Analysis of vascular disruption in zebrafish embryos as an endpoint to predict developmental toxicity.

Inhibition of angiogenesis is an important mode of action for the teratogenic effect of chemicals and drugs. There is a gap in the availability of simple, experimental screening models for the detection of angiogenesis inhibition. The zebrafish embryo represents an alternative test system which offers the complexity of developmental differentiation of an entire organism while allowing for small-scale and high-throughput screening.

Excitation of surface plasmon mode in bulk semiconductor lasers.

We propose a realistic process for the excitation of surface plasmon polariton (SPP) modes in a silicon photonic waveguide (WG). The process involves the placement of buried oxide (BOX) composed of silica between a WG and silicon substrate. When the BOX thickness is manipulated, different amounts of modal power leak toward the BOX into the substrate and simultaneously acquire compensation from a semiconductor located on the WG.

AI for predicting chemical-effect associations at the chemical universe level-deepFPlearn.

Many chemicals are present in our environment, and all living species are exposed to them. However, numerous chemicals pose risks, such as developing severe diseases, if they occur at the wrong time in the wrong place. For the majority of the chemicals, these risks are not known.

The Eco-Exposome Concept: Supporting an Integrated Assessment of Mixtures of Environmental Chemicals.

Organisms are exposed to ever-changing complex mixtures of chemicals over the course of their lifetime. The need to more comprehensively describe this exposure and relate it to adverse health effects has led to formulation of the exposome concept in human toxicology. Whether this concept has utility in the context of environmental hazard and risk assessment has not been discussed in detail.

Iatrogenic Subclavian Artery Perforation Rescued by Operator-Modified Graft Stent.

Subclavian artery (SCA) perforation is a rare complication while performing SCA intervention. In our present report, a 73-year-old female, with stenosis of the left SCA and situs inversus, presented with exercise-induced left arm weakness. The SCA stenosis was treated with direct stenting with a balloon-expansible Express LD 10×25 mm stent.

Coronary Stent Infection Presented as Recurrent Stent Thrombosis.

Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty with metal stent placement has become a well-developed treatment modality for coronary stenotic lesions. Although infection involving implanted stents is rare, it can, however, occur with high morbidity and mortality. We describe herein a case of an inserted coronary stent that was infected and complicated with recurrent stent thrombosis, pseudoaneurysm formation and severe sepsis.

Raman scattering and red fluorescence in the photochemical transformation of dry tryptophan particles.

Tryptophan is a fluorescent amino acid common in proteins. Its absorption is largest for wavelengths λ ≲ 290 nm and its fluorescence emissions peak around 300-350 nm, depending upon the local environment. Here we report the observation of red fluorescence near 600 nm emerging from 488-nm continuous-wave (CW) laser photoexcitation of dry tryptophan (Trp) particles.

Spin splitting in 2D monochalcogenide semiconductors.

We report ab initio calculations of the spin splitting of the uppermost valence band (UVB) and the lowermost conduction band (LCB) in bulk and atomically thin GaS, GaSe, GaTe, and InSe. These layered monochalcogenides appear in four major polytypes depending on the stacking order, except for the monoclinic GaTe. Bulk and few-layer ε-and γ -type, and odd-number β-type GaS, GaSe, and InSe crystals are noncentrosymmetric.

Transient dual-energy lasing in a semiconductor microcavity.

We demonstrate sequential lasing at two well-separated energies in a highly photoexcited planar microcavity at room temperature. Two spatially overlapped lasing states with distinct polarization properties appear at energies more than 5 meV apart. Under a circularly polarized nonresonant 2 ps pulse excitation, a sub-10-ps transient circularly polarized high-energy (HE) state emerges within 10 ps after the pulse excitation.

Bioevaluation of Anisomeles indica extracts and their inhibitory effects on Helicobacter pylori-mediated inflammation.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Helicobacter pylori is associated with the majority of gastric disorders and the antibiotic resistant rates have increased annually worldwide. Anisomeles indica and its constituent, ovatodiolide (OVT), were shown to have bactericide activity against Helicobacter pylori. The aim of this study was to manufacture extracts containing the effective constituent, OVT, and evaluate their bactericidal function and the inhibition of inflammatory responses to Helicobacter pylori infection.

Increasing incidence of nontuberculous mycobacteria, Taiwan, 2000-2008.

To assess the species distribution and epidemiologic trends of nontuberculous mycobacteria, we examined isolates from patients in Taiwan. During 2000-2008, the proportion increased significantly from 32.3% to 49.

Recombination dynamics in CdTe/CdSe type-II quantum dots.

Recombination dynamics in CdTe/CdSe core-shell type-II quantum dots (QDs) has been investigated by time-resolved photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. A very long PL decay time of several hundred nanoseconds has been found at low temperature, which can be rationalized by the spatially separated electrons and holes occurring in a type-II heterostructure. For the temperature dependence of the radiative lifetime, the linewidth and the peak energy of PL spectra show that the recombination of carriers is dominated by delocalized excitons at temperatures below 150 K, while the mixture of delocalized excitons, electrons and holes overwhelms the process at higher temperature.

Assessment of Platelia Aspergillus enzyme immunoassay for the diagnosis of invasive aspergillosis.

Background And Purpose: This study investigated the diagnostic value of Platelia Aspergillus enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for galactomannan (GM) antigen in patients at risk of invasive aspergillosis (IA), and its association with clinical course and outcome.

Methods: A total of 304 blood samples were collected from 189 patients at risk of IA during a 1-year period at a tertiary referral center. Classification of IA was made on the basis of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer case definitions.

Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis: high incidence of disseminated intravascular coagulation in fatal cases.

Background And Purpose: Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is a rarely described finding in invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) with unclear impact on mortality.

Methods: This study included patients with positive cultures of Aspergillus spp. from respiratory specimens, serological evidence of aspergillosis, or lung biopsy findings supporting aspergillosis treated at National Taiwan University Hospital from January 1999 to June 2005.

High glucose-induced apoptosis in human vascular endothelial cells is mediated through NF-kappaB and c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase pathway and prevented by PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway.

Our previous studies demonstrated that high glucose-induced apoptosis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) is mediated by sequential activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and caspase, and prevented by exogenous nitric oxide (NO). In this study we further elucidated the roles of the transcriptional factor NF-kappaB, phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K), Akt and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) in the apoptosis of HUVECs induced by high glucose. The results showed that high glucose-induced apoptosis was significantly enhanced by PI3K inhibitors (wortmannin and LY294002), NOS inhibitor (NG-nitro-arginine methyl ester) and eNOS antisense oligonucleotide.

Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide potentiates spinal glutamatergic sympathoexcitation in anesthetized rats.

Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) is widely expressed in the rat central nervous system, notably in areas involved in control of autonomic and neuroendocrine functions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of CART peptide fragment 55-102, referred to herein as CARTp, by intrathecal injection on blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) before and after intrathecal glutamate in urethane-anesthetized male Sprague-Dawley rats. CARTp (0.

Improved diagnostic testing for ataxia-telangiectasia by immunoblotting of nuclear lysates for ATM protein expression.

The laboratory diagnosis of ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) currently relies upon measurement of serum alphafetoprotein (AFP) and cellular sensitivity to ionizing radiation. A previous report suggests that immunoblotting of whole cell lysates from lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) might be informative for diagnosis. To further evaluate this possibility, and improve sensitivity, we performed immunoblotting for ATM protein on nuclear lysates of 71 consecutive radiosensitive LCLs that were established from patients with clinical features suggestive of A-T.

Excitatory action of lead on rat sympathetic preganglionic neurons in vitro and in vivo.

Lead exposure elicited an increase in blood pressure and was considered to be a cardiovascular risk factor. The involvements of sympathetic nervous system and circulating catecholamines have been implicated in lead-induced hypertension. This study examined the effects of PbCl(2) on sympathetic preganglionic neurons (SPNs) in vitro and in vivo.