Effect of grafting on nanoparticle segregation in polymer/nanoparticle blends near a substrate.

Nanoparticles in polymer films have shown the tendency to migrate to the substrate due to an entropic-based attractive depletion interaction between the particles and the substrate. It is also known that polymer-grafted nanoparticles show better dispersion in a polymer matrix. Here, molecular dynamics simulations are employed to study the effect of grafting on the nanoparticle segregation to the substrate.

Initial management of acute primary angle closure: a randomized trial comparing phacoemulsification with laser peripheral iridotomy.

Purpose: To compare the 2-year efficacy of phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implant (phaco/IOL) with laser peripheral iridotomy (LPI) in the early management of acute primary angle closure (APAC) and coexisting cataract.

Design: Randomized, controlled trial.

Participants: We included 37 subjects presenting with APAC who had responded to medical treatment such that intraocular pressure (IOP) was ≤30 mmHg within 24 hours, and had cataract with visual acuity of ≤6/15.

Locomotion of C. elegans: a piecewise-harmonic curvature representation of nematode behavior.

Caenorhabditis elegans, a free-living soil nematode, displays a rich variety of body shapes and trajectories during its undulatory locomotion in complex environments. Here we show that the individual body postures and entire trails of C. elegans have a simple analytical description in curvature representation.

Delivery type not associated with global methylation at birth.

Background: Birth by cesarean delivery (CD) as opposed to vaginal delivery (VD) is associated with altered health outcomes later in life, including respiratory disorders, allergies and risk of developing type I diabetes. Epigenetic gene regulation is a proposed mechanism by which early life exposures affect later health outcomes. Previously, type of delivery has been found to be associated with differences in global methylation levels, but the sample sizes have been small.

Surface-induced phase behavior of polymer/nanoparticle blends with attractions.

In an athermal blend of nanoparticles and homopolymer near a hard wall, there is a first order phase transition in which the nanoparticles segregate to the wall and form a densely packed monolayer above a certain nanoparticle density. Previous investigations of this phase transition employed a fluids density functional theory (DFT) at constant packing fraction. Here we report further DFT calculations to probe the robustness of this phase transition.

Antimüllerian hormone levels are independently related to ovarian hyperandrogenism and polycystic ovaries.

Objective: To determine the relationship of antimüllerian hormone (AMH) levels to polycystic ovaries and ovarian androgenic function.

Design: Prospective case-control study.

Setting: General clinical research center.

Developmental programming: impact of prenatal testosterone excess on ovarian cell proliferation and apoptotic factors in sheep.

Prenatal testosterone (T) excess leads to reproductive dysfunctions in sheep, which include increased ovarian follicular recruitment and persistence. To test the hypothesis that follicular disruptions in T sheep stem from changes in the developmental ontogeny of ovarian proliferation and apoptotic factors, pregnant Suffolk sheep were injected twice weekly with T propionate or dihydrotestosterone propionate (DHT; a nonaromatizable androgen) from Days 30 to 90 of gestation. Changes in developmental expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), BCL2, BAX, activated CASP3, and FAS/FASLG were determined at Fetal Days 90 and 140, 22 wk, 10 mo, and 21 mo of age by immunocytochemisty.

Developmental programming: prenatal and postnatal contribution of androgens and insulin in the reprogramming of estradiol positive feedback disruptions in prenatal testosterone-treated sheep.

Prenatal testosterone (T) excess compromises the estradiol (E(2)) positive feedback. This study tested the hypothesis that antagonizing androgen action or improving insulin sensitivity prenatally would prevent positive feedback disruptions from developing, whereas postnatal intervention with androgen antagonist or insulin sensitizer would ameliorate the severity of disruptions in prenatal T-treated females. The E(2) positive feedback response was tested at 16 wk of age in the following groups of animals: 1) control, 2) prenatal T, 3) prenatal T plus the androgen antagonist, flutamide, 4) prenatal T plus insulin sensitizer, rosiglitazone, 5) prenatal T and postnatal androgen antagonist, and 6) prenatal T and postnatal insulin sensitizer (n = 7-21 animals/group).

Neuroendocrine control of FSH secretion: IV. Hypothalamic control of pituitary FSH-regulatory proteins and their relationship to changes in FSH synthesis and secretion.

The current dogma is that the differential regulation of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) synthesis and secretion is modulated by gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse frequency and by changes in inhibins, activins, and follistatins both at the pituitary and at the peripheral level. To date no studies have looked at the overlapping function of these regulators in a combined setting. We tested the hypothesis that changes in GnRH pulse frequency alter the relative abundance of these regulators at the pituitary and peripheral levels in a manner consistent with changes in pituitary and circulating concentrations of FSH; that is, an increase in FSH will be accompanied by increased stimulatory input (activin) and/or reduced follistatin and inhibin.

Urinary, circulating, and tissue biomonitoring studies indicate widespread exposure to bisphenol A.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is one of the highest-volume chemicals produced worldwide, and human exposure to BPA is thought to be ubiquitous. Thus, there are concerns that the amount of BPA to which humans are exposed may cause adverse health effects. We examined many possibilities for why biomonitoring and toxicokinetic studies could come to seemingly conflicting conclusions.

Developmental programming: prenatal testosterone excess disrupts anti-Müllerian hormone expression in preantral and antral follicles.

Objective: To investigate the impact of prenatal T excess on the expression of key ovarian regulators implicated in follicular recruitment and persistence using a large animal model of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).

Design: Interventional, animal model study.

Setting: Academic research unit.

Crouzon's syndrome: A review of literature and case report.

Crouzon's syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder with complete penetrance and variable expressivity. Described by a French neurosurgeon in 1912, it is a rare genetic disorder. Crouzon's syndrome is caused by mutation in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) gene.

Effects of cycle stage on regionalised galanin, galanin receptors 1-3, GNRH and GNRH receptor mRNA expression in the ovine hypothalamus.

The neurotransmitter galanin has been implicated in the steroidogenic regulation of reproduction based on work mainly conducted in rodents. This study investigated the temporal changes in the expression of galanin and its three receptor isoforms and GNRH and GNRHR mRNA in specific hypothalamic nuclei known to be involved in the regulation of reproductive cyclicity, namely the medial pre-optic area (mPOA), the rostral mPOA/organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis, the paraventricular nucleus and the arcuate nucleus using an ovine model. Following synchronisation of their oestrous cycles, tissues were collected from ewes at five time points: the early follicular, mid follicular (MF) and late follicular phases and the early luteal and mid luteal phases.

Developmental programming: gestational testosterone treatment alters fetal ovarian gene expression.

Prenatal testosterone (T) treatment leads to polycystic ovarian morphology, enhanced follicular recruitment/depletion, and increased estradiol secretion. This study addresses whether expression of key ovarian genes and microRNA are altered by prenatal T excess and whether changes are mediated by androgenic or estrogenic actions of T. Pregnant Suffolk ewes were treated with T or T plus the androgen receptor antagonist, flutamide (T+F) from d 30 to 90 of gestation.

Developmental programming: reproductive endocrinopathies in the adult female sheep after prenatal testosterone treatment are reflected in altered ontogeny of GnRH afferents.

The GnRH system represents a useful model of long-term neural plasticity. An unexplored facet of this plasticity relates to the ontogeny of GnRH neural afferents during critical periods when the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis is highly susceptible to perturbation by sex steroids. Sheep treated with testosterone (T) in utero exhibit profound reproductive neuroendocrine dysfunctions during their lifespan.

Vascularized fibular graft in infected tibial bone loss.

Background: The treatment options of bone loss with infections include bone transport with external fixators, vascularized bone grafts, non-vascularized autogenous grafts and vascularized allografts. The research hypothesis was that the graft length and intact ipsilateral fibula influenced hypertrophy and stress fracture. We retrospectively studied the graft hypertrophy in 15 patients, in whom vascularized fibular graft was done for post-traumatic tibial defects with infection.

Development of a controlled release formulation of an indigenous insect growth regulator, DPE-28, a substituted diphenylether, for controlling the breeding of Culex quinquefasciatus.

Background & Objectives: DPE-28, a substituted diphenyl ether (2,6-ditertiarybutyl phenyl-2',4'-dinitro phenyl ether) was reported to exhibit promising insect growth regulating activity against Culex quinquefasciatus, the vector of lymphatic filariasis. A controlled release formulation (CRF) of DPE-28 has been developed to control Cx. quinquefasciatus in its breeding habitats.

Developmental origin of reproductive and metabolic dysfunctions: androgenic versus estrogenic reprogramming.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common fertility disorders, affecting several million women worldwide. Women with PCOS manifest neuroendocrine, ovarian, and metabolic defects. A large number of animal models have evolved to understand the etiology of PCOS.

Cytomorphologic features of advanced lung adenocarcinomas tested for EGFR and KRAS mutations: a retrospective review of 50 cases.

Associations between bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC), mucinous differentiation, and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and KRAS mutations have been previously reported in studies of surgical specimens. We present the cytomorphology of lung adenocarcinomas, including metastases that were diagnosed by cytologic methods and the relationship to both EGFR and KRAS mutational status. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical and cytomorphologic features of 50 lung adenocarcinomas that were tested for both EGFR and KRAS mutations.

Gelation in semiflexible polymers.

Molecular dynamics simulations have been employed to study the formation of a physical gel by semiflexible polymer chains. The formation of a geometrically connected network of these chains is investigated as a function of temperature and rate of cooling. The stiffness of the molecules is controlled via a potential between beads separated by two bonds.

Prenatal testosterone and dihydrotestosterone exposure disrupts ovine testicular development.

Androgens play important roles during the first trimester of intrauterine life, coinciding with genital tract differentiation, during virilization and maintenance of secondary male characteristics, and during initiation of spermatogenesis. Little is known about the impact of inappropriate exposure to excess androgens during fetal development on male sexual maturation and reproduction. The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of prenatal 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and testosterone treatment during ovine sexual differentiation on post-pubertal testicular formation and subsequent potential for fertility as assessed by epididymal sperm characteristics.

Insulin resistance influences central opioid activity in polycystic ovary syndrome.

This pilot study describes a relationship between insulin resistance and μ-opioid neurotransmission in limbic appetite and mood-regulating regions in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), suggesting that insulin-opioid interactions may contribute to behavioral and reproductive pathologies of PCOS. We found that [1] patients with PCOS who are insulin-resistant (n = 7) had greater limbic μ-opioid receptor availability (nondisplaceable binding potential) than controls (n = 5); [2] receptor availability was correlated with severity of insulin resistance; and [3] receptor availability normalized after insulin-regulating treatment.

Prenatal programming by testosterone of hypothalamic metabolic control neurones in the ewe.

Ewes treated prenatally with testosterone develop metabolic deficits, including insulin resistance, in addition to reproductive dysfunctions that collectively mimic polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), a common endocrine disease in women. We hypothesised that metabolic deficits associated with prenatal testosterone excess involve alterations in arcuate nucleus (ARC) neurones that contain either agouti-related peptide (AgRP) or pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC). Characterisation of these neurones in the ewe showed that immunoreactive AgRP and POMC neurones were present in separate populations in the ARC, that AgRP and POMC neurones co-expressed either neuropeptide Y or cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript, respectively, and that each population had a high degree of co-localisation with androgen receptors.

Sleep disordered breathing in children--a review and the role of a pediatric dentist.

Among the many factors important in children's development is sleep. Sleep disorders can impair children's sleep and lead to negative consequences. The most common sleep disordered breathing (SDB) in children is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Binary fluid with attractions near a planar wall.

It is well known that a mixture of big and small hard spheres next to a planar wall will exhibit segregation based on their size difference. The larger spheres will tend to locate next to the substrate because the overall system entropy loss per unit area is less. In the present study we determine the role of attraction between the small particles and the wall to displace the larger particles.