A comprehensive catalog of 623 galactic eclipsing binary (EB) systems with eccentric orbits is presented with more than 2830 times of minima determined from the archived photometric data by various ...sky-survey projects and new photometric measurements. The systems are divided into two groups according to whether the individual system has a GCVS name or not. All the systems in both groups are further classified into three categories (D, A, and A+III) on the basis of their eclipse timing diagrams: 453 D systems showing just constantly displaced secondary minima, 139 A systems displaying only apsidal motion (AM), and 31 A+III systems exhibiting both AM and light-time effects. AM parameters for 170 systems (A and A+III systems) are consistently calculated and cataloged with basic information for all systems. Some important statistics for the AM parameters are discussed and compared with those derived for the eccentric EB systems in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.
In HIV-1-infected individuals on currently recommended antiretroviral therapy (ART), viremia is reduced to <50 copies of HIV-1 RNA per milliliter, but low-level residual viremia appears to persist ...over the lifetimes of most infected individuals. There is controversy over whether the residual viremia results from ongoing cycles of viral replication. To address this question, we conducted 2 prospective studies to assess the effect of ART intensification with an additional potent drug on residual viremia in 9 HIV-1-infected individuals on successful ART. By using an HIV-1 RNA assay with single-copy sensitivity, we found that levels of viremia were not reduced by ART intensification with any of 3 different antiretroviral drugs (efavirenz, lopinavir/ritonavir, or atazanavir/ritonavir). The lack of response was not associated with the presence of drug-resistant virus or suboptimal drug concentrations. Our results suggest that residual viremia is not the product of ongoing, complete cycles of viral replication, but rather of virus output from stable reservoirs of infection.
Summary
Sarcopenia is the age-related reduction of skeletal muscle mass in older individuals. Respiratory muscle strength may be related to skeletal muscle mass and, thus, the present study attempted ...to estimate the risk of sarcopenia relative to decreased pulmonary function. The present findings demonstrated that low pulmonary function was associated with low muscle mass in community-dwelling older adults.
Introduction
Lean body mass is related to pulmonary function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, the relationship between muscle mass and pulmonary function in healthy older adults has yet to be clarified. Thus, the present study investigated the association of pulmonary function with muscle mass in an older community-dwelling Korean population.
Methods
This study included 463 disease-free subjects over 65 years of age who underwent anthropometric measurements, laboratory tests, spirometry, and the estimation of appendicular skeletal muscle (ASM) mass in the 2008–2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). Low muscle mass was defined as the value of ASM divided by height squared (ASM/height
2
) that was less than two standard deviations (SD) below the sex-specific mean of the young reference group.
Results
Forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1L) and forced vital capacity (FVCL) were positively correlated with ASM/height
2
in males (
p
< 0.001 and
p
= 0.001, respectively) but not in females (
p
= 0.360 and
p
= 0.779, respectively). A univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that males with low FEV1 or FVC were more likely to have low muscle mass (odds ratio OR = 3.11, 95 % confidence interval CI 1.62–5.99 for FEV1; OR = 1.99, 95 % CI 1.13–3.53 for FVC); similar results were found for females, but the significance was lower (OR = 11.37, 95 % CI 0.97–132.91 for FEV1; OR = 7.31, 95 % CI 1.25–42.74 for FVC). After adjusting for age, smoking, and moderate physical activity, a low FEV1 value was associated with low muscle mass in both males (OR = 2.90, 95 % CI 1.50–5.63) and females (OR = 9.15, 95 % CI 1.53–54.77).
Conclusions
Using nationally representative data from the 2008–2011 KNHANES, low pulmonary function was found to be associated with low muscle mass in community-dwelling older Korean adults.
Objectives
To update the 2012 ESGAR consensus guidelines on the acquisition, interpretation and reporting of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for clinical staging and restaging of rectal cancer.
...Methods
Fourteen abdominal imaging experts from the European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology (ESGAR) participated in a consensus meeting, organised according to an adaptation of the RAND-UCLA Appropriateness Method. Two independent (non-voting) Chairs facilitated the meeting. 246 items were scored (comprising 229 items from the previous 2012 consensus and 17 additional items) and classified as ‘appropriate’ or ‘inappropriate’ (defined by ≥ 80 % consensus) or uncertain (defined by < 80 % consensus).
Results
Consensus was reached for 226 (92 %) of items. From these recommendations regarding hardware, patient preparation, imaging sequences and acquisition, criteria for MR imaging evaluation and reporting structure were constructed. The main additions to the 2012 consensus include recommendations regarding use of diffusion-weighted imaging, criteria for nodal staging and a recommended structured report template.
Conclusions
These updated expert consensus recommendations should be used as clinical guidelines for primary staging and restaging of rectal cancer using MRI.
Key Points
•
These guidelines present recommendations for staging and reporting of rectal cancer.
•
The guidelines were constructed through consensus amongst 14 pelvic imaging experts.
•
Consensus was reached by the experts for 92 % of the 246 items discussed.
•
Practical guidelines for nodal staging are proposed.
•
A structured reporting template is presented.
Spin-orbit coupling results in technologically-crucial phenomena underlying magnetic devices like magnetic memories and energy-efficient motors. In heavy element materials, the strength of spin-orbit ...coupling becomes large to affect the overall electronic nature and induces novel states such as topological insulators and spin-orbit-integrated Mott states. Here we report an unprecedented charge-ordering cascade in IrTe2 without the loss of metallicity, which involves localized spin-orbit Mott states with diamagnetic Ir(4+)-Ir(4+) dimers. The cascade in cooling, uncompensated in heating, consists of first order-type consecutive transitions from a pure Ir(3+) phase to Ir(3+)-Ir(4+) charge-ordered phases, which originate from Ir 5d to Te 5p charge transfer involving anionic polymeric bond breaking. Considering that the system exhibits superconductivity with suppression of the charge order by doping, analogously to cuprates, these results provide a new electronic paradigm of localized charge-ordered states interacting with itinerant electrons through large spin-orbit coupling.
Objective: To assess the effects of soybean-derived pinitol on glycaemic control and cardiovascular risk factors in Korean patients with type II diabetes mellitus. Design: Randomized, double-blind, ...placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial. Setting: Pusan Paik Hospital, Pusan, Republic of Korea. Interventions: A total of 30 patients with type II diabetes received an oral dose of 600 mg soybean-derived pinitol or placebo twice daily for 13 weeks. Results: Pinitol significantly decreased mean fasting plasma glucose, insulin, fructosamine, HbA1c, and the homeostatic model assessment insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR, P<0.001). Pinitol significantly decreased total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, the LDL/HDL-cholesterol ratio, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure and increased HDL-cholesterol (P<0.05). Conclusions: These data suggest that soybean-derived pinitol may be beneficial in reducing cardiovascular risk in Korean type II diabetes.
Surface energy and hydrophilicity of implant surfaces have been known to play an important role in subsequent cellular responses on the implant surface. The aim of the present study was to evaluate ...the effects of biomimetic deposition of anodized surfaces on surface wettability, surface energy, and osteoblast responses. Ti discs with 2 different surface topographies (machined and anodized) were immersed in Hanks’ balanced salt solution (HBSS) and modified simulated body fluid (SBF) solution for 2 weeks at physiologic conditions of 37°C, initial pH of 7.4, and p(CO2) of 0.05 atm. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observation and energy-dispersive spectroscopic (EDS) microanalysis showed the deposition of calcium phosphate (CaP) onto anodized Ti surfaces immersed in modified SBF. Surface energy, surface wettability, and osteoblast responses, including cell attachment capacity, cell proliferation rate, and cell differentiation level, significantly increased on anodized Ti surfaces immersed in modified SBF. The effects of biomimetic deposition with modified SBF on physiochemical surface characteristics and cell biological responses were greater on anodized surfaces than on machined surfaces. These results indicate that biomimetic deposition with effective SBF may enhance the interaction between anodized Ti surfaces and their biological environment, consequently improving bone healing of dental Ti implants.
This study was performed to characterize selected rhodanine derivatives as potential preclinical disease-modifying drugs for experimental osteoarthritis (OA) in mice.
Three rhodanine derivatives, ...designated rhodanine (R)-501, R-502, and R-503, were selected as candidate OA disease-modifying drugs. Their effects were evaluated by intra-articular (IA) injection in OA mouse models induced by DMM (destabilization of the medial meniscus) or adenoviral overexpression in joint tissues of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-2α or zinc importer ZIP8. The regulatory mechanisms impacted by the rhodanine derivatives were examined in primary-culture chondrocytes and fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS).
All three rhodanine derivatives inhibited OA development caused by DMM or overexpression of HIF-2α or ZIP8. Compared to vehicle-treated group, for example, IA injection of R-501 in DMM-operated mice reduced median OARSI grade from 3.78 (IQR 3.00–5.00) to 1.89 (IQR 0.94–2.00, P = 0.0001). R-502 and R-503 also reduced from 3.67 (IQR 2.11–4.56) to 2.00 (IQR 1.00–2.00, P = 0.0030) and 2.00 (IQR 1.83–2.67, P = 0.0378), respectively. Mechanistically, the rhodanine derivatives inhibited the nuclear localization and transcriptional activity of HIF-2α in chondrocytes and FLS. They did not bind to Zn2+ or modulate Zn2+ homeostasis in chondrocytes or FLS; instead, they inhibited the nuclear localization and transcriptional activity of the Zn2+-dependent transcription factor, MTF1. HIF-2α, ZIP8, and interleukin-1β could upregulate matrix-degrading enzymes in chondrocytes and FLS, and the rhodanine derivatives inhibited these effects.
IA administration of rhodanine derivatives significantly reduced OA pathogenesis in various mouse models, demonstrating that these derivatives have disease-modifying therapeutic potential against OA pathogenesis.
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