Comparative study of nonlinear-optical polymers for guided-wave second-harmonic generation at telecommunication wavelengths

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The Effectiveness of Budesonide Nasal Irrigation After Endoscopic Sinus Surgery in Chronic Rhinosinusitis With Asthma

Objectives Budesonide nasal irrigation was introduced recently for postoperative management of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis. The safety and therapeutic effectiveness of this procedure is becoming accepted by many physicians. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of postoperative steroid irrigation in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis and asthma. Methods This prospective study involved 12 chronic rhinosinusitis patients with nasal polyps and asthma who received oral steroid treatment for recurring or worsening disease. The 22-item Sinonasal Outcomes Test (SNOT-22) and Lund-Kennedy endoscopy scores were checked before nasal budesonide irrigation, and 1, 2, 4, and 6 months after irrigation. We also calculated the total amount of oral steroids and inhaled steroids in the 6 months before irrigation and the 6 months after it. Results The mean SNOT-22 score improved from 30.8±14.4 before irrigation to 14.2±8.7 after 6 months of irrigation (P=0.030). The endoscopy score also improved from 7.4±4.7 before irrigation to 2.2±2.7 after 6 months (P<0.001). The total amount of oral steroid was decreased from 397.8±97.6 mg over the 6 months before irrigation to 72.7±99.7 mg over the 6 months after irrigation (P<0.001). Conclusion Nasal irrigation with budesonide is an effective postoperative treatment for chronic rhinosinusitis with asthma, which recurs frequently, reducing the oral steroid intake

A Case of Pulmonary Vein Tumor Presenting as a Left Atrial Mass

Primary cardiac tumors are extremely rare and can originate within the heart or be the result of tumor spread from other sites. We report a female patient with a pulmonary vein tumor extending into the left atrium that had a suspicious primary malignant origin with a sacral metastatic carcinoma. The patient was admitted complaining of pain in her buttock area as a result of a sacral tumor. It was believed that the sacral tumor was a metastasis from the imaging study and clinical manifestation. The primary malignant origin was evaluated. The chest CT showed a left atrium thrombus-like lesion without a pulmonary abnormality. After a transesophageal echocardiogram, the patient was diagnosed with a pulmonary vein tumor extending to the left atrium. The patient was given palliative radiotherapy for the sacral pain. Initially, the clinical impression was a metastatic sacral tumor with a thromboembolism of the left atrium. However, this patient was finally diagnosed with a pulmonary vein tumor with a left atrium extension by a transesophageal echocardiogram

Differentially Expressed Potassium Channels Are Associated with Function of Human Effector Memory CD8+T cells

The voltage-gated potassium channel, Kv1.3, and the Ca2+-activated potassium channel, KCa3.1, regulate membrane potentials in T cells, thereby controlling T cell activation and cytokine production. However, little is known about the expression and function of potassium channels in human effector memory ( EM) CD8+ T cells that can be further divided into functionally distinct subsets based on the expression of the interleukin ( IL)-7 receptor alpha ( IL-7R alpha) chain. Herein, we investigated the functional expression and roles of Kv1.3 and KCa3.1 in EM CD8+ T cells that express high or low levels of the IL-7 receptor alpha chain ( IL-7R alpha(high) and IL-7R alpha(low), respectively). In contrast to the significant activity of Kv1.3 and KCa3.1 in IL-7Rahigh EM CD8+ T cells, IL-7Ralow EM CD8+ T cells showed lower expression of Kv1.3 and insignificant expression of KCa3.1. Kv1.3 was involved in the modulation of cell proliferation and IL-2 production, whereas KCa3.1 affected the motility of EM CD8+ T cells. The lower motility of IL-7Ralow EM CD8+ T cells was demonstrated using transendothelial migration and motility assays with intercellular adhesion molecule 1-and/or chemokine stromal cell-derived factor-1 alpha-coated surfaces. Consistent with the lower migration property, IL-7Ralow EM CD8+ T cells were found less frequently in human skin. Stimulating IL-7Ralow EM CD8+ T cells with IL-2 or IL-15 increased their motility and recovery of KCa3.1 activity. Our findings demonstrate that Kv1.3 and KCa3.1 are differentially involved in the functions of EM CD8+ T cells. The weak expression of potassium channels in IL-7Ralow EM CD8+ T cells can be revived by stimulation with IL-2 or IL-15, which restores the associated functions. This study suggests that IL-7Rahigh EM CD8+ T cells with functional potassium channels may serve as a reservoir for effector CD8+ T cells during peripheral inflammation.112Ysciescopu

Intracerebroventricular injection of human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells in patients with Alzheimer’s disease dementia: a phase I clinical trial

Backgrounds: Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, and currently, there is no disease-modifying treatment. Favorable functional outcomes and reduction of amyloid levels were observed following transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in animal studies. Objectives: We conducted a phase I clinical trial in nine patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease dementia to evaluate the safety and dose-limiting toxicity of three repeated intracerebroventricular injections of human umbilical cord blood-derived MSCs (hUCB-MSCs). Methods: We recruited nine mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease dementia patients from Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Four weeks prior to MSC administration, the Ommaya reservoir was implanted into the right lateral ventricle of the patients. Three patients received a low dose (1.0 × 107 cells/2 mL), and six patients received a high dose (3.0 × 107 cells/2 mL) of hUCB-MSCs. Three repeated injections of MSCs were performed (4-week intervals) in all nine patients. These patients were followed up to 12 weeks after the first hUCB-MSC injection and an additional 36 months in the extended observation study. Results: After hUCB-MSC injection, the most common adverse event was fever (n = 9) followed by headache (n = 7), nausea (n = 5), and vomiting (n = 4), which all subsided within 36 h. There were three serious adverse events in two participants that were considered to have arisen from the investigational product. Fever in a low dose participant and nausea with vomiting in another low dose participant each required extended hospitalization by a day. There were no dose-limiting toxicities. Five participants completed the 36-month extended observation study, and no further serious adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Three repeated administrations of hUCB-MSCs into the lateral ventricle via an Ommaya reservoir were feasible, relatively and sufficiently safe, and well-tolerated. Currently, we are undergoing an extended follow-up study for those who participated in a phase IIa trial where upon completion, we hope to gain a deeper understanding of the clinical efficacy of MSC AD therapy

Comparative Study Of Nonlinear-Optical Polymers For Guided-Wave Second-Harmonic Generation At Telecommunication Wavelengths

We report on the linear and nonlinear-optical properties of 4-dimethylamino-4′-nitrostilbene (DANS), 4-diethylamino-1-nitrobenzyl (DANE), and 4-[N-ethyl-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)]amino-4′-nitroazobenzene) (Disperse Red 1;DR1) side chain polymers whose second-harmonic generation at the telecommunication wavelength of 1.55 μm was investigated. Measured ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared spectra were analyzed with an inhomogeneously broadened line-shape model, in particular, in the long-wavelength tail of the electronic transitions, which determines the absorption loss at the second-harmonic wavelength. The nonlinear-optical coefficients were measured at different poling temperatures and poling fields by the Maker fringe technique. On the basis of the measured material parameters we calculated the normalized conversion efficiencies for guided-wave second-harmonic generation at 1.55 μm. The DR1 polymer exhibited the best nonlinearity-absorption trade-off, with a calculated normalized conversion efficiency of several hundred percent per watt, whereas the figures.of merit for DANS and DANE are lower and comparable with each other. © 2000 Optical Society of America

Advantages of Modal Dispersion Phase-Matching and materials requirements for polymeric devices using efficient second harmonic generation at telecommunication wavelength

Modal Dispersion Phase Matching appears to be currently much better adapted to parametric mixing in polymeric material waveguides than Quasi Phase Matching. For second harmonic generation at telecommunication wavelengths, using organic materials should allow better performance than with ferroelectric crystals. Promising results are expected in view of theoretical expectations and continuously improving experimental past and current results

55 % Al-Zn coating for press hardening steel

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Investigation of Microstructure, Nanohardness and Corrosion Resistance for Oxi-Nitrocarburized Low Carbon Steel

A role of oxi-nitrocarburizing technique for low-carbon steel was intensively evaluated as a means of reducing the problem of corrosion in gas nitrocarburizing, which is a vital disadvantage of gas nitrocarburizing. Oxi-nitrocarburizing was carried out by a two-step process: Gas nitrocarburizing at 560 &deg;C and oxidation. In order to characterize two different methods of oxi-nitrocarburizing, oxidation was performed under two different conditions: Air and steam as oxygen sources. To analyze the microstructural, physical, and chemical properties of the thin oxide layer and nitride layer, which are the surface hardened layers formed on low-carbon steel by oxi-nitrocarburizing, several methods, such as electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), nanoindentation tests, and potentiodynamic polarization tests were applied. The results indicated that the EPMA and EBSD methods are powerful techniques for the analysis of microstructure, such as phase analysis and metallic element distribution in the oxide layer of magnetite and compound layer of &epsilon;-phase and &gamma;&prime;-phase, for oxi-nitrocarburized low-carbon steel. Additionally, the nanohardness using the nanoindentation test and corrosion resistance using the potentiodynamic polarization test for the oxi-nitrocarburized specimens are useful methods to understand the mechanical and corrosion properties of the surface hardened layer