Down the Dimensionality Lane: Thermal Conductivity Enhancement in Carbon-Based Liquid Dispersions.

Carbon allotropes of different dimensionality, i.e., 1D-carbon nanotubes, 2D-graphene nanoplatelets, and 3D-graphite, possess high thermal conductivity (TC > 2000 W/m K).

Suspected Case of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children Associated With SARS-CoV-2 Infection Presenting as Acute Pancreatitis in a Child With Leukemia.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) associated with SARS-CoV-2 may present with fever, elevated inflammatory markers, and multiorgan involvement. Although the gastrointestinal system is commonly affected in MIS-C patients, associated necrotizing pancreatitis is rare. We present an 11-year-old boy with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia in remission undergoing maintenance chemotherapy presenting with acute necrotizing pancreatitis.

The Nonsurgical Sleep Medicine Physician Role in the Development of an Upper Airway Stimulation Program.

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder in the US and other industrialized countries. Untreated OSA is associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease, cerebrovascular accidents, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, poor workplace productivity, increased health care utilization, and higher risk of motor vehicle accidents. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is a commonly used treatment for OSA.

Longevity of total hip arthroplasty implants in patients with Gaucher disease.

Background: Total hip replacement (THR) is performed for arthritic hip joints, which in Gaucher disease results from osteonecrosis of the femoral head. This procedure was recommended as valid and safe for this group of patients. Nevertheless, long term outcome has not been evaluated in a large cohort.

STAT3-enhancing germline mutations contribute to tumor-extrinsic immune evasion.

Immune evasion and the suppression of antitumor responses during cancer progression are considered hallmarks of cancer and are typically attributed to tumor-derived factors. Although the molecular basis for the crosstalk between tumor and immune cells is an area of active investigation, whether host-specific germline variants can dictate immunosuppressive mechanisms has remained a challenge to address. A commonly occurring germline mutation (c.

Efficacy of formative evaluation using a focus group for a large classroom setting in an accelerated pharmacy program.

Background And Purpose: Formative evaluation is a process utilized to improve communication between students and faculty. This evaluation method allows the ability to address pertinent issues in a timely manner; however, implementation of formative evaluation can be a challenge, especially in a large classroom setting. Using mediated formative evaluation, the purpose of this study is to determine if a student based focus group is a viable option to improve efficacy of communication between an instructor and students as well as time management in a large classroom setting.

Phase retrieval in multicore fiber bundles.

Multicore fiber bundles are widely used in endoscopy due to their miniature size and their direct imaging capabilities. They have recently been used, in combination with spatial light modulators, in various realizations of endoscopy with little or no optics at the distal end. These schemes require characterization of the relative phase offsets between the different cores, typically done using off-axis holography, thus requiring both an interferometric setup and, typically, access to the distal tip.

Extended field-of-view in a lensless endoscope using an aperiodic multicore fiber.

We investigate lensless endoscopy using coherent beam combining and aperiodic multicore fibers (MCF). We show that diffracted orders, inherent to MCF with periodically arranged cores, dramatically reduce the field-of-view (FoV), and that randomness in MCF core positions can increase the FoV up to the diffraction limit set by a single fiber core, while maintaining a MCF experimental feasibility. We demonstrate experimentally pixelation-free lensless endoscopy imaging over a 120 μm FoV with an aperiodic MCF designed with widely spaced cores.

Clinical efficacy of dalbavancin for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI).

Acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) are a common disease causing patients to seek treatment through the health care system. With the continued increase of drug-resistant bacterial pathogens, these infections are becoming more difficult to successfully cure. Lipoglycopeptides have unique properties that allow the drug to remain active toward both common and challenging pathogens at the infected site for lengthy periods of time.

Respiratory Inductance Plethysmography Improved Diagnostic Sensitivity and Specificity of Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Background: Respiratory inductance plethysmography (RIP) is a tool used during a polysomnogram (PSG), which serves as a surrogate of respiratory effort and can help detect inspiratory air-flow limitation. We hypothesize that RIP can improve the sensitivity and specificity of scoring hypopneas when compared with both the recommended and acceptable criteria of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed a cohort of 12 subjects who had no obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) or mild OSA on PSG when scored by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine acceptable criteria for hypopneas but had high clinical suspicion for a diagnosis of OSA.

5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-β-4-ribofuranoside (AICAR) enhances the efficacy of rapamycin in human cancer cells.

mTOR - the mammalian/mechanistic target of rapamycin - has been implicated as a key signaling node for promoting survival of cancer cells. However, clinical trials that have targeted mTOR with rapamycin or rapamycin analogs have had minimal impact. In spite of the high specificity of rapamycin for mTOR, the doses needed to suppress key mTOR substrates have proved toxic.

Ascaroside signaling is widely conserved among nematodes.

Background: Nematodes are among the most successful animals on earth and include important human pathogens, yet little is known about nematode pheromone systems. A group of small molecules called ascarosides has been found to mediate mate finding, aggregation, and developmental diapause in Caenorhabditis elegans, but it is unknown whether ascaroside signaling exists outside of the genus Caenorhabditis.

Results: To determine whether ascarosides are used as signaling molecules by other nematode species, we performed a mass spectrometry-based screen for ascarosides in secretions from a variety of both free-living and parasitic (plant, insect, and animal) nematodes.

[Myocarditis and fibroplastic endocarditis in Wegener's granulomatosis].

The paper describes an autopsy case of Wegener's granulomatosis with a rare variant of a cardiac lesion--the concurrence of aortic valvular disease (aortic regurgitation), fibroplastic endocarditis, and complete transverse blockade, followed by pacemaker implantation. The direct cause of death in the female patient was multiple organ dysfunction: progressive chronic heart failure, adult respiratory distress syndrome, acute hepatorenal failure, and pancreonecrosis. The data available in the Russian and foreign literature on investigations dealing with cardiac pathology in patients with Wegener's granulomatosis are analyzed.

Differential regulation of synapsin phosphorylation by monocular deprivation in juveniles and adults.

The rodent visual cortex retains significant ocular dominance plasticity beyond the traditional postnatal critical period. However, the intracellular mechanisms that underlie the cortical response to monocular deprivation are predicted to be different in juveniles and adults. Here we show monocular deprivation in adult, but not juvenile rats, induced an increase in the phosphorylation of the prominent presynaptic effecter protein synapsin at two key sites known to regulate synapsin function.

Encouraging minority undergraduates to choose science careers: career paths survey results.

To explore the reasons for the dearth of minorities in Ph.D.-level biomedical research and identify opportunities to increase minority participation, we surveyed high-achieving alumni of an undergraduate biology enrichment program for underrepresented minorities.

Etiology and clinical outcome in dogs with aspiration pneumonia: 88 cases (2004-2006).

Objective: To evaluate the number and types of underlying disorders detected in dogs with aspiration pneumonia and determine the survival rate among affected dogs.

Design: Retrospective case series. Animals-88 dogs with aspiration pneumonia.

Clinical, clinicopathologic, and radiographic findings in dogs with aspiration pneumonia: 88 cases (2004-2006).

Objective: To evaluate clinical, clinicopathologic, and radiographic findings in dogs with aspiration pneumonia.

Design: Retrospective case series. Animals-88 dogs with aspiration pneumonia.

[The comparison of laparoscopic and open lymphodissection for gastric cancer].

Lymphodissection for gastric cancer was performed in 174 patients. Among 116 patients, operated traditionally, 58% had cancer stages I and II. 58 patients operated laparoscopically revealed cancer stages I and II in 55.

Biliary cast syndrome following liver transplantation: Predictive factors and clinical outcomes.

Biliary cast syndrome (BCS), the presence of biliary casts and debris causing biliary obstruction, occurs in 4%-18% of orthotopic liver transplant (OLT) recipients. Potential consequences include cholangitis and graft damage or loss. Limited data exist regarding the etiology and outcomes of BCS.

Dissociaton of conditioned eye and limb responses in the cerebellar interpositus.

Thompson and colleagues have demonstrated that the lateral interpositus nucleus of the cerebellum is the essential locus for the classical conditioning of the somatic eyeblink response. Preliminary studies reported that lesioning the cerebellar interpositus nucleus ipsilateral to the side of training also appears to abolish conditioned limb flexion responses. Previous studies have suggested that the interpositus nucleus is somatotopically organized with the eye being represented laterally and the hindlimb medially.