Organometallic Compounds of the Lanthanides, 41 [1]. The Crystal and Molecular Structure of (C5Me5)2HoCl(THF)

The title compound (1) is obtained as brownish crystals by reaction of HOCl3 with NaC5Me5 in tetrahydrofuran. The structure of 1, which has two slightly different independent molecules per asymmetric unit, has been elucidated by X-ray analysis. The crystals are triclinic with a = 1686.2(8) pm, b = 1816(1) pm, c = 846.5(4) pm, α = 92.02(7)°, β = 92.47(9)°, γ = 63.21(5)°, space group P1̄, D(calcd) = 1.560 g/cm3, and R = 0.0286, for 6219 observed reflections with I > 3σ(I)

Symptom complexes in patients with seropositive arthralgia and in patients newly diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis: a qualitative exploration of symptom development

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore symptoms and symptom development during the earliest phases of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients with seropositive arthralgia and patients newly diagnosed with RA

Field Dependence of the Josephson Plasma Resonance in Layered Superconductors with Alternating Junctions

The Josephson plasma resonance in layered superconductors with alternating critical current densities is investigated in a low perpendicular magnetic field. In the vortex solid phase the current densities and the squared bare plasma frequencies decrease linearly with the magnetic field. Taking into account the coupling due to charge fluctuations on the layers, we extract from recent optical data for SmLa_{1-x} Sr_x CuO_{4-delta} the Josephson penetration length lambda_{ab} approximately 1100 A parallel to the layers at T=10 K.Comment: 5 pages, 6 eps-figures, final version with minor misprints correcte

Does the presence of magnetic resonance imaging-detected osteitis at diagnosis with rheumatoid arthritis lower the risk for achieving disease-modifying antirheumatic drug-free sustained remission: Results of a longitudinal study

Background: Although infrequent, some rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients achieve disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD)-free sustained remission. The absence of RA-specific autoantibodies, such as anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA), is known to be associated with this outcome but further mechanisms underlying the chronic nature of RA are largely unknown. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-detected bone marrow edema (BME), or osteitis, strongly predicts erosive progression and is associated with ACPA positivity. Therefore, we hypothesized that the presence of MRI-detected osteitis is also predictive of not achieving DMARD-free sustained remission and that the presence of osteitis mediates the association between ACPA and DMARD-free sustained remission. Methods: A 1.5 T unilateral hand and foot MRI was performed at disease presentation in 238 RA patients, evaluating BME, synovitis, and tenosynovitis (summed as MRI inflammation score). DMARD-free sustained remission, defined as the absence of clinical synovitis after DMARD cessation that persisted during the total follow-up, was assessed (median follow-up 3.8 years). Associations between the different MRI-detected inflammatory features and this outcome were studied. A mediation analysis was performed to study whether the presence of BME mediated the association between ACPA and DMARD-free sustained remission. Finally, patterns of MRI-detected inflammation with regard to DMARD-free sustained remission were studied using partial least squares (PLS) regression. Results: Forty-six (19.3%) patients achieved DMARD-free sustained remission. ACPA positivity associated independently with remission (hazard ratio (HR) 0.16, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.06-0.39). In contrast, no associations were observed between MRI-detected BME (HR 0.99, 95% CI 0.94-1.03), or other MRI inflammatory features, and achieving DMARD-free sustained remission. Thus, the presence of BME did not mediate the association between ACPA and DMARD-free sustained rem

Громадська робота як чинник повсякденного життя вчителя

Treatment and reconstruction of large bone defects, delayed unions, and nonunions is challenging and has resulted in an ongoing search for novel tissue-engineered therapies. Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) gene therapy is a promising strategy to provide sustained production of BMP-2 locally. Alginate polymer-based nonviral gene therapy with BMP-2 plasmid DNA (pBMP-2) in constructs with multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) has resulted in prolonged gene expression and bone formation in vivo. To further translate this technology toward larger animal models, important issues remain to be investigated, such as the necessity of seeded cells as a target for gene therapy. For that purpose, a large animal-screening model in an orthotopic location, with fully separated chambers, was investigated. Four cylinder-shaped implants were placed in the iliac crests of ten goats. Polycaprolactone tubes around each implant allowed bone ingrowth from the underlying bone and bone marrow and ensured separation of the experimental conditions. An empty tube showed low levels of spontaneous bone ingrowth, and implantation of autologous bone indicated proper bone function with respect to remodeling and resorption. Control ceramic scaffolds were compared to scaffolds containing pBMP-2 either or not combined with seeded MSCs. Fluorochrome incorporation evaluated at 3, 6, and 9 weeks and histomorphometry at 12 weeks after implantation revealed clear differences between the groups, with pBMP-2 combined with MSCs being the most effective. The BMP-2 was demonstrated in a variety of bone-residing cells through immunohistochemistry. Further analysis indicated that multinucleated giant cells might have an important role in transgene expression. Taken together, this work introduces a large animal model for studying bone formation at multiple sites simultaneously in an orthotopic location. The model appeared robust, showed no neighboring effects, and demonstrated effectivity of combined cell and gene therapy

Optical Properties of Layered Superconductors near the Josephson Plasma Resonance

We study the optical properties of crystals with spatial dispersion and show that the usual Fresnel approach becomes invalid near frequencies where the group velocity of the wave packets inside the crystal vanishes. Near these special frequencies the reflectivity depends on the atomic structure of the crystal provided that disorder and dissipation are very low. This is demonstrated explicitly by a detailed study of layered superconductors with identical or two different alternating junctions in the frequency range near the Josephson plasma resonance. Accounting for both inductive and charge coupling of the intrinsic junctions, we show that multiple modes are excited inside the crystal by the incident light, determine their relative amplitude by the microscopic calculation of the additional boundary conditions and finally obtain the reflectivity. Spatial dispersion also provides a novel method to stop light pulses, which has possible applications for quantum information processing and the artificial creation of event horizons in a solid.Comment: 25 pages, 20 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Рідке мило на основі соапстоків після нейтралізації олій та жирів в нейтралізуючому розчині, що містить етанол

Development and application of statistical models for medical scientific researc

VACTERL association etiology: The impact of de novo and rare copy number variations

Copy number variations (CNVs), either DNA gains or losses, have been found at common regions throughout the human genome. Most CNVs neither have a pathogenic significance nor result in disease-related phenotypes but, instead, reflect the normal population variance. However, larger CNVs, which often arise de novo, are frequently associated with human disease. A genetic contribution has long been suspected in VACTERL (Vertebral, Anal, Cardiac, TracheoEsophageal fistula, Renal and Limb anomalies) association. The anomalies observed in this association overlap with several monogenetic conditions associated with mutations in specific genes, e.g. Townes Brocks (SALL1), Feingold syndrome (MYCN) or Fanconi anemia. So far VACTERL association has typically been considered a diagnosis of exclusion. Identifying recurrent or de novo genomic variations in individuals with VACTERL association could make it easier to distinguish VACTERL association from other syndromes and could provide insight into disease mechanisms. Sporadically, de novo CNVs associated with VACTERL are described in literature. In addition to this literature review of genomic variation in published VACTERL association patients, we describe CNVs present in 68 VACTERL association patients collected in our institution. De novo variations (>30 kb) are absent in our VACTERL association cohort. However, we identified recurrent rare CNVs which, although inherited, could point to mechanisms or biological processes contributing to this constellation of developmental defects

Systematics of c-axis Phonons in the Thallium and Bismuth Based Cuprate Superconductors

We present grazing incidence reflectivity measurements in the far infrared region at temperatures above and below Tc for a series of thallium (Tl2Ba2CuO6, Tl2Ba2CaCu2O8) and bismuth (Bi2Sr2CuO6, Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8, and Bi(2-x)Pb(x)Sr2CaCu2O8) based cuprate superconductors. From the spectra, which are dominated by the c-axis phonons, longitudinal frequencies (LO) are directly obtained. The reflectivity curves are well fitted by a series of Lorentz oscillators. In this way the transverse (TO) phonon frequencies were accurately determined. On the basis of the comparative study of the Bi and Tl based cuprates with different number of CuO2 layers per unit cell, we suggest modifications of the assignment of the main oxygen modes. We compare the LO frequencies in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 and Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10 obtained from intrinsic Josephson junction characteristics with our measurements, and explain the discrepancy in LO frequencies obtained by the two different methods.Comment: 8 pages Revtex, 6 eps figures, 3 tables, to appear in Phys. Rev.