Identifying risk factors for development of nephrolithiasis in end-stage renal disease patients.

Introduction: We sought to assess the incidence and risk factors for stone development in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on hemodialysis (HD).

Methods: Medical records of patients receiving HD between 2007 and 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients who had been on HD for at least three months and had imaging studies (computed tomography [CT] scans or ultrasound [US]) pre- and post-initiation of HD were included.

The Relationship between Anthropometric Indices and Breast Cancer in Central Iran.

Anthropometric indices have a debatable relationship with breast cancer (BC) among different ethnicity. In the current study, we have evaluated the relationship between anthropometric indices and BC in Iranian participants. Between 2012 and 2014, a total of 7,805 women were enrolled from different mammography centers in Isfahan province, Iran.

Assessment of Treatment Response Following Yttrium-90 Transarterial Radioembolization of Liver Malignancies.

Transarterial radioembolization using yttrium-90 microspheres is an established and effective treatment for liver malignancies. Determining response to this treatment is difficult due to the radical changes that occur in tissue as a response to radiation. Though accurate assessment of treatment response is paramount for proper patient disposition, there is currently no standardized assessment protocol.

Precision analysis of a quantitative CT liver surface nodularity score.

Purpose: To evaluate precision of a software-based liver surface nodularity (LSN) score derived from CT images.

Methods: An anthropomorphic CT phantom was constructed with simulated liver containing smooth and nodular segments at the surface and simulated visceral and subcutaneous fat components. The phantom was scanned multiple times on a single CT scanner with adjustment of image acquisition and reconstruction parameters (N = 34) and on 22 different CT scanners from 4 manufacturers at 12 imaging centers.

Resistive flow sensing of vital mitochondria with nanoelectrodes.

We report label-free detection of single mitochondria with high sensitivity using nanoelectrodes. Measurements of the conductance of carbon nanotube transistors show discrete changes of conductance as individual mitochondria flow over the nanoelectrodes in a microfluidic channel. Altering the bioenergetic state of the mitochondria by adding metabolites to the flow buffer induces changes in the mitochondrial membrane potential detected by the nanoelectrodes.

Effect of intravenous gadoxetate disodium and flip angle on hepatic proton density fat fraction estimation with six-echo, gradient-recalled-echo, magnitude-based MR imaging at 3T.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to determine in patients undergoing gadoxetate disodium (Gx)-enhanced MR exams whether proton density fat fraction (PDFF) estimation accuracy of magnitude-based multi-gradient-echo MRI (MRI-M) could be improved by using high flip angle (FA) on post-contrast images.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-one adults with known or suspected hepatic steatosis undergoing 3T clinical Gx-enhanced liver MRI were enrolled prospectively. MR spectroscopy (MRS), the reference standard, was performed before Gx to measure MRS-PDFF.

Liver Surface Nodularity Score Allows Prediction of Cirrhosis Decompensation and Death.

Purpose To determine whether use of the liver surface nodularity (LSN) score, a quantitative biomarker derived from routine computed tomographic (CT) images, allows prediction of cirrhosis decompensation and death. Materials and Methods For this institutional review board-approved HIPAA-compliant retrospective study, adult patients with cirrhosis and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score within 3 months of initial liver CT imaging between January 3, 2006, and May 30, 2012, were identified from electronic medical records (n = 830). The LSN score was measured by using CT images and quantitative software.

Liver Surface Nodularity Quantification from Routine CT Images as a Biomarker for Detection and Evaluation of Cirrhosis.

Purpose To determine the accuracy, reproducibility, and intra- and interobserver agreement of a computer-based quantitative method to measure liver surface nodularity (LSN) from routine computed tomographic (CT) images as a biomarker for detection and evaluation of cirrhosis. Materials and Methods For this institutional review board-approved HIPAA-compliant retrospective study, adult patients with healthy livers (n = 24) or various stages of hepatitis C virus-induced chronic liver disease (n = 70) with routine nonenhanced and portal venous phase contrast agent-enhanced liver CT imaging with thick-section (5.0 mm) and thin-section (1.

Accuracy and the effect of possible subject-based confounders of magnitude-based MRI for estimating hepatic proton density fat fraction in adults, using MR spectroscopy as reference.

Purpose: To determine the accuracy and the effect of possible subject-based confounders of magnitude-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for estimating hepatic proton density fat fraction (PDFF) for different numbers of echoes in adults with known or suspected nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, using MR spectroscopy (MRS) as a reference.

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective analysis of 506 adults, hepatic PDFF was estimated by unenhanced 3.0T MRI, using right-lobe MRS as reference.

Accuracy of multiecho magnitude-based MRI (M-MRI) for estimation of hepatic proton density fat fraction (PDFF) in children.

Purpose: To assess accuracy of magnitude-based magnetic resonance imaging (M-MRI) in children to estimate hepatic proton density fat fraction (PDFF) using two to six echoes, with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) -measured PDFF as a reference standard.

Methods: This was an IRB-approved, HIPAA-compliant, single-center, cross-sectional, retrospective analysis of data collected prospectively between 2008 and 2013 in children with known or suspected nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Two hundred eighty-six children (8-20 [mean 14.

Fluorescence analysis of single mitochondria with nanofluidic channels.

Single mitochondrial assays are uncovering a new level of biological heterogeneity, holding promises for a better understanding of molecular respiration and mitochondria-related diseases. Here, we present a nanoscale approach to trapping single mitochondria in fluidic channels for fluorescence microscopy. We fabricate the nanofluidic channels in polydimethylsiloxane and bond them onto a glass slide, creating a highly reproducible device that can be connected to external pumps and mounted to a microscope.

Charging the quantum capacitance of graphene with a single biological ion channel.

The interaction of cell and organelle membranes (lipid bilayers) with nanoelectronics can enable new technologies to sense and measure electrophysiology in qualitatively new ways. To date, a variety of sensing devices have been demonstrated to measure membrane currents through macroscopic numbers of ion channels. However, nanoelectronic based sensing of single ion channel currents has been a challenge.

Nanofluidic platform for single mitochondria analysis using fluorescence microscopy.

Using nanofluidic channels in PDMS of cross section 500 nm × 2 μm, we demonstrate the trapping and interrogation of individual, isolated mitochondria. Fluorescence labeling demonstrates the immobilization of mitochondria at discrete locations along the channel. Interrogation of mitochondrial membrane potential with different potential sensitive dyes (JC-1 and TMRM) indicates the trapped mitochondria are vital in the respiration buffer.

Wafer-scale mitochondrial membrane potential assays.

It has been reported that mitochondrial metabolic and biophysical parameters are associated with degenerative diseases and the aging process. To evaluate these biochemical parameters, current technology requires several hundred milligrams of isolated mitochondria for functional assays. Here, we demonstrate manufacturable wafer-scale mitochondrial functional assay lab-on-a-chip devices, which require mitochondrial protein quantities three orders of magnitude less than current assays, integrated onto 4'' standard silicon wafer with new fabrication processes and materials.

Artifacts and pitfalls in MR imaging of the pelvis.

Artifacts are intimately intertwined with MRI. For the practicing radiologist, effective supervision, troubleshooting, and interpretation of diagnostic MR studies require a solid knowledge of the pertinent artifacts. This article seeks to familiarize the reader with commonly encountered artifacts and pitfalls in pelvic imaging, the mechanism behind their generation, and methods of minimizing their negative impact or maximizing their diagnostic yield.

Magnetic resonance imaging of the cervix.

Due to deficiencies of clinical staging, magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is being increasingly used in the pre-treatment work-up of cervical cancer. Lymph node status, as evaluated by advanced imaging modalities, is also being incorporated into management algorithms. Familiarity with MR imaging features will lead to more accurate staging of cervical cancer.

A physical map of the chromosome 12 centromere.

While current sequencing efforts consider the detection of alpha satellite repeats as logical end points for map construction, detailed maps of most pericentromeric regions are lacking to confirm this hypothesis. Here we identify the different alpha satellite families present at the pericentromeric region of chromosome 12. The order, size and location of these repeats is established using radiation hybrid analysis, pulsed field gel analysis and FISH and the maps are integrated with current sequence information.

No evidence for the involvement of CAG/CTG repeats from within 18q21.33-q23 in bipolar disorder.

We previously identified 18q21.33-q23 as a candidate region in one BP family and constructed a yeast artificial chromosome (YAC) contig map. Here, we mapped eight known CAG/CTG repeats relative to 18q21.

Molecular interpretation of expanded RED products in bipolar disorder by CAG/CTG repeats located at chromosomes 17q and 18q.

Previously we provided evidence that the anticipation observed in bipolar (BP) disorder may be explained by expanded CAG/CTG triplet repeats. Data were generated with the repeat expansion detection (RED) method in a BP case-control sample showing a significant association of BP disorder with expanded CAG/CTG repeats (RED products of 120 bp). In this study we demonstrated that 86% of the RED expansions could be accounted for by the ERDA1 and CTG18.

Molecular genetic analysis of autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxia with retinal degeneration (ADCA type II) caused by CAG triplet repeat expansion.

Autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxia with retinal degeneration (ADCAII) was previously mapped by linkage analysis studies to chromosome 3p12-p21.1 (SCA7). Positional cloning efforts have recently identified a novel gene, SCA7 , containing a translated CAG repeat, expanded in SCA7 patients.

[Value of intraoperative cytology in thoracic surgery].

Cytological investigations are established in thoracic surgery beside intraoperative histological examinations. We use these intraoperative cytological investigations as an additional diagnostic option for surgical decisions at our hospital for more than 15 years. 1008 intraoperative cytological findings were compared with the final histological results in a retrospective study to investigate the security of these cytological findings.