1,155 research outputs found
The impact of protocol assignment for older adolescents with Hodgkin lymphoma
Background and Purpose: Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) treatment has evolved to reduce or avoid radiotherapy (RT) dose and volume and minimize the potential for late effects. Some older adolescents are treated on adult protocols. The purpose of this study is to examine the protocol assignment of older adolescents and its impact on radiation dose to relevant thoracic structures.
Materials and Methods: Cooperative group data were reviewed and 12 adolescents were randomly selected from a pediatric HL protocol. Treatment plans were generated per one pediatric and two adult protocols. Dose volume histograms for heart, lung, and breast allowed comparison of radiation dose to these sites across these three protocols.
Results: A total of 15.2% of adolescents were treated on adult HL protocols and received significantly higher radiation dosage to heart and lung compared to pediatric HL protocols. Adolescents treated on either pediatric or adult protocols received similar RT dose to breast.
Conclusion: Older adolescents treated on adult HL protocols received higher RT dose to thoracic structures except breast. Level of nodal involvement may impact overall RT dose to breast. The impact of varying field design and RT dose on survival, local, and late effects needs further study for this vulnerable age group
Effects of Heat Exposure on Body Water Assessed using Single-Frequency Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and Bioimpedance Spectroscopy
International Journal of Exercise Science 10(7): 1085-1093, 2017. The purpose of this study was to determine if heat exposure alters the measures of total body water (TBW), extracellular water (ECW), and intracellular water (ICW) in both single-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) and bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS). Additionally, we sought to determine if any differences exist between the BIA and BIS techniques before and after brief exposure to heat. Body water was evaluated for twenty men (age=24±4 years) in a thermoneutral environment (22°C) before (PRE) and immediately after (POST) 15 min of passive heating (35°C) in an environmental chamber. The mean difference and 95% limits of agreement at PRE demonstrated that BIS yielded significantly higher body water values than BIA (all p0.05; 0.2±1.5kg). Additionally, the ES of the mean differences at POST were trivial to small and the r-values were high (râ„0.96). When analyzing the changes in body water before and after heat exposure, POST values for BIS were significantly higher than PRE (all
Characterization of pPCP1 Plasmids in Yersinia pestis Strains Isolated from the Former Soviet Union
Complete sequences of 9.5-kb pPCP1 plasmids in three Yersinia pestis strains from the former Soviet Union (FSU) were determined and compared with those of pPCP1 plasmids in three well-characterized, non-FSU Y. pestis strains (KIM, CO92, and 91001). Two of the FSU plasmids were from strains C2614 and C2944, isolated from plague foci in Russia, and one plasmid was from strain C790 from Kyrgyzstan. Sequence analyses identified four sequence types among the six plasmids. The pPCP1 plasmids in the FSU strains were most genetically related to the pPCP1 plasmid in the KIM strain and least related to the pPCP1 plasmid in Y. pestis 91001. The FSU strains generally had larger pPCP1 plasmid copy numbers compared to strain CO92. Expression of the plasmid's pla gene was significantly (P †.05) higher in strain C2944 than in strain CO92. Given pla's role in Y. pestis virulence, this difference may have important implications for the strain's virulence
Baylisascaris procyonis in the Metropolitan Atlanta Area
Baylisascaris procyonis, the raccoon roundworm responsible for fatal larva migrans in humans, has long been thought to be absent from many regions in the southeastern United States. During spring 2002, 11 (22%) of 50 raccoons trapped in DeKalb County, Georgia, had B. procyonis infection. The increasing number of cases highlight this emerging zoonotic infection
Probing single electrons across 300 mm spin qubit wafers
Building a fault-tolerant quantum computer will require vast numbers of
physical qubits. For qubit technologies based on solid state electronic
devices, integrating millions of qubits in a single processor will require
device fabrication to reach a scale comparable to that of the modern CMOS
industry. Equally importantly, the scale of cryogenic device testing must keep
pace to enable efficient device screening and to improve statistical metrics
like qubit yield and process variation. Spin qubits have shown impressive
control fidelities but have historically been challenged by yield and process
variation. In this work, we present a testing process using a cryogenic 300 mm
wafer prober to collect high-volume data on the performance of
industry-manufactured spin qubit devices at 1.6 K. This testing method provides
fast feedback to enable optimization of the CMOS-compatible fabrication
process, leading to high yield and low process variation. Using this system, we
automate measurements of the operating point of spin qubits and probe the
transitions of single electrons across full wafers. We analyze the random
variation in single-electron operating voltages and find that this fabrication
process leads to low levels of disorder at the 300 mm scale. Together these
results demonstrate the advances that can be achieved through the application
of CMOS industry techniques to the fabrication and measurement of spin qubits.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures, 7 extended data figure
Distribution of Parmarion cf. martensi (Pulmonata: Helicarionidae), a New Semi-Slug Pest on Hawaiâi Island, and Its Potential as a Vector for Human Angiostrongyliasis.
v. ill. 23 cm.QuarterlyThe semi-slug Parmarion cf. martensi Simroth, 1893, was first discovered on Oâahu, Hawaiâi, in 1996 and then on the island of Hawaiâi in 2004. This species, which is probably native to Southeast Asia, is abundant in eastern Hawaiâ i Island, reportedly displacing the Cuban slug, Veronicella cubensis (Pfeiffer, 1840), in some areas. A survey in JulyâAugust 2005 found P. cf. martensi primarily in the lower Puna area of Hawaiâi Island, with an isolated population in Kailua-Kona (western Hawaiâi Island). It is now established in commercial papaya plantations, and survey participants reported it as a pest of lettuce and papaya in home gardens. Survey respondents considered P. cf. martensi a pest also because of its tendency to climb on structures where it deposits its feces and because of its potential to transmit disease. Individuals of this species were found to carry large numbers of infective third-stage larvae of the nematod
Multi-level evidence of an allelic hierarchy of USH2A variants in hearing, auditory processing and speech/language outcomes.
Language development builds upon a complex network of interacting subservient systems. It therefore follows that variations in, and subclinical disruptions of, these systems may have secondary effects on emergent language. In this paper, we consider the relationship between genetic variants, hearing, auditory processing and language development. We employ whole genome sequencing in a discovery family to target association and gene x environment interaction analyses in two large population cohorts; the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) and UK10K. These investigations indicate that USH2A variants are associated with altered low-frequency sound perception which, in turn, increases the risk of developmental language disorder. We further show that Ush2a heterozygote mice have low-level hearing impairments, persistent higher-order acoustic processing deficits and altered vocalizations. These findings provide new insights into the complexity of genetic mechanisms serving language development and disorders and the relationships between developmental auditory and neural systems
Landau-Zener-Stuckelberg interferometry
A transition between energy levels at an avoided crossing is known as a
Landau-Zener transition. When a two-level system (TLS) is subject to periodic
driving with sufficiently large amplitude, a sequence of transitions occurs.
The phase accumulated between transitions (commonly known as the Stuckelberg
phase) may result in constructive or destructive interference. Accordingly, the
physical observables of the system exhibit periodic dependence on the various
system parameters. This phenomenon is often referred to as
Landau-Zener-Stuckelberg (LZS) interferometry. Phenomena related to LZS
interferometry occur in a variety of physical systems. In particular, recent
experiments on LZS interferometry in superconducting TLSs (qubits) have
demonstrated the potential for using this kind of interferometry as an
effective tool for obtaining the parameters characterizing the TLS as well as
its interaction with the control fields and with the environment. Furthermore,
strong driving could allow for fast and reliable control of the quantum system.
Here we review recent experimental results on LZS interferometry, and we
present related theory.Comment: 34 single-column pages, 11 figure
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