Slow quench dynamics of the Kitaev model: anisotropic critical point and effect of disorder

We study the non-equilibrium slow dynamics for the Kitaev model both in the presence and the absence of disorder. For the case without disorder, we demonstrate, via an exact solution, that the model provides an example of a system with an anisotropic critical point and exhibits unusual scaling of defect density $n$ and residual energy $Q$ for a slow linear quench. We provide a general expression for the scaling of $n$ ($Q$) generated during a slow power-law dynamics, characterized by a rate $\tau^{-1}$ and exponent $\alpha$, from a gapped phase to an anisotropic quantum critical point in $d$ dimensions, for which the energy gap $\Delta_{\vec k} \sim k_i^z$ for $m$ momentum components ($i=1..m$) and $\sim k_i^{z'}$ for the rest $d-m$ components ($i=m+1..d$) with $z\le z'$: $n \sim \tau^{-[m + (d-m)z/z']\nu \alpha/(z\nu \alpha +1)}$ ($Q \sim \tau^{-[(m+z)+ (d-m)z/z']\nu \alpha/(z\nu \alpha +1)}$). These general expressions reproduce both the corresponding results for the Kitaev model as a special case for $d=z'=2$ and $m=z=\nu=1$ and the well-known scaling laws of $n$ and $Q$ for isotropic critical points for $z=z'$. We also present an exact computation of all non-zero, independent, multispin correlation functions of the Kitaev model for such a quench and discuss their spatial dependence. For the disordered Kitaev model, where the disorder is introduced via random choice of the link variables $D_n$ in the model's Fermionic representation, we find that $n \sim \tau^{-1/2}$ and $Q\sim \tau^{-1}$ ($Q\sim \tau^{-1/2}$) for a slow linear quench ending in the gapless (gapped) phase. We provide a qualitative explanation of such scaling.Comment: 10 pages, 11 Figs. v

Partial-thickness macular hole in vitreomacular traction syndrome: a case report and review of the literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Vitreomacular traction syndrome has recently been recognized as a distinct clinical condition. It may lead to many complications, such as cystoid macular edema, macular pucker formation, tractional macular detachment, and full-thickness macular hole formation.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report a case of vitreomacular traction syndrome with eccentric traction at the macula and a partial-thickness macular hole in a 63-year-old Pakistani Punjabi man. The patient was evaluated using optical coherence tomography, and he underwent a successful pars plana vitrectomy. After the operation, his foveal contour regained normal configuration, and his visual acuity improved from 20/60 to 20/30.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Pars plana vitrectomy prevents the progression of a partial thickness macular hole in vitreomacular traction syndrome. The relief of traction by vitrectomy restores foveal anatomy and visual acuity in this condition.</p

Association between social relationship and glycemic control among older Japanese: JAGES cross-sectional study

AIM: The present study examined whether social support, informal socializing and social participation are associated with glycemic control in older people. METHODS: Data for this population-based cross-sectional study was obtained from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) 2010 linked to the annual health check-up data in Japan. We analyzed 9,554 individuals aged ≥65 years without the certification of needed long-term care. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the effect of social support, informal socializing and social participations on glycemic control. The outcome measure was HbA1c ≥8.4%. RESULTS: 1.3% of the participants had a level of HbA1c over 8.4%. Better glycemic control was significantly associated with meeting with friends one to four times per month (odds ratio [OR] 0.51, 95% confidence interval [CI]0.30-0.89, compared to meeting with friends a few times per year or less) and participation in sports groups (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.26-0.97) even after adjusting for other variables. Meeting with friends more than twice per week, receiving social support, and being married were not associated with better control of diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Meeting with friends occasionally is associated with better glycemic control among older people

Serum albumin levels and economic status in Japanese older adults

Background: Low serum albumin levels are associated with aging and medical conditions such as cancer, liver dysfunction, inflammation, and malnutrition and might be an independent predictor of long-term mortality in healthy older populations. We tested the hypothesis that economic status is associated with serum albumin levels and explained by nutritional and health status in Japanese older adults. Design: We performed a cross-sectional analysis using data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation study (JAGES). The study participants were 6528 functionally independent residents (3189 men and 3339 women) aged ≥65 years living in four municipalities in Aichi prefecture. We used household income as an indicator of economic status. Multiple linear regression was used to compare serum albumin levels in relation to household income, which was classified as low, middle, and high. Additionally, mediation by nutritional and health-related factors was analyzed in multivariable models. Results: With the middle-income group as reference, participants with low incomes had a significantly lower serum albumin level, even after adjustment for sex, age, residential area, education, marital status, and household structure. The estimated mean difference was -0.17 g/L (95% confidence interval, -0.33 to -0.01 g/L). The relation between serum albumin level and low income became statistically insignificant when "body mass index", "consumption of meat or fish", "self-rated health", "presence of medical conditions", "hyperlipidemia", or "respiratory disease "was included in the model. Conclusion: Serum albumin levels were lower in Japanese older adults with low economic status. The decrease in albumin levels appears to be mediated by nutrition and health-related factors with low household incomes. Future studies are needed to reveal the existence of other pathways

The effect of posterior subtenon methylprednisolone acetate in the refractory diabetic macular edema: a prospective nonrandomized interventional case series

BACKGROUND: To investigate the efficacy of posterior subtenon methylprednisolone acetate injection in treatment of refractory diffuse clinically significant diabetic macular edema (CSME). METHODS: In a prospective, nonrandomized, interventional case series, 52 eyes were diagnosed with CSME and treated with at least two sessions of laser photocoagulation according to Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study guidelines. At least 3 months after laser therapy, eyes with a residual central macular thickness were offered posterior subtenon injection of 40 mg methylprednisolone acetate. Main outcome measures were visual acuity, macular thickness and intraocular pressure. Potential complications were monitored, including intraocular pressure response, cataract progression and scleral perforation. RESULTS: Mean baseline visual acuity (in logMAR) improved significantly (p = 0.003) from 0.8 ± 0.36 to 0.6 ± 0.41 at 3 months. Mean foveal thickness decreased from 388 ± 78 μm at baseline to 231 ± 40 μm after 3 months (p < 0.0001). Visual acuity improvement in eyes with CSME with extrafoveal hard exudates was significant (p = 0.0001), but not significant in eyes with CSME with subfoveal hard exudates (p = 0.32). Intraocular pressure increased from 14.7 ± 2.0 mmHg (range, 12–18 mmHg) to a maximum value of 15.9 ± 2.1 mmHg (range, 12–20 mmHg) during the follow-up period. Complications in two eyes developed focal conjunctival necrosis at the site of injection. CONCLUSION: Posterior subtenon methylprednisolone acetate may improve early visual outcome in diffuse diabetic macular edema that fails to respond to conventional laser photocoagulation. Visual acuity improvement in eyes with CSME with extrafoveal hard exudates was significant; and this improvement is depends on location of hard exudates. Further study is needed to assess the long-term efficacy, safety, and retreatment

CVIT expert consensus document on primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in 2018

While primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has significantly contributed to improve the mortality in patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction even in cardiogenic shock, primary PCI is a standard of care in most of Japanese institutions. Whereas there are high numbers of available facilities providing primary PCI in Japan, there are no clear guidelines focusing on procedural aspect of the standardized care. Whilst updated guidelines for the management of acute myocardial infarction were recently published by European Society of Cardiology, the following major changes are indicated; (1) radial access and drug-eluting stent over bare metal stent were recommended as Class I indication, and (2) complete revascularization before hospital discharge (either immediate or staged) is now considered as Class IIa recommendation. Although the primary PCI is consistently recommended in recent and previous guidelines, the device lag from Europe, the frequent usage of coronary imaging modalities in Japan, and the difference in available medical therapy or mechanical support may prevent direct application of European guidelines to Japanese population. The Task Force on Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention of the Japanese Association of Cardiovascular Intervention and Therapeutics (CVIT) has now proposed the expert consensus document for the management of acute myocardial infarction focusing on procedural aspect of primary PCI

Tear secretion dysfunction among women workers engaged in light-on tests in the TFT-LCD industry

BACKGROUND: The TFT-LCD (thin film transistor liquid crystal display) industry is rapidly growing in Taiwan and many other countries. A large number of workers, mainly women, are employed in the light-on test process to detect the defects of products. At the light-on test workstation, the operator is generally exposed to low humidity (in the clean room environment), flashing light, and low ambient illumination for long working hours. Many workers complained about eye discomfort, and therefore we conducted a study to evaluate the tear secretion function of light-on test workers of a TFT-LCD company. METHODS: We recruited workers engaged in light-on tests in the company during their periodical health examination. In addition to a questionnaire survey of demographic characteristics and ophthalmic symptoms, we evaluated the tear secretion function of both eyes of each participant using the Schirmer's lacrimal basal secretion test with anaesthesia. A participant with one or both eyes yielding abnormal test results was defined as a case of tear secretion dysfunction. RESULTS: During the study period, a total of 371 light-on test workers received the health examination at the clinic of the park, and 52 of them were excluded due to having ophthalmic diseases and other systemic diseases that may affect ophthalmic function. All the remaining 319 qualified workers agreed to participate in this study, and they were all females working by 4-shift rotations. The average age was 24.2 years old (standard deviation [SD] = 3.8), and the average employment duration was 13.6 months (SD = 5.7). Among the 11 ophthalmic symptoms evaluated, eye dryness was the most prevalent (prevalence = 43.3%). In addition, the prevalence of tear secretion dysfunction in at least one eye was 40.1% (128 cases), and contact lens users had an odds ratio of 1.73 (95% confidence interval = 1.02–2.94) in comparison with non-contact lens users. Comparing the Schirmer's test results of those who also participated in the screening in the previous year, we found 40 of the 156 participants (17.2%) with normal test results in the previous year turned abnormal in 2001. In contrast, only 21 of the 76 participants (9.1%) with abnormal test results in the previous year turned normal, and the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.02 for McNemar's test). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of tear secretion dysfunction in woman workers engaged in light-on tests is high and increases with a one-year duration of employment. The use of contact lens may further increase the risk

Research on the Stability of a Rabbit Dry Eye Model Induced by Topical Application of the Preservative Benzalkonium Chloride

Dry eye is a common disease worldwide, and animal models are critical for the study of it. At present, there is no research about the stability of the extant animal models, which may have negative implications for previous dry eye studies. In this study, we observed the stability of a rabbit dry eye model induced by the topical benzalkonium chloride (BAC) and determined the valid time of this model.). Decreased levels of mucin-5 subtype AC (MUC5AC), along with histopathological and ultrastructural disorders of the cornea and conjunctiva could be observed in Group BAC-W4 and particularly in Group BAC-W5 until day 21.A stable rabbit dry eye model was induced by topical 0.1% BAC for 5 weeks, and after BAC removal, the signs of dry eye were sustained for 2 weeks (for the mixed type of dry eye) or for at least 3 weeks (for mucin-deficient dry eye)

Daily Rhythms of Plasma Melatonin, but Not Plasma Leptin or Leptin mRNA, Vary between Lean, Obese and Type 2 Diabetic Men

Melatonin and leptin exhibit daily rhythms that may contribute towards changes in metabolic physiology. It remains unclear, however, whether this rhythmicity is altered in obesity or type 2 diabetes (T2DM). We tested the hypothesis that 24-hour profiles of melatonin, leptin and leptin mRNA are altered by metabolic status in laboratory conditions. Men between 45–65 years old were recruited into lean, obese-non-diabetic or obese-T2DM groups. Volunteers followed strict sleep-wake and dietary regimes for 1 week before the laboratory study. They were then maintained in controlled light-dark conditions, semi-recumbent posture and fed hourly iso-energetic drinks during wake periods. Hourly blood samples were collected for hormone analysis. Subcutaneous adipose biopsies were collected 6-hourly for gene expression analysis. Although there was no effect of subject group on the timing of dim light melatonin onset (DLMO), nocturnal plasma melatonin concentration was significantly higher in obese-non-diabetic subjects compared to weight-matched T2DM subjects (p<0.01) and lean controls (p<0.05). Two T2DM subjects failed to produce any detectable melatonin, although did exhibit plasma cortisol rhythms comparable to others in the group. Consistent with the literature, there was a significant (p<0.001) effect of subject group on absolute plasma leptin concentration and, when expressed relative to an individual’s 24-hour mean, plasma leptin showed significant (p<0.001) diurnal variation. However, there was no difference in amplitude or timing of leptin rhythms between experimental groups. There was also no significant effect of time on leptin mRNA expression. Despite an overall effect (p<0.05) of experimental group, post-hoc analysis revealed no significant pair-wise effects of group on leptin mRNA expression. Altered plasma melatonin rhythms in weight-matched T2DM and non-diabetic individuals supports a possible role of melatonin in T2DM aetiology. However, neither obesity nor T2DM changed 24-hour rhythms of plasma leptin relative to cycle mean, or expression of subcutaneous adipose leptin gene expression, compared with lean subjects

A Non-Coding RNA Within the Rasgrf1 Locus in Mouse Is Imprinted and Regulated by Its Homologous Chromosome in Trans

BACKGROUND: Rasgrf1 is imprinted in mouse, displaying paternal allele specific expression in neonatal brain. Paternal expression is accompanied by paternal-specific DNA methylation at a differentially methylated domain (DMD) within the locus. The cis-acting elements necessary for Rasgrf1 imprinting are known. A series of tandem DNA repeats control methylation of the adjacent DMD, which is a methylation sensitive enhancer-blocking element. These two sequences constitute a binary switch that controls imprinting and represents the Imprinting Control Region (ICR). One paternally transmitted mutation, which helped define the ICR, induced paramutation, in trans, on the maternal allele. Like many imprinted genes, Rasgrf1 lies within an imprinted cluster. One of four noncoding transcripts in the cluster, AK015891, is known to be imprinted. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we demonstrate that an additional noncoding RNA, AK029869, is imprinted and paternally expressed in brain throughout development. Intriguingly, any of several maternally inherited ICR mutations affected expression of the paternal AK029869 transcript in trans. Furthermore, we found that the ICR mutations exert different trans effects on AK029869 at different developmental times. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Few trans effects have been defined in mammals and, those that exist, do not show the great variation seen at the Rasgrf1 imprinted domain, either in terms of the large number of mutations that produce the effects or the range of phenotypes that emerge when they are seen. These results suggest that trans regulation of gene expression may be more common than originally appreciated and that where trans regulation occurs it can change dynamically during development