We have fabricated organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) using pentacene as an active layer with chemically modified SiO
2 gate dielectrics. The effects of the surface treatment of SiO
2 on the ...electric characteristics of OTFTs were investigated. The SiO
2 gate dielectric surfaces were treated by normal wet-cleaning process, O
2-plasma treatment, hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS), and octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) treatment. After the surface treatments, the contact angle and surface free energy were measured in order to analyze the surface state changes.
From the electrical measurements, typical
I–
V characteristics of TFTs were observed. The field effect mobility,
μ, was calculated to be 0.29
cm
2
V
−1
s
−1 for OTS-treated sample, while those of the HMDS, O
2-plasma treated, and wet-cleaned samples to be 0.16, 0.1, and 0.04
cm
2
V
−1
s
−1, respectively.
Legumes are simultaneously one of the largest families of crop plants and a cornerstone in the biological nitrogen cycle. We combined molecular and phylogenetic analyses to evaluate genome ...conservation both within and between the two major clades of crop legumes. Genetic mapping of orthologous genes identifies broad conservation of genome macrostructure, especially within the galegoid legumes, while also highlighting inferred chromosomal rearrangements that may underlie the variation in chromosome number between these species. As a complement to comparative genetic mapping, we compared sequenced regions of the model legume Medicago truncatula with those of the diploid Lotus japonicus and the polyploid Glycine max. High conservation was observed between the genomes of M. truncatula and L. japonicus, whereas lower levels of conservation were evident between M. truncatula and G. max. In all cases, conserved genome microstructure was punctuated by significant structural divergence, including frequent insertion/deletion of individual genes or groups of genes and lineage-specific expansion/contraction of gene families. These results suggest that comparative mapping may have considerable utility for basic and applied research in the legumes, although its predictive value is likely to be tempered by phylogenetic distance and genome duplication.
It is known that patients with diabetes are susceptible to cancer development due to long-standing diabetic conditions. This study aimed to investigate new-onset cancer risk associated with ...dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors as compared to metformin, the first-line antidiabetic agent with promising anticancer activity, in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
A retrospective cohort study of adult T2DM patients was performed at a tertiary care hospital in Korea. Patients who received comparison therapies during 2008-2017 were propensity score (PS)-matched in a 1:1 ratio either to the DPP-4 inhibitors group or to the metformin group in accordance with their primary antidiabetic therapy.
A total of 1538 patients (769 in each group) were found eligible for study entry. Although the rate of newly diagnosed malignancy, irrespective of specific sites or types, was numerically less frequent in the DPP-4 inhibitors group, the difference in overall cancer risk between groups was not statistically significant (HR=1.00, 95% CI=0.56-1.80,
=0.998). The PS-matched patients were further stratified by relevant patient factors and diabetes severity. No signal of increased risk of malignant complications among DPP-4 inhibitor-receiving diabetic patients was detected in any of the individual strata, nor in the subgroup patients where insulin-exposed patients were excluded from study analyses in consideration of its carcinogenic properties. Patient death or incident pancreatitis events were seldom encountered in both treatment groups; hence such risks were assessed as negligible with the use of either antidiabetic therapy.
This PS-matched cohort study demonstrated no elevated risk of malignant complications with DPP-4 inhibitor treatment relative to metformin treatment among T2DM patients, irrespective of patient sex, age, comorbid conditions, and diabetes severity status. Similar results were confirmed in the subgroup analyses where a potential confounding effect due to the between-group disparity in insulin co-therapy was eliminated by excluding insulin-exposed patients from risk assessments.
Because of its rapid onset time, recent years have seen an increase in the use of ultrasound (US)-guided popliteal sciatic nerve block (PSNB) via subparaneural injection for induction of surgical ...anesthesia. Moreover, in below-knee surgery, combined blocks, as opposed to sciatic nerve block alone, have become more common. These combined blocks often require a large volume of local anesthetic (LA), thus increasing the risk of local-anesthetic systemic toxicity (LAST). Thus, to decrease the risk of LAST, it is important to know the minimum effective volume (MEV) required for an adequate block. We, therefore, aimed to determine the MEV of ropivacaine 0.75% for induction of surgical anesthesia by the method of US-guided popliteal sciatic nerve block via subparaneural injection.Thirty patients underwent a US-guided PSNB with ropivacaine 0.75% at a 20-mL starting volume. Using a step-up/step-down method, we determined injection volumes for consecutive patients from the preceding patient's outcome. When an effective block was achieved within 40 minutes after injection, the next patient's volume was decreased by 2 mL. If the block failed, the next patient's volume was increased by 2 mL. The sensory and motor blockade was graded according to a 4-point scale. The block was considered a success if a combination of anesthesia and paresis (a score of 3 for both the sensory and motor nerves) was achieved within 40 minutes. The primary outcome measure was the MEV resulting in a successful subparaneural block of the sciatic nerve in 50% of patients (MEV50). Additionally, the data were processed with a probit regression analysis to determine the volume required to produce a complete sciatic nerve block in 90% of subjects (ED90).The MEV50 of 0.75% ropivacaine is 6.14 mL (95% confidence interval, 4.33-7.94 mL). The ED90 by probit analysis for a subparaneural injection was 8.9 mL (95% CI, 7.09-21.75 mL).The 6.14-mL MEV50 of ropivacaine 0.75% represents a 71% reduction in volume compared with neurostimulation techniques and a 14.7% reduction in volume compared with US-guided PSNB using the alternative perineural injection technique.
Abstract Colistimethate sodium (CMS) was recently re-introduced into clinical practice as a last resort for the treatment of nosocomial infections caused by multiresistant bacteria. This ...retrospective cohort study was designed to identify predictors of acute kidney injury (AKI) associated with intravenous (i.v.) CMS treatment. From March 2007 to July 2008, 71 adult patients receiving CMS for ≥72 h were enrolled. AKI was defined using Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss and End-stage kidney disease (RIFLE) criteria according to serum creatinine. The median total dose of CMS was 54.3 mg/kg (range 27.5–94.5 mg/kg). AKI developed in 38 patients (53.5%). Cox regression analysis based of cumulative CMS dose (mg/kg) identified four independent predictors of AKI: male sex hazard ratio (HR) = 3.55, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.47–8.55; concomitant use of a calcineurin inhibitor (HR = 6.74, 95% CI 2.49–18.24); hypoalbuminaemia (serum albumin level <2.0 g/dL) (HR = 6.29, 95% CI 2.04–19.39); and hyperbilirubinaemia (total bilirubin level >5 mg/dL) (HR = 3.53, 95% CI 1.17–10.71). In conclusion, AKI was a common complication of i.v. CMS treatment. Male sex, concomitant use of calcineurin inhibitors, hypoalbuminaemia and hyperbilirubinaemia were independent predictors of AKI. The effect of AKI on patient outcomes was not determined.
It has been suggested that reward system dysfunction may account for emotion and pain suffering in migraine. However, there is a lack of evidence whether the altered reward system connectivity is ...directly associated with clinical manifestations, including negative affect and ictal pain severity and, at the molecular level, the dopamine (DA) D2/D3 receptors (D2/3Rs) signaling implicated in encoding motivational and emotional cues.
We acquired resting-state functional MRI from interictal episodic migraine (EM) patients and age-matched healthy controls, as well as positron emission tomography (PET) with
Craclopride, a selective radiotracer for DA D2/3Rs, from a subset of these participants. The nucleus accumbens (NAc) was seeded to measure functional connectivity (FC) and DA D2/3Rs availability based on its essential involvement in pain-related aversive/reward functions. Associations of the brain measures with positive/negative affect and ictal pain severity were also assessed.
Compared with controls, the EM group showed weaker right NAc connectivity with areas implicated in pain and emotional regulation, such as the amygdala, rostral anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus, and thalamus; but showed stronger left NAc connectivity with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and lingual gyrus. Moreover, among the altered NAc connectivities, only right NAc-amygdala connectivity was inversely correlated with DA D2/3Rs availability in migraine patients (diagnostic group-by-D2/3Rs interaction p < 0.007). At a clinical level, such weaker NAc-amygdala connectivity was associated with lower interictal positive affect and greater ictal pain severity over the head and facial extension area (pain area and intensity number summation, PAINS).
Together, our findings suggest that altered reward system connectivity, specifically between the NAc and amygdala, might be affected by endogenous DA D2/3Rs signaling, and such process might be a neural mechanism that underlies emotional and pain suffering in episodic migraineurs.
This study assessed the contextual and individual effects of social trust on health. Methods consisted of a multilevel regression analysis of self-rated poor health among 21,456 individuals nested ...within 40 US communities included in the 2000 Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey. Controlling for demographic covariates, a strong income and education gradient was observed for self-rated health. Higher levels of community social trust were associated with a lower probability of reporting poor health. Individual demographic and socioeconomic predictors did not explain the association of community social trust with self-rated health. Controlling for individual trust perception, however, rendered the main effect of community social trust statistically insignificant, but a complex interaction effect was observed, such that the health-promoting effect of community social trust was significantly greater for high-trust individuals. For low-trust individuals, the effect of community social trust on self-rated health was the opposite. Using the latest data available on community social trust, we conclude that the role of community social trust in explaining average population health achievements and health inequalities is complex and is contingent on individual perceptions of social trust. Future multilevel investigations of social capital and population health should routinely consider the cross-level nature of community or neighborhood effects.
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