without T allele had significantly higher rates of progression of IgAN than the group with T allele (11.4% vs. 3.9%, p=0.024), although there were no significant differences in the baseline variables such as initial serum creatinine level, the degree of proteinuria, and blood pressure. In the Cox's proportional hazard model, the hazard ratio of disease progression in the patients with T allele was 0.221 (95% confidence interval for Exp(B): 0.052-0.940, p=0.041) compared to that of without T allele. In conclusion, A1818T polymorphism of AT2R gene was associated with the progression of IgAN.
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