Evaluation of 4D CT acquisition methods designed to reduce artifacts.

Four-dimensional computed tomography (4D CT) is used to account for respiratory motion in radiation treatment planning, but artifacts resulting from the acquisition and postprocessing limit its accuracy. We investigated the efficacy of three experimental 4D CT acquisition methods to reduce artifacts in a prospective institutional review board approved study. Eighteen thoracic patients scheduled to undergo radiation therapy received standard clinical 4D CT scans followed by each of the alternative 4D CT acquisitions: 1) data oversampling, 2) beam gating with breathing irregularities, and 3) rescanning the clinical acquisition acquired during irregular breathing.

Many Ingredients, One Sublime Dish: The Recipe for the Passage of Illinois HB5412 Into Law.

This article contextualizes the need for Illinois House Bill 5412 (HB5412), which calls for the establishment of a state board to create recommendations for the community health worker (CHW) field in Illinois, including a scope of practice, core competencies, training and certification standards, and sustainable funding and reimbursement mechanisms. Multisectorial partnerships and their outputs, coupled with frontline CHW interventions, created a synergistic climate conducive to the passing of this historic CHW legislation. This article provides a timeline and recipe for legislative success as described through processes and activities collaboratively undertaken, concentrating on a 5-year period (2009-2014).

[Return to work enablers for workers with work-related mental illness].

Background: There is growing interest in the treatment and return-to-work of workers with labor related mental illnesses.

Aim: To perform a systematic review of practices and interventions that improve return to work.

Material And Methods: Systematic literature review.

Formation and liquid permeability of dense colloidal cube packings.

The liquid permeability of dense random packings of cubic colloids with rounded corners is studied for solid hematite cubes and hollow microporous silica cubes. The permeabilities of these two types of packings are similar, confirming that the micropores in the silica shell of the hollow cubes do not contribute to the permeability. From the Brinkman screening length √k of ∼16 nm, we infer that the relevant pores are indeed intercube pores.

Rationale and design of a patient-centered medical home intervention for patients with end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis.

In the U.S., more than 400,000 individuals with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) require hemodialysis (HD) for renal replacement therapy.

Statistical methods for handling unwanted variation in metabolomics data.

Metabolomics experiments are inevitably subject to a component of unwanted variation, due to factors such as batch effects, long runs of samples, and confounding biological variation. Although the removal of this unwanted variation is a vital step in the analysis of metabolomics data, it is considered a gray area in which there is a recognized need to develop a better understanding of the procedures and statistical methods required to achieve statistically relevant optimal biological outcomes. In this paper, we discuss the causes of unwanted variation in metabolomics experiments, review commonly used metabolomics approaches for handling this unwanted variation, and present a statistical approach for the removal of unwanted variation to obtain normalized metabolomics data.

Neutral endopeptidase-resistant C-type natriuretic peptide variant represents a new therapeutic approach for treatment of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3-related dwarfism.

Achondroplasia (ACH), the most common form of human dwarfism, is caused by an activating autosomal dominant mutation in the fibroblast growth factor receptor-3 gene. Genetic overexpression of C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP), a positive regulator of endochondral bone growth, prevents dwarfism in mouse models of ACH. However, administration of exogenous CNP is compromised by its rapid clearance in vivo through receptor-mediated and proteolytic pathways.

[Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymorphisms as risk factors for myelomeningocele].

Background: Mandatory fortification with folic acid (FA) was implemented in Chile in 2000. Thereafter, the rate of spina bifida decreased by 52 to 55%. Genetic abnormalities in folate metabolism may be involved in the etiology of spina bifida.

[The educational change in medical schools].

This paper reports the reflections of a group of members of the University of Chile Faculty of Medicine, about the changes in teaching methods that medical schools should incorporate. In a complex scenario, not only new and better knowledge should be transmitted to students but also values, principles, critical reasoning and leadership, among others. In the first part, a proposal to understand this educational development in the context of complex universities, incorporating pedagogical skills and reviewing institutional leadership, is carried out.

The MVAD pump: motor stator core loss characterization.

Unlabelled: Investigation of the miniature ventricular assist device (MVAD) pump motor stator core loss behavior was conducted. During operation, the ferromagnetic core in the pump's motor is magnetized by alternating magnetic fields, which, in turn, create intrinsic energy losses in the core material; these losses are known as core losses. A core loss fixture and a method to characterize the magnetic behavior of the MVAD pump stator over a range of frequencies were developed.

Role of pharmacists in the treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness.

The focus of this case is a 78-year-old female who is being referred to an assisted living community following several episodes of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). EDS in the geriatric patient is widespread and is often underdiagnosed and inadequately treated. It can affect an older patient?s quality of life, as well as increasing physical, psychological, cognitive, and mortality risks.

2(5H)-Furanone, epigallocatechin gallate, and a citric-based disinfectant disturb quorum-sensing activity and reduce motility and biofilm formation of Campylobacter jejuni.

Brominated furanone and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) are naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds that can be derived from sources such as Delisea pulchra algae and green tea, respectively. These compounds may have potential health benefits and antimicrobial properties. Biofilm formation and bacterial motility are virulence factors that seem to be involved in the autoinducer 2 (AI-2)-mediated quorum sensing (QS) response of Campylobacter.

Coping with daily thermal variability: behavioural performance of an ectotherm model in a warming world.

Global climate change poses one of the greatest threats to species persistence. Most analyses of the potential biological impacts have focused on changes in mean temperature, but changes in thermal variance will also impact organisms and populations. We assessed the effects of acclimation to daily variance of temperature on dispersal and exploratory behavior in the terrestrial isopod Porcellio laevis in an open field.

Sodium oxybate: a primer for pharmacists in the treatment of narcolepsy.

Objective: The purpose of this report is to describe a 57-year-old man who was admitted to a nursing facility for physical therapy. His home medication list included sodium oxybate. This article will provide the pharmacist with a therapeutic overview of sodium oxybate as well as review the unique processes involved with drug acquisition, dosing, patient education, and monitoring.

Community health workers as an integral strategy in the REACH U.S. program to eliminate health inequities.

Mounting evidence indicates that community health workers (CHWs) contribute to improved behavioral and health outcomes and reductions in health disparities. We provide an overview (based on grantee reports and community action plans) that describe CHW contributions to 22 Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) programs funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2007 to 2012, offering additional evidence of their contributions to the effectiveness of community public health programs. We then highlight how CHWs helped deliver REACH U.

Improving environmental and social targeting through adaptive management in Mexico's payments for hydrological services program.

Natural resource managers are often expected to achieve both environmental protection and economic development even when there are fundamental trade-offs between these goals. Adaptive management provides a theoretical structure for program administrators to balance social priorities in the presence of trade-offs and to improve conservation targeting. We used the case of Mexico's federal Payments for Hydrological Services program (PSAH) to illustrate the importance of adaptive management for improving program targeting.

Decreased glutathione and low catalase activity contribute to oxidative stress in children with α-1 antitrypsin deficiency.

Background: Recent investigations in animal models have revealed oxidative stress and oxidative damage in the pathogenesis of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD). However, no data are available on the oxidative stress status and antioxidant enzyme activity in these patients. This study was aimed to analyse the oxidative stress profile and enzymatic antioxidant defence mechanisms in children with AATD.

Assessment of a quantitative metric for 4D CT artifact evaluation by observer consensus.

The benefits of four-dimensional computed tomography (4D CT) are limited by the presence of artifacts that remain difficult to quantify. A correlation-based metric previously proposed for ciné 4D CT artifact identification was further validated as an independent artifact evaluator by using a novel qualitative assessment featuring a group of observers reaching a consensus decision on artifact location and magnitude. The consensus group evaluated ten ciné 4D CT scans for artifacts over each breathing phase of coronal lung views assuming one artifact per couch location.

Quality and antioxidant properties on sweet cherries as affected by preharvest salicylic and acetylsalicylic acids treatments.

The effects of salicylic acid (SA) or acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) treatments during on-tree cherry growth and ripening on fruit quality attributes, especially those related with the content on bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity were analysed in this research. For this purpose, two sweet cherry cultivars, 'Sweet Heart' and 'Sweet Late', were used and SA or ASA treatments, at 0.5, 1.

Preharvest application of oxalic acid increased fruit size, bioactive compounds, and antioxidant capacity in sweet cherry cultivars (Prunus avium L.).

Trees of 'Sweet Heart' and 'Sweet Late' sweet cherry cultivars (Prunus avium L.) were treated with oxalic acid (OA) at 0.5, 1.

"Brown bag" simulations to teach drug utilization review.

Objective: To teach drug utilization review (DUR) skills to pharmacy students and assess their abilities and confidence before and after training.

Design: Profile reviews and online and live drug-utilization-review activities of increasing difficulty were incorporated into the first (P1), second (P2), and third (P3) years of the Pharmacy Skills Training Laboratory sequence in a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) curriculum.

Assessment: An online survey instrument was administered to gauge how comfortable students were with specific DUR skills before and after the activities.

Spatial patterns of neutral and functional genetic variations reveal patterns of local adaptation in raccoon (Procyon lotor) populations exposed to raccoon rabies.

Local adaptation is necessary for population survival and depends on the interplay between responses to selective forces and demographic processes that introduce or retain adaptive and maladaptive attributes. Host-parasite systems are dynamic, varying in space and time, where both host and parasites must adapt to their ever-changing environment in order to survive. We investigated patterns of local adaptation in raccoon populations with varying temporal exposure to the raccoon rabies virus (RRV).

Pre-radiotherapy FDG PET predicts radiation pneumonitis in lung cancer.

Background: A retrospective analysis is performed to determine if pre-treatment [18 F]-2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) image derived parameters can predict radiation pneumonitis (RP) clinical symptoms in lung cancer patients.

Methods And Materials: We retrospectively studied 100 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients who underwent FDG PET/CT imaging before initiation of radiotherapy (RT). Pneumonitis symptoms were evaluated using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 4.

Antibacterial and antioxidant activities in extracts of fully grown cladodes of 8 cultivars of cactus pear.

The antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of some cultivars of the nopal cactus have not been determined. In this study, 8 cultivars of nopal cacti from Mexico were assayed for phenolic content, antioxidant activities, and antimicrobial activities against Campylobacter Jejuni, Vibrio cholera, and Clostridium Perfringens. Plant material was washed, dried, and macerated in methanol.

First Report of Chestnut Blight Caused by Cryphonectria parasitica in a Chestnut Orchard in Andalusia (Southern Spain).

In Europe, chestnut blight caused by Cryphonectria parasitica (Murrill) Barr was first seen in Italy in 1938 (1). In Spain, the disease was first detected in Basque country in 1947 and later in other areas of northern Spain: Galicia, León, Navarra, and Catalonia, and in Trás-os-Montes in Portugal (2). In November 2012, in an orchard (2 ha) in Almonaster la Real (Huelva, Spain), approximately 20 cankered Castanea sativa (sweet chestnut) trees cv.