Recently CeOBiS
system without any fluorine doping is found to show superconductivity posing question on its origin. Using space resolved ARPES we have found a metallic phase embedded in the ...morphological defects and at the sample edges of stoichiometric CeOBiS
. While bulk of the sample is semiconducting, the embedded metallic phase is characterized by the usual electron pocket at X point, similar to the Fermi surface of doped BiS
-based superconductors. Typical size of the observed metallic domain is larger than the superconducting correlation length of the system suggesting that the observed superconductivity in undoped CeOBiS
might be due to this embedded metallic phase at the defects. The results also suggest a possible way to develop new systems by manipulation of the defects in these chalcogenides with structural instability.
Summary
The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of once-weekly teriparatide as a function of baseline fracture risk. Treatment with once-weekly teriparatide was associated with a ...statistically significant 79 % decrease in vertebral fractures, and in the cohort as a whole, efficacy was not related to baseline fracture risk.
Introduction
Previous studies have suggested that the efficacy of some interventions may be greater in the segment of the population at highest fracture risk as assessed by the FRAX® algorithms. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the antifracture efficacy of weekly teriparatide was dependent on the magnitude of fracture risk.
Methods
Baseline fracture probabilities (using FRAX) were computed from the primary data of a phase 3 study (TOWER) of the effects of weekly teriparatide in 542 men and postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. The outcome variable comprised morphometric vertebral fractures. Interactions between fracture probability and efficacy were explored by Poisson regression.
Results
The 10-year probability of major osteoporotic fractures (without BMD) ranged from 7.2 to 42.2 %. FRAX-based hip fracture probabilities ranged from 0.9 to 29.3 %. Treatment with teriparatide was associated with a 79 % (95 % CI 52–91 %) decrease in vertebral fractures assessed by semiquantitative morphometry. Relative risk reductions for the effect of teriparatide on the fracture outcome did not change significantly across the range of fracture probabilities (
p
= 0.28). In a subgroup analysis of 346 (64 %) participants who had FRAX probabilities calculated with the inclusion of BMD, there was a small but significant interaction (
p
= 0.028) between efficacy and baseline fracture probability such that high fracture probabilities were associated with lower efficacy.
Conclusion
Weekly teriparatide significantly decreased the risk of morphometric vertebral fractures in men and postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. Overall, the efficacy of teriparatide was not dependent on the level of fracture risk assessed by FRAX in the cohort as a whole.
Vascular calcification, especially medial artery calcification, is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in patients with diabetes mellitus and end-stage kidney disease. Advanced ...glycation end products (AGEs) accumulated in these patients may be associated with vascular calcification, although their actions are obscure. Since AGEs can induce oxidative stress, which leads to vascular damage, we investigated an in vitro study to elucidate the effects of AGEs and the roles of NAD(P)H oxidase in the pathogenesis of vascular calcification. A7r5, rat vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) were incubated in calcification medium with glycolaldehyde-derived AGE (AGE3) to measure calcium deposition and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and to determine mRNA levels of osteopontin (OPN), osteocalcin (OCN), Runx2, Nox-1, Nox-4, and p22(phox) by real-time PCR. Calcium deposition was increased by AGE3 in a dose-dependent manner (100-300 μg/dl) in A7r5 cells. Expression levels of Runx2, OPN, and OCN mRNAs were significantly higher in AGE3 treatment than those in control BSA. Increased 8-OHdG concentration in the culture medium and higher expression of Nox-1, Nox-4, and p22(phox) mRNAs (3-6-fold) were observed in cells treated with AGE3. AGE3-stimulated calcium deposition was significantly decreased in the cells transfected by either small interfering RNA for Nox-4 or p22(phox), compared to the controls. In contrast, no significant effect was shown in silencing of Nox-1. Excessive oxidative stress and osteoblastic transition of VSMCs are involved in the pathogenesis of AGEs-induced vascular calcification. NAD(P)H oxidase plays important roles in this process.
Abstract
BL-774
is a control, data acquisition, and online analysis platform for addressing the requirements in future beamline experiments at SPring-8-II. To date, we have achieved implementations ...related to “robustness and flexibility” and “configuration management”. These implementations were made possible by the two-phase development workflow. The two-phase development is characterized by a dedicated rapid application development environment that beamline scientists can use rapidly and easily in real beamline environments, and web-based graphical user interfaces that
BL-774
software developers have incorporated the achievements of the beamline scientists as part of the official release of the beamline control software.
BL-774
has been introduced in two beamlines to date, and we plan to implement it in more beamlines while adding more features. We plan to integrate
BL-774
seamlessly with other systems that are currently under development in the facility, such as two-dimensional detector systems and SPring-8 data centers. By introducing
BL-774
in conjunction with other infrastructure in the facility, more advanced experimental operations, such as feedback operations based on online data analysis or remote operations from outside the beamlines, are to be expected. This paper presents the design and implementation of
BL-774
and its introduction into a beamline at SPring-8.
The Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) is a critically endangered felid that suffered a severe demographic contraction in the 1940s. In this study, we sampled 95 individuals collected throughout ...their native range to investigate questions relative to population genetic structure and demographic history. Additionally, we sampled targeted individuals from the North American ex situ population to assess the genetic representation found in captivity. Population genetic and Bayesian structure analyses clearly identified two populations separated by a development corridor in Russia. Despite their well-documented 20th century decline, we failed to find evidence of a recent population bottleneck, although genetic signatures of a historical contraction were detected. This disparity in signal may be due to several reasons, including historical paucity in population genetic variation associated with postglacial colonization and potential gene flow from a now extirpated Chinese population. Despite conflicting signatures of a bottleneck, our estimates of effective population size (Ne = 27-35) and Ne/N ratio (0.07-0.054) were substantially lower than the only other values reported for a wild tiger population. Lastly, the extent and distribution of genetic variation in captive and wild populations were similar, yet gene variants persisted ex situ that were lost in situ. Overall, our results indicate the need to secure ecological connectivity between the two Russian populations to minimize loss of genetic diversity and overall susceptibility to stochastic events, and support a previous study suggesting that the captive population may be a reservoir of gene variants lost in situ.
Pure zirconium oxide nanocrystallites with diameters 6–140
nm are fabricated from ultrafine metallo-organic complexes by thermal hydrolysis at 120
°C and/or heat treatment at 125–1025
°C. X-ray ...photoelectron spectroscopy shows that effective ionic valence of Zr decreases with decreasing particle diameter. The size dependence of the ionic valences suggests that the phase transition from cubic to tetragonal occurs at an effective Zr valence of 2.0 near 3
nm in diameter and that the phase transition from tetragonal to monoclinic takes place at a critical size of 25
nm diameter with an effective Zr valence of about 2.6.
Summary
We found that serum osteocalcin (OC) and undercarboxylated OC (ucOC) levels were negatively associated with abdominal aortic calcification in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) men. This finding ...suggests that circulating OC and ucOC are not only related to glucose or fat metabolism but also to arteriosclerosis.
Introduction
Recent studies revealed that serum osteocalcin levels were associated with not only bone metabolism but also glucose and fat metabolism. However, the relationship between serum OC levels and arteriosclerosis remains controversial. We examined whether or not bone metabolic markers including OC are associated with abdominal aortic calcification in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Methods
We recruited 118 men and 100 postmenopausal women with T2DM. We evaluated the abdominal aortic calcification score (ACS) on a lateral lumbar radiograph and examined the association between serum OC or undercarboxylated OC levels and ACS.
Results
The ACS of 3 and greater, which corresponded well to the highest quartile, was significantly and negatively associated with serum OC and ucOC levels in men by logistic regression analyses after adjusting for age, BMI, serum levels of creatinine and LDL cholesterol, radial bone mineral density, smoking, duration of DM, hemoglobin A1c, and the index of insulin resistance odds ratio (OR) 0.36, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.19–0.70,
P
< 0.005, and OR 0.28, 95 % CI 0.12–0.69,
P
< 0.01, per standard deviation increase in OC and ucOC, respectively. These observations were still significant after an additional adjustment for other bone markers. In contrast, there were no significant relationships with serum OC or ucOC levels and ACS in women.
Conclusions
These findings suggest that serum OC and ucOC levels are associated with not only bone metabolism but also arteriosclerosis in men, but not in women with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
We examine the mechanism responsible for the optical activity of a two-dimensional array of gold nanostructures with no mirror symmetry on a dielectric substrate. Measurements with different incident ...angles, polarizations and sample orientations allow us to reveal that observed polarization effect is enhanced by surface plasmon resonance. By performing numerical simulation with rigorous diffraction theory we also show that the grating chirality can be described in terms of the non-coplanarity of the electric field vectors at the front (air-metal) and back (substrate-metal) sides of the grating layer.
Summary
A 12-month extension phase of DIRECT in Japanese subjects with osteoporosis showed that total 3 years of denosumab treatment in Japanese postmenopausal women and men with osteoporosis was ...associated with low fracture rates, persistent bone turnover marker (BTM) reductions, continuous bone mineral density (BMD) increases, and a favorable overall benefit/risk profile.
Introduction
The DIRECT trial demonstrated that 2 years of treatment with denosumab 60 mg subcutaneously every 6 months significantly reduced the incidence of vertebral fracture compared to placebo in Japanese postmenopausal women and men with osteoporosis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of denosumab treatment for up to 3 years.
Methods
This study includes a 2-year randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase and a 1-year open-label extension phase in which all subjects received denosumab. The data correspond to 3 years of denosumab treatment in subjects who received denosumab (long-term group) and 1 year of denosumab treatment in subjects who received placebo (cross-over group) in the double-blind phase.
Results
Eight hundred and ten subjects who completed the double-blind phase enrolled into the extension phase, and 775 subjects completed the study. All subjects received denosumab with daily supplements of calcium and vitamin D. The cumulative 36-month incidences of new or worsening vertebral fractures and new vertebral fractures were 3.8 and 2.5 %, respectively, in the long-term group. In this group, the BMD continued to increase, and the reduction in BTMs was maintained. In the cross-over group, comparable BMD increases and BTMs reductions to those of in their first year of the long-term group were confirmed. Adverse events did not show a notable increase with long-term denosumab administration. One event of osteonecrosis of the jaw occurred in the cross-over group.
Conclusions
Three-year denosumab treatment in Japanese subjects with osteoporosis showed a favorable benefit/risk profile.
The J-PARC Main Ring are working on improved beam power to 750 kW by shortening the repetition period from 2.48 s to 1.3 s. The low-field septum magnets in the fast extraction beam line will be ...replaced by new magnets around 2020. We constructed a test-bench of a new magnet which are induced eddy current type and a new power supply in 2014. We were in trouble with the periodic radiative noise which had effect on the stability of output current. We tried to protect against the radiative noise, and finally we were able to solve the problem. In March 2018, we introduced a new Sub-charger system instead of the Dropper which broke down in 2016 due to difficulty of its tuning. Since the scheme of the Sub-charger is simpler than that of Dropper, we can expect to operate stably. The stability of output current requires below 100 ppm, and we confirmed the Sub-charger system satisfied that. We measured the horizontal distribution of the field integral of the magnetic gap field, and the flatness was 0.04%/50 mm which is much smaller than that of current low-field septum magnets.
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