To investigate the effect of tinnitus and/or hyperacusis on distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) measures in adults with normal hearing thresholds from 0.25 to 8 kHz, while accounting for ...extended high-frequency (EHF) thresholds.
A behavioural study consisted of comprehensive audiological assessment, validated tinnitus and hyperacusis questionnaires, DPOAE amplitudes and input/output (I/O) functions.
Data of 56 participants with normal hearing were included for the analysis. Participants were categorised into four groups: (1) without tinnitus or hyperacusis, (2) with tinnitus only, (3) with hyperacusis only, and (4) with both tinnitus and hyperacusis.
The groups with tinnitus showed elevated EHF thresholds compared with those without tinnitus. DPOAE amplitudes were not significantly affected by tinnitus and/or hyperacusis status; however, they were significantly affected by EHF thresholds. Further, no appreciable differences in DPOAE I/O functions were found across groups.
The reported non-significant differences in DPOAEs in individuals with tinnitus and/or hyperacusis do not support a peripheral mechanism or an interaction between peripheral and central mechanisms underlying tinnitus or hyperacusis. Our findings, however, suggest the need to assess basal cochlear function (e.g. EHF thresholds) for a better understanding of differences in DPOAE measures in tinnitus and/or hyperacusis.
A series of compounds derived from a previously identified substrate analogue of copper amine oxidases (CuAOs) (Shepard et al. (2002) Eur. J. Biochem. 269, 3645−3658) has been screened against six ...different CuAOs with a view to designing potent and selective inhibitors. The substrate analogues investigated were 4-(1-naphthyloxy)-2-butyn-1-amine, 4-(2-methylphenoxy)-2-butyn-1-amine, 4-(3-methylphenoxy)-2-butyn-1-amine, 4-(4-methylphenoxy)-2-butyn-1-amine, and 4-phenoxy-2-butyn-1-amine. These compounds were screened against equine plasma amine oxidase (EPAO), Pisum sativum amine oxidase (PSAO), Pichia pastoris lysyl oxidase (PPLO), bovine plasma amine oxidase (BPAO), human kidney diamine oxidase (KDAO), and Arthrobacter globiformis amine oxidase (AGAO) to examine the effect of different substituent groups on potency. Despite the similar structures of the 4-aryloxy analogues evaluated, striking differences in potency were observed. In addition, crystal structures of AGAO derivitized with 4-(2-naphthyloxy)-2-butyn-1-amine and 4-(4-methylphenoxy)-2-butyn-1-amine were obtained at a resolution of 1.7 Å. The structures reveal a novel and unprecedented reaction mechanism involving covalent attachment of the α,β-unsaturated aldehyde turnover product to the amino group of the reduced 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ) cofactor. Collectively, the structural and inhibition results support the feasibility of designing selective mechanism-based inhibitors of copper amine oxidases.
We have investigated structural and electrical properties of PbZr
0.3
Ti
0.7
O
3
(PZT) thin films deposited by pulsed laser deposition methods. PZT thin films have been deposited on LaMnO
3
(LMO) ...bottom electrodes with LaAlO
3
substrates during different deposition times. High-resolution x-ray diffraction data have shown that all the PZT films and bottom electrodes are highly oriented with their c-axes normal to the substrates. The thickness of each film is determined by field-emission scanning electron microscope. We have also observed root mean square roughness of 1 to 10 Å by using atomic force microscopy mode, and local polarization distribution and retention behavior of a ferroelectric domains by using piezoelectric force microscopy mode. A PZT/LMO structure has shown good ferroelectric and retention properties as a media for the nano-storage devices.
This national survey was undertaken to propose the classification of extranodal natural killer (NK)/T-cell lymphoma (NTCL) subtypes and to clarify a clinical heterogeneity.
Two hundred and eighty ...patients newly diagnosed as NTCL were enrolled from 22 Korean medical centers. Two subsets were compared: one involving the upper aerodigestive tract (UAT) and another involving the non-upper aerodigestive tract (NUAT) region, which comprises the skin, gastrointestinal tract, and liver or soft tissues. Clinical prognostic factors, survival outcomes, and independent predictors for survival were compared between each subset.
NUAT-NTCL (59 patients) had significantly higher proportions of disseminated disease, aggressive biologic features, and unfavorable host reactions compared with UAT-NTCL (221 patients). NUAT-NTCL had shortened 5-year overall survival (OS) (22% versus 41%, P = 0.001). Ann Arbor staging, the International Prognostic Index, and the NTCL prognostic index failed to predict the OS of NUAT-NTCL, but did predict the OS in UAT-NTCL. Independent predictors for OS by multivariate analyses differed between each subset. In the NUAT subset, extranodal sites and regional nodes predicted the OS, while Ann Arbor staging, age, performance status, and lactate dehydrogenase level predicted the OS in the UAT subset.
NUAT-NTCL may represent a distinctive disease entity in terms of clinical factors, independent predictors, and survival outcomes.
JSNS
2
(J-PARC Sterile Neutrino Search at J-PARC Spallation Neutron Source) is an experiment that is searching for sterile neutrinos via the observation of
ν
¯
μ
→
ν
¯
e
appearance oscillations ...using muon decay-at-rest neutrinos. Before dedicated data taking in the first-half of 2021, we performed a commissioning run for 10 days in June 2020. Using the data obtained in this commissioning run, in this paper, we present an estimate of the correlated background which imitates the
ν
¯
e
signal in a sterile neutrino search. In addition, in order to demonstrate future prospects of the JSNS
2
experiment, possible pulse shape discrimination improvements towards reducing cosmic ray induced fast neutron background are described.
The therapeutic goal in liver fibrosis is the reversal of fibrosis and the selective clearance of activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) by inducing apoptosis. Over the past several years, we have ...screened for natural products that mediate apoptosis in activated HSCs. Among the candidate compounds, honokiol, isolated from Magnoliae cortex, was found to induce apoptotic death in activated rat HSCs, while there was no cell viability change in hepatocytes, at concentrations of 12.5-50 microM. Apoptosis was identified by DNA fragmentation, activation of caspase-3 and -9, and the proteolytic cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, down-regulation of bcl-2 and the release of mitochondrial cytochrome c into the cytoplasm.
We report the discovery of a multiple system with a quadruple-lined spectrum and a double eclipsing feature. Our photometric and high-resolution spectroscopic data show that V994 Herculis (V994 Her; ...ADS 11373 AB) is composed of two pairs of double-lined eclipsing binaries, which we designate as A and B. System A consists of a B8V+A0V binary with an orbital period of 2.083 264 d and system B of a A2V+A4V binary with 1.420 033 d. Our light curves show that both of them have a detached binary configuration. We derive masses and radii of four components (Aa, Ab, Ba and Bb) from the synthetic analyses of light curves and radial velocity curves. The masses of systems A and B are MAa= 2.83 ± 0.20 M⊙, MAb= 2.30 ± 0.16 M⊙, MBa= 1.87 ± 0.12 M⊙ and MBb= 1.86 ± 0.12 M⊙, with radii RAa= 2.15 ± 0.05 R⊙, RAb= 1.71 ± 0.04 R⊙, RBa= 1.59 ± 0.08 R⊙ and RBb= 1.50 ± 0.08 R⊙, respectively. These masses and radii are well consistent with the empirical relation for double-lined eclipsing binaries.
This study investigated the clinical characteristics of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and compared the DKA characteristics between patients treated with and without SGLT2 inhibitors.
Data were ...collected from patients aged ≥ 18 years admitted for DKA at nine centres in Korea between September 2014 and April 2017. The electronic medical records of these subjects were retrospectively reviewed. Based on their history of medications taken before admission, subjects were classified as either users or non-users of SGLT2 inhibitors and their clinical characteristics of DKA were compared.
During the study, the main subtype of DKA episodes (n = 523) was identified as type 2 diabetes (51%). Average hospitalization duration was 11 days, and average intensive care unit (ICU) time was 2.5 days. The in-hospital mortality rate was 3%, but no users of SGLT2 inhibitors died during DKA treatment. In patients taking SGLT2 inhibitors (n = 15), DKA manifested at 124 days, on average, after starting the inhibitors (range: 7–380 days). Also, SGLT2 inhibitors users had significantly lower plasma glucose levels (413 mg/dL) compared with non-users (554 mg/dL), and longer ICU stays (4 vs. 2 days; P = 0.019).
In this report of recent data on the clinical features of DKA in Korea, patients using SGLT2 inhibitors needed longer treatment in ICUs compared with non-users and had lower levels of blood glucose, whereas DKA associated with SGLT2 inhibitors was rare.
Peritoneal dialysis (PD) patient survival is influenced by many factors and there is no consensus on the relative importance of these predictors, independently or combined. This study was designed to ...evaluate how these independent factors, alone or in various combinations, may influence PD patient survival.
A peritoneal equilibration test, subjective global assessment (SGA), and comorbid diseases (CMD) were assessed.
On multivariate analysis, age (>60 years), CMD, malnutrition, and low RRF (<or=2 ml/min) were independent predictors of mortality. Three-year patient survival was 100, 95, 75, 49, and 0%, and the risk ratio for mortality was 1.0, 6.6, 21.9, and 85.9 in patients with none, one, two, three, and four of these risk factors, respectively.
The combination of independent predictors of mortality in PD patients leads to a markedly increasing risk for mortality. Evaluation of a single risk factor underestimates the true impact of risk factors.
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