621 research outputs found
Ventricular tachycardia associated with lacosamide co-medication in drug-resistant epilepsy.
We report a case of sustained ventricular tachycardia following the initiation of lacosamide as adjunctive epilepsy treatment. A 49-year-old male with intractable frontal lobe seizures experienced severe ventricular tachycardia following the addition of 400Â mg lacosamide to his existing regimen of carbamazepine, lamotrigine, clonazepam, and valproate. The tachycardia occurred during a cardiac stress test; stress tests prior to initiation of lacosamide were normal. Conduction defects, including QRS prolongation, persisted during hospitalization until lacosamide was discontinued. The patient had no prior history of cardiac arrhythmia but did possess cardiac risk factors, including hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and low heart rate variability. This case represents one part of a growing body of literature suggesting a link between arrhythmia and use of lacosamide, which enhances slow inactivation of sodium channels in both the brain and the heart. We believe further study may be necessary to assess the safety of lacosamide in epilepsy patients with cardiac risk factors
Short-time rotational diffusion in monodisperse charge-stabilized colloidal suspensions
We investigate the combined effects of electrostatic interactions and
hydrodynamic interactions on the short-time rotational self-diffusion
coefficient in charge-stabilized suspensions. We calculate this coefficient as
a function of volume fraction for various effective particle charges and
amounts of added electrolyte. The influence of the hydrodynamic interactions on
the rotational diffusion coefficient is less pronounced for charged particles
than for uncharged ones. Salt-free suspensions are weakly influenced by
hydrodynamic interactions. For these strongly correlated systems we obtain a
quadratic volume fraction-dependence of the diffusion coefficient, which is
well explained in terms of an effective hard sphere model.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX, 7 Postscript figures included using epsf, to appear
in Physica
Admixture and ancestry inference from ancient and modern samples through measures of population genetic drift
Methods that leverage the information about population history contained within the increasingly abundant genetic sequences of extant and extinct Hominid populations are diverse in form and versatile in application. Here, we review key methods recently developed to detect and quantify admixture and ancestry in modern human populations. We begin with an overview of the f- and D-statistics, covering their conceptual principles and important applications, as well as any extensions developed for them. We then cover a combination of more recent and more complex methods for admixture and ancestry inference, discussing tests for direct ancestry between two populations, quantification of admixture in large datasets, and determination of admixture dates. These methods have revolutionized our understanding of human population history and additionally highlighted its complexity. Therefore, we emphasize that current methods may not capture this population history in its entirety, but nonetheless provide a reasonable picture that is supported by data from multiple methods, and from the historical record
Apparatus for timeâresolved measurements of acoustic birefringence in particle dispersions
An apparatus for timeâresolved measurements of the birefringence induced in a particle suspension by an acoustic wave pulse is described. Efficient acoustic coupling is obtained by operating near the transducer resonant frequency and by matching the acoustic impedances of the cell constituents. An almostâoverdamped acoustic configuration can alternatively be employed whenever a faster response is needed. Careful design of the optical setup and of the detection unit minimize diffraction and stressâbirefringence parasitic effects and yields a good responsivity at fairly low acoustic intensities. A test of the apparatus on a colloidal suspension of PTFE rodlike particles is presented and discussed
Recommended from our members
Fish oil (n-3 fatty acids) in drug resistant epilepsy: a randomised placebo-controlled crossover study.
Backgroundn-3 fatty acids inhibit neuronal excitability and reduce seizures in animal models. High-dose fish oil has been explored in two randomised trials in drug resistant epilepsy with negative results. We performed a phase II randomised controlled crossover trial of low-dose and high-dose fish oil in participants with drug resistant epilepsy to explore whether low-dose or high-dose fish oil reduces seizures or improves cardiovascular health.MethodsRandomised placebo-controlled trial of low-dose and high-dose fish oil versus placebo (corn oil, linoleic acid) in 24 participants with drug resistant epilepsy. A three-period crossover design was utilised lasting 42â
weeks, with three 10-week treatment periods and two 6-week washout periods. All participants were randomised in double-blind fashion to receive placebo, high dose or low dose in different sequences. The primary outcome was per cent change in total seizure frequency.FindingsLow-dose fish oil (3 capsules/day, 1080â
mg eicosapentaenoic acid+docosahexaenoic acid) was associated with a 33.6% reduction in seizure frequency compared with placebo. Low-dose fish oil was also associated with a mild but significant reduction in blood pressure. High-dose fish oil was no different than placebo in reducing seizures or improving cardiac risk factors.InterpretationIn this phase II randomised crossover trial, low-dose fish oil was effective in reducing seizures compared with placebo. The magnitude of improvement is similar to that of recent antiepileptic drug trials in drug resistant epilepsy (DRE). The results indicate that low-dose fish oil may reduce seizures and improve the health of people with epilepsy. These findings justify a large multicentre randomised trial of low-dose fish oil (n-3 fatty acids <1080â
mg/day) in drug resistant epilepsy.Trial registration numberNCT00871377
Impact of Conservation Agriculture on Soil Erosion in the Annual Cropland of the Apulia Region (Southern Italy) Based on the RUSLE-GIS-GEE Framework
The processes of soil erosion and land degradation are more rapid in the case of inappropriate agricultural management, which leads to increased soil loss rates. Moreover, climatic conditions are one of the most important determining factors affecting agriculture, especially in the Mediterranean areas featuring irregular rainfall and high summer temperatures. Conservation agriculture (CA) can make a significant contribution to reducing soil erosion risk on the annual cropland (ACL) of the Mediterranean region in comparison with conventional management (CM). The objective of this study is to provide soil loss rate maps and calculate the values for each altitude and slope class and their combination for the Apulia region in four annual production cycles for the scenarios CM and CA. The present study estimates the significance of the adoption of CA on soil erosion assessment at regional scale based on the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model. The parameters of the RUSLE model were estimated by using remote sensing (RS) data. The erosion probability zones were determined through a Geographic Information System (GIS) and Google Earth Engine (GEE) approach. Digital terrain model (DTM) at 8 m, ACL maps of the Apulia region, and rainfall and soil data were used as an input to identify the most erosion-prone areas. Our results show a 7.5% average decrease of soil loss rate during the first period of adoption of the four-year crop cycleâfrom 2.3 t haâ1 yâ1 with CM to 2.1 t haâ1 yâ1 with the CA system. CA reduced soil loss rate compared to CM in all classes, from 10.1% in hill class to 14.1% for hill + low slope class. These results can therefore assist in the implementation of effective soil management systems and conservation practices to reduce soil erosion risk in the Apulia region and in the Mediterranean basin more generally
Ternary cluster decay within the liquid drop model
Longitudinal ternary and binary fission barriers of Ar, Ni and
Cf nuclei have been determined within a rotational liquid drop model
taking into account the nuclear proximity energy. For the light nuclei the
heights of the ternary fission barriers become competitive with the binary ones
at high angular momenta since the maximum lies at an outer position and has a
much higher moment of inertia.Comment: Talk presented at the 9th International Conference on Clustering
Aspects of Nuclear Structure and Dynamics (CLUSTERS'07
- âŠ