Tunable Intervalence Charge Transfer in Ruthenium Prussian Blue Analog Enables Stable and Efficient Biocompatible Artificial Synapses.

Emerging concepts for neuromorphic computing, bioelectronics, and brain-computer interfacing inspire new research avenues aimed at understanding the relationship between oxidation state and conductivity in unexplored materials. This report expands the materials playground for neuromorphic devices to include a mixed valence inorganic 3D coordination framework, a ruthenium Prussian blue analog (RuPBA), for flexible and biocompatible artificial synapses that reversibly switch conductance by more than four orders of magnitude based on electrochemically tunable oxidation state. The electrochemically tunable degree of mixed valency and electronic coupling between N-coordinated Ru sites controls the carrier concentration and mobility, as supported by density functional theory computations and application of electron transfer theory to in situ spectroscopy of intervalence charge transfer.

ECRAM Materials, Devices, Circuits and Architectures: A Perspective.

Non-von-Neumann computing using neuromorphic systems based on two-terminal resistive nonvolatile memory elements has emerged as a promising approach, but its full potential has not been realized due to the lack of materials and devices with the appropriate attributes. Unlike memristors, which require large write currents to drive phase transformations or filament growth, electrochemical random access memory (ECRAM) decouples the "write" and "read" operations using a "gate" electrode to tune the conductance state through charge-transfer reactions, and every electron transferred through the external circuit in ECRAM corresponds to the migration of ≈1 ion used to store analogue information. Like static dopants in traditional semiconductors, electrochemically inserted ions modulate the conductivity by locally perturbing a host's electronic structure; however, ECRAM does so in a dynamic and reversible manner.

Educating the Future Environmental Health Workforce During COVID-19: Developing a Virtual Curriculum for Navajo Student Interns Using the Environmental Health and Land Reuse Certificate Program.

Beginning in 2016, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) launched a partnership to create a free online course with the goal of building capacity within communities to help remediate and redevelop brownfields sites. Brownfields are land reuse sites often contaminated by harmful chemicals or redeveloped without proper environmental oversight. Due to their potentially hazardous status, brownfields sites can lead to harmful exposures in humans while accentuating and often exacerbating socioeconomic disparities within their communities.

Electrochemical Synthesis of Individual Core@Shell and Hollow Ag/AgS Nanoparticles.

This letter presents an electrochemical methodology for structure-tunable synthesis, characterization, and kinetic monitoring of metal-semiconductor phase transformations at individual Ag nanoparticles. In the presence of HS in aqueous solution, the stochastic collision and adsorption of Ag nanoparticles at a Au microelectrode initiates the partial anodic transformation of Ag to AgS at each particle. A single continuous current transient is observed for each Ag nanoparticle reacted.

Single Ag nanoparticle collisions within a dual-electrode micro-gap cell.

An adjustable width (between 600 nm and 20 μm) gap between two Au microelectrodes is used to probe the electrodissolution dynamics of single Ag nanoparticles. One Au microelectrode is used to drive the oxidation and subsequent dissolution of a single Ag nanoparticle, which displays a multi-peak oxidation behavior, while a second Au microelectrode is used to collect the Ag+ that is produced. Careful analysis of the high temporal resolution current-time traces reveals capacitive coupling between electrodes due to the sudden injection of Ag+ ions into the gap between the electrodes.

Collision Dynamics during the Electrooxidation of Individual Silver Nanoparticles.

Recent high-bandwidth recordings of the oxidation and dissolution of 35 nm radius Ag nanoparticles at a Au microelectrode show that these nanoparticles undergo multiple collisions with the electrode, generating multiple electrochemical current peaks. In the time interval between observed current peaks, the nanoparticles diffuse in the solution near the electrolyte/electrode interface. Here, we demonstrate that simulations of random nanoparticle motion, coupled with electrochemical kinetic parameters, quantitatively reproduce the experimentally observed multicurrent peak behavior.

Electrocatalytic amplification of DNA-modified nanoparticle collisions enzymatic digestion.

We report a new and general approach that will be useful for adapting the method of electrocatalytic amplification (ECA) to biosensing applications. In ECA, individual collisions of catalytic nanoparticles with a noncatalytic electrode surface lead to bursts of current. In the work described here, the current arises from catalytic electrooxidation of NH at the surface of platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs).

Observation of Multipeak Collision Behavior during the Electro-Oxidation of Single Ag Nanoparticles.

The dynamic collision behavior of the electro-oxidation of single Ag nanoparticles is observed at Au microelectrodes using stochastic single-nanoparticle collision amperometry. Results show that an Ag nanoparticle collision/oxidation event typically consists of a series of 1 to ∼10 discrete "sub-events" over an ∼20 ms interval. Results also show that the Ag nanoparticles typically undergo only partial oxidation prior to diffusing away from the Au electrode into the bulk solution.

Addressing Colloidal Stability for Unambiguous Electroanalysis of Single Nanoparticle Impacts.

Herein the problem of colloidal instability on electrochemically detected nanoparticle (NP) collisions with a Hg ultramicroelectrode (UME) by electrocatalytic amplification is addressed. NP tracking analysis (NTA) shows that rapid aggregation occurs in solution after diluting citrate-stabilized Pt NPs with hydrazine/phosphate buffers of net ionic strength greater than 70 mM. Colloidal stability improves by lowering the ionic strength, indicating that aggregation processes were strongly affected by charge screening of the NP double layer interactions at high cation concentrations.

Increasing the Collision Rate of Particle Impact Electroanalysis with Magnetically Guided Pt-Decorated Iron Oxide Nanoparticles.

An integrated microfluidic/magnetophoretic methodology was developed for improving signal response time and detection limits for the chronoamperometric observation of discrete nanoparticle/electrode interactions by electrocatalytic amplification. The strategy relied on Pt-decorated iron oxide nanoparticles which exhibit both superparamagnetism and electrocatalytic activity for the oxidation of hydrazine. A wet chemical synthetic approach succeeded in the controlled growth of Pt on the surface of FeO/Fe3O4 core/shell nanocubes, resulting in highly uniform Pt-decorated iron oxide hybrid nanoparticles with good dispersibility in water.

Electronic coupling between ligand and core energy states in dithiolate-monothiolate stabilized Au clusters.

Electron transfer activities of metal clusters are fundamentally significant and have promising potential in catalysis, charge or energy storage, sensing, biomedicine and other applications. Strong resonance coupling between the metal core energy states and the ligand molecular orbitals has not been established experimentally, albeit exciting progress has been achieved in the composition and structure determination of these types of nanomaterials recently. In this report, the coupling between core and ligand energy states is demonstrated by the rich electron transfer activities of Au130 clusters.

Dose-escalated Hypofractionated Intensity-modulated Radiation Therapy With Concurrent Chemotherapy for Inoperable or Unresectable Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Purpose: The local control of inoperable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using standard radiotherapy (RT) doses is inadequate. Dose escalation is a potential strategy to improve the local control for patients with NSCLC; however, the optimal dose required for local control in this setting is unknown.

Methods And Materials: Patients with unresectable or inoperable stage II/III NSCLC with ECOG≤1 received 48 Gy in 20 daily fractions using intensity-modulated radiotherapy, followed by 1 of 3 boost dose levels: 16.

Electrochemical monitoring of single nanoparticle collisions at mercury-modified platinum ultramicroelectrodes.

Here, we report a potentiometric method for detecting single platinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) by measuring a change in open-circuit potential (OCP) instead of the current during single Pt NP collisions with the mercury-modified Pt ultramicroelectrode (Hg/Pt UME). Similar to the current-time (i-t) response reported previously at Hg/Pt UMEs, the OCP-time (v-t) response consists of repeated potential transient signals that return to the background level. This is because Hg poisons the Pt NP after collision with the Hg/Pt UME due to amalgamation and results in deactivation of the redox reaction.

Vilazodone in the treatment of major depressive disorder: efficacy across symptoms and severity of depression.

Vilazodone is a potent selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and serotonin 1A receptor partial agonist approved for the treatment of major depressive disorder in adults. To assess the efficacy of vilazodone across a range of symptoms and severities of depression, data from two phase III, 8-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials were pooled for analysis. Overall improvement in depressive symptoms measured using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale was statistically significant (P<0.

Influence of the redox indicator reaction on single-nanoparticle collisions at mercury- and bismuth-modified Pt ultramicroelectrodes.

Single-Pt nanoparticles (NPs) can be detected electrochemically by measuring the current-time (i-t) response associated with both hydrazine oxidation and proton reduction during individual Pt NP collisions with noncatalytic Hg- and Bi-modified Pt ultramicroelectrodes (Hg/Pt and Bi/Pt UMEs, respectively). At Hg/Pt UMEs, the i-t response for both hydrazine oxidation and proton reduction consists of repeated current "spikes" that return to the background level as Hg poisons the Pt NP after collision with the Hg/Pt UME due to amalgamation and deactivation of the redox reaction. Furthermore, at a Hg/Pt UME, the applied potential directly influences the interfacial surface tension (electrocapillarity) that also impacts the observed i-t response for single-Pt NP collisions for proton reduction that exhibits a faster decay of current (0.

Phase I, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multiple intravenous, dose-ascending study of sirukumab in cutaneous or systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: We undertook a 2-part, phase I, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the safety and pharmacokinetics of multiple intravenous infusions of sirukumab, a human anti-interleukin-6 monoclonal antibody, in patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: In part A, patients with histologically confirmed CLE were randomized to 4 infusions of placebo or 1, 4, or 10 mg/kg sirukumab every 2 weeks. In part B, SLE patients diagnosed according to American College of Rheumatology criteria with a score of 5-12 on the Safety of Estrogens in Lupus Erythematosus National Assessment version of the SLE Disease Activity Index were randomized to 4 infusions of placebo or 10 mg/kg sirukumab every 2 weeks.

Pain questionnaire performance in advanced prostate cancer: comparative results from two international clinical trials.

Purpose: To compare pain assessment questionnaires commonly used in advanced prostate cancer trials and to determine the psychometric characteristics and longitudinal relationships by contrasting questionnaire data from two international phase 2 trials.

Methods: Scores from the Present Pain Intensity (PPI) question of the McGill Pain Questionnaire, the pain intensity scale of the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Prostate (FACT-P) were analyzed using Pearson correlation, intraclass correlation coefficient, and Cronbach's α, respectively. Concordance was evaluated with Cohen's kappa coefficient and McNemar test at baseline (n = 224) and two subsequent observations.

Ultrasensitive electroanalytical tool for detecting, sizing, and evaluating the catalytic activity of platinum nanoparticles.

Here we describe a very simple, reliable, low-cost electrochemical approach to detect single nanoparticles (NPs) and evaluate NP size distributions and catalytic activity in a fast and reproducible manner. Single NPs are detected through an increase in current caused by electrocatalytic oxidation of N(2)H(4) at the surface of the NP when it contacts a Hg-modified Pt ultramicroelectrode (Hg/Pt UME). Once the NP contacts the Hg/Pt UME, Hg poisons the Pt NP, deactivating the N(2)H(4) oxidation reaction.

Aspirin administration by emergency medical dispatchers using a protocol-driven aspirin diagnostic and instruction tool.

Background: The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association recommend early aspirin administration to patients with symptoms of acute coronary syndrome (ACS)/acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The primary objective of this study was to determine if Emergency Medical Dispatchers (EMD) can provide chest pain/heart attack patients with standardised instructions effectively, using an aspirin diagnostic and instruction tool (ADxT) within the Medical Priority Dispatch System (MPDS) before arrival of an emergency response crew.

Methods: This retrospective study involved three dispatch centres in the UK and USA.

The Relationship between Pulmonary Dysfunction and Age in Vasospasm Patients Receiving Triple H Therapy.

Background And Introduction: Triple H therapy is conventionally used to treat vasospasm following sub-arachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) but can sometimes have side effects. In order to investigate pulmonary complications in SAH patients and relationship with age we conducted the following study.

Methods: The charts of 121 sub-arachnoid hemorrhage patients who underwent clipping or coiling of an aneurysm were retrospectively reviewed.

Health-related quality of life among patients with metastatic melanoma: results from an international phase 2 multicenter study.

Clinical and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) information was analyzed to determine: (a) patient-reported signs, symptoms, and functioning, (b) HRQoL questionnaire psychometrics, and (c) treatment impact on HRQoL. Data from the Melanoma Subscale (MS) of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Melanoma and the worst pain question from the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) were taken from a clinical trial evaluating intetumumab alone or with dacarbazine in Stage IV metastatic melanoma. Descriptive statistics examined patient-reported disease burden at baseline.

Mixed dithiolate durene-DT and monothiolate phenylethanethiolate protected Au130 nanoparticles with discrete core and core-ligand energy states.

A new type of gold nanoparticle with interesting energetics has been created by employing a mixture of dithiol durene (Durene-DT) and monothiol phenylethanethiol (PhC2S) in the synthesis. The average composition of these mixed thiolate clusters is characterized to be Au(130)(Durene-DT)(29)(PhC2S)(22). Continuous quantized core charging behaviors were observed at lower potentials in voltammetric measurements, while ligand reaction and core-ligand interactions were observed at higher potentials.

A 1-year, open-label study assessing the safety and tolerability of vilazodone in patients with major depressive disorder.

Vilazodone, a selective serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitor and 5-HT(1A) receptor partial agonist, was efficacious in two 8-week placebo-controlled studies in adults with major depressive disorder. This open-label, multicenter study assessed the long-term safety of vilazodone. Adult patients with a 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression score of 18 or greater received vilazodone according to a fixed-titration schedule to reach a dose of 40 mg/d continued up to 1 year.