The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of inhibin B and the determination of its concentration to diagnose testicular damage after treatment for a childhood malignancy. Thirty-seven males ...treated for Hodgkin disease (n = 11) or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 26) were examined at a mean age of 16.9+/-2.9 years. Mean age at the stop of therapy was 11.3+/-3.0 years and in most cases the chemotherapy regimen included gonadal damaging alkylating agents. Thirty-three normal males (mean age 17.9+/-4.1 years) were examined as controls. Serum samples were collected for determination of inhibin B, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and testosterone. Median inhibin values were significantly lower in patients than in controls (96.0 vs. 225.0 pg/ml, P<0.0001) and a strong negative correlation was found between inhibin B and FSH (r = -0.86, P<0.0001), a weak correlation with LH (r = -0.32, P<0.05) and no correlation with testosterone. In post-pubertal patients (i.e., over 16 years) a positive correlation was found between testicular size and inhibin level (r = 0.53, P<0.05), but not between testicular size and testosterone level. Pathological low levels (values that differed by more than 2 SD from the mean value of control subjects) were found in 20 patients for inhibin B and 8 for testosterone (P<0.01) and pathological high values in 19 patients for FSH and 3 for LH.
This study confirms the role that inhibin B plays in the regulation of FSH secretion and provides further evidence of the utility of its evaluation as a direct indicator of male gonadal dysfunction.
This paper reports an ultra-violet photoemmision spectroscopy study on K3C60 in the temperature range 30–600 K. The experiment shows that the temperature dependence of the conduction band is ...consistent with the behaviour of a strongly correlated metal. In addition, the photoemission intensity near the Fermi edge decreases as the temperature is increased. This trend is similar to the vanishing behaviour of the quasi-particle weight predicted for strongly correlated metals with increasing disorder. The experimental evidence that the shoulder visible in the highest occupied molecular orbital region, unexpected on the basis of conventional band calculations, is coupled with the sharp peak at the Fermi level is also provided.
The dissociative oxygen adsorption on a Rh(110) surface has been studied by monitoring the changes in the O 1s spectra during oxygen exposure at 270 and 570 K. The site-sensitive O 1s binding energy ...was used as a fingerprint of the adatom adsorption geometry and the O 1s intensity as a measure of the oxygen coverage. The short data collection time allowed us to follow the conversion between different oxygen bonding configurations and to correlate it to the observed coverage and structural changes. Comparison between unreconstructive (270 K) and reconstructive (570 K) oxygen adsorption was made and discussed.
High-resolution core-level photoemission measurements for ethyne (HCCH) and 2-butyne (H
3C–CC–CH
3) on the Ni(1
1
1) surface reveal the presence of vibrational excitations for both adsorbates, ...similar to those observed in recent gas-phase core-level photoemission investigations. The vibrational line splitting for ethyne is 300±50 meV (
2400±400
cm
−1
). A binding energy difference of approximately 0.7 eV was observed for the 1s core levels of the inequivalent C atoms in a monolayer of 2-butyne. The vibrational line splittings are 370±20 meV (
2980±160
cm
−1
) and 250±30 (
2020±240
cm
−1
) meV for the 289.56 and 288.80 eV core levels, respectively. In addition, preliminary energy-scanned photoelectron diffraction (PED) measurements were performed on a monolayer of 2-butyne. A comparison between the modulation functions of 2-butyne and previously measured ethyne indicates similar local structures for these adsorbates. Furthermore, the PED measurements reveal that the 288.80 eV C
1s line can be assigned to the central C atoms that participate in the bonding to the surface.
The interaction of CO with a (2 × 1)p2mg oxygen layer on (1 × 1)-Rh(110) and a c(2 × 8) oxygen layer on (1 × 4)-Rh(110) has been studied by synchrotron radiation real-time X-ray photoelectron ...spectroscopy, low energy electron diffraction and mass spectrometry. The structure and composition of the surface layer were continuously monitored during the reaction performed at 200, 290 and 350 K. The intensity of the components of the O 1s spectra reflected the changes in the oxygen and CO coverages during the reaction. The intensity decrease of the O 1s peak at binding energies < 530.3 eV, corresponding to the adsorbed oxygen, was used as a measure of the CO oxidation rate. The emergence and increase of a second O 1s peak at binding energies > 531.0 eV identified the CO uptake. The changes in the CO
2 partial pressure during titration of the oxygen layers with CO were also monitored by a mass spectrometer. The observed difference in the reactivity of the (2 × 1)p2mg and c(2 × 8) layers was related to the structural differences of the two surfaces: the (1 × 4) reconstruction creates adsorption sites where oxygen is more strongly bonded and less reactive. The effect of the structural changes on the reaction rate was observed during the titration reaction at 350 K.
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used in order to investigate the interface formation between chromium and thin films of a newly synthesised π-conjugated polymer P(PA-
pNO
2PA); the investigated ...material is a block copolymer consisting of phenylacetylene (PA) and
para-nitro phenylacetylene (
pNO
2PA) units {–(CHC–R)
n
–(CHC–R′)
m
–
N
; RC
6H
5, R′C
6H
4NO
2}. Chromium was evaporated stepwise in situ onto the polymer surface and the XPS spectra of the substrate polymer and of the metal overlayer were studied as a function of increasing chromium thickness. In the early stages of the interface formation, chromium was found to interact mainly with the nitrogen atoms of the –NO
2 groups, that are reduced to nitride-like species; the N–O bond is broken, as evidenced by the modifications occurring in the N1s and O1s spectra. The changes in the C1s spectra upon increasing metal deposition suggest the formation of a chromium–arene π-complex at low chromium coverage and of carbide-like species at higher chromium thickness.
In children undergoing anticancer chemotherapy, a granulocytopenic febrile episode is a life-threatening condition. Prompt initiation of empirical broad-spectrum antibiotics is essential to limit ...morbidity and mortality. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of combination antibiotics consisting of a third generation cephalosporin and an aminoglycoside, a retrospective review of all febrile granulocytopenic patients admitted to our institution was conducted. Between June 1994 and August 1996, 183 febrile episodes in granulocytopenic children with cancer were empirically treated with ceftriaxone and amikacin in a single daily dose. 96/183 (52%) patients had absolute granulocyte count lower than 100/mm3 at the onset; 68 (37%) were affected by acute leukemia or lymphoma, 3 (1%) by chronic leukemia, 94 (51%) by solid tumors, and 21 (11%) patients underwent bone marrow transplantation. Ceftriaxone plus amikacin was effective in 135/183 (74%) patients with a median time to defervescence of 3 days (range 1-11). Economic evaluation (cost minimization analysis) was limited to the cost savings for nonreusable materials, and difference in direct drug costs in comparison with another combination regimen such as ceftazidime and amikacin. This analysis showed that compared to a 3 times daily regimen, administration of single daily doses of ceftriaxone would result in a net cost saving of US$ 11 (17,500 Italian liras) and US$ 65.6 (105,000 Italian liras) for a 1-day and a 6-day treatment period, respectively, for the treatment of a child of 30 kg body weight. Moreover, once daily therapy has the potential to lead to savings in the time of the nursing staff and may well contribute to an improved quality of life for febrile granulocytopenic children. For these reasons, in our department, ceftriaxone plus amikacin still remain the standard regimen for the empirical treatment of febrile granulocytopenic children with cancer.
