Probing the structural dependency of photoinduced properties of colloidal quantum dots using metal-oxide photo-active substrates.

We used photoactive substrates consisting of about 1 nm coating of a metal oxide on glass substrates to investigate the impact of the structures of colloidal quantum dots on their photophysical and photochemical properties. We showed during irradiation these substrates can interact uniquely with such quantum dots, inducing distinct forms of photo-induced processes when they have different cores, shells, or ligands. In particular, our results showed that for certain types of core-shell quantum dot structures an ultrathin layer of a metal oxide can reduce suppression of quantum efficiency of the quantum dots happening when they undergo extensive photo-oxidation.

Impact of rural residence and health system structure on quality of liver care.

Background: Specialist physician concentration in urban areas can affect access and quality of care for rural patients. As effective drug treatment for hepatitis C (HCV) becomes increasingly available, the extent to which rural patients needing HCV specialists face access or quality deficits is unknown. We sought to determine the influence of rural residency on access to HCV specialists and quality of liver care.

Association between hypoglycemia and dementia in a biracial cohort of older adults with diabetes mellitus.

Importance: Hypoglycemia commonly occurs in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and may negatively influence cognitive performance. Cognitive impairment in turn can compromise DM management and lead to hypoglycemia.

Objective: To prospectively evaluate the association between hypoglycemia and dementia in a biracial cohort of older adults with DM.

Diabetes, glucose control, and 9-year cognitive decline among older adults without dementia.

Objectives: To determine if prevalent and incident diabetes mellitus (DM) increase risk of cognitive decline and if, among elderly adults with DM, poor glucose control is related to worse cognitive performance. DESIGN Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Health, Aging, and Body Composition Study at 2 community clinics.

Impact of age and comorbidity on non-small-cell lung cancer treatment in older veterans.

Purpose: Because comorbidity affects cancer treatment outcomes, guidelines recommend considering comorbidity when making treatment decisions in older patients with lung cancer. Yet, it is unclear whether treatment is targeted to healthier older adults who might reasonably benefit.

Patients And Methods: Receipt of first-line guideline-recommended treatment was assessed for 20,511 veterans age ≥ 65 years with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the Veterans Affairs (VA) Central Cancer Registry from 2003 to 2008.

Rationalizing oligomerization in dimethylindium(III) chalcogenolates (Me2InER') (E = O, S, Se): a structural and computational study.

The effect on oligomerization of increased steric bulk in dimethylindium(III) chalcogenolates (Me(2)InER') (E = O, S, Se) has been examined. The facile reaction of Me(3)In with a series of phenols, thiophenols and selenophenols afforded the compounds [Me(2)InO(C(6)H(5))](2) (1), [Me(2)InO(2,6-Me(2)C(6)H(3))](2) (2), Me(2)InO(2,4,6-tBu(3)C(6)H(3)) (3), [Me(2)InS(C(6)H(5))](infinity) (4), [Me(2)InS(2,4,6-tBu(3)C(6)H(3))](infinity) (6), [Me(2)InSe(C(6)H(5))](2) (7), [Me(2)InSe(2,4,6-Me(3)C(6)H(3))](infinity) (8) and [Me(2)InSe(2,4,6-tBu(3)C(6)H(3))](infinity) (9). All compounds have been characterized by elemental analysis, melting point, FT-IR, FT-Raman, solution NMR, and X-ray crystallography.

Gene-Environment Interactions: Peers' Alcohol Use Moderates Genetic Contribution to Adolescent Drinking Behavior.

Social context is increasingly recognized as essential for understanding complex human outcomes even among geneticists who focus on genetic influences. These outcomes typically involve multiple genes, multiple environmental factors, and the interactions between the two. In this paper, we propose a conceptual framework for gene-environment interaction and show how the interaction can be tested empirically using a sample of MZ twin, DZ twins, and full siblings.

Gene-lifecourse interaction for alcohol consumption in adolescence and young adulthood: five monoamine genes.

Association analysis has suggested that common sequence variants of genes that affect monoamine function can affect substance use and abuse. Demonstration of these associations has been inconsistent because of limited sample sizes and phenotype definition. Drawing on the life course perspective, we predicted a stronger association between the polymorphisms in 5HTT, DAT1, DRD4, DRD2, and MAOA and alcohol consumption in young adulthood than adolescence.

High-humidity performance of paperboard after treatment with xylanase, endoglucanse, and their combination.

For paperboard used to produce packaging, treatment of its fiber constituents with commercial enzymes can improve its compressive strength under cycling and high-humidity conditions. Xylanase that selectively removes pulp xylan (ca. 2% of the pulp by mass) yielded most of the observed beneficial effects, which did not appear related to the packing of the fiber network in the sheet or to the uptake of moisture at high humidity.