Effect of cascade overlap and C15 clusters on the damage evolution in Fe : An OKMC study

In order to investigate the long-term evolution of radiation-induced defects in the fission- and fusion-relevant material iron, we introduce cascade overlap effects into Object Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. In addition to cascade overlap, we study the effect of introducing discrete C15 Laves phase clusters into the simulations. By applying either, none, or both of these effects we identify how they influence the evolution of the system. We find that both cascade overlap and C15 clusters affect the evolution of the radiation damage in different ways and on different time scales. Cascade overlap is found to reduce the number of Frenkel pairs. On the other hand, the explicit consideration of C15 Laves phase clusters increases the accumulation of defects at low dose. The results are compared to Molecular Dynamics simulation results under similar conditions.Peer reviewe

Effects of Lateral Wedge Insole on Static and Dynamic Balance in Patients with Moderate Medial Knee Osteoarthritis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is associated with diminished joint proprioception, balance deficits and increased risk of falls. Patients with medial knee osteoarthritis are at higher risk of balance deficits and falling due to the development of secondary varus deformity. Therefore, it is of great clinical importance to identify the treatment methods that could improve balance in knee OA. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of Lateral Wedge Insole (LWI) on static and dynamic balance in patients with moderate medial knee osteoarthritis. METHODS: Thirty patients with moderate medial knee OA participated in this semi-experimental interventional study. Patients were recruited from orthopedic and rheumatology clinics of the university. For each patient, the static and dynamic balance were assessed in two conditions including wearing shoes with flat insole and wearing shoes with lateral wedge insole, using a Prokin stabilometer. The balance variables were the anteroposterior and mediolateral velocity and standard deviation of the center of pressure (COP) displacement, and total stability indices. Patients performed two familiarization trials, then, three actual trials with at least 30 s interval for each test. FINDINGS: Wearing LWIs resulted in significant decreases in the anteroposterior (static:1.78mm/s, dynamic:6.63mm/s) and mediolateral velocity of COP (static:1.53mm/s, dynamic:5.58mm/s) in compression to wearing shoes with flat insole (p<0.001). The anteroposterior (static:1.04 mm, dynamic:1.57mm) and mediolateral SD of the COP (static:1.58mm, dynamic:2.02mm) were also decreased after using LWIs (p<0.007). Except for the anteroposterior stability index, other balance indices were also significantly improved (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that using a LWI improve static and dynamic balance in patients with moderate medial knee OA

Treatment of American tegumentary leishmaniasis in special populations : a summary of evidence

We aimed to assess and synthesize the information available in the literature regarding the treatment of American tegumentary leishmaniasis in special populations. We searched MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, LILACS, SciELO, Scopus, Cochrane Library and mRCT databases to identify clinical trials and observational studies that assessed the pharmacological treatment of the following groups of patients: pregnant women, nursing mothers, children, the elderly, individuals with chronic diseases and individuals with suppressed immune systems. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations (GRADE) approach. The available evidence suggests that the treatments of choice for each population or disease entity are as follows: nursing mothers and children (meglumine antimoniate or pentamidine), patients with renal disease (amphotericin B or miltefosine), patients with heart disease (amphotericin B, miltefosine or pentamidine), immunosuppressed patients (liposomal amphotericin), the elderly (meglumine antimoniate), pregnant women (amphotericin B) and patients with liver disease (no evidence available). The quality of evidence is low or very low for all groups. Accurate controlled studies are required to fill in the gaps in evidence for treatment in special populations. Post-marketing surveillance programs could also collect relevant information to guide treatment decision-making

The Efficacy of Carbon Dioxide Laser in the Treatment of Chronic and Lupoid Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Kerman City: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract: Background & Aims: Lupoid (LL) and chronic leishmaniais (CCL) are variants of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) which are resistant to various treatments. The diseases are endemic in some developing countries such as Iran. A Variety of drugs with different effects have been suggested in recent decades. Carbon deoxide laser has been recently applied in the treatment of different dermatological diseases. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of CO2 laser compared to systemic Glucantime plus Allopurionl in the treatment of LL and CCL. Methods: A total of 50 patients with 86 LL or CCL lesions were participated in this study. They were divided into the two groups; the first group was treated with CO2 laser for one session and the second group was treated with Glucantime (50 mg/kg IM for 21 days) plus Allopurionl (20mg/kg for 30 days). All patients were followed at weeks 4th, 8th, 48th and 72nd and the results were compared. Results: At week 4, the cure rate of complete improvement of two treatment groups was not statistically different (P=0.609). By week 8, the cure rate slightly decreased (P=0.417). The decreasing trend continued until weeks 48th and 72nd (P=0.289 and P=0.095, respectively). Finally, 16 patients of laser group and 22 patients of the other group were cured, but statistically no significant difference was observed between the two groups (P=0.095). Conclusions: Carbon deoxide laser therapy could be used in patients with hypersensitivity to pentavalent antimoniate or those with serious systemic diseases. Keywords: Cutaneous leishmaniasis, Carbon Deoxide laser, Meglumine antimoniat

Edge dislocations in multicomponent solid solution alloys: Beyond traditional elastic depinning

| openaire: EC/H2020/857470/EU//NOMATEN Funding Information: We would like to thank P. Sobkowicz for insightful discussions. We acknowledge support from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No. 857470 and from the European Regional Development Fund via the Foundation for Polish Science International Research Agenda PLUS program Grant No. MAB PLUS/2018/8. We acknowledge the computational resources provided by the High Performance Cluster at the National Centre for Nuclear Research in Poland. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 authors. Published by the American Physical Society.High-entropy alloys (HEA) form solid solutions with large chemical disorder and excellent mechanical properties. We investigate the origin of HEA strengthening in face-centered-cubic (fcc) single-phase HEAs through molecular dynamics simulations of dislocations, in particular, the equiatomic CrCoNi, CrMnCoNi, CrFeCoNi, CrMnFeCoNi, FeNi, and, also, Fe0.4Mn0.27Ni0.26Co0.05Cr0.02, Fe0.7Ni0.11Cr0.19. The dislocation correlation length ζ, roughness amplitude Ra, and stacking fault widths WSF are tracked as a function of stress. All alloys are characterized by a well defined depinning stress (σc) and we find a regime where exceptional strength is observed, and a fortuitous combination takes place, of small stacking fault widths and large dislocation roughness Ra. Thus the depinning of two partials seems analogous to unconventional domain wall depinning in disordered magnetic thin films. This regime is identified in specific compositions commonly associated with exceptional mechanical properties (CrCoNi, CrMnCoNi, CrFeCoNi, and CrMnFeCoNi). Yield stress from analytical solute-strengthening models underestimates largely the results in these cases. A possible strategy for increasing strength in multicomponent single-phase alloys is the combined design of stacking fault width and element-based chemical disorder. A hardening factor represents this strategy where combination of low stacking fault and high misfit parameters (and thus high roughness of dislocation at depinning stress) leads to stronger fcc multicomponent alloys.Peer reviewe

Edge dislocations in multicomponent solid solution alloys: Beyond traditional elastic depinning

| openaire: EC/H2020/857470/EU//NOMATEN Funding Information: We would like to thank P. Sobkowicz for insightful discussions. We acknowledge support from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No. 857470 and from the European Regional Development Fund via the Foundation for Polish Science International Research Agenda PLUS program Grant No. MAB PLUS/2018/8. We acknowledge the computational resources provided by the High Performance Cluster at the National Centre for Nuclear Research in Poland. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 authors. Published by the American Physical Society.High-entropy alloys (HEA) form solid solutions with large chemical disorder and excellent mechanical properties. We investigate the origin of HEA strengthening in face-centered-cubic (fcc) single-phase HEAs through molecular dynamics simulations of dislocations, in particular, the equiatomic CrCoNi, CrMnCoNi, CrFeCoNi, CrMnFeCoNi, FeNi, and, also, Fe0.4Mn0.27Ni0.26Co0.05Cr0.02, Fe0.7Ni0.11Cr0.19. The dislocation correlation length ζ, roughness amplitude Ra, and stacking fault widths WSF are tracked as a function of stress. All alloys are characterized by a well defined depinning stress (σc) and we find a regime where exceptional strength is observed, and a fortuitous combination takes place, of small stacking fault widths and large dislocation roughness Ra. Thus the depinning of two partials seems analogous to unconventional domain wall depinning in disordered magnetic thin films. This regime is identified in specific compositions commonly associated with exceptional mechanical properties (CrCoNi, CrMnCoNi, CrFeCoNi, and CrMnFeCoNi). Yield stress from analytical solute-strengthening models underestimates largely the results in these cases. A possible strategy for increasing strength in multicomponent single-phase alloys is the combined design of stacking fault width and element-based chemical disorder. A hardening factor represents this strategy where combination of low stacking fault and high misfit parameters (and thus high roughness of dislocation at depinning stress) leads to stronger fcc multicomponent alloys.Peer reviewe

Viewing high entropy alloys through glasses: Linkages between solid solution and glass phases in multicomponent alloys

Funding Information: This research was funded by the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No. 857470 and from the European Regional Development Fund via the Foundation for Polish Science International Research Agenda PLUS program Grant No. MAB PLUS/2018/8. We acknowledge the computational resources provided by the High-Performance Cluster at the National Centre for Nuclear Research in Poland. | openaire: EC/H2020/857470/EU//NOMATENHigh entropy alloys (HEAs) represent highly promising multicomponent crystals that form concentrated solid solutions (CSSs) and may violate traditional thermodynamic rules of mixing, ultimately leading to excellent physical properties. For a deeper understanding, we investigate seven CSSs, including Co-Cr-Ni-Fe-Mn elements, at experimentally relevant compositions and conditions, through molecular simulations, and we use 1-1 comparisons to corresponding glass state characteristics, attained through rapid cooling protocols. We determine the behavior of various structural features, including the configurational entropy for a set of CSSs in their crystalline and vitreous states numerically. We employ swap Monte Carlo (MC) simulations, in combination with the reversible scaling method, to efficiently compute the configurational entropy (Sconf), and show that the entropic rule of mixing is not always adequate for predicting alloy formation. We study the stability and formability of crystalline solid solutions, as well as glasses, while following the thermodynamics of Sconf. An apparent entropic similarity between CSSs and corresponding glasses leads us to use a Kauzmann-like ansatz, relating the CSSs at Sconf→0 with the emergence of a CSS order-disorder transition, at temperature TOD. In the context of glasses, a comparison between kinetic and thermodynamic fragilities allows the association of sluggish diffusion onset to a drop in Sconf at TK. Analogously, we classify CSSs as "strong"or "fragile"in the sense of their ability to migrate across CSS crystal configurations at high temperatures, distinguishing its formability. We argue that the magnitude of TOD may be an excellent predictor of CSS single-phase stability, which appears to scale with well-known HEA predictors, in particular we notice that VEC and TOD have in relation to the others a significantly large Pearson correlation coefficient, much larger than most other observables (except ΔHmix).Peer reviewe

Effect of cascade overlap and C15 clusters on the damage evolution in Fe : An OKMC study

In order to investigate the long-term evolution of radiation-induced defects in the fission- and fusion-relevant material iron, we introduce cascade overlap effects into Object Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. In addition to cascade overlap, we study the effect of introducing discrete C15 Laves phase clusters into the simulations. By applying either, none, or both of these effects we identify how they influence the evolution of the system. We find that both cascade overlap and C15 clusters affect the evolution of the radiation damage in different ways and on different time scales. Cascade overlap is found to reduce the number of Frenkel pairs. On the other hand, the explicit consideration of C15 Laves phase clusters increases the accumulation of defects at low dose. The results are compared to Molecular Dynamics simulation results under similar conditions.Peer reviewe

Nanoindentation of single crystalline Mo

| openaire: EC/H2020/857470/EU//NOMATENThe mechanical responses of single crystalline Body-Centered Cubic (BCC) metals, such as molybdenum (Mo), outperform other metals at high temperatures, so much so that they are considered as excellent candidates for applications under extreme conditions, such as the divertor of fusion reactors. The excellent thermomechanical stability of molybdenum at high temperatures (400–1000 oC) has also been detected through nanoindentation, pointing toward connections to emergent local dislocation mechanisms related to defect nucleation. In this work, we carry out a computational study of the effects of high temperature on the mechanical deformation properties of single crystalline Mo under nanoindentation. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of spherical nanoindentation are performed at two indenter tip diameters and crystalline sample orientations [100], [110], and [111], for the temperature range of 10–1000 K. We investigate how the increase of temperature influences the nanoindentation process, modifying dislocationdensities, mechanisms, atomic displacements and also, hardness, in agreement with reported experimental measurements. Our results suggest that the characteristic formation and high-temperature stability of [001] dislocation junctions in Mo during nanoindentation, in contrast to other BCC metals, may be the cause of the persistent thermomechanical stability of Mo.Peer reviewe

The effect of functional bracing on the arthrokinematics of anterior cruciate ligament injured knees during lunge exercise

Background: Functional knee braces are extensively used for partially and completely torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) patients and those who have undergone ACL graft reconstruction, in order to support the healing ACL, improve the joint's functional stability, and restore the normal joint kinematics. Research question: Does wearing braces alter the arthrokinematics of the ACL deficient knees during lung exercise? Methods: For ten male unilateral ACL deficient subjects, 3D knee models were reconstructed from CT images, acquired in rest position. Sagittal plane fluoroscopy was then performed throughout a complete cycle of lunge in braced and non-braced conditions. The 3D kinematics of the knees were obtained using a 2D-3D registration method in which six anatomical bony landmarks on the fluoroscopic images were matched with those on the 3D models. Results: No significant difference was found between the tibial anterior-posterior translations and abduction-adduction motions of the braced and non-braced knees. A significant decrease, however, was observed after bracing in the tibial internal rotation at 45° flexion during eccentric (non-braced: 5.9° (±6.7°) vs. braced: 2.4° (±7.0°); p = 0.045), and at 30° flexion during concentric (non-braced: 2.3° (±6.9°) vs. braced: �1.6° (±8.1°); p = 0.001) phases of the lunge cycle. Significance: The immediate effect of knee bracing is limited to controlling the tibial rotation of the ACL deficient individuals during the lunge exercise. Hence, care should be taken in prescribing the lunge exercise for rehabilitation of ACL injured patients with high anterior-posterior knee instability, even when wearing knee braces. © 2018 Elsevier B.V