Humidity adsorption kinetics of calix[4]arene derivatives measured using QCM technique

This study focuses on the characterization of sulphonated calix[4]arene derivative films coated on a quartz substrate with a thickness of 40 nm by spin coating method for humidity detection. The humidity adsorption kinetics of the sulphonated calix[4]arene films was investigated by quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) technique. The Langmuir model was used to determine the adsorption rates and Gibbs free energy for various relative humidities between 11% and 97%. Our reproducible experimental results show that suphonated calix[4]arene films have a great potential for humidity sensing applications at room temperature operations. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.DPT2003K120390; TÜBİTAK TBAG 109T240 and Selcuk University Scientific Research Counci

Sex chromosome aneuploidy rates in the somatic cells of infertile men

OBJECTIVE: A large number of studies have shown that the prevalence of somatic chromosome abnormalities detectable with karyotyping is higher in infertile men. However, a normal somatic karyotype does not exclude the chance of having low level mosaicism. STUDY DESIGN: Eleven men with severe oligozoospermia and 10 healthy, fertile men were included in this study. All the patients had severe oligozoospermia with sperm counts ≤ 3,000,000/mL. All participants had normal physical findings and testicular volume. The probe for dual-color fluorescence in situ hybridization consisted of an alpha satellite sequence in the centromeric region of chromosome X (DXZ1) and satellite III DNA at the Yq12 region of chromosome Y (DYZ1). RESULTS: The sex chromosome aneuploidy rate was significantly higher in subjects than in controls (p<0.001). The median incidence of sex chromosome aneuploidy in the oligozoospermic group was 4.5% (range, 0.8-7.3%), while in the control group it was 0.7% (range, 0.2-1.2%). CONCLUSION: The incidence of aneuploidy in somatic cells is significantly greater in oligozoospermic men than in normal controls. That may suggest that chromosome instability is a result of altered genetic control during mitotic cell division. Our results demonstrate that men with oligozoospermia have an elevated risk for sex chromosome abnormalities in their somatic cells. © Journal of Reproductive Medicine®, Inc