Fluctuation-induced excess conductivity in the compounds CaREBaCu<SUB>3</SUB>O<SUB>7-y</SUB> (RE=La and Sm)

The compounds CaREBaCu3O7-y (RE=La and Sm) are tetragonal at room temperature with Tc between 60 and 70 K. The single-phase compounds were prepared by solid-state reaction. The resistivity was measured by a four-probe technique in a continuous flow cryostat with the temperature being controlled to an accuracy of 10 mK. The resistivity vs temperature showed a break in slope around 180 K in CaLaBaCu3O7-y and around 220 K in CaSmBaCu3O7-y . The results were analysed for fluctuation conductivity from 180 K downwards. A plot of dp/dT vs T showed a sharp peak at Tm =69.69 K for La compound and 66.00 K for the Sm compound. Detailed analysis of the resistivity in the region Ton to 180 K was carried out using the procedure due to Veira and Vidal. The results are discussed in this paper

Tackling alcoholism and domestic violence in fisheries - a new opportunity to improve wellbeing for the most vulnerable people in global fisheries

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) principle of ‘Leaving no one behind’ focusses global attention on the poorest and most vulnerable people. As different sectors grapple to engage meaningfully with this principle, we posit that greater consideration of social problems in fishing-dependent communities, such as alcoholism and domestic violence, presents an opportunity for fisheries governors to contribute to the SDGs mandate. We further argue that governing marine resources in ignorance of these problems can risk harming some of the most vulnerable people in fisheries. Using subjective wellbeing data from women living in two small-scale fishing communities in India and Sri Lanka, we demonstrate the prevalence and impact of alcoholism and domestic violence in fishing households. We further highlight how policies which restrict access to marine resources can undermine important coping strategies, in particular the ability of women to act as independent income-earners, exacerbating harm to already vulnerable women. A scoping review of the literature reveals that alcoholism and domestic violence are reported in certain fisheries around the world, and we theorise how this may relate to the nature of fishing life, and growing stresses regarding the future of fishing. Tackling the burdens of alcoholism and domestic violence in fisheries, where it is an issue, is an opportunity to improve wellbeing for men, women and their families. The paper concludes with tangible actions which marine resource governors could adopt to contribute to the ‘leave no one behind’ ethos

Candidate Gene Analysis of Femoral Neck Trabecular and Cortical Volumetric Bone Mineral Density in Older Men

In contrast to conventional dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, quantitative computed tomography separately measures trabecular and cortical volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD). Little is known about the genetic variants associated with trabecular and cortical vBMD in humans, although both may be important for determining bone strength and osteoporotic risk. In the current analysis, we tested the hypothesis that there are genetic variants associated with trabecular and cortical vBMD at the femoral neck by genotyping 4608 tagging and potentially functional single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 383 bone metabolism candidate genes in 822 Caucasian men aged 65 years or older from the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study (MrOS). Promising SNP associations then were tested for replication in an additional 1155 men from the same study. We identified SNPs in five genes (IFNAR2, NFATC1, SMAD1, HOXA, and KLF10) that were robustly associated with cortical vBMD and SNPs in nine genes (APC, ATF2, BMP3, BMP7, FGF18, FLT1, TGFB3, THRB, and RUNX1) that were robustly associated with trabecular vBMD. There was no overlap between genes associated with cortical vBMD and trabecular vBMD. These findings identify novel genetic variants for cortical and trabecular vBMD and raise the possibility that some genetic loci may be unique for each bone compartment. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Researc

Long term survival following the detection of circulating tumour cells in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Background Techniques for detecting circulating tumor cells in the peripheral blood of patients with head and neck cancers may identify individuals likely to benefit from early systemic treatment. Methods Reconstruction experiments were used to optimise immunomagnetic enrichment and RT-PCR detection of circulating tumor cells using four markers (ELF3, CK19, EGFR and EphB4). This method was then tested in a pilot study using samples from 16 patients with advanced head and neck carcinomas. Results Seven patients were positive for circulating tumour cells both prior to and after surgery, 4 patients were positive prior to but not after surgery, 3 patients were positive after but not prior to surgery and 2 patients were negative. Two patients tested positive for circulating cells but there was no other evidence of tumor spread. Given this patient cohort had mostly advanced disease, as expected the detection of circulating tumour cells was not associated with significant differences in overall or disease free survival. Conclusion For the first time, we show that almost all patients with advanced head and neck cancers have circulating cells at the time of surgery. The clinical application of techniques for detection of spreading disease, such as the immunomagnetic enrichment RT-PCR analysis used in this study, should be explored further

Ecological–Health Risk of Antimony and Arsenic in Centella asiatica, Topsoils, and Mangrove Sediments: A Case Study of Peninsular Malaysia

The current study assessed the ecological–health risks of potentially toxic arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in the vegetable Centella asiatica, topsoils, and mangrove sediments sampled from Peninsular Malaysia. The As concentrations ranged from 0.21 to 4.33, 0.18 to 1.83, and 1.32 to 20.8 mg/kg dry weight, for the leaves, stems, and roots of the vegetable, respectively. The ranges of Sb concentrations were 0.31–0.62, 0.12–0.35, and 0.64–1.61 mg/kg dry weight, for leaves, stems, and roots of the vegetable, respectively. The children’s target hazard quotient (THQ) values indicated no non-carcinogenic risks of As and Sb in both leaves and stems, although children’s THQ values were higher than those in adults. The calculated values of estimated weekly intake were lower than established provisional tolerable weekly intake of As and Sb for both children and adult consumers. The carcinogenic risk (CR) values of As for children’s intake of leaves and stems of vegetables showed more public concern than those of adults. The levels of Sb and As in the topsoils were generally higher (although not significantly) than those in the mangrove sediments, resulting in a higher geoaccumulation index, contamination factor and ecological risk, hazard index, THQ, and CR values. This indicated that the anthropogenic sources of Sb and As originated from the land-based activities before reaching the mangrove near the coast. The CR of As signifies a dire need for comprehensive ecological–health risks exposure studies, as dietary intake involves more than just vegetable consumption. Therefore, risk management for As and Sb in Malaysia is highly recommended. The present findings of the ecological–health risks of As and Sb based on 2010–2012 samples can be used as an important baseline for future reference and comparison. Copyright © 2022 Yap, Tan, Cheng, Syazwan, Azrizal-Wahid, Krishnan, Go, Nulit, Ibrahim, Mustafa, Omar, Chew, Edward, Okamura, Al-Mutairi, Al-Shami, Sharifinia, Keshavarzifard, You, Bakhtiari, Bintal, Zakaly, Arai, Naji, Saleem, Abd Rahman, Ong, Subramaniam and Wong.Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia, MOHEThe present study was supported financially by the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS), (Vote No.: 5524953) and by the Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia

CCN3 modulates bone turnover and is a novel regulator of skeletal metastasis

The CCN family of proteins is composed of six secreted proteins (CCN1-6), which are grouped together based on their structural similarity. These matricellular proteins are involved in a large spectrum of biological processes, ranging from development to disease. In this review, we focus on CCN3, a founding member of this family, and its role in regulating cells within the bone microenvironment. CCN3 impairs normal osteoblast differentiation through multiple mechanisms, which include the neutralization of pro-osteoblastogenic stimuli such as BMP and Wnt family signals or the activation of pathways that suppress osteoblastogenesis, such as Notch. In contrast, CCN3 is known to promote chondrocyte differentiation. Given these functions, it is not surprising that CCN3 has been implicated in the progression of primary bone cancers such as osteosarcoma, Ewing’s sarcoma and chondrosarcoma. More recently, emerging evidence suggests that CCN3 may also influence the ability of metastatic cancers to colonize and grow in bone

Elective Cancer Surgery in COVID-19-Free Surgical Pathways During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: An International, Multicenter, Comparative Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: As cancer surgery restarts after the first COVID-19 wave, health care providers urgently require data to determine where elective surgery is best performed. This study aimed to determine whether COVID-19-free surgical pathways were associated with lower postoperative pulmonary complication rates compared with hospitals with no defined pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This international, multicenter cohort study included patients who underwent elective surgery for 10 solid cancer types without preoperative suspicion of SARS-CoV-2. Participating hospitals included patients from local emergence of SARS-CoV-2 until April 19, 2020. At the time of surgery, hospitals were defined as having a COVID-19-free surgical pathway (complete segregation of the operating theater, critical care, and inpatient ward areas) or no defined pathway (incomplete or no segregation, areas shared with patients with COVID-19). The primary outcome was 30-day postoperative pulmonary complications (pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, unexpected ventilation). RESULTS: Of 9,171 patients from 447 hospitals in 55 countries, 2,481 were operated on in COVID-19-free surgical pathways. Patients who underwent surgery within COVID-19-free surgical pathways were younger with fewer comorbidities than those in hospitals with no defined pathway but with similar proportions of major surgery. After adjustment, pulmonary complication rates were lower with COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.2% v 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.86). This was consistent in sensitivity analyses for low-risk patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists grade 1/2), propensity score-matched models, and patients with negative SARS-CoV-2 preoperative tests. The postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection rate was also lower in COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.1% v 3.6%; aOR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.36 to 0.76). CONCLUSION: Within available resources, dedicated COVID-19-free surgical pathways should be established to provide safe elective cancer surgery during current and before future SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks

Elective cancer surgery in COVID-19-free surgical pathways during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: An international, multicenter, comparative cohort study

PURPOSE As cancer surgery restarts after the first COVID-19 wave, health care providers urgently require data to determine where elective surgery is best performed. This study aimed to determine whether COVID-19–free surgical pathways were associated with lower postoperative pulmonary complication rates compared with hospitals with no defined pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS This international, multicenter cohort study included patients who underwent elective surgery for 10 solid cancer types without preoperative suspicion of SARS-CoV-2. Participating hospitals included patients from local emergence of SARS-CoV-2 until April 19, 2020. At the time of surgery, hospitals were defined as having a COVID-19–free surgical pathway (complete segregation of the operating theater, critical care, and inpatient ward areas) or no defined pathway (incomplete or no segregation, areas shared with patients with COVID-19). The primary outcome was 30-day postoperative pulmonary complications (pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, unexpected ventilation). RESULTS Of 9,171 patients from 447 hospitals in 55 countries, 2,481 were operated on in COVID-19–free surgical pathways. Patients who underwent surgery within COVID-19–free surgical pathways were younger with fewer comorbidities than those in hospitals with no defined pathway but with similar proportions of major surgery. After adjustment, pulmonary complication rates were lower with COVID-19–free surgical pathways (2.2% v 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.86). This was consistent in sensitivity analyses for low-risk patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists grade 1/2), propensity score–matched models, and patients with negative SARS-CoV-2 preoperative tests. The postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection rate was also lower in COVID-19–free surgical pathways (2.1% v 3.6%; aOR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.36 to 0.76). CONCLUSION Within available resources, dedicated COVID-19–free surgical pathways should be established to provide safe elective cancer surgery during current and before future SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks