45 research outputs found
Short-Term Effect of Prebiotics Administration on Stool Characteristics and Serum Cytokines Dynamics in Very Young Children with Acute Diarrhea
We investigated the effect of a mixture of long-chain fructo-oligosaccharides, galacto-oligosaccharides and acidic oligosaccharides on the number and consistency of stools and on immune system biomarkers in 104 supplemented and non-supplemented subjects (aged 9-24 months) with acute diarrhea. Interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-1RA, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α and sIL-2R cytokine levels were determined. The significant decrease in number of stools and increase in stool consistency in the supplemented group was of little clinical relevance. The only significant change in pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines was decreased TNF-α levels in the supplemented group. Prebiotic supplementation during acute diarrhea episodes did not influence the clinical course
Spin vector and shape of (6070) Rheinland and their implications
Main belt asteroids (6070) Rheinland and (54827) 2001NQ8 belong to a small
population of couples of bodies which reside on very similar heliocentric
orbits. Vokrouhlicky & Nesvorny (2008, AJ 136, 280) promoted a term "asteroid
pairs", pointing out their common origin within the past tens to hundreds of
ky. Previous attempts to reconstruct the initial configuration of Rheinland and
2001NQ8 at the time of their separation have led to the prediction that
Rheinland's rotation should be retrograde. Here we report extensive photometric
observations of this asteroid and use the lightcurve inversion technique to
directly determine its rotation state and shape. We confirm the retrograde
sense of rotation of Rheinland, with obliquity value constrained to be >= 140
deg. The ecliptic longitude of the pole position is not well constrained as
yet. The asymmetric behavior of Rheinland's lightcurve reflects a sharp,
near-planar edge in our convex shape representation of this asteroid. Our
calibrated observations in the red filter also allow us to determine and values of the H-G system. With the
characteristic color index for the S-type asteroids, we
thus obtain for the absolute magnitude of (6070) Rheinland.
This a significantly larger value than previously obtained from analysis of the
astrometric survey observations. We next use the obliquity constraint for
Rheinland to eliminate some degree of uncertainty in the past propagation of
its orbit. This is because the sign of the past secular change of its semimajor
axis due to the Yarkovsky effect is now constrained. Determination of the
rotation state of the secondary component, asteroid (54827) 2001NQ8, is the key
element in further constraining the age of the pair and its formation process.Comment: Published in AJ, 28 pages, 4 figures, 2 table
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Admixture mapping of 15,280 African Americans identifies obesity susceptibility loci on chromosomes 5 and X
Admixture Mapping of 15,280 African Americans Identifies Obesity Susceptibility Loci on Chromosomes 5 and X
The prevalence of obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥30 kg/m2) is higher in African Americans than in European Americans, even after adjustment for socioeconomic factors, suggesting that genetic factors may explain some of the difference. To identify genetic loci influencing BMI, we carried out a pooled analysis of genome-wide admixture mapping scans in 15,280 African Americans from 14 epidemiologic studies. Samples were genotyped at a median of 1,411 ancestry-informative markers. After adjusting for age, sex, and study, BMI was analyzed both as a dichotomized (top 20% versus bottom 20%) and a continuous trait. We found that a higher percentage of European ancestry was significantly correlated with lower BMI (ρ = −0.042, P = 1.6×10−7). In the dichotomized analysis, we detected two loci on chromosome X as associated with increased African ancestry: the first at Xq25 (locus-specific LOD = 5.94; genome-wide score = 3.22; case-control Z = −3.94); and the second at Xq13.1 (locus-specific LOD = 2.22; case-control Z = −4.62). Quantitative analysis identified a third locus at 5q13.3 where higher BMI was highly significantly associated with greater European ancestry (locus-specific LOD = 6.27; genome-wide score = 3.46). Further mapping studies with dense sets of markers will be necessary to identify the alleles in these regions of chromosomes X and 5 that may be associated with variation in BMI
Spectroscopic ellipsometry and polarimetry for materials and systems analysis at the nanometer scale: state-of-the-art, potential, and perspectives
This paper discusses the fundamentals, applications, potential, limitations, and future perspectives of polarized light reflection techniques for the characterization of materials and related systems and devices at the nanoscale. These techniques include spectroscopic ellipsometry, polarimetry, and reflectance anisotropy. We give an overview of the various ellipsometry strategies for the measurement and analysis of nanometric films, metal nanoparticles and nanowires, semiconductor nanocrystals, and submicron periodic structures. We show that ellipsometry is capable of more than the determination of thickness and optical properties, and it can be exploited to gain information about process control, geometry factors, anisotropy, defects, and quantum confinement effects of nanostructures
In Support of a Patient-Driven Initiative and Petition to Lower the High Price of Cancer Drugs
Comment in
Lowering the High Cost of Cancer Drugs--III. [Mayo Clin Proc. 2016]
Lowering the High Cost of Cancer Drugs--I. [Mayo Clin Proc. 2016]
Lowering the High Cost of Cancer Drugs--IV. [Mayo Clin Proc. 2016]
In Reply--Lowering the High Cost of Cancer Drugs. [Mayo Clin Proc. 2016]
US oncologists call for government regulation to curb drug price rises. [BMJ. 2015