Energies And Damping Rates of Elementary Excitations in Spin-1 Bose-einstein-condensed Gases

The finite temperature Green's function technique is used to calculate the energies and damping rates of the elementary excitations of homogeneous, dilute, spin-1 Bose gases below the Bose-Einstein condensation temperature in both the density and spin channels. For this purpose a self-consistent dynamical Hartree-Fock model is formulated, which takes into account the direct and exchange processes on equal footing by summing up certain classes of Feynman diagrams. The model is shown to satisfy the Goldstone theorem and to exhibit the hybridization of one-particle and collective excitations correctly. The results are applied to gases of Na-23 and Rb-87 atoms

Adult Height in Patients with Advanced CKD Requiring Renal Replacement Therapy during Childhood.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Growth and final height are of major concern in children with ESRD. This study sought to describe the distribution of adult height of patients who started renal replacement therapy (RRT) during childhood and to identify determinants of final height in a large cohort of RRT children. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS: A total of 1612 patients from 20 European countries who started RRT before 19 years of age and reached final height between 1990 and 2011 were included. Linear regression analyses were performed to calculate adjusted mean final height SD score (SDS) and to investigate its potential determinants. RESULTS: The median final height SDS was -1.65 (median of 168 cm in boys and 155 cm in girls). Fifty-five percent of patients attained an adult height within the normal range. Adjusted for age at start of RRT and primary renal diseases, final height increased significantly over time from -2.06 SDS in children who reached adulthood in 1990-1995 to -1.33 SDS among those reaching adulthood in 2006-2011. Older age at start of RRT, more recent period of start of RRT, cumulative percentage time on a functioning graft, and greater height SDS at initiation of RRT were independently associated with a higher final height SDS. Patients with congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract and metabolic disorders had a lower final height than those with other primary renal diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Although final height remains suboptimal in children with ESRD, it has consistently improved over time

In vitro models of the blood–brain barrier: An overview of commonly used brain endothelial cell culture models and guidelines for their use

The endothelial cells lining the brain capillaries separate the blood from the brain parenchyma. The endothelial monolayer of the brain capillaries serves both as a crucial interface for exchange of nutrients, gases, and metabolites between blood and brain, and as a barrier for neurotoxic components of plasma and xenobiotics. This “blood-brain barrier” function is a major hindrance for drug uptake into the brain parenchyma. Cell culture models, based on either primary cells or immortalized brain endothelial cell lines, have been developed, in order to facilitate in vitro studies of drug transport to the brain and studies of endothelial cell biology and pathophysiology. In this review, we aim to give an overview of established in vitro blood–brain barrier models with a focus on their validation regarding a set of well-established blood–brain barrier characteristics. As an ideal cell culture model of the blood–brain barrier is yet to be developed, we also aim to give an overview of the advantages and drawbacks of the different models described

The Use of Biopsy and “No-Biopsy” Approach for Diagnosing Paediatric Coeliac Disease in the Central European Region

The current European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition (ESPGHAN) guidelines introduced the option to diagnose coeliac disease (CD) in children and adolescents without upper endoscopy if the defined criteria are met. The aim of our study was to evaluate how frequently paediatric gastroenterologists in Central Europe used the “no-biopsy” approach and how often the duodenal biopsy could have been omitted. . Medical records of patients years diagnosed with CD in 2016 from five European countries were analysed, focusing on levels of transglutaminase antibodies (TGA) at the time of diagnosis and on whether the diagnosis was confirmed using duodenal biopsy or “no-biopsy” approach. Clinical presentation and delays until final diagnosis were analysed according to diagnostic approach. . Data from 653 children (63.9% female, median age: 7 years, range: 7 months-18.5 years) from Croatia, Hungary, Germany, Italy, and Slovenia were analysed. One fifth ( ) of included children were asymptomatic at diagnosis. Of 519 symptomatic children, 107 (20.6%) were diagnosed by the “no-biopsy” approach. Out of the remaining 412 children who underwent duodenal biopsies, 214 (51.9%) had times upper level of normal (ULN) and would have been eligible for the “no-biopsy” approach. Signs and symptoms of malabsorption were more frequent in children diagnosed without duodenal biopsies. There were no differences in diagnostic delays with respect to the diagnostic approach. . In this cohort, about 60% of symptomatic CD patients could have been diagnosed without duodenal biopsies. The aim of the “no-biopsy” approach was to make the diagnostic procedure less challenging without compromising its reliability. However, this option was applied only in 20%, in spite of fewer burdens to the family and reduced costs. The reasons for this discrepancy are unknown. Physicians should be made more aware about the reliability of CD diagnosis without biopsies when the ESPGHAN guidelines for CD diagnosis are followed

Gender Disparities in Access to Pediatric Renal Transplantation in Europe: Data From the ESPN/ERA-EDTA Registry

Inequalities between genders in access to transplantation have been demonstrated. We aimed to validate this gender inequality in a large pediatric population and to investigate its causes. This cohort study included 6454 patients starting renal replacement therapy before 18 years old, in 35 countries participating in the European Society for Paediatric Nephrology/European Renal Association\u2013European Dialysis and Transplant Association Registry. We used cumulative incidence competing risk and proportional hazards frailty models to study the time to receive a transplant and hierarchical logistic regression to investigate access to preemptive transplantation. Girls had a slower access to renal transplantation because of a 23% lower probability of receiving preemptive transplantation. We found a longer follow-up time before renal replacement therapy in boys compared with girls despite a similar estimated glomerular filtration rate at first appointment. Girls tend to progress faster toward end-stage renal disease than boys, which may contribute to a shorter time available for pretransplantation workup. Overall, medical factors explained only 70% of the gender difference. In Europe, girls have less access to preemptive transplantation for reasons that are only partially related to medical factors. Nonmedical factors such as patient motivation and parent and physician attitudes toward transplantation and organ donation may contribute to this inequality. Our study should raise awareness for the management of girls with renal diseases