Cubic-wavelength mode volume photonic crystal nanobeam cavities in a monolithic CMOS platform.

We report on the design, fabrication, and experimental characterization of photonic crystal (PhC) nanobeam cavities with the smallest footprint, largest intrinsic quality factor, and smallest mode volume to be demonstrated to date in a monolithic CMOS platform. Two types of cavities were designed, with opposite spatial mode symmetries. The opposite mode symmetry, combined with evanescent coupling, allows the nanobeam cavities to be used in reflectionless topologies, desirable in complex photonic integrated circuits (PICs).

Polarization-insensitive 1D grating coupler based on a zero-birefringence subwavelength corelet waveguide.

Grating coupler devices provide efficient, foundry-compatible vertical fiber-to-chip coupling solutions in integrated photonic platforms. However, standard grating coupler designs are highly polarization sensitive, which hinders their adoption. We present a new, to the best of our knowledge, type of 1D polarization-insensitive grating coupler (PIGC) that is based on a zero-birefringence subwavelength "corelet" waveguide.

A Phase I Study of Apolizumab, an Anti-HLA-DR ß-chain Monoclonal Antibody, in Patients With Solid Tumor Malignancies.

Background: Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR, a member of the major histocompatibility complex class II antigen family, is a target for antibody-based therapeutics. Apolizumab (Hu1D10, Remitogen), a humanized IgG1 monoclonal anti-HLA-DR ß-chain antibody targets the antigen, 1D10, expressed on a wide variety of hematologic and solid tumor malignancies. In this Phase 1 trial, the maximum tolerated dose and dose-limiting toxicity of weekly apolizumab in patients with advanced solid tumor malignancies were determined.

Phase I Study of Docetaxel and Temsirolimus in Refractory Solid Tumors.

Introduction: The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a downstream mediator in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt signaling pathway, and plays a central role in cell proliferation, growth, differentiation, migration, and survival. Temsirolimus (CCI-779), a selective inhibitor of the mTOR, is an ester analog of rapamycin (sirolimus) with improved aqueous solubility and pharmacokinetic (PK) properties. Preclinical studies have confirmed additive and synergistic antitumor activity in cancer cell lines (breast, prostate cancer) with combinations of taxanes and mTOR inhibitors.

Light- and Melanin Nanoparticle-Induced Cytotoxicity in Metastatic Cancer Cells.

Melanin nanoparticles are known to be biologically benign to human cells for a wide range of concentrations in a high glucose culture nutrition. Here, we show cytotoxic behavior at high nanoparticle and low glucose concentrations, as well as at low nanoparticle concentration under exposure to (nonionizing) visible radiation. To study these effects in detail, we developed highly monodispersed melanin nanoparticles (both uncoated and glucose-coated).

Optical confinement in the nanocoax: coupling to the fundamental TEM-like mode.

The nanoscale coaxial cable (nanocoax) has demonstrated optical confinement in the visible and the near infrared. We report on a novel nanofabrication process which yields optically addressable, sub-µm diameter, and high aspect ratio metal-insulator-metal nanocoaxes made by atomic layer deposition of Pt and AlO. We observe sub-diffraction-limited optical transmission via the fundamental, TEM-like mode by excitation with a radially polarized optical vortex beam.

Extraordinary optical transmission in nano-bridged plasmonic arrays mimicking a stable weakly-connected percolation threshold.

Ultrasensitive sensors of various physical properties can be based on percolation systems, e.g., insulating media filled with nearly touching conducting particles.

Nano-bridged nanosphere lithography.

We develop nano-bridged nanosphere lithography (NB-NSL), a modification to the widely used conventional nanosphere lithography (NSL). Nano-bridges between polystyrene (PS) spheres of a pristine NSL template are controllably formed in a two-step process: (i) spin-coating of a dilute styrene solution on top of the template, followed by (ii) oxygen plasma etching of the template. We show that the nanobridge dimensions can be precisely tuned by controlling the pre-processing conditions and the plasma etching time.

Facile fabrication and formation mechanism of aluminum nanowire arrays.

Anodized alumina membranes (AAMs) have proven effective at making vertically-oriented and well-ordered metal nanowire arrays, which are useful in plasmonics and electrochemistry. Here, we produced Al nanowires via directed AAM pore nucleation: a patterned oxide mask on a flat Al surface directed where pores did and did not form, the pores acting to oxidize Al around the sites without pores. This left Al nanowires embedded in the AAM, and produced freestanding Al nanowires after etching the AAM.

Erratum: Artificial Mushroom Sponge Structure for Highly Efficient and Inexpensive Cold-Water Steam Generation.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1002/gch2.201800035.

Artificial Mushroom Sponge Structure for Highly Efficient and Inexpensive Cold-Water Steam Generation.

A bioinspired structure of an artificial mushroom, made of the common polyvinyl alcohol sponge coated with charcoal, is fabricated, with high efficiency in generating cold water steam of ≈73% under 1 sun illumination, due to very high light absorption, efficient water supply, and low heat loss. In addition, the structure is very inexpensive, and thus ideal for applications in portable cold (boil-free) steam generators for water purification and desalination.

Predictors of Locoregional Recurrence After Failure to Achieve Pathologic Complete Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Background: This study evaluated factors predictive of locoregional recurrence (LRR) in women with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy who do not experience pathologic complete response (pCR).

Methods: This is a single-institution retrospective review of women with TNBC treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy in 2000 through 2013. LRR was estimated between patients with and without pCR using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Treatment response as predictor for brain metastasis in triple negative breast cancer: A score-based model.

Background: Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) has worse prognosis than other subtypes of breast cancer, and many patients develop brain metastasis (BM). We developed a simple predictive model to stratify the risk of BM in TNBC patients receiving neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (NAC), surgery, and radiation therapy (RT).

Methods: Patients with TNBC who received NAC, surgery, and RT were included.

On-Chip Electrochemical Detection of Cholera Using a Polypyrrole-Functionalized Dendritic Gold Sensor.

Rapid diagnosis of an infectious disease outbreak in the field is critical for limiting the escalation of an outbreak into an epidemic. Devices suited to point-of-care (POC) diagnosis of cholera must not only demonstrate clinical laboratory levels of sensitivity and specificity but do so in a portable and low-cost manner, with a simplistic readout. We report work toward an on-chip electrochemical immunosensor for the detection of cholera toxin subunit B (CTX), based on a dendritic gold architecture biofunctionalized via poly(2-cyanoethyl)pyrrole (PCEPy).

Emerging Perspectives on mTOR Inhibitor-Associated Pneumonitis in Breast Cancer.

Unlabelled: Substantial improvements in the early detection and treatment of breast cancer have led to improvements in survival, but breast cancer remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in women. In 2012, the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor everolimus was approved by the U.S.

Evaluation of [Zr]trastuzumab-PET/CT in differentiating HER2-positive from HER2-negative breast cancer.

Purpose: To evaluate whether tumor uptake of [Zr]trastuzumab can distinguish HER2-positive from HER2-negative breast cancer.

Methods: Women with HER2-positive (n = 34) and HER2-negative (n = 16) breast cancer underwent PET/CT 5 ± 2 days following [Zr]trastuzumab administration. HER2 status was determined based on immunohistochemistry and/or fluorescence in situ hybridization of primary or metastatic/recurrent tumor.

Long-term outcomes of APBI via multicatheter interstitial HDR brachytherapy: Results of a prospective single-institutional registry.

Purpose: Long-term outcome reports of accelerated partial-breast irradiation (APBI) are limited. Here, we report the 10-year outcomes of APBI delivered using multicatheter interstitial implant (ISI) brachytherapy.

Methods And Materials: Patients with early-stage breast cancer treated with APBI via ISI brachytherapy were enrolled in a prospective registry.

Health Care, Business, and Ethics: The Goods We Hold in Common.

The common good is one of those terms that most of us think we understand until we start talking about it. Our conversations too often become platitudinous and moralistic, feeling more and more abstract and vague. As one health care executive said to me, “How would I know if the common good bit me?"

Wireless communication system via nanoscale plasmonic antennas.

Present on-chip optical communication technology uses near-infrared light, but visible wavelengths would allow system miniaturization and higher energy confinement. Towards this end, we report a nanoscale wireless communication system that operates at visible wavelengths via in-plane information transmission. Here, plasmonic antenna radiation mediates a three-step conversion process (surface plasmon → photon → surface plasmon) with in-plane efficiency (plasmon → plasmon) of 38% for antenna separation 4λ0 (with λ0 the free-space excitation wavelength).

Shielded Coaxial Optrode Arrays for Neurophysiology.

Recent progress in the study of the brain has been greatly facilitated by the development of new tools capable of minimally-invasive, robust coupling to neuronal assemblies. Two prominent examples are the microelectrode array (MEA), which enables electrical signals from large numbers of neurons to be detected and spatiotemporally correlated, and optogenetics, which enables the electrical activity of cells to be controlled with light. In the former case, high spatial density is desirable but, as electrode arrays evolve toward higher density and thus smaller pitch, electrical crosstalk increases.

Aluminum Nanowire Arrays via Directed Assembly.

Freestanding and vertically-oriented metal nanowire arrays have potential utility in a number of applications, but presently lack a route to fabrication. Template-based techniques, such as electrodeposition into lithographically defined nanopore arrays, have produced well-ordered nanowire arrays with a maximum pitch of about 2 μm; such nanowires, however, tend to cluster due to local attractive forces. Here, we modify this template fabrication method to produce well-ordered, vertically-oriented, freestanding Al nanowire arrays, etched from an underlying Al substrate, with highly tunable pitch.

Effect of weight loss on bone health in overweight/obese postmenopausal breast cancer survivors.

Current guidelines recommend weight loss in obese cancer survivors. Weight loss, however, has adverse effects on bone health in obese individuals without cancer but this has not been evaluated in breast cancer survivors. We investigated the associations of intentional weight loss with bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turn-over markers in overweight/obese postmenopausal breast cancer survivors.

A nanocoaxial-based electrochemical sensor for the detection of cholera toxin.

Sensitive, real-time detection of biomarkers is of critical importance for rapid and accurate diagnosis of disease for point of care (POC) technologies. Current methods do not allow for POC applications due to several limitations, including sophisticated instrumentation, high reagent consumption, limited multiplexing capability, and cost. Here, we report a nanocoaxial-based electrochemical sensor for the detection of bacterial toxins using an electrochemical enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) or square wave voltametry (SWV).