Impaired Sensitivity to Thyroid Hormones is Associated with Central Obesity in Euthyroid Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients with Overweight and Obesity.

Background: Thyroid hormone levels are associated with the distribution of body components in humans.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the associations between thyroid hormone (TH) levels, central sensitivity to THs, and body composition in overweight and obese patients with euthyroid type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1215 euthyroid T2DM patients (721 men and 494 women) aged 20-80 years.

Single-cell transcriptomes of kidneys in a 6-month-old boy with Denys-Drash syndrome reveal stromal cell heterogeneity in the tumor microenvironment.

Background: Denys-Drash syndrome (DDS) is a rare disease characterized with pseudohermaphroditism, nephroblastoma (also known as Wilms tumor), and diffuse mesangial sclerosis. The therapy for DDS is largely supportive, i.e.

Magneto-optical nonreciprocity without chirality: Archimedean spirals on InSb.

We report the observation of magneto-optical nonreciprocity in Faraday geometry in a hybrid metamaterial consisting of an Archimedean spiral metasurface and semiconductor InSb that serves as the magneto-optical medium. None of the metamaterial constituents possesses chirality, which is usually a necessary ingredient for optical nonreciprocity in natural materials when the light travels along the magnetic field direction. We also find that our metamaterial can serve as an optical element for polarization control via magnetic field.

Smilax glabra Roxb. flavonoids protect against pathological cardiac hypertrophy by inhibiting the Raf/MEK/ERK pathway: In vivo and in vitro studies.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Smilax glabra Roxb., the dry rhizome of Sarsaparilla, which is also known as Tu fuling (TFL) in China, is a well-known traditional CHINESE medicine that is widely used for detoxication, relieving dampness and as a diuretic. We have previously shown that the extracted TFL flavonoids (designated TFLF) possess anti-cardiac hypertrophy effects in vitro.

Nonreciprocal Fabry-Perot effect and performance enhancement in a magneto-optical InSb-based Faraday terahertz isolator.

The Faraday effect due to the cyclotron resonance of conduction electrons in semiconductor InSb allows for nonreciprocity of transmitted light in our Faraday THz isolator operating in the presence of a small magnetic field. We select InSb as an efficient medium for our isolator due to its high electron mobility, low electron effective mass, and narrow band gap. Experimental measurements of the isolator performance indicate a maximum achieved isolation power of 18.

High-Efficiency and Wide-Angle Versatile Polarization Controller Based on Metagratings.

Metamaterials with their customized properties enable us to efficiently manipulate the polarization states of electromagnetic waves with flexible approaches, which is of great significance in various realms. However, most current metamaterial-based polarization controllers can only realize single function, which has extremely hindered the expansion of their applications. Here, we experimentally demonstrate highly efficient and multifunctional polarization conversion effects using metagrating by integrating single-structure metallic meta-atoms into the dielectric gratings.

Fabry-Perot cavity resonance enabling highly polarization-sensitive double-layer gold grating.

We present experimental and theoretical investigations on the polarization properties of a single- and a double-layer gold (Au) grating, serving as a wire grid polarizer. Two layers of Au gratings form a cavity that effectively modulates the transmission and reflection of linearly polarized light. Theoretical calculations based on a transfer matrix method reveals that the double-layer Au grating structure creates an optical cavity exhibiting Fabry-Perot (FP) resonance modes.

Broadband angle- and permittivity-insensitive nondispersive optical activity based on planar chiral metamaterials.

Because of the strong inherent resonances, the giant optical activity obtained via chiral metamaterials generally suffers from high dispersion, which has been a big stumbling block to broadband applications. In this paper, we propose a type of planar chiral metamaterial consisting of interconnected metal helix slat structures with four-fold symmetry, which exhibits nonresonant Drude-like response and can therefore avoid the highly dispersive optical activity resulting from resonances. It shows that the well-designed chiral metamaterial can achieve nondispersive and pure optical activity with high transmittance in a broadband frequency range.

Metamaterial Perfect Absorber Analyzed by a Meta-cavity Model Consisting of Multilayer Metasurfaces.

We demonstrate that the metamaterial perfect absorber behaves as a meta-cavity bounded between a resonant metasurface and a metallic thin-film reflector. The perfect absorption is achieved by the Fabry-Perot cavity resonance via multiple reflections between the "quasi-open" boundary of resonator and the "close" boundary of reflector. The characteristic features including angle independence, ultra-thin thickness and strong field localization can be well explained by this meta-cavity model.

Giant THz surface plasmon polariton induced by high-index dielectric metasurface.

We use computational approaches to explore the role of a high-refractive-index dielectric TiO grating with deep subwavelength thickness on InSb as a tunable coupler for THz surface plasmons. We find a series of resonances as the grating couples a normally-incident THz wave to standing surface plasmon waves on both thin and thick InSb layers. In a marked contrast with previously-explored metallic gratings, we observe the emergence of a much stronger additional resonance.

A Low-loss Metasurface Antireflection Coating on Dispersive Surface Plasmon Structure.

Over the years, there has been increasing interest in the integration of metal hole array (MHA) with optoelectronic devices, as a result of enhanced coupling of incident light into the active layer of devices via surface plasmon polariton (SPP) resonances. However, not all incident light contributes to the SPP resonances due to significant reflection loss at the interface between incident medium and MHA. Conventional thin-film antireflection (AR) coating typically does not work well due to non-existing material satisfying the AR condition with strong dispersion of MHA's effective impedances.

Thin InSb layers with metallic gratings: a novel platform for spectrally-selective THz plasmonic sensing.

We present a computational study of terahertz optical properties of a grating-coupled plasmonic structure based on micrometer-thin InSb layers. We find two strong absorption resonances that we interpret as standing surface plasmon modes and investigate their dispersion relations, dependence on InSb thickness, and the spatial distribution of the electric field. The observed surface plasmon modes are well described by a simple theory of the air/InSb/air tri-layer.

CT perfusion imaging of the stomach: a quantitative analysis according to different degrees of adenocarcinoma cell differentiation.

Objectives: To evaluate clinical usefulness of computed tomography perfusion imaging (CTPI) in gastric cancer.

Materials And Methods: Twenty subjects without gastric diseases (control group) and fifty patients with gastric cancer were studied prospectively using CTPI examinations. Four perfusion parameter values, i.

A facile and mild synthesis of trisubstituted allylic sulfones from Morita-Baylis-Hillman carbonates.

An efficient and catalyst-free synthesis of trisubstituted allylic sulfones through an allylic sulfonylation reaction of Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) carbonates with sodium sulfinates has been developed. Under the optimized reaction conditions, a series of trisubstituted allylic sulfones were rapidly prepared in good to excellent yields (71%-99%) with good to high selectivity (Z/E from 79:21 to >99:1). Compared with known synthetic methods, the current protocol features mild reaction temperature, high efficiency and easily available reagents.

Enhanced transmission due to antireflection coating layer at surface plasmon resonance wavelengths.

We present experiments and analysis on enhanced transmission due to dielectric layer deposited on a metal film perforated with two-dimensional periodic array of subwavelength holes. The Si3N4 overlayer is applied on the perforated gold film (PGF) fabricated on GaAs substrate in order to boost the transmission of light at the surface plasmon polariton (SPP) resonance wavelengths in the mid- and long-wave IR regions, which is used as the antireflection (AR) coating layer between two dissimilar media (air and PGF/GaAs). It is experimentally shown that the transmission through the perforated gold film with 1.

Analysis of subwavelength metal hole array structure for the enhancement of back-illuminated quantum dot infrared photodetectors.

This paper is focused on analyzing the impact of a two-dimensional metal hole array structure integrated to the back-illuminated quantum dots-in-a-well (DWELL) infrared photodetectors. The metal hole array consisting of subwavelength-circular holes penetrating gold layer (2D-Au-CHA) provides the enhanced responsivity of DWELL infrared photodetector at certain wavelengths. The performance of 2D-Au-CHA is investigated by calculating the absorption of active layer in the DWELL structure using a finite integration technique.

Photoinduced handedness switching in terahertz chiral metamolecules.

Switching the handedness, or the chirality, of a molecule is of great importance in chemistry and biology, as molecules of different handedness exhibit dramatically different physiological properties and pharmacological effects. Here we experimentally demonstrate handedness switching in metamaterials, a new class of custom-designed composites with deep subwavelength building blocks, in response to external optical stimuli. The metamolecule monolayer flips the ellipticity and rotates the polarization angle of light in excess of 10° under optical excitation, a much stronger electromagnetic effect than that of naturally available molecules.

Tailored resonator coupling for modifying the terahertz metamaterial response.

We experimentally and numerically study the nature of coupling between laterally paired terahertz metamaterial split-ring resonators. Coupling is shown to modify the inductive-capacitive (LC) resonances resulting in either red or blue-shifting. Results indicate that tuning of the electric and magnetic coupling parameters may be accomplished not by changing the orientation or density of SRRs, but by a design modification at the unit cell level.

Dirac dynamics in one-dimensional graphene-like plasmonic crystals: pseudo-spin, chirality, and diffraction anomaly.

We introduce a new class of plasmonic crystals possessing graphene-like internal symmetries and Dirac-type spectrum in k-space. We study dynamics of surface plasmon polaritons supported in the plasmonic crystals by employing the formalism of Dirac dynamics for relativistic quantum particles. Through an analogy with graphene, we introduce a concept of pseudo-spin and chirality to indicate built-in symmetry of the plasmonic crystals near Dirac point.

Antireflection coating using metamaterials and identification of its mechanism.

We present a novel approach of antireflection coating using metamaterials. It dramatically reduces the reflection and greatly enhances the transmission near a specifically designed frequency over a wide range of incidence angles for both transverse magnetic and transverse electric polarizations. A classical interference mechanism is identified through analytical derivations and numerical simulations.

Coupling effect between two adjacent chiral structure layers.

A pair of mutually twisted metallic cross-wires can produce giant optical activity. When this single chiral layer is stacked layer by layer in order to build a thick chiral metamaterial, strong coupling effects are found between the two adjacent chiral layers. We studied these coupling effects numerically and experimentally.

Bi-layer cross chiral structure with strong optical activity and negative refractive index.

The properties of periodic pairs of mutually twisted metallic (silver) crosses separated by dielectric layer have been investigated by numerical simulation. The results show that the exceptionally strong polarization rotation and circular dichroism, negative permeability and negative refractive index are found at the infrared communication wavelength (1.55 microm).

Nonlinear properties of split-ring resonators.

In this letter, the properties of split-ring resonators (SRRs) loaded with high-Q capacitors and nonlinear varactors are theoretically analyzed and experimentally measured. We demonstrate that the resonance frequency f(m) of the nonlinear SRRs can be tuned by increasing the incident power. f(m) moves to lower and higher frequencies for the SRR loaded with one varactor and two back-to-back varactors, respectively.

An efficient way to reduce losses of left-handed metamaterials.

We propose a simple and effective way to reduce the losses in left-handed metamaterials by manipulating the values of the effective parameters R, L, and C. We investigate the role of losses of the short-wire pairs and the fishnet structures. Increasing the effective inductance to capacitance ratio, L/C, reduces the losses and the figure of merit can increase substantially, especially at THz frequencies and in the optical regime.

Antisense-Snail transfer inhibits tumor metastasis by inducing E-cadherin expression.

Carcinoma cell metastasis is mediated by increased mobility and invasiveness via epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Snail, a zinc-finger transcription factor, triggers EMT by directly repressing E-cadherin expression. In this study, the correlation between E-cadherin and Snail expression was investigated.