Elektrische Charakterisierung PLD-gewachsener Zinkoxid-Nanodrähte

Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der elektrischen Charakterisierung von Zinkoxid-Nanodrähten, die mittels gepulster Laserablation (PLD) hergestellt wurden. Ausgehend von den so generierten ZnO-Nanodraht-Ensembles werden Methoden zu deren elektrischer Untersuchung diskutiert und auf praktische Anwendbarkeit hin verglichen. Die entwickelten Methoden werden auf Ensembles von auf n-leitenden ZnO- und ZnO:Ga-Dünnschichten aufgewachsenen Phosphor-dotierten ZnO-Nanodrähten angewendet. Deren reproduzierbares, in Strom–Spannungs- (I–U-) Kennlinien beobachtetes diodenartiges Verhalten wird genauer beleuchtet. Im Zusammenhang mit der elektrischen Charakterisierung einzelner ZnO-Nano-drähte werden experimentelle Methoden zur Vereinzelung und zur Kontaktierung der vereinzelten ZnO-Nanodrähte diskutiert. Dabei werden sowohl etablierte Methoden wie Elektronenstrahllithographie (EBL) als auch neue Techniken wie elektronen- und ionenstrahlinduzierte Deposition (EBID/IBID) und Strom–Spannungs-Rastersondenmikroskopie (I-AFM) behandelt und ihre Eignung für eingehende elektrische Untersuchungen und reproduzierbare Messungen analysiert. Die geeignetsten Methoden werden schließlich eingesetzt, um spezifischen Widerstand sowie Ladungsträgermobilität und -dichte sowohl in nominell undotierten als auch in Aluminium-dotierten ZnO-Nanodrähten zu untersuchen und zu vergleichen. In der Ableitung der physikalischen Materialparameter aus den Messdaten wird dabei besonderes Augenmerk auf die Einbeziehung der geometrischen Besonderheiten der Nanodrähte gegenüber Volumenmaterial- und Dünnschichtproben gelegt. Im Zuge dessen wird unter anderem ein Modell für den elektrischen Widerstand in Nanodrähten mit ihrer Länge nach veränderlichem Querschnitt abgeleitet

Sorption-assisted surface conjugation: a way to stabilize laccase enzyme

Enyzme immobilization on solid surfaces is one of the most relevant methods to improve enzyme activity and stability under harsh conditions over extended periods. A typically interesting application is the immobilization of laccases, multicopper enzymes oxidizing aromatic compounds, to solid surfaces in order to develop valuable tools for the elimination of micropollutants in wastewater. Laccase of the white-rot fungus Coriolopsis polyzona has been successfully immobilized on fumed silica nanoparticles using a novel method. It consists in the sorption of the enzyme to amino-modified silica nanoparticles and the subsequent covalent cross-linking using glutaraldehyde as a homobifunctional linker. The so-produced nanoparticulate material has been characterized by means of scanning electron microscopy and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area analysis revealing modifications of the surface structure and area during the coupling procedure. Laccase immobilization on spherical nanoparticles produced according to the method of Stöber has been shown to be much less efficient than on fumed silica nanoparticles. Long-term stability assays revealed that the novel developed method allows a drastic stabilization of the enzyme. In real wastewater, 77% of the laccase activity remained on the nanoparticles over 1month, whereas the activity of free laccase dropped to 2.5%. The activity loss on the nanoparticles resulted from partial inactivation of the immobilized enzymes and additional release into the surrounding solution with subsequent fast inactivation of the free enzymes, since almost no activity was found in the supernatant

Dysnatraemias in the emergency room: Undetected, untreated, unknown?

Zusammenfassung: HINTERGRUND: Hypo- und Hypernatriämie sind die häufigsten Elektrolytstörungen im Krankenhaus und wurden mit erhöhter Mortalität assoziiert. Zur Zeit gibt es nur wenige Daten zur Prävalenz der Dysnatriämien an der Notfallaufnahme sowie zu den Charakteristika der Patienten mit Hypo- und Hypernatriämien. METHODIK: In diese retrospektive Studie wurden Patienten welche zwischen 01.09.2010 und 30.11.2010 an der Notfallaufnahme einer Universitätsklinik eine Bestimmung des Serum-Natriums erhielten eingeschlossen. RESULTATE: Insgesamt wurden während des Studienzeitraumes an 3.182 Patienten Bestimmungen des Serum-Natriums durchgeführt. 124 Patienten (4 %) wiesen bei Aufnahme in die Notfallaufnahme eine Hyponatriämie auf, während 400 Patienten (13 %) eine Hypernatriämie aufwiesen. Es zeigte sich kein Unterschied im Alter zwischen jenen Patienten welche eine Hypernatriämie aufwiesen und jenen welche normonaträm waren. Patienten mit Hyponatriämie waren hingegen signifikant älter. SCHLUSSFOLGERUNGEN: Beinahe 1 von 5 Patienten weist bei Aufnahme an der Notfallaufnahme eine Störung des Natriumhaushalts auf. Im Gegensatz zu hospitalisierten Patienten war an der Notfallaufnahme die Prävalenz der Hypernatriämie bedeutend grösser als jene der Hyponatriämie. Überraschenderweise waren Patienten mit Hyponatriämie signifikant älter als jene mit Hypernatriämie und jene mit normalen Serum-Natriumwerte

Anti-inflammatory effects of antibacterials on human bronchial epithelial cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Human Bronchial epithelial cells (hu-BEC) have been claimed to play a significant role in the pathogenesis of chronic inflammatory airway diseases like COPD. In this context IL-8 and GM-CSF have been shown to be key cytokines. Some antibiotics which are routinely used to treat lower respiratory tract infections have been shown to exert additional immunomodulatory or anti-inflammatory effects. We investigated whether these effects can also be detected in hu-BEC.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Hu-BEC obtained from patients undergoing lung resections were transferred to air-liquid-interface (ALI) culture. These cultures were incubated with cefuroxime (CXM, 10-62.5 mg/l), azithromycin (AZM, 0.1-1.5 mg/l), levofloxacin (LVX, 1-8 mg/l) and moxifloxacin (MXF, 1-16 mg/l). The spontaneous and TNF-α (10 ng/ml) induced expression and release of IL-8 and GM-CSF were measured using PCR and ELISA in the absence or presence of these antibiotics.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The spontaneous IL-8 and GM-CSF release was significantly reduced with MXF (8 mg/l) by 37 ± 20% and 45 ± 31%, respectively (both p < 0.01). IL-8 release in TNF-α stimulated hu-BEC decreased by 16 ± 8% (p < 0.05) with AZM (1.5 mg/l). With MXF a concentration dependent decrease of IL-8 release was noted up to 39 ± 7% (p < 0.05). GM-CSF release from TNF-α stimulated hu-BEC was maximally decreased by 35 ± 24% (p < 0.01) with MXF (4 mg/l).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Using ALI cultures of hu-BEC we observed differential effects of antibiotics on spontaneous and TNF-α induced cytokine release. Our data suggest that MXF and AZM, beyond bactericidal effects, may attenuate the inflammatory process mediated by hu-BEC.</p

Acute health problems in African refugees: Ten years' experience in a Swiss emergency department

Summary: Background: Over the last two decades, the total number of applications from Africans for asylum in the countries of the European Union has increased from 578,000 to more than 2.9 million. About 20% (7,196/36,100) of the asylum seekers in Switzerland originate from Africa. The disease profile of African asylum seekers is remarkably different from that of the native population in the country of application. We have therefore conducted an analysis of African asylum seekers presenting themselves to our emergency department. Methods: In a retrospective analysis, the central patient registry database was searched for patients originating from Africa admitted from 1 January 2000 to 30 November 2011 and labelled as "Asylbewerber” (asylum seeker) or "Flüchtling” (refugee). Results: Three thousand six hundred and seventy-five African asylum seekers were admitted to our emergency department between 2000 and 2010. Thirty-four percent (n = 1,247) were female and 66% (n = 2,426) male. Eighty percent (n = 1,940) of the men and 70% (n = 823) of the women were younger than 40 years. Most of our patients originated from Algeria (n = 612). Forty-five percent (n = 1,628) of all patients presented with internal medical problems, 40% (n = 1,487) with injuries. 3.5% (n = 130) of all patients presented with psychiatric problems. Admission for psychiatric problems increased steadily from 2% (n = 4) in 2001 to 10% (n = 35) in 2011. Conclusion: The causes of presentation are manifold, including internal medical problems and injuries. Admissions for psychiatric problems are increasing. Establishing simple screening scores for somatization should be a key priority in providing more focused treatment in emergency department

Restoration of Sensitivity in Chemo

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive brain tumor in adults. Despite multimodal treatments including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy the prognosis remains poor and relapse occurs regularly. The alkylating agent temozolomide (TMZ) has been shown to improve the overall survival in patients with malignant gliomas, especially in tumors with methylated promoter of the O6-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT) gene. However, intrinsic and acquired resistance towards TMZ makes it crucial to find new therapeutic strategies aimed at improving the prognosis of patients suffering from malignant gliomas. Cold atmospheric plasma is a new auspicious candidate in cancer treatment. In the present study we demonstrate the anti-cancer properties of different dosages of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) both in TMZ-sensitive and TMZ-resistant cells by proliferation assay, immunoblotting, cell cycle analysis, and clonogenicity assay. Importantly, CAP treatment restored the responsiveness of resistant glioma cells towards TMZ therapy. Concomitant treatment with CAP and TMZ led to inhibition of cell growth and cell cycle arrest, thus CAP might be a promising candidate for combination therapy especially for patients suffering from GBMs showing an unfavorable MGMT status and TMZ resistance

Temporal factors in violence related injuries—An 11year trend analysis of violence-related injuries from a Swiss Emergency Department

Summary: Background: Injury from interpersonal violence is a major social and medical problem in the industrialized world. Little is known about the trends in prevalence and injury pattern or about the demographic characteristics of the patients involved. Methods: In this retrospective analysis, we screened the database of the Emergency Department of a large university hospital for all patients who were admitted for injuries due to interpersonal violence over an 11year period. For all patients identified, we gathered data on age, country of origin, quality of injury, and hospitalization or outpatient management. A trend analysis was performed using Kendall's tau-b correlation coefficients for regression analysis. Results: The overall number of patients admitted to our Emergency Department remained stable over the study period. Non-Swiss nationals were overrepresented in comparison to the demographics of the region where the study was conducted. There was a trend toward a more severe pattern of injury, such as an increase in the number of severe head injuries. Conclusions: Although the overall number of patients remained stable over the study period, there was an alarming trend toward a more severe pattern of injury, expressed by an increase in severe head trauma

Dysnatraemias in the emergency room: Undetected, untreated, unknown?

Hypo- and hypernatraemia are the most common electrolyte disorders in hospitalized patients and have been associated with increased mortality. However, data on the prevalence of dysnatraemias in the emergency room and the characteristics of patients presenting with them are rare

Fetal short time variation during labor: a non-invasive alternative to fetal scalp pH measurements?

Objective: To determine whether short time variation (STV) of fetal heart beat correlates with scalp pH measurements during labor. Patients and methods: From 1279 deliveries, 197 women had at least one fetal scalp pH measurement. Using the CTG-Player®, STVs were calculated from the electronically saved cardiotocography (CTG) traces and related to the fetal scalp pH measurements. Results: There was no correlation between STV and fetal scalp pH measurements (r=−0.0592). Conclusions: Fetal STV is an important parameter with high sensitivity for antenatal fetal acidosis. This study shows that STV calculations do not correlate with fetal scalp pH measurements during labor, hence are not helpful in identifying fetal acidosis.Peer Reviewe

Primary cold atmospheric plasma combined with low dose cisplatin as a possible adjuvant combination therapy for HNSCC cells—an in-vitro study

Background The aim of the present study was to examine the cytostatic effects of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) on different head and neck squamous carcinoma (HNSCC) cell lines either in isolation or in combination with low dose cisplatin. The effect of CAP treatment was investigated by using three different HNSCC cell lines (chemo-resistant Cal 27, chemo-sensitive FaDu and OSC 19). Materials and method Cell lines were exposed to CAP treatment for 30, 60, 90, 120 and 180 s (s). Cisplatin was added concurrently (cc) or 24 h after CAP application (cs). Cell viability, DNA damage and apoptosis was evaluated by dye exclusion, MTT, alkaline microgel electrophoresis assay and Annexin V-Fit-C/PI respectively. Results In all cell lines, 120 s of CAP exposure resulted in a significant reduction of cell viability. DNA damage significantly increased after 60 s. Combined treatment of cells with CAP and low dose cisplatin showed additive effects. A possible sensitivity to cisplatin could be restored in Cal 27 cells by CAP application. Conclusion CAP shows strong cytostatic effects in HNSCC cell lines that can be increased by concurrent cisplatin treatment, suggesting that CAP may enhance the therapeutic efficacy of low dose cisplatin