Improved Gastrointestinal Symptoms and Quality of Life after Conversion from Mycophenolate Mofetil to Enteric-Coated Mycophenolate Sodium in Renal Transplant Patients Receiving Tacrolimus

It is reported that a conversion from mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) to enteric-coated mycophenolate sodium (EC-MPS) relieves gastrointestinal (GI) symptom burden and improves health-related quality of life (HRQoL). However, it is unclear whether renal transplant recipients using tacrolimus receive the same benefit from the conversion. In this prospective, multi-center, open-label trial, patients were categorized into two groups by their GI symptom screening. Equimolar EC-MPS (n=175) was prescribed for patients with GI burdens; those with no complaints remained on MMF (n=83). Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) and Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GIQLI) were evaluated at baseline and after one month. Patients and physicians completed Overall Treatment Effect (OTE) at one month. EC-MPS-converted patients had worse GSRS and GIQLI scores at baseline than MMF-continued patients (all P<0.001). Significant improvements in GSRS and GIQLI scores were observed for EC-MPS-converted patients at one month, but MMF-continued patients showed worsened GSRS scores (all P<0.05). OTE scale indicated that EC-MPS patients improved in overall GI symptoms and HRQoL more than MMF patients did (P<0.001). In tacrolimus-treated renal transplant recipients with GI burdens, a conversion from MMF to EC-MPS improves GI-related symptoms and HRQoL

Low Frequency and Variability of FLT3 Mutations in Korean Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia

FLT3 mutations are common genetic changes, and are reported to have prognostic significance in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The FLT3 internal tandem duplication (ITD) and the D835 activating mutation in the tyrosine kinase domain (TKD) were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the genomic DNA of Korean patients with AML at diagnosis and during follow-up. There were 226 patients with AML enrolled between March 1996 and August 2005. The incidence of ITD and TKD at diagnosis was 13% (29/226) and 3% (6/226). When compared to Western and other Asian patients with AML, Korean patients had a lower frequency by about two-thirds of ITD and TKD. Among the non-M3 cases (N=203), the patients with an ITD had a significantly shorter event-free survival when compared with those without an ITD (p=0.0079). Among 54 relapsed patients, 9 patients had the FLT3 ITD at diagnosis. Six patients demonstrated a reappearance of the ITD and 3 patients remained negative at relapse. One patient, among 45 patients who relapsed, had a negative baseline ITD but acquired a de novo ITD at relapse. There were 101 samples from 93 patients in remission; they were all negative for an ITD. Among 34 patients who failed to achieve a remission, five patients had a persistent ITD and one patient had a de novo ITD. These results support the concept of resistance of FLT3 ITD leukemic clones to chemotherapy. Therefore, effective therapy with FLT3 targeting agents may improve the prognosis of non-M3 AML patients with the FLT3 mutation

Graphene-Based Heat Spreader For Flexible Electronic Devices

Graphene known for its superb physical properties, such as high transparency and thermal conductivity, is proposed as a solution to the problem of thermal management of the electronic devices, requiring transparency and cooling. It is shown that graphene heat spreader layer drives the heat out of the device more efficiently as compared with the commercially used metal thin films for integrated circuit cooling. An application of graphene heat spreader is proposed and tested in chip-on-film packaging. Graphene performance is compared with a gold layer with a similar transparency experimentally and theoretically as a proof of the efficient thermal management capability of graphene

Graphene-Based Heat Spreader for Flexible Electronic Devices

Graphene known for its superb physical properties, such as high transparency and thermal conductivity, is proposed as a solution to the problem of thermal management of the electronic devices, requiring transparency and cooling. It is shown that graphene heat spreader layer drives the heat out of the device more efficiently as compared with the commercially used metal thin films for integrated circuit cooling. An application of graphene heat spreader is proposed and tested in chip-on-film packaging. Graphene performance is compared with a gold layer with a similar transparency experimentally and theoretically as a proof of the efficient thermal management capability of graphene

Magnetorheology of a Carbonyliron Microsphere Suspension with a Halloysite Additive and Its Damping Force Characteristics

A carbonyliron (CI)-based magnetorheological (MR) suspension was prepared with halloysite nanoclay particles as an additive. The MR properties of the suspension were investigated using a rotational rheometer with a parallel-plate geometry equipped with a magnetic field supply under a range of external magnetic field strengths. From the sedimentation ratio test to assess the dispersion stability, the addition of halloysite particles to the CI suspension was found to improve the sedimentation problem. MR fluids containing both pure CI and CI/halloysite were employed in a custom-designed MR damper, and their damping characteristics, such as the damping force as a function of time, displacement, and velocity, were examined experimentally because the vibration attenuation using mechanical damper systems is one of the main applications of MR fluids. Under the same magnetic field strength, the damping characteristics of the two MR fluids were found to be related directly to their yield stresses

Fabrication and operating characteristics of a flat tubular segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cell unit bundle

A unit bundle of a flat tubular segmented-in-series (SIS)-solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) for intermediate temperature (650-800 ??C) operation was fabricated and operated in this study. We fabricated flat tubular ceramic supports through an extrusion process and analyzed the basic properties of the flat tubular ceramic support: the visible microstructure, porosity, mechanical strength, and pore size distribution. After that, we manufactured a flat tubular SIS-SOFC single cell using screen printing and a vacuum slurry dip-coating method for the electrode/interconnect and electrolyte. In addition, to make a unit bundle for a flat tubular SIS-SOFC, five SIS-SOFC single cells with an effective electrode area of 0.8 cm2 were coated onto the surface of the prepared ceramic support and were connected in series using an Ag + glass interconnect between each single SIS-SOFC cell. The performance of the 5-cell unit bundle for a flat tubular SIS-SOFC in 3% humidified H2 and air at 800 ??C had a maximum power of 2.5 W.close0

Effect of cathode geometry on the electrochemical performance of flat tubular segmented-in-series(SIS) solid oxide fuel cell

A flat tubular segmented in series (SIS)-SOFC was fabricated with variable cathode thicknesses and the performance characteristics were analyzed. Vacuum slurry dip coating and screen printing technique were employed to coat the NiO-Ce1ScSZ10 anode, Ce1ScSZ10 electrolyte, and La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8 cathode on the extruded 3YSZ ceramic support. A sub module consisting of 5-cell with a total active electrode area of 4cm2 was interconnected in series using Ag-glass composite. Electrochemical performance analysis was conducted between 600 and 800??C using 300CC/min. 3vol.% humidified hydrogen fuel and 1500CC/min. air as oxidant. The results obtained from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and current-voltage polarization curves revealed a 57??m thick cathode layer as the optimum thickness. An application of LSCo as the cathode current collector on the surface of the cathode enhanced the performance by approximately 30% at 750??C. &amp;#169; 2015 Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLCclose0