Rapid, efficient, and economical synthesis of PET tracers in a droplet microreactor: application to O-(2-[18F]fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine ([18F]FET).

BackgroundConventional scale production of small batches of PET tracers (e.g. for preclinical imaging) is an inefficient use of resources. Using O-(2-[18F]fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine ([18F]FET), we demonstrate that simple microvolume radiosynthesis techniques can improve the efficiency of production by consuming tiny amounts of precursor, and maintaining high molar activity of the tracers even with low starting activity.ProceduresThe synthesis was carried out in microvolume droplets manipulated on a disposable patterned silicon "chip" affixed to a heater. A droplet of [18F]fluoride containing TBAHCO3 was first deposited onto a chip and dried at 100 °C. Subsequently, a droplet containing 60 nmol of precursor was added to the chip and the fluorination reaction was performed at 90 °C for 5 min. Removal of protecting groups was accomplished with a droplet of HCl heated at 90 °C for 3 min. Finally, the crude product was collected in a methanol-water mixture, purified via analytical-scale radio-HPLC and formulated in saline. As a demonstration, using [18F]FET produced on the chip, we prepared aliquots with different molar activities to explore the impact on preclinical PET imaging of tumor-bearing mice.ResultsThe microdroplet synthesis exhibited an overall decay-corrected radiochemical yield of 55 ± 7% (n = 4) after purification and formulation. When automated, the synthesis could be completed in 35 min. Starting with < 370 MBq of activity, ~ 150 MBq of [18F]FET could be produced, sufficient for multiple in vivo experiments, with high molar activities (48-119 GBq/μmol). The demonstration imaging study revealed the uptake of [18F]FET in subcutaneous tumors, but no significant differences in tumor uptake as a result of molar activity differences (ranging 0.37-48 GBq/μmol) were observed.ConclusionsA microdroplet synthesis of [18F]FET was developed demonstrating low reagent consumption, high yield, and high molar activity. The approach can be expanded to tracers other than [18F]FET, and adapted to produce higher quantities of the tracer sufficient for clinical PET imaging

The Impact of Physical Education Classes on Health and Quality of Life during the COVID-19

[[abstract]]The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the well-being and the quality of life of college students participating in physical education classes. We consider this study to be relevant because during the COVID-19 pandemic we tested whether the boost in effective activity among physical education class participants affected well-being and quality of life. A sectional questionnaire survey was conducted across Taiwan in 2019–2020. Data were collected in two stages within 6 months from a sample of 1011 university students in Taiwan (328 male, 683 female). A series of one-way ANOVAs was adopted to examine each outcome across groups and time phases. The results provide support for a positive relationship between well-being (β = 0.25, p < 0.001), and quality of life (β = 0.92, p < 0.001), supporting our expectations. Findings from our study suggest that physical activity was positively associated with mental health; and participation in physical activity had an effect on the well-being and quality of life in college students.[[notice]]補正完

Quantitative measures of functional outcomes and quality of life in patients with C5 palsy

AbstractBackgroundIt is generally understood that postoperative C5 palsy can occur with anterior or posterior decompression surgery, but functional measures of the palsy have not been well documented. This study aimed to investigate the incidence of C5 palsy in different surgical procedures, examine the correlations between muscle strength, upper extremity functional measures, and health-related quality of life, and to observe potential risk factors contributing to C5 palsy.MethodsOur investigation involved a retrospective study design. A total of 364 patients who underwent decompression surgery were indicated within the selected exclusion criteria. Additionally, 12 C5 palsy patients were recruited. The relationships between the manual muscle test (MMT), the action research arm test (ARAT), the Jebsen test of hand function (JTHF), and the European quality of life-5 dimensions (EQ-5D) were studied, and univariate analyses were performed to search possible risk factors and recovery investigation.ResultsThe data analyzed in the 12 cases and C5 palsy incidences (3.3%) were: 0.7% in anterior procedures (n = 2), 8.8% in posterior procedures (n = 6), and 36.4% in combined procedures (n = 4). Moderate-to-high correlations were observed between the ARAT, JTHF, EQ-5D visual analog scale scores, and MMT (r = 0.636–0.899). There were significant differences in patient age, etiology of cervical lesion, variable decompression procedures, and the number of decompression levels between the C5 palsy and non-C5 palsy groups. For female patients (p = 0.018) and number of decompression levels (p = 0.028), there were significant differences between the complete recovery and the incomplete recovery groups.ConclusionPatients undergoing combined anterior–posterior decompression surgery had the highest incidence of C5 palsy, and correlations between the ARAT, JTHF, EQ-5D visual analog scale clinical tools, and MMT scores supported these findings. Female status and lower decompression levels could also be predictive factors for complete recovery, although additional research is needed to substantiate these findings

Elongation of Fibers from Highly Viscous Dextran Solutions Enables Fabrication of Rapidly Dissolving Drug Carrying Fabrics

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110570/1/adhm201400287-sup-0001-S1.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110570/2/adhm201400287.pd

Venous Air Embolism during Surgery, Especially Cesarean Delivery

Venous air embolism (VAE) is the entrapment of air or medical gases into the venous system causing symptoms and signs of pulmonary vessel obstruction. The incidence of VAE during cesarean delivery ranges from 10 to 97% depending on surgical position or diagnostic tools, with a potential for life-threatening events. We reviewed extensive literatures regarding VAE in detail and herein described VAE during surgery including cesarean delivery from background and history to treatment and prevention. It is intended that present work will improve the understanding of VAE during surgery

Co-expression of GAD67 and choline acetyltransferase reveals a novel neuronal phenotype in the mouse medulla oblongata

GABAergic and cholinergic systems play an important part in autonomic pathways. To determine the distribution of the enzymes responsible for the production of GABA and acetylcholine in areas involved in autonomic control in the mouse brainstem, we used a transgenic mouse expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) in glutamate decarboxylase 67 (GAD67) neurones, combined with choline acetyl transferase (ChAT) immunohistochemistry. ChAT-immunoreactive (IR) and GAD67-GFP containing neurones were observed throughout the brainstem. A small number of cells contained both ChAT-IR and GAD67-GFP. Such double labelled cells were observed in the NTS (predominantly in the intermediate and central subnuclei), the area postrema, reticular formation and lateral paragigantocellular nucleus. All ChAT-IR neurones in the area postrema contained GAD67-GFP. Double labelled neurones were not observed in the dorsal vagal motor nucleus, nucleus ambiguus or hypoglossal nucleus. Double labelled ChAT-IR/GAD67-GFP cells in the NTS did not contain neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) immunoreactivity, whereas those in the reticular formation and lateral paragigantocellular nucleus did. The function of these small populations of double labelled cells is currently unknown, however their location suggests a potential role in integrating signals involved in oromotor behaviours

Exome-wide association analysis reveals novel coding sequence variants associated with lipid traits in Chinese

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Genomic, Pathway Network, and Immunologic Features Distinguishing Squamous Carcinomas

This integrated, multiplatform PanCancer Atlas study co-mapped and identified distinguishing molecular features of squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) from five sites associated with smokin