Molecular Mechanism of Physical and Mechanical Improvement in Graphene/Graphene Oxide-Epoxy Composite Materials.

The performance provided by graphene (Gr) and graphene oxide (GO) additives can be improved by achieving strong adhesion and uniform dispersion in the epoxy resin matrix. In this study, molecular modeling and simulation of DGEBA/DETA based epoxy nanocomposites containing Gr and GO additives were performed. Density functional theory and molecular dynamics simulations were used to investigate interfacial interaction energies and Young's Modulus.

The value of measured partial oxygen pressure during pulmonary vein closure and the relationship with the diameter of the closed vein in patients with cryoablation.

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the value of partial oxygen pressure (PO) changes measured in the left atrium (LA) during transient pulmonary vein (PV) closure in patients undergoing cryoablation and its relationship with the diameter of the closed PV.

Methods: The study was carried out on a total of 25 cases. The grouping of PVs was made separately as the left superior, left inferior, left common, right superior, right inferior, right common and total PVs.

Postharvest hexanal application delays senescence and maintains quality in persimmon fruit during low-temperature storage.

Background: Persimmon (Diospyros kaki L.) fruit is characterized by rapid metabolic changes following ripening, and softening occurs due to the gradual breakdown of the cell membrane by direct catabolic cascades of phospholipase D enzyme on the phospholipid bilayer. Cell membrane weakening is also enhanced by the generation of reactive oxygen species during stress conditions such as cold storage and postharvest handling.

Rare Plasmacytoid Urothelial Carcinoma of the Bladder: Two Case Reports.

Plasmacytoid urothelial carcinoma is a rare and aggressive form of urothelial carcinoma characterized with delayed presentation and poor prognosis. Very few cases of this carcinoma have been reported in the literature. Here, we report and discuss two cases of bladder plasmacytoid urothelial carcinoma of a 57-year-old male presented with renal colic, and a 33-year-old female presented with macroscopic hematuria.

The effect of prophylactic migraine treatment on arterial stiffness.

Background: Migraine is a common type of primary headache predominantly seen in women. This study aimed to evaluate endothelial function in patients with migraine using pulse wave velocity (PWV).

Methods: The study included 73 patients with newly diagnosed migraine and 80 healthy subjects.

Cardiac effects of chronic graft-versus-host disease after stem cell transplantation.

Chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) develops as a result of the immunologic response that donor T-lymphocytes generate against host tissue after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. We tried to elucidate the contribution of cardiac dysfunction to the high morbidity and mortality rates observed after GVHD. Forty patients who had undergone bone marrow transplantation were enrolled in this prospective study: 14 patients who had been diagnosed with chronic GVHD (manifestations beyond day 100 after hemopoietic cell transplantation) and 26 patients who had not.

Increased red cell distribution width level is associated with absence of coronary collateral vessels in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Objectives: Several studies have evaluated a relationship between increased red cell distribution width (RDW) and morbidity and mortality of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). In this study, we aimed to investigate the association of serum RDW levels and development of coronary collateral vessel (CCV) in patients with ACS.

Study Design: We evaluated 226 patients with ACS in this prospective and cross-sectional study.

Serum gamma-glutamyltransferase and the burden of atherosclerosis in patients with acute coronary syndrome.

Objectives: We evaluated the relationship between serum gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) levels and the burden of atherosclerosis in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Study Design: This study involved 180 patients (139 male, 41 female; mean age 63±11 years) with the diagnosis of ACS (non-ST elevation myocardial infarction and unstable angina) who underwent coronary angiography on the first day after hospital admission. The burden of atherosclerosis was assessed by the number of involved vessels, and the Gensini and Syntax scores.

Relation between mean platelet volume and coronary collateral vessels in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Objective: Elevated mean platelet volume (MPV) has been proposed as a risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD) and is associated with poor clinical outcome in acute coronary syndrome (ACS). We aimed to evaluate the association of MPV with presence of coronary collateral vessel (CCV) in patients with ACS.

Methods: A total of 417 patients with ACS were included in the study.

Red blood cell distribution width in 'non-dippers' versus 'dippers'.

Objectives: Because both high red cell distribution width (RDW) and non-dipping hypertension are closely related to adverse cardiovascular outcomes and higher inflammatory status, we aimed to investigate whether there is any relationship between RDW and dipping/non-dipping hypertension status.

Methods: The present study involved 123 hypertensive patients and 65 age- and gender-matched healthy, normotensive subjects. Hypertensive patients were divided into two groups: 56 dipper patients (20 males, mean age 51.

Increased gamma-glutamyl transferase level is associated with absence of coronary collateral vessels in patients with acute coronary syndrome: an observational study.

Objective: Elevated serum gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) level has been proposed as a risk factor for coronary artery disease and is associated with poor clinical outcome in acute coronary syndrome (ACS). We aimed to evaluate the relationship between GGT level and presence of coronary collateral vessels (CCV) patients with ACS.

Methods: We evaluated 178 patients with ACS in this cross-sectional-observational study.

Long-term effect of bosentan therapy on cardiac function and symptomatic benefits in adult patients with Eisenmenger syndrome.

Background: Bosentan improves symptoms in patients with Eisenmenger syndrome (ES). This study evaluated the effect of long-term bosentan therapy on cardiac function and its relation to symptomatic benefits in ES patients.

Methods And Results: Twenty-three consecutive adult ES patients (15 with ventricular septal defect, 6 with atrial septal defect, and 2 with patent ductus arteriosus) underwent standard and tissue Doppler echocardiography before and 24 ± 9 months after bosentan therapy.

High levels of serum uric acid predict severity of coronary artery disease in patients with acute coronary syndrome.

We aimed to elucidate the relation between serum uric acid (SUA) level and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) in nondiabetic, nonhypertensive patients (n = 246) with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Severity of CAD was assessed by the Gensini score. One, 2, and 3 or more diseased vessels were identified in 87 (35.

Impaired aortic elastic properties in patients with chronic graft-versus-host disease.

Objectives: Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), which develops as a result of the immunologic response that donor T-lymphocytes generate against host tissue following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in these patients. The aim of this study is the investigate relation between aortic wall stiffness and duration of the disease in patients with chronic GVHD.

Methods: The study population included 32 patients (18 men; mean age, 36.

Acute effects of passive smoking on left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in healthy volunteers.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the acute effects of passive smoking on left ventricular (LV) function in healthy volunteers.

Methods: Sixty-one healthy nonsmoking volunteers were enrolled in this study. LV M-mode, two-dimensional, conventional Doppler, and color tissue Doppler echocardiography were performed, and carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) levels were obtained from subjects before and immediately after exposure to passive smoking for 30 min in a smoking room.

Acute effects of passive smoking on endothelial function.

Impairment of endothelial functions has been shown to occur after acute and chronic exposure to passive smoking (PS), as assessed by flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) of the brachial artery. A total of 61 participants, 30 male and 31 female, mean ages 26 (18-36) were enrolled in the study. All were clinically well and nonsmokers.

[Catheter ablation of accessory pathway tachycardias in three patients with Ebstein's anomaly].

Ebstein's anomaly (EA) is a malformation of the tricuspid valve characterized by a downward displacement of the septal and often the posterior tricuspid valve leaflets to the atrialized right ventricle. Among all congenital anomalies, EA is the most related malformation with accessory pathways. In 5%-25% of patients with EA, accessory atrioventricular pathways may present on the surface electrocardiogram.

Intermediate-term effects of transcatheter secundum atrial septal defect closure on cardiac remodeling in children and adults.

The study aimed to investigate the intermediate-term effects of transcatheter atrial septal defect (ASD) closure on cardiac remodeling in children and adult patients. Between December 2003 and February 2009, 117 patients (48 males, 50 adults) underwent transcatheter ASD closure with the Amplatzer septal occluder (ASO). The mean age of the patients was 15 years, and the mean follow-up period was 25.

The deletion polymorphism of the angiotensin-converting enzyme gene is associated with acute aortic dissection.

Aortic dissection (AD) is a disease characterized by tear of the aortic intimal layer and separation of the arterial wall. Some risk factor such as hypertension and Marfan syndrome is well known in AD. However, the role of genetic factors in AD is largely unknown.

Effects of intermittent and long-term glucose-insulin-potassium infusion in patients with systolic heart failure.

Background: Although single dose and short-term glucose-insulin-potassium (GIK) infusions are known to have positive cardiac effects, the effects of repeated and long-term GIK infusion on left ventricular (LV) systolic function and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels are unknown.

Objective: To investigate the effects of repeated and long-term GIK infusion on LV systolic function and BNP levels.

Methods: Thirty-three patients diagnosed with ischemic cardiomyopathy were included in the study.

[Transcatheter closure of secundum atrial septal defects using the Amplatzer septal occluder in adult patients: our first clinical experiences].

Objectives: We evaluated short-term results of transcatheter closure of secundum atrial septal defects (ASD) with the Amplatzer septal occluder (ASO) in adults.

Study Design: The study included 12 patients (6 males, 6 females; mean age 31+/-9 years; range 17 to 54 years) who underwent transcatheter ASD closure with the ASO device. Prior to the procedure, the mean pulmonary to systemic flow ratio was 1.

The relationship between Chlamydophila pneumoniae IgG titer and coronary atherosclerosis.

Background: The role of Chlamydophila pneumoniae (CP) in the progression of atherosclerosis is controversial. Also no sufficient angiographic study is available about the impact of CP infection on severity and intensity of coronary atherosclerosis. We investigated the relation between CP IgG antibody titers and severity and intensity of coronary atherosclerosis

Methods: The study population consisted of 516 consecutive patients who underwent a coronary angiography.

Myocardial blush grade: to evaluate myocardial viability in patients with acute myocardial infarction.

Myocardial blush grade (MBG) is used to assess myocardial perfusion in the infarcted myocardium. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the analysis of myocardial blush grade after resolution of the acute phase of myocardial infarction is useful for assessing myocardial viability. The present study is consisted of 64 patients (55 men, mean age 55 +/-11 years) who had acute myocardial infarction and nonoccluded stenosis (>50%) in an infarct-related artery.

Use of ischemia-modified albumin in diagnosis of coronary artery disease.

Objective: The diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) is an important clinical problem. Ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) has been demonstrated to be a helpful marker in detecting myocardial ischemia. In this study, we have investigated the diagnostic importance of IMA in CAD.