The anodizing behavior of iron-containing intermetallic particles in AA2099 aluminum-lithium alloy and their effect on structure and corrosion resistance of the anodic film were investigated using ...electrochemical measurements and scanning electron microscopy. High-copper-containing Al-Fe-Mn-Cu particles (HCCPs) dissolved preferentially through dealloying at ∼ 0 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode) in a tartaric-sulfuric acid solution, at 22, 37 and 42°C, leading to formation of copper-rich nanoparticle of 50-200 nm diameters. They dissolved completely under normal anodizing conditions, resulting in cavity defects of micrometer dimensions in the anodic film and sunken regions in the alloy substrate immediately beneath the dissolved HCCPs. Immersion testing of the anodized alloy in 3.5% NaCl solution for 24 h indicated that localized corrosion of the anodized alloy predominantly developed at the site containing dissolved HCCPs at the film/alloy interface. It is suggested that HCCPs play a critical role in controlling the corrosion resistance of the anodic film formed on AA2099 aluminum-lithium alloy.
Background and Aim
Idiopathic myointimal hyperplasia of the mesenteric veins (IMHMV) is an uncommon cause of colonic ischemia for which surgical treatment is typically curative. We describe clinical, ...radiologic, and endoscopic findings in IMHMV patients to provide clinicians with a framework for pre‐surgical identification of this rare disease.
Methods
We performed a systematic review of seven databases for IMHMV cases and identified additional cases from Yale New Haven Hospital records. To identify features specifically associated with colonic ischemia due to IMHMV, we performed multivariate logistic regression analysis incorporating data from a large cohort of patients with biopsy‐proven ischemic colitis.
Results
A total of 124 patients with IMHMV were identified (80% male, mean age 53 years, 56% Caucasian). Presenting symptoms were most commonly abdominal pain (86%) and diarrhea (68%). The most affected areas were the sigmoid colon (91%) and rectum (61%). Complications associated with diagnostic delay occurred in 29% of patients. Radiologic vascular abnormalities including non‐opacification of the inferior mesenteric vein were observed in 35% of patients. Of the patients, 97% underwent curative surgical resection. Compared with non‐IMHMV colonic ischemia, IMHMV was significantly associated with younger age, male sex, absence of rectal bleeding on presentation, rectal involvement, and mucosal ulcerations on endoscopy.
Conclusion
IMHMV is a rare, underreported cause of colonic ischemia that predominantly involves the rectosigmoid. Our findings suggest younger age, rectal involvement, and absence of rectal bleeding as clinical features to help identify select patients presenting with colonic ischemia as having higher likelihood of IMHMV and therefore consideration of upfront surgical management.
In an alginate/chitosan nanoparticle system, insulin was protected by forming complexes with cationic β-cyclodextrin polymers (CPβCDs), which were synthesized from β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), ...epichlorohydrin (EP) and choline chloride (CC) through a one-step polycondensation. Due to the electrostatic attraction between insulin and CPβCDs, as well as the assistance of its polymeric chains, CPβCDs could effectively protect insulin under simulated gastrointestinal conditions. The nanoparticles have their mean size lower than 350
nm and can load insulin with the association efficiency (AE) up to 87%. It is notable that the cumulative insulin release in simulated intestinal fluid was significantly higher (40%) than that without CPβCDs (18%) because insulin was mainly retained in the core of the nanoparticles and well protected against degradation in simulated gastric fluid. Far-UV circular dichroism analysis also corroborated the preservation of insulin structure during the nanoparticle preparation and release process.
The purpose of this study was to describe the epidemiology, visual outcome and prognostic factors of intraocular foreign body (IOFB) injuries in a tertiary centre in Hong Kong. A retrospective review ...of 21 eyes in 21 patients with IOFB that presented to United Christian Hospital from January 2001 to July 2014 was performed. IOFB represented 16 % of all open-globe traumas. There was a high male predominance (90 %). The mean age was 42. Work-related injuries (86 %) were the main cause, where only 10.5 % had eye protection. Hammering was the commonest mechanism of injury (43 %). Most IOFBs were metallic (67 %). The IOFB was found in the anterior segment in 31 % and posterior segment in 69 %. 57 % presented with an initial visual acuity of ≥0.1, and up to 24 % of patients had an initial visual acuity of better than or equal to 0.5. Most cases (76 %) received prompt surgical intervention within 24 h, and there was a low (0 %) endophthalmitis rate. Forty-eight percent had an improvement in visual acuity, defined as final visual acuity more than or equal to 2 lines of improvement from initial visual acuity, and 48 % attained a final visual acuity of better than or equal to 0.5. One case underwent evisceration. A smaller IOFB size (<5 mm) was associated with a good final visual acuity of better than or equal to 0.5 (
p
= 0.048). It was also found that a posterior segment IOFB was more likely to give a final VA of less than 0.5 (
p
= 0.035). IOFB remains a significant complication of work-related injuries in Hong Kong. This is the first local study that explores the epidemiology of IOFB injuries in Hong Kong. The favourable visual outcome and low endophthalmitis rate may be related to early removal of IOFB. Despite legal ordinances for mandatory eye protection, the uptake of eye protection was low.
To assess the prevalence, all-cause mortality and determinants of advanced HIV disease (AHD) or severe immunosuppression (SIS) in the rural–urban communities of Southwestern China.
Retrospective ...cohort study.
Data on HIV/AIDS cases reported in 2005–20 were collected from Case Report System. A binary logistic regression model assessed the risk factors of AHD/SIS prevalence. Survival curves across rural–urban regions were compared using Kaplan–Meier estimates and log-rank tests. Determinants of all-cause mortality were identified using the Cox proportional hazard model.
Among 14,533 newly diagnosed HIV/AIDS patients, 7497 (51.6%) presented with AHD and 2564 (17.6%) with SIS. Compared with urban patients, rural patients had a higher prevalence of AHD (56.7% vs 40.7%) and SIS (20.1% vs 12.4%), all-cause mortality (AHD 12.3 vs 5.6, SIS 16.3 vs 5.5, per 100 person-years). Their 5-year survival probability (AHD 59.5% vs 77.1%; SIS 54.4% vs 76.3%) and mean survival time (AHD 106.5 vs 140.6 months, SIS 95.3 vs 144.2 months, p < 0.0001) were lower. Rural patients had an increased risk of SIS prevalence (adjusted odds ratios 1.45, 95% confidence interval CI 1.28–1.64; p < 0.0001) and mortality of the total cohort (adjusted hazard ratios 1.41, 95% CI 1.29–1.55; p < 0.0001), AHD cohort (1.38, 1.24–1.54; p < 0.0001), and SIS cohort (1.49, 1.23–1.81; p < 0.0001).
A high prevalence of AHD/SIS was a severe phenomenon that caused high mortality in rural areas. A regional point-of-care strategy targeting AHD/SIS detection and management is essential for reducing the mortality risk.
We report the first hard X-ray (3-79 keV) observations of the millisecond pulsar (MSP) binary PSR J1023+0038 using NuSTAR. This system has been shown transiting between a low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) ...state and a rotation-powered MSP state. The NuSTAR observations were taken in both LMXB state and rotation-powered state. The source is clearly seen in both states up to ~79 keV. During the LMXB state, the 3-79 keV flux is about a factor of 10 higher than in the rotation-powered state. The hard X-rays show clear orbital modulation during the X-ray faint rotation-powered state but the X-ray orbital period is not detected in the X-ray bright LMXB state. In addition, the X-ray spectrum changes from a flat power-law spectrum during the rotation-powered state to a steeper power-law spectrum in the LMXB state. We suggest that the hard X-rays are due to the intrabinary shock from the interaction between the pulsar wind and the injected material from the low-mass companion star. During the rotation-powered MSP state, the X-ray orbital modulation is due to Doppler boosting of the shocked pulsar wind. At the LMXB state, the evaporating matter of the accretion disk due to the gamma-ray irradiation from the pulsar stops almost all the pulsar wind, resulting in the disappearance of the X-ray orbital modulation.
Background
Our previous data have indicated that nerve injury‐induced up‐regulation of thrombospondin‐4 (TSP4) proteins in dorsal spinal cord plays a causal role in neuropathic pain state development ...in a spinal nerve ligation model. To investigate whether TSP4 proteins also contribute to the development of centrally mediated changes in nociception after spinal cord injury (SCI), we investigated whether SCI induced TSP4 dysregulation, and if so, whether this change correlated with changes in nociception in a T9 spinal cord contusion injury model.
Methods
Behavioural sensitivity to mechanical, thermal stimuli and locomotor function recovery were tested blindly in SCI or sham rats post‐injury. Intrathecal antisense or mismatch control oligodeoxynucleotides were used to treat SCI rats with nociceptive hyperreflexia, and Western blots were used to measure TSP4 protein levels in dorsal spinal cord samples.
Results
SCI induced below‐level hindpaw hypersensitivity to stimuli. TSP4 protein levels are up‐regulated in dorsal spinal cord of SCI rats with nociceptive hyperreflexia, but not in SCI rats without nociceptive hyperreflexia. There was no significant difference in motor function recovery post‐injury between SCI rats with or without nociceptive hyperreflexia. Intrathecal treatment with TSP4 antisense, but not mismatch control, oligodeoxynucleotides led to reversal of injury‐induced TSP4 up‐regulation and nociceptive hyperreflexia in SCI rats.
Conclusions
SCI leads to TSP4 up‐regulation in lumbar spinal cord that may play a critical role in mediating centrally mediated behavioural hypersensitivity. Blocking this pathway may be helpful in management of SCI‐induced changes in nociception.
The high magnetic field pulsar PSR J1119−6127, detected from radio to high-energy wavelengths, underwent a magnetar-like outburst beginning on 2016 July 27. In this paper, we study the postoutburst ...multiwavelength properties of this pulsar from the radio to GeV bands and discuss its similarity with the outburst of the magnetar XTE J1810−197. In phase-resolved spectral analysis of 0.5-10 keV X-ray data collected in 2016 August, the on- and off-pulse spectra are both characterized by two blackbody components and also require a power-law component similar to the hard X-ray spectra of magnetars. This power-law component is no longer distinguishable in data from 2016 December. We likewise find that there was no substantial shift between the radio and X-ray pulse peaks after the 2016 X-ray outburst. The gamma-ray pulsation after the X-ray outburst is confirmed with data taken after 2016 December, and the pulse structure and phase difference between the gamma-ray and radio peaks (∼0.4 cycle) are also consistent with those before the X-ray outburst. These multiwavelength observations suggest that the reconfiguration of the global magnetosphere after the 2016 magnetar-like outburst continued for at most about 6 months. We discuss the evolution of the X-ray emission after the 2016 outburst with the untwisting magnetosphere model.
Objectives
Awareness and acceptance of transgenderism have increased in the last two decades. There is limited literature regarding the incidence and semen characteristics of transwomen banking ...spermatozoa. We sought to assess the incidence of sperm cryopreservation of transgender individuals compared with the cisgender population in the last 10 years. Semen parameters were also compared between the two groups.
Materials and methods
We performed a retrospective analysis of sperm cryopreservation performed at a single center from 2006 through 2016. Using available data on indications for banking and prior hormonal therapy status, we isolated healthy transgender and cisgender cohorts for semen parameter comparison. Linear regression was used to compare the incidence trends. Semen parameters were compared using the generalized estimating equations method. The rates of semen parameter abnormality of each group were compared using chi‐square test. Semen parameter abnormalities were defined using WHO 2010 reference values.
Results
We analyzed 194 transgender samples and 2327 cisgender samples for a total of 84 unique transgender sperm bankers and 1398 unique cisgender sperm bankers. The number of transgender sperm bankers increased relative to cisgender sperm bankers from 2006 to 2016. Following exclusion of cisgender sperm bankers with health issues that might impact semen quality and transgender sperm bankers with known prior hormonal therapy, we compared the semen parameters of 141 healthy cisgender sperm bankers and 78 healthy transgender sperm bankers. The transgender sperm bankers demonstrated lower sperm concentration, total motile sperm count, and post‐thaw sperm parameters. The transgender sperm bankers also demonstrated a higher incidence of oligozoospermia.
Conclusions
This is the largest report to date on the incidence of transgender sperm cryopreservation and comparison of semen characteristics with cisgender sperm bankers. The data reveal an increased incidence of transgender sperm banking as well as poorer semen parameters of transgender individuals compared with cisgender controls.
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