Surface Topography Induces and Orients Nematic Swarms of Active Filaments: Considerations for Lab-On-A-Chip Devices.

Surface-bound molecular motors can drive the collective motion of cytoskeletal filaments in the form of nematic bands and polar flocks in reconstituted gliding assays. Although these "swarming transitions" are an emergent property of active filament collisions, they can be controlled and guided by tuning the surface chemistry or topography of the substrate. To date, the impact of surface topography on collective motion in active nematics is only partially understood, with most experimental studies focusing on the escape of a single filament from etched channels.

Dynamic interfaces for contact-time control of colloidal interactions.

Understanding pairwise interactions between colloidal particles out of equilibrium has a profound impact on dynamical processes such as colloidal self assembly. However, traditional colloidal interactions are effectively quasi-static on colloidal timescales and cannot be modulated out of equilibrium. A mechanism to dynamically tune the interactions during colloidal contacts can provide new avenues for self assembly and material design.

Direct measurements of the colloidal Debye force.

Colloids often behave in a manner similar to their counterparts in molecular space and are used as model systems to understand molecular behavior. Here, we study like-charged colloidal attractions between a permanent dipole on an interfacial particle and its induced dipole on a water-immersed particle caused by diffuse layer polarization. We find that the scaling behavior of the measured dipole-induced dipole (D‒I) interaction via optical laser tweezers is in good agreement with that predicted from the molecular Debye interaction.

Quantification of polystyrene microsphere attachment probability at the oil‒water interface using a microfluidic platform.

This study investigates the effects of interparticle interactions and wettability on the particle attachment efficacy to the oil‒water interface. Three types of PS particles with different surface functional groups were examined at varying salt concentrations and the number of particles injected into the interface. Based on the microfluidic method and the surface coverage measurement, we found that the two contributing factors significantly influenced particle attachment efficiency to the interface, while the wettability factor has a major contribution.

High impacts of cultivar and home-cooking practice on the content of free myo-inositol, a bioavailable health-promoting cyclitol, in sweet potato.

Free myo-inositol is a bioavailable form of a cyclitol having various health-promoting activities. The impact of cultivar and home-cooking practice on the content of free myo-inositol in sweet potatoes (12 cultivars grown in 2 different locations) was studied. A GC-MS/MS method following in situ trimethylsilylation was established and validated to determine free myo-inositol.

Retardation of Capillary Force between Janus Particles at the Oil-Water Interface.

Interactions among colloidal particles govern the hierarchical microstructure and its physical properties. Here, optical laser tweezers and Monte Carlo simulations are used to evaluate the effects of azimuthal rotation of Janus particles at the oil-water interface on interparticle interactions. We find that the capillary-induced attractive force between two Janus particles at the interface can be relaxed by azimuthal rotation around the critical separation region, at which the capillary force is ∼0.

Paroxysmal sympathetic hyperactivity concurrent with hypothalamic injury in a patient with intracerebral hemorrhage: A case report.

Background: Paroxysmal sympathetic hyperactivity (PSH) is characterized by exacerbated sympathetic discharge following severe brain injury. Here, we reports a patient diagnosed with PSH after ICH concurrent with hypothalamic injury, as demonstrated by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).

Methods: A 27-year-old man patient was diagnosed with spontaneous intraventricular hemorrhage and intracerebral hemorrhage in both frontal lobes.

Effects of atrial fibrillation on motor outcome in patients with cerebral infarction.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) has been a leading cause of cerebral infarction, but the association with motor outcome after cerebral infarction remains unreported. In this study, we attempted to identify whether AF affects motor outcomes after cerebral infarction.

Methods: Seventy-six patients with a first-incidence cerebral infarction and who completed 6 months of rehabilitation were recruited to this retrospective study.

Sex-related differences in bone metabolism in osteoporosis observational study.

Although the incidence is lower in men than women, osteoporosis remains a significant health issue in men as it may give rise to severe complications if not managed appropriately. As men and women show different biological and social backgrounds, we retrospectively evaluated the differences in the bone metabolism between men and women using bone biomarkers.Bone mineral density (BMD) was determined in all patients using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and analyzing various bone biomarkers such as carboxyl-terminal collagen crosslinks (CTX), osteocalcin (OCT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP).

Myositis ossificans causing ulnar neuropathy: a case report.

Myositis ossificans (MO) can compress peripheral nerves and cause neuropathy. We herein describe a patient with ulnar neuropathy caused by MO at the medial elbow. A 28-year-old man with a drowsy mentality and multiple organ damage following a traffic accident was admitted to our hospital.

Mid-back pain due to a penetrating atherosclerotic aortic ulcer: do not miss the diagnosis-a case report.

In clinical practice, clinicians often meet patients suffering from mid-back pain. One of the possible causes of mid-back pain is penetrating atherosclerotic aortic ulcer (PAU), but the diagnosis is often delayed owing to its low incidence. Here, we report a patient with mid-back pain due to a PAU, who was diagnosed after receiving several procedures for reducing musculoskeletal pain.

Interpretation of interfacial interactions between lenticular particles.

Hypothesis: The geometric features of charged particles at a fluid-fluid interface substantially affect their interfacial configurations and interparticle interactions (electrostatic and capillary forces). Because lenticular particles exhibit both spherical and nonspherical surface characteristics, an investigation of their interfacial phenomena can provide in-depth understanding of the relationship between the configuration and the interactions of these particles at the interface.

Experiments: Three types of lenticular particles are prepared using a seeded emulsion polymerization method.

Janus amphiphilic nanoplatelets as smart colloid surfactants with complementary face-to-face interactions.

We introduce amphiphilic nanoplatelets (ANPLs) that not only have a nanoscale Janus platelet geometry, but can also induce complementary face-to-face interactions among Pickering emulsion droplets. We showed that the ANPLs with such high surface activity can be a promising colloid surfactant enabling smart rheology modification of complex emulsion fluids.

Interactions between polystyrene particles with diameters of several tens to hundreds of micrometers at the oil-water interface.

Hypothesis: The charged spherical colloidal particles at the fluid-fluid interface experience considerably strong and long-ranged electrostatic and capillary interactions. The contribution of capillary force becomes more significant as the particle size increases beyond a certain limit. The relative strengths of the two competing interactions between the spherical polystyrene particles at the oil-water interface are quantified depending on their size.

Direct measurement of electrostatic interactions between poly(methyl methacrylate) microspheres with optical laser tweezers.

In this study, we measured the force of electrostatic interactions between poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) particles dispersed in organic solvent mixtures of cyclohexyl bromide (CHB) and n-decane. Optical laser tweezers were employed to directly measure interactive forces between paired PMMA particles in a CHB medium that contained n-decane in various volume ratios. CHB, having a moderate dielectric constant, provided an environment with a high charge storage capacity.

Mapping Anisotropic and Heterogeneous Colloidal Interactions via Optical Laser Tweezers.

Heterogeneity among particles is an inherent feature that allows nondeterministic prediction of the properties of assembled structures and materials composed of many particles. Here, we report a promising strategy to quantify the heterogeneous and anisotropic interactions between ellipsoid particles using optical laser tweezers. The configuration and separation between two particles at an oil-water interface were optically controlled, and the capillary interaction behaviors were directly observed and measured.

Geometric Effects of Colloidal Particles on Stochastic Interface Adsorption.

The stochastic interface adsorption behaviors of ellipsoid particles were investigated using optical laser tweezers. The particles were brought close to the oil-water interface, attempting to attach forcefully to the interface. Multiple attempts of the particle attachments statistically quantified the dependence of the adsorption probability on the particle aspect ratio.

Heterogeneous Capillary Interactions of Interface-Trapped Ellipsoid Particles Using the Trap-Release Method.

Heterogeneous capillary interactions between ellipsoid particles at the oil-water interface were measured via optical laser tweezers. Two trapped particles were aligned in either tip-to-tip (tt) or side-to-side (ss) configurations via the double-trap method and were released from the optical traps, leading to particle-particle attractions due to the capillary forces caused by quadrupolar interface deformation. On the basis of image analysis and calculations of the Stokes drag force, the capillary interactions between two ellipsoid particles with the same aspect ratio (E) were found to vary with the particle pairs that were measured, indicating that the interactions were nondeterministic or heterogeneous.

Relationships among Disability, Quality of Life, and Physical Fitness in Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: An Investigation of Elderly Korean Women.

Study Design: A cross-sectional, case-control study.

Purpose: To investigate associations between physical fitness measures and disabilities related to back pain and quality of life (QOL) by the presence of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) in elderly Korean women.

Overview Of Literature: LSS leads to decreased functioning and reduced QOL.

Comparison of the effects of acute exercise after overnight fasting and breakfast on energy substrate and hormone levels in obese men.

[Purpose] We compared the effects of acute aerobic exercise following overnight fasting and breakfast on energy substrate and hormone levels in obese male college students. [Subjects and Methods] This crossover study recruited 10 obese male college students with a body mass index >25 kg/m(2) or >20% body fat. One week post-recruitment, the subjects exercised in the morning after an overnight fast.