Scattering of long wavelengths into thin silicon photovoltaic films by plasmonic silver nanoparticles

Nanoparticles and nanostructures with plasmonic resonances are currently being employed to enhance the efficiency of solar cells. Ag stripe arrays have been shown theoretically to enhance the short-circuit current of thin silicon layers. Monolayers of Ag nanoparticles with diameter d < 300 nm have shown strong plasmonic resonances when coated in thin polymer layers with thicknesses < d. We study experimentally the diffuse vs. specular scattering from monolayer arrays of Ag nanoparticles (spheres and prisms with diameters in the range 50 – 300 nm) coated onto the front side of thin (100 nm < t < 500 nm) silicon films deposited on glass and flexible polymer substrates, the latter originating in a roll-to-roll manufacturing process. Ag nanoparticles are held in place and aggregation is prevented with a polymer overcoat. We observe interesting wavelength shifts between maxima in specular and diffuse scattering that depend on particle size and shape, indicating that the nanoparticles substantially modify the scattering into the thin silicon film.United States. Air Force (United States. Army. Natick Soldier Research Development and Engineering Center Contract FA8721-05-C-0002)Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (Contract W911NF-07-D0004

Trial of SAGE-217 in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder

BACKGROUND: Altered neurotransmission of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of depression. Whether SAGE-217, an oral, positive allosteric modulator of GABA type A receptors, is effective and safe for the treatment of major depressive disorder is unknown. METHODS: In this double-blind, phase 2 trial, we enrolled patients with major depression and randomly assigned them in a 1:1 ratio to receive 30 mg of SAGE-217 or placebo once daily. The primary end point was the change from baseline to day 15 in the score on the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D; scores range from 0 to 52, with higher scores indicating more severe depression). Secondary efficacy end points, which were assessed on days 2 through 8 and on days 15, 21, 28, 35, and 42, included changes from baseline in scores on additional depression and anxiety scales, a reduction from baseline of more than 50% in the HAM-D score, a HAM-D score of 7 or lower, and a Clinical Global Impression of Improvement score of 1 (very much improved) or 2 (much improved) (on a scale of 1 to 7, with a score of 7 indicating that symptoms are very much worse). RESULTS: A total of 89 patients underwent randomization: 45 patients were assigned to the SAGE-217 group, and 44 to the placebo group. The mean baseline HAM-D score was 25.2 in the SAGE-217 group and 25.7 in the placebo group. The least-squares mean (+/-SE) change in the HAM-D score from baseline to day 15 was -17.4+/-1.3 points in the SAGE-217 group and -10.3+/-1.3 points in the placebo group (least-squares mean difference in change, -7.0 points; 95% confidence interval, -10.2 to -3.9; P \u3c 0.001). The differences in secondary end points were generally in the same direction as those of the primary end point. There were no serious adverse events. The most common adverse events in the SAGE-217 group were headache, dizziness, nausea, and somnolence. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of SAGE-217 daily for 14 days resulted in a reduction in depressive symptoms at day 15. Adverse events were more common in the SAGE-217 group than in the placebo group. Further trials are needed to determine the durability and safety of SAGE-217 in major depressive disorder and to compare SAGE-217 with available treatments. (Funded by Sage Therapeutics; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT03000530.)

25th Annual Midwest/Midsouth Estate Planning Institute

Materials from UK/CLE\u27s 25th Annual Midwest/Midsouth Estate Planning Institute held in July 1998

Clinical Trials and Medical Care: Defining the Therapeutic Misconception

A key component of informed consent to participate in medical research includes understanding that research is not the same as treatment

Medication errors and patient complications with continuous renal replacement therapy

Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is commonly used for renal support in the intensive care unit. While the risk of medication errors in the intensive care unit has been described, errors related specifically to CRRT are unknown. The purpose of this study is to characterize medication errors related to CRRT and compare medication errors that occur with manually compounded solutions versus commercially available solutions. We surveyed three separate internet-based, pediatric list serves that are commonly used for communications for programs utilizing CRRT. Data regarding CRRT practices and medication errors were recorded. Medication errors were graded for degree of severity and compared between programs using manually compounded dialysis solutions versus commercially available dialysis solutions. In a survey with 31 program responses, 18 reported medication errors. Two of the 18 were related to heparin compounding, while 16/18 were due to solution compounding errors. Half of the medication errors were classified as causing harm, two of which were fatal. All medication errors were reported by programs that manually compounded their dialysis solutions. Medication errors related to CRRT are associated with a high degree of severity, including death. Industry-based, commercially available solutions can decrease the occurrence of medication errors due to CRRT.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45869/1/467_2006_Article_49.pd

The rise of noncommunicable diseases in Latin America and the Caribbean: challenges for public health policies

The health landscape in Latin America and the Caribbean is changing quickly. The region is undergoing a demographic and epidemiological transition in which health problems are highly concentrated on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). In light of this, the region faces two main challenges: (1) develop cost-effective policies to prevent NCD risk factors, and (2) increase access to quality healthcare in a scenario in which a large share of the labor force is employed in the informal sector. This paper describes both alternative interventions to expand health insurance coverage and their trade-off with labor informality and moral hazard problems. The paper also focuses on obesity as a case example of an NCD, and emphasizes how lack of knowledge along with self-control problems would lead people to make suboptimal decisions related to food consumption, which may later manifest in obesity problems.Fil: Anauati, Maria Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de San Andrés; ArgentinaFil: Galiani, Sebastian. University of Maryland; Estados UnidosFil: Weinschelbaum, Federico. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de San Andrés; Argentin

A deletion in GDF7 is associated with a heritable forebrain commissural malformation concurrent with ventriculomegaly and interhemispheric cysts in cats

Publisher Copyright: © 2020 by the authors.An inherited neurologic syndrome in a family of mixed-breed Oriental cats has been characterized as forebrain commissural malformation, concurrent with ventriculomegaly and interhemispheric cysts. However, the genetic basis for this autosomal recessive syndrome in cats is unknown. Forty-three cats were genotyped on the Illumina Infinium Feline 63K iSelect DNA Array and used for analyses. Genome-wide association studies, including a sib-transmission disequilibrium test and a case-control association analysis, and homozygosity mapping, identified a critical region on cat chromosome A3. Short-read whole genome sequencing was completed for a cat trio segregating with the syndrome. A homozygous 7 bp deletion in growth differentiation factor 7 (GDF7) (c.221_227delGCCGCGC [p.Arg74Profs]) was identified in affected cats, by comparison to the 99 Lives Cat variant dataset, validated using Sanger sequencing and genotyped by fragment analyses. This variant was not identified in 192 unaffected cats in the 99 Lives dataset. The variant segregated concordantly in an extended pedigree. In mice, GDF7 mRNA is expressed within the roof plate when commissural axons initiate ventrally-directed growth. This finding emphasized the importance of GDF7 in the neurodevelopmental process in the mammalian brain. A genetic test can be developed for use by cat breeders to eradicate this variant.Peer reviewe

Werewolf, there wolf : Variants in hairless associated with hypotrichia and roaning in the lykoi cat breed

Publisher Copyright: © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.A variety of cat breeds have been developed via novelty selection on aesthetic, dermatological traits, such as coat colors and fur types. A recently developed breed, the lykoi (a.k.a. werewolf cat), was bred from cats with a sparse hair coat with roaning, implying full color and all white hairs. The lykoi phenotype is a form of hypotrichia, presenting as a significant reduction in the average numbers of follicles per hair follicle group as compared to domestic shorthair cats, a mild to severe perifollicular to mural lymphocytic infiltration in 77% of observed hair follicle groups, and the follicles are often miniaturized, dilated, and dysplastic. Whole genome sequencing was conducted on a single lykoi cat that was a cross between two independently ascertained lineages. Comparison to the 99 Lives dataset of 194 non‐lykoi cats suggested two variants in the cat homolog for Hairless (HR) (HR lysine demethylase and nuclear receptor corepressor) as candidate causal gene variants. The lykoi cat was a compound heterozygote for two loss of function variants in HR, an exon 3 c.1255_1256dupGT (chrB1:36040783), which should produce a stop codon at amino acid 420 (p.Gln420Serfs*100) and, an exon 18 c.3389insGACA (chrB1:36051555), which should produce a stop codon at amino acid position 1130 (p.Ser1130Argfs*29). Ascertainment of 14 additional cats from founder lineages from Canada, France and different areas of the USA identified four additional loss of function HR variants likely causing the highly similar phenotypic hair coat across the diverse cats. The novel variants in HR for cat hypotrichia can now be established between minor differences in the phenotypic presentations.Peer reviewe