On the Sintering Behavior of NbO and TaO Mixed Oxide Powders.

A mixed oxide system consisting of NbO and TaO was subjected to annealing in air/hydrogen up to 950 °C for 1-4 h to study its sintering behavior. The thermogravimetric-differential scanning calorimetry (TGA-DSC) thermograms indicated the formation of multiple endothermic peaks at temperatures higher than 925 °C. Subsequently, a 30% TaO and 70% NbO (mol%) pellet resulted in good sintering behavior at both 900 and 950 °C.

Median Nerve and Carpal Tunnel Morphology Before and After Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release: A 6-Year Follow-up Study.

Background: Our purpose was to describe structural and morphological features of the median nerve and carpal tunnel on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies obtained before, immediately after, 6 weeks after, and 6 years after endoscopic carpal tunnel release (ECTR).

Methods: In this prospective cohort study, 9 patients with a diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) underwent ECTR. Standardized MRI studies were obtained before ECTR, immediately after ECTR, and 6 weeks and 6 years after surgery.

Medial Epicondyle Nonunions in Children: Case Report With Overview and Management.

Up to 90% of medial epicondyle fractures treated with conservative measures result in nonunion. However, only 21% become symptomatic. The current case review discusses the history and treatment of a symptomatic medial epicondyle nonunion in a 14-year-old over a 2-year period.

Social and academic integration strategies for retention of nursing students: a scoping review protocol.

The review question is: what are the types of formal and informal social and academic integration strategies that have been explored to influence nursing student persistence and increase retention in nursing programs? A secondary review objective is to address how the described strategies have specifically been implemented with minority nursing students.

Tracheobronchial foreign body aspiration in laryngectomized patient with tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis.

A patient with a total laryngectomy and tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis presented with tracheobronchial aspiration of a Phillips-head screw that was swallowed inadvertently and aspirated around a loose-fitting prosthesis. A modified esophagram showed a screw in the right lung and free leakage of barium from the cervical esophagus around the prosthesis into the tracheobronchial tree. Chest radiographs and CT confirmed a screw in a right lower lobe bronchus with postobstructive pneumonia.

Celiomesenteric and hepatosplenomesenteric trunks: characterization of two rare vascular anomalies with CT.

Objective: The purpose of this retrospective investigation is to characterize and illustrate the appearances of celiomesenteric trunk (CMT) and hepatosplenomesenteric trunk (HSMT) using CT with three-dimensional volume-rendering with attention to the proximal branching patterns. We also correlate our results with an embryologic model and assess the accuracy of radiologists in recognizing these entities.

Methods: CT studies on 36 adult subjects with CMT and 10 with HSMT were analyzed to determine the proximal branching patterns and lengths of the common vascular trunks.

Berengario's drill: origin and inspiration.

Craniotomies are among the oldest neurosurgical procedures, as evidenced by early human skulls discovered with holes in the calvaria. Though devices change, the principles to safely transgress the skull are identical. Modern neurosurgeons regularly use electric power drills in the operating theater; however, nonelectric trephining instruments remain trusted by professionals in certain emergent settings in the rare instance that an electric drill is unavailable.

IL-4-induced Stat6 activities affect apoptosis and gene expression in breast cancer cells.

IL-4-induced Stat6 signaling is active in a variety of cell types, including immune cells and cancer cells, and plays an important role in the regulation of gene expression. Using EMSA gel shift assay and an antibody to Stat6, we phenotyped two breast cancer cell lines, ZR-75-1 being active Stat6(high) phenotype and BT-20 being defective Stat6(null) phenotype, respectively. Breast cancer cells carrying Stat6(null) phenotype exhibited increased spontaneous apoptosis compared with those carrying Stat6(high) phenotype.

Duodenal HFE expression and hepcidin levels determine body iron homeostasis: modulation by genetic diversity and dietary iron availability.

HFE affects the interaction of transferrin bound iron with transferrin receptors (TfR) thereby modulating iron uptake. To study genetically determined differences in HFE expression we examined individual HFE levels in C57BL/Sv129 mice and assessed their relationship to the regulation of iron homeostasis in the duodenum and the liver, and their regulation by diet. We found an up to 14-fold variation in inter-individual expression of HFE mRNA in the duodenum.

High-throughput non-heme iron assay for animal tissues.

Iron has been widely studied in nearly every realm of biology. However, current methodologies, such as genetic mapping or mutation screening, have been difficult to apply due to the lack of robust high-throughput methods for quantifying iron levels from cells or tissues. The measurement of total iron levels in tissues, usually done with atomic absorption spectroscopy, is impractical for large numbers of samples and includes the contribution of heme iron from hemoglobin contained in red blood cells.

Human B lymphoblast cell lines defective of Stat6 signaling produce high levels of proinflammatory cytokines IL-12, TNFalpha and IFNgamma.

Based on Stat6 gene knockout animal models, the Stat6 signaling pathway has been suggested to play a role in carcinogenesis and Th1/Th2 cytokine balance. Using a semiquantitative EMSA assay and EBV-transformed human B lymphoblast cell lines, we have previously identified three Stat6 activational phenotypes, termed as Stat6high, Stat6low, and Stat6null. A genetic mechanism has been proposed which determines the IL-4-induced activation of the human Stat6 signaling.

Phenotyping of IL4-induced nuclear Stat6 activity in humans: quantitation after gel shift assay using immortalized cell lines.

The IL4-induced Stat6 signaling pathway is active in a variety of cell types, including different cancer cells, and plays an important role in the regulation of gene expression, such as CD23. There are large quantitative differences in DNA-binding activity of IL4-induced Stat6, which are useful for phenotyping activated Stat6 in normal and disease status. However, quantitation of activated Stat6 is challenging and a standardized methodology is needed.

CD1d-expressing dendritic cells but not thymic epithelial cells can mediate negative selection of NKT cells.

Natural killer T (NKT) cells are a unique immunoregulatory T cell population that is positively selected by CD1d-expressing thymocytes. Previous studies have shown that NKT cells exhibit autoreactivity, which raises the question of whether they are subject to negative selection. Here, we report that the addition of agonist glycolipid alpha-galactosylceramide (alpha-GalCer) to a fetal thymic organ culture (FTOC) induces a dose-dependent disappearance of NKT cells, suggesting that NKT cells are susceptible to negative selection.

The enigmatic role of the hemochromatosis protein (HFE) in iron absorption.

The HFE gene, a member of the class-I transplantation antigen gene family, is responsible for hereditary hemochromatosis, one of the most common inherited diseases in individuals of European descent. Patients exhibit predictable changes in iron homeostasis, including elevations in both transferrin saturation and serum ferritin levels. A subset of patients progress to overt clinical sequelae, resulting from iron overload.

Genetic control of interleukin-4-induced activation of the human signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 signaling pathway.

The interleukin (IL)-4-induced Stat6 signaling pathway is active in a variety of cell types, including immune cells and cancer cells, and plays an important role in the regulation of gene expression, such as CD23 and major histocompatibility complex class II. Using a semiquantitative gel shift assay in which nuclear Stat6 activities were scored, three Stat6 activation phenotypes were defined as Stat6(high) (intense banding), Stat6(low) (medium intensity banding), and Stat6(null) (very low to no discernible banding). These Stat6 phenotypes correlated well with levels of CD23 expression, but not with those of human leukocyte antigen-DR cell-surface display.

Hemochromatosis protein (HFE) and tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNFR2) influence tissue iron levels: elements of a common gut pathway?

Quantitative genetic analysis of hepatic and splenic iron levels in recombinant inbred mice yielded a quantitative trait locus that was found to coincide with the genomic locale encompassing the tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 gene (Tnfr2). When fed an iron-enriched diet, mice nullizygous with respect to Tnfr2, but not the Tnfr1 gene, showed a significant increase in splenic non-heme iron levels. This result contrasted with mice deficient in the hemochromatosis protein, HFE, which demonstrated a significant increase in normally high hepatic iron levels, but no change in splenic iron, when fed an iron-enriched chow.

Is hemochromatosis a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease?

Excess iron accumulation in the brain is a consistent observation in Alzheimer's Disease. Iron affects amyloid precursor protein (AbetaPP) processing and promotes deposition of Abeta. Iron is also among the most potent biological toxins because of its ability to react with oxygen to form reactive oxygen species.

Genetic differences in hepatic lipid peroxidation potential and iron levels in mice.

Oxidative damage to macromolecules, including lipids, has been hypothesized as a mechanism of aging. One end product of lipid peroxidation, malondialdehyde (MDA), is often quantified as a measure of oxidative damage to lipids. We used a commercial colorimetric assay for MDA (Bioxytech LPO-586, Oxis International, Portland, OR) to measure lipid peroxidation potential in liver tissue from young (2 month) male mice from recombinant inbred (RI) mouse strains from the C57BL/6J (B6)xDBA/2J (D2) series (BXD).

Vibrio vulnificus septicemia in a patient with the hemochromatosis HFE C282Y mutation.

Vibrio vulnificus is an extremely invasive gram-negative bacillus found in marine waters that causes overwhelming bacteremia and shock that is associated with high mortality. Impaired iron metabolism has been implicated in the susceptibility to V vulnificus bacterial infections. We report a case of fatal V vulnificus sepsis in a 56-year-old man who died within 1 to 3 days after consuming raw seafood.

Cd1d-restricted cellular lysis by peripheral blood lymphocytes: relevance to the inflammatory bowel diseases.

The CD1d molecule has been implicated to play a role in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), possibly through its presentation of an intestinal antigen trigger. To understand the role of the CD1d class I-like protein in IBD, we investigated the molecule's expression in diseased intestinal tissue and determined its potential to undergo specific recognition by intraepithelial and peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) derived from IBD patients. We have observed an increase in precipitable CD1d in inflamed tissues, which suggests CD1d up-regulation in IBD; this was not accompanied by the occurrence of CD1d-specific cytotoxicity by lymphocytes isolated from the same tissue sites.