Remote Manipulation of Droplets on a Flexible Magnetically Responsive Film

The manipulation of droplets is used in a wide range of applications, from lab-on-a-chip devices to bioinspired functional surfaces. Although a variety of droplet manipulation techniques have been proposed, active, fast and reversible manipulation of pure discrete droplets remains elusive due to the technical limitations of previous techniques. Here, we describe a novel technique that enables active, fast, precise and reversible control over the position and motion of a pure discrete droplet with only a permanent magnet by utilizing a magnetically responsive flexible film possessing actuating hierarchical pillars on the surface. This magnetically responsive surface shows reliable actuating capabilities with immediate field responses and maximum tilting angles of ???90??. Furthermore, the magnetic responsive film exhibits superhydrophobicity regardless of tilting angles of the actuating pillars. Using this magnetically responsive film, we demonstrate active and reversible manipulation of droplets with a remote magnetic force.open0

Continuum shell model for buckling of armchair carbon nanotubes under compression or torsion

10.1142/S1758825114500069International Journal of Applied Mechanics61

Novel Information Regarding the Treatment of Helicobacter pylori Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

OBJECTIVE: Helicobacter pylori infects at least 50 of the world's human population. The current study aimed to assess and compare the efficacy of triple versus quadruple therapy. METHODS: Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) consisting of triple and quadruple therapy were identified through electronic and manual searches in the national and international online databases (IsI, Magiran, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus). The random-effects model was applied to pool analysis. Funnel plots and the Egger test were used to examine publication bias. RESULTS: After a detailed review of the selected articles, 79 RCTs were included in the meta-analysis; it was based on using triple and quadruple therapy as the first and second-line treatment. The results showed that quadruple therapy in the first-line treatment had a higher eradication rate than triple therapy. Overall, the eradication rate with triple therapy was 74 (95 CI, 71-77) for intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis and 80 (95 CI, 77-82) for per-protocol (PP) analysis. Generally, the eradication rate with quadruple therapy was 82 (95 CI, 78.0-86.0) for ITT analysis and 85 (95 CI, 82.0-89.0) for PP analysis. The analysis also revealed that quadruple therapy was more effective for 7 or 10 days. CONCLUSION: The current study results demonstrated that quadruple therapy has better effectiveness than triple therapy as the first-line treatment; however, in the second-line treatment, the effectiveness of quadruple and triple regimens is almost similar. The effectiveness of quadruple therapy in the Asian population was found to be slightly higher than that of triple therapy, while this difference was considerably higher in the European population

Subjective lactose intolerance in apparently healthy adults in southern Iran: Is it related to irritable bowel syndrome?

Background : The main symptoms of lactose intolerance are bloating, abdominal cramps, increased flatus and loose watery stools. These symptoms are similar to those of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which is a prevalent entity in the community. Objective : As there was no data available on the prevalence of LI and the correlated factors, this study aimed to determine these correlations and their relation to IBS symptoms in an apparently healthy population in Shiraz, southern Iran. Materials and Methods : A survey among 1,978 individuals older than 35 years was conducted in Shiraz, southern Iran, using a questionnaire that consisted of items regarding demographic data, life style, subjective gastrointestinal symptoms of LI and IBS symptoms according to ROME II criteria. Results : A total of 562 subjects reported LI (28.41%). The prevalence was significantly higher in females, in subjects taking NSAIDs or acetaminophen and in cases reporting IBS symptoms. Subjects with LI avoided certain foods and drinks; and in order to relieve their symptoms, they used OTC drugs, herbal medicine or visited a physician. On the other hand, no relation was found between LI and age, smoking or the number of meals per day. Conclusions : Although we found that individuals with IBS had significantly more subjective LI than those without IBS, in the absence of documented lactose malabsorption, it is hard to tell whether the reported symptoms indeed are those of LI or simply those of IBS. So, a period of dairy product avoidance and/ or requesting a test for lactose malabsorption may be beneficial in this area

Standard Triple Therapy as a Remedy for Treatment of Helicobacter pylori Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

BACKGROUND: H. pylori infection, one of the most prevalent infectious diseases, can cause a severe health problem. Therefore, it seems to be crucial to effectively counter the H. pylori infection by a well-tolerated eradication regimen. However, since discovering H. pylori, the optimal treatment against its disease is still unclear and remains controversial. OBJECTIVES: The present study aims to estimate the efficacy of standard triple therapy for eradicating H. Pylori by systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: We identified randomized clinical trials RCTs, which consist of triple therapy PPIAC/M Omeprazole, Amoxicillin, and Clarithromycin/Metronidazole in the first-line treatment of H. pylori infection and reported eradication rate through electronic and manual searches in PubMed, ISI, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register and Scopus databases. Data were analyzed using the random effect model, and we used the Cochrane Q test and I2 statistics to assess heterogeneity. Statistical analyses were performed using STATA version 12. RESULTS: forty-seven RCTs PPIAC: 40 RCTs and PPIAM: 7 RCTs with 4,938 patients selected as eligible for the final analysis. Per-protocol eradication rate was 80% 95% CI: 74-84 and 80% 95% CI: 73-87 for PPIAC and PPIAM regimens, respectively. The eradication rate for PPIAC and PPIAM regimens was 83% 95% CI: 70%-95% and 83% 95% CI: 75%-90% was also 77% 95% CI: 68%-88% and 78% 95% CI: 69%-88% respectively. Based on different treatment durations, the pooled estimates of PP per-protocol analysis treatment outcomes were found the highest in 14-day treatment in both regimens. CONCLUSION: Standard triple therapy PPIAC/M is recommended to be an effective and safe regimen, although adequate data are not available to suggest PPIAC/M as the first-line therapy for H. Pylori infection. Interestingly, our analysis demonstrated that PPIAC/M regi-mens were more effective in Asian than European populations

Continuum shell model for buckling of single-walled carbon nanotubes with different chiral angles

10.1142/S0219455414500060International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics144