Psychometric testing of the Chinese version of the Perinatal Infant Care Social Support tool: a methodological study.

Purpose: This study aimed to translate the Perinatal Infant Care Social Support (PICSS) instrument into Chinese and to verify the reliability and validity of the translated version.

Methods: This study used a cross-sectional design to examine the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the PICSS (C-PICSS). A cohort of 150 first-time mothers in China participated, attending hospital follow-up care at 6 weeks postpartum.

Development of an online hydrogen fuel quality analyzer with gas chromatography-pulsed discharge helium ionization detector for applying hydrogen infrastructures.

Hydrogen fuel, which is essential for the hydrogen economy, including hydrogen cell vehicles, must be of high quality for optimal hydrogen cell use. Currently, hydrogen fuel quality control is mainly done by offline analysis with periodic sampling. However, with the anticipated surge in hydrogen charging stations, there's a pressing need for cost-effective, high-throughput online analysis systems.

Improving Treatment Adherence with Integrated Patient Management for TB Patients in Morocco.

In Morocco, there are challenges in the management of high-risk tuberculosis (TB) patients, including paper-based management and a shortage of healthcare workers related to TB. Additionally, TB management has not been accounted for in various patient types, which affects treatment adherence. This study aims to examine the delivery model of TB management and the outcomes of an integrated patient management system that uses a patient-centered and community-based approach, along with mobile health technology.

Galuteolin, identified in the extract of thymus quinquecostatus flowers, is involved in inhibiting melanin biosynthesis in B16/F10 melanoma cells.

To enhance the skin whitening effect, tyrosinase activity and melanin biosynthesis needs to be suppressed in the skin. To achieve this goal, we examined the extract of flowers, and identified a functional ingredient, galuteolin. Galuteolin effectively inhibited melanin biosynthesis in B16/F10 cells, partially suppressing tyrosinase activity.

New Pyrene Derivatives Having Rigid Imidazole Moiety for Blue Emitters.

Pyrene, imidazole and dibenzofuran were used to synthesize new blue emitters of 1-(4-(dibenzo[b,d]furan-4-yl)phenyl)-2-(pyren-1-yl)-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (BFP-PI) and 1-(4-(dibenzo[b,d]furan-4-yl)phenyl)-4,5-diphenyl-2-(pyren-1-yl)-1H-imidazole (BFP-DPI). In the film state, BFP-PI and BFP-DPI show photoluminescence (PL) maximum values of 462 nm and 459 nm. The relative PL quantum efficiency (PLQY) of BFP-PI and BFP-DPI is 89.

Synthesis and Electroluminescence Property of Pyrene Derivatives Including Dibenzothiophene and Imidazole Moiety.

Pyrene, imidazole and dibenzothiophene were used to synthesize new blue emitters of 1-(4-Dibenzothiophen-2-yl-phenyl)-4,5-diphenyl-2-pyren-1-yl-1H-imidazole (DDPI) and 1-(3-Dibenzothiophen-4-yl-phenyl)-2-pyren-1-yl-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (DPPI). The optical properties of synthesized compounds were measured by UV-visible absorption and PL spectra. In the vacuum deposited film state, the PL maximum value is 463 nm for DDPI and 455, 471 nm for DPPI.

Synthesis and Electroluminescent Properties of New Dibenzo-Diazocine Derivatives.

AK-1NA and AK-2NA based on dibenzo-diazocine and anthracene moieties were designed and synthesized. Normalized UV-visible spectra of AK-1NA and AK-2NA in film state showed maximum absorption wavelength of 394 and 393 nm. PL spectra of AK-1NA and AK-2NA showed maximum emission wavelength of 429 and 444 nm.

Synthesis and Electroluminescence Properties of New Type Multi-Chromophore Emitting Materials for Organic Light-Emitting Diodes.

New three emitting compounds, AK-1, AK-2 and AK-3 including diazocine moiety were synthesized through Suzuki-coupling reaction. Physical properties such as optical, electroluminescent properties were investigated. UV-visible spectrum of AK-1, AK-2 and AK-3 in film state showed maximum 392, 393 and 401 nm.

Biobanking of Fresh-Frozen Cancer Tissue: RNA Is Stable Independent of Tissue Type with Less Than 1 Hour of Cold Ischemia.

Background: The effects of preanalytical variables in tissue processing and storage periods on RNA quality of tissues have been well documented in each type of cancer. However, few studies have been performed on a comparative assessment of the impacts across different cancer tissues, even though it is well known that RNase activity is highly variable in various tissue types and RNase-rich tissues have been found to yield low-quality RNA.

Methods: We investigated the impacts of cold ischemia times and long-term storage on RNA integrity in various types of cancer tissue, which had been fresh-frozen and collected at the Samsung Medical Center Biobank.

Process Innovation Improves Trial Operation Efficiency.

Background: Despite the fact that unaddressed delays in clinical trial operation could severely compromise the overall effort invested, there seems to be a lack of concerted effort in reforming such delays. This study evaluated the composite effect of initiatives in reforming trial operation efficiency.

Methods: A high-volume academic medical center in Korea has implemented various initiatives to improve the trial operation efficiency by expediting times from institutional review board (IRB) submission to approval, from IRB submission to trial open for subject enrollment, and from trial open to first patient-in.

A Trial Activation Initiative to Accelerate Trial Opening in an Academic Medical Center.

Delays in trial opening should be considered critical for the sake of not only the sponsor but the patients, as they may result in inequities of care. The Asan Medical Center, in Seoul, Korea, implemented a trial activation initiative in July 2012, in an aim to expedite the trial initiation timeline. Time intervals between trial initiation steps and the rate of institutional review board (IRB) and clinical trial agreement (CTA) parallel submission were assessed.

Safety and efficacy of polycalcium for improving biomarkers of bone metabolism: a 4-week open-label clinical study.

Polycalcium is a mixture of Polycan and calcium lactate-gluconate 1:9 (w/w) with demonstrated antiosteoporosis activity in vitro and in vivo studies. These studies were a 4-week open-label, single-center trial to evaluate the efficacy of oral Polycalcium on bone metabolism and safety. In total, 30 healthy women (range 40-60 years) were administered 400 mg of Polycalcium for 4 weeks.

Determination of lead in soil at a historical mining and smelting site using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy.

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was used to determine lead (Pb) concentration in soil and tailing samples collected from a historical mining and smelting area. The Pb emission line at 405.781 nm was found to have the strongest intensity and highest linearity with concentration.

Melanogenesis effect of Cordyceps militaris culture broth on the melanin formation of B16F0 melanoma cells.

The effect of Cordyceps militaris culture broth (CMB) on melanogenesis in B16F0 melanoma cells was evaluated by measurement of the melanin concentration after 3 days of incubation. The B16F0 melanoma cells were treated with various concentrations of CMB 10-100 μg/mL and arbutin of 200 μM. Phenolic content and antioxidant activity of CMB were also measured.

Pentraxin 3 as a novel marker predicting congestive heart failure in subjects with acute coronary syndrome.

Background And Objectives: Pentraxin 3 (PTX3) was shown to be elevated in the acute phase of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and to have prognostic significance in AMI patients. The aim of this study was to estimate whether the value of PTX3 could be used as a prognostic biomarker, with the global registry of acute coronary events (GRACE) risk assessment tool, in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Subjects And Methods: Between July 2007 and June 2008, 137 patient subjects (mean age : 61±12 years, M : F=108 : 29) with ACS who underwent coronary intervention, but did not have a prior percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and/or follow-up coronary angiogram, were enrolled.

Prediction of recurrence-free survival in postoperative non-small cell lung cancer patients by using an integrated model of clinical information and gene expression.

Purpose: One of the main challenges of lung cancer research is identifying patients at high risk for recurrence after surgical resection. Simple, accurate, and reproducible methods of evaluating individual risks of recurrence are needed.

Experimental Design: Based on a combined analysis of time-to-recurrence data, censoring information, and microarray data from a set of 138 patients, we selected statistically significant genes thought to be predictive of disease recurrence.