Suspended membranes of monatomic graphene exhibit great potential for applications in electronic and nanoelectromechanical devices. In this work, a "hot and dry" transfer process is demonstrated to address the fabrication and patterning challenges of large-area graphene membranes on top of closed, sealed cavities. Here, "hot" refers to the use of high temperature during transfer, promoting the adhesion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwo-dimensional (2D) materials are considered for numerous applications in microelectronics, although several challenges remain when integrating them into functional devices. Weak adhesion is one of them, caused by their chemical inertness. Quantifying the adhesion of 2D materials on three-dimensional surfaces is, therefore, an essential step toward reliable 2D device integration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between Pictorial Fit Frail Scale-Malay version (PFFS-M) and adverse outcomes, such as falls, new disability, hospitalisation, nursing home placement, and/or mortality, in patients aged 60 and older attending Malaysian public primary care clinics. We assessed the baseline PFFS-M levels of 197 patients contactable by phone at 18 months to determine the presence of adverse outcomes. 26 patients (13.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCues associated with smoking can induce relapse, which is likely driven by cue-induced neurobiological and physiological mechanisms. For instance, greater relapse vulnerability is associated with increases in cue-induced insula activation and heightened cortisol concentrations. Determining if there is a link between such cue-induced responses is critical given the need for biomarkers that can be easily measured in clinical settings and used to drive targeted treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Despite the availability of effective treatments, many adults with asthma have uncontrolled asthma. Uncontrolled asthma can lead to severe exacerbations. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and predictors of uncontrolled asthma among adults (≥18 years) with current asthma in the United States.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Hip arthroplasty with metal-on-metal bearings like hip resurfacing results in the release of metallic ions. In parallel, like every metallic implant, knee arthroplasty implants undergo passive corrosion. We analyzed blood levels of cobalt and chromium ions in patients who have a hip resurfacing arthroplasty and compared them to patients who have undergone knee arthroplasty at a minimum follow-up of one year.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSoil microbes play a crucial role in soil organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling and are influenced by management practices. Therefore, quantifying the impacts of various agricultural management practices on soil microbiomes and their activity is crucial for making informed management decisions. This study aimed to assess the impact of various management systems on soil bacterial abundance and diversity, soil enzyme activities and carbon mineralization potential in wheat-based systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPost-weaning diarrhoea (PWD) is a frequent, multifactorial disease of piglets leading to increased mortality rates and high economic losses. Due to the emergence of multi-resistant Escherichia coli isolates and the ban of zinc oxide (ZnO) in the EU since June 2022, alternative measures to prevent PWD are urgently needed. While an abundance of feed supplements is described to prevent PWD, there are hardly any studies reflecting the current situation of PWD in the field.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrefrontal and striatal glutamate plays an important role in modulating striatal dopamine levels and an imbalance in regional glutamate has been identified in several psychiatric conditions. We hypothesized that this imbalance also exists in cannabis use disorder (CUD). We recently quantified the difference in glutamate of dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC) and striatum regions in the frontostriatal pathway using proton MRS at baseline and on verified abstinent days 7 and 21 in chronic users of cannabis (n = 20) in comparison with age- and sex- matched non-using controls (n = 10).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLeaf tissue testing is a useful tool for monitoring nutrient requirements in northern highbush blueberry ( L.; abbreviated as "blueberry") but may require adaptation to specific growing environments. The objective of this study was to evaluate macronutrient concentrations in early-, mid-, and late-season blueberry cultivars grown in two contrasting environments, specifically eastern and western Washington.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Our faculty used one long case (LC) and three short cases for the clinical component of the final professional examinations. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the LC had to be replaced with scenario-based clinical examination (SBCE) due to the impracticability of using recently hospitalised patients. While keeping the short case component as usual, the LC had to be replaced with SBCE in 2020 for the first time at a short notice.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhile aging in place is preferred by the vast majority of adults and can bring a host of psychological and physical benefits, older adults require community support in order to age in place safely and with dignity. In this commentary, we review the demographic changes and characteristics of older adults nationally and in Delaware, highlight some of the benefits and challenges to aging in place, and discuss the individual and system-level strategies that are needed to help older adults successfully age in place. Finally, we provide an overview of one creative solution that addresses instrumental and social needs among individuals aging in place with chronic illness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Generic medicines substitution is an important means to control rapid growth of pharmaceutical expenditures for the healthcare system in China. Acceptance and utilization of generic medicines is highly influenced by healthcare providers' perceptions. This study aimed to compare the knowledge, awareness and perceptions of generic medicines between physicians and pharmacists in China.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: This study investigated the reliability and convergent validity of the PFFS-Malay version (PFFS-M) among patients (with varying educational levels), caregivers, and health care professionals (HCPs). PFFS-M cutoffs for frailty severity were developed.
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study from 4 primary care clinics where 240 patients aged >60 years and their caregivers were enrolled.
Background: Anhedonia is a core symptom of depression that predicts worse treatment outcomes. Dysfunction in neural reward circuits is thought to contribute to anhedonia. However, whether laboratory-based assessments of anhedonia and reward-related neural function translate to adolescents' subjective affective experiences in real-world contexts remains unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPtSe is one of the most promising materials for the next generation of piezoresistive sensors. However, the large-scale synthesis of homogeneous thin films with reproducible electromechanical properties is challenging due to polycrystallinity. It is shown that stacking phases other than the 1T phase become thermodynamically available at elevated temperatures that are common during synthesis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe global increases in the surface and groundwater nitrate (NO ) concentrations due to synthetic fertilizer input have emerged as major sustainability threats to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Cover crops can reportedly reduce nitrate leaching from croplands. However, the underlying mechanisms and the effectiveness of cover crops in reducing nitrate leaching across species, soil types, agronomic management, and climates remain elusive.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeuropsychopharmacology
October 2022
Glutamate plays an important role in continued use of and relapse to abused substances. However, its involvement in cannabis withdrawal is still unclear. We hypothesize that regional glutamate is associated with the cannabis withdrawal syndrome and recently examined possible association of glutamate with cannabis withdrawal, using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), in non-treatment-seeking cannabis users.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Orthop Surg Traumatol
May 2023
Introduction: The periprosthetic femoral fracture (PFF) is a serious complication after primary total hip arthroplasty. We conducted a retrospective study to determine whether the PRIUS system presented similar survival to other existing implants for the treatment of Vancouver B2 or B3 PFFs. Bone consolidation rate, functional results and complications were analysed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Despite evidence that standard substance use disorder (SUD) treatment may be less effective in people with intellectual disability (ID), there is an absence of appropriate clinical tools with which to support them.
Objectives: This study examined the clinical utility of an alcohol and other drug refusal skills intervention designed to be cognitively accessible to adults with ID METHODS: Thirty individuals at high risk for or in recovery from a SUD in developmental disability services (DDS) community residential and day habilitation settings participated in the two-week refusal skills group. Measures included pretest versus posttest improvement in refusal skill competency and baseline performance on a standardized verbal learning test.
Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) promotes the growth, differentiation, maintenance and survival of neurons. These attributes make BDNF a potentially powerful therapeutic agent. However, its charge, instability in blood, and poor blood brain barrier (BBB) penetrability have impeded its development.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Knee ligament sprains are a common reason for emergency-room visits. Initially, the often difficult physical examination provides limited information, creating a risk of missing cruciate-ligament injuries, which can result in substantial functional impairments. No simple tool is available to emergency and primary-care physicians for decisions regarding specialist referral of patients with knee ligament sprains.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aim: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a worldwide pandemic and is a threat to global health. Patients who experienced cytokine storms tend to have a high mortality rate. However, to date, no study has investigated the impact of cytokine storms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCannabis withdrawal symptoms contribute to relapse, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. We hypothesize that cannabis withdrawal may be associated with a reset of regional γ-amino butyric acid (GABA) and glutamate concentrations secondary to changes in the endocannabinoid system during abstinence and conducted a study on this issue. We used magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to detect the associated changes of these neurochemicals in twenty-six frequent, recreational cannabis users and eleven age-matched non-using controls.
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