Realizing Tao-Thouless-like state in fractional quantum spin Hall effect.

The quest for exotic quantum states of matter has become one of the most challenging tasks in modern condensed matter communications. Interplay between topology and strong electron-electron interactions leads to lots of fascinating effects since the discovery of the fractional quantum Hall effect. Here, we theoretically study the Rashba-type spin-orbit coupling effect on a fractional quantum spin Hall system by means of finite size exact diagonalization.

Within-litter variation in birth weight: impact of nutritional status in the sow.

Accompanying the beneficial improvement in litter size from genetic selection for high-prolificacy sows, within-litter variation in birth weight has increased with detrimental effects on post-natal growth and survival due to an increase in the proportion of piglets with low birth-weight. Causes of within-litter variation in birth weight include breed characteristics that affect uterine space, ovulation rate, degree of maturation of oocytes, duration of time required for ovulation, interval between ovulation and fertilization, uterine capacity for implantation and placentation, size and efficiency of placental transport of nutrients, communication between conceptus/fetus and maternal systems, as well as nutritional status and environmental influences during gestation. Because these factors contribute to within-litter variation in birth weight, nutritional status of the sow to improve fetal-placental development must focus on the following three important stages in the reproductive cycle: pre-mating or weaning to estrus, early gestation and late gestation.

Serum citrulline levels correlate with enteral tolerance and bowel length in infants with short bowel syndrome.

Objective: To determine if serum levels of CIT (a nonprotein amino acid synthesized by the intestine) correlate with total parenteral nutrition (PN)-independence in children with short bowel syndrome (SBS).

Study Design: We prospectively obtained serum amino acid profiles over a 24-month interval from all infants with SBS 3 weeks to 4 years of age. Remaining small intestine length was recorded at surgery, and percent enteral calories tolerated (enteral calories divided by enteral plus parenteral calories x 100) was determined in 24 infants with SBS and 21 age-matched controls (blood drawn for non-gastrointestinal symptoms).