The Generation of 3D Surface Meshes for NURBS-Enhanced FEM

This work presents the first method for generating triangular surface meshes in three dimensions for the NURBS-enhanced finite element method. The generated meshes may contain triangular elements that span across multiple NURBS surfaces, whilst maintaining the exact representation of the CAD geometry. This strategy completely eliminates the need for de-featuring complex watertight CAD models and, at the same time, eliminates any uncertainty associated with the simplification of CAD models. In addition, the ability to create elements that span across multiple surfaces ensures that the generated meshes are highly compliant with the requirements of the user-specified spacing function, even if the CAD model contains very small geometric features. To demonstrate the capability, the proposed strategy is applied to a variety of CAD geometries, taken from areas such as solid/structural mechanics, fluid dynamics and wave propagation

Phase I dose-escalation and pharmacokinetic study of dasatinib in patients with advanced solid tumors

PURPOSE: To determine the maximum tolerated dose, dose-limiting toxicity (DLT), and recommended phase II dose of dasatinib in metastatic solid tumors refractory to standard therapies or for which no effective standard therapy exists. <br></br> EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: In this phase I, open-label, dose-escalation study, patients received 35 to 160 mg of dasatinib twice daily in 28-day cycles either every 12 hours for 5 consecutive days followed by 2 nontreatment days every week (5D2) or as continuous, twice-daily (CDD) dosing. <br></br> RESULTS: Sixty-seven patients were treated (5D2, n = 33; CDD, n = 34). The maximum tolerated doses were 120 mg twice daily 5D2 and 70 mg twice daily CDD. DLTs with 160 mg 5D2 were recurrent grade 2 rash, grade 3 lethargy, and one patient with both grade 3 prolonged bleeding time and grade 3 hypocalcemia; DLTs with 120 mg twice daily CDD were grade 3 nausea, grade 3 fatigue, and one patient with both grade 3 rash and grade 2 proteinuria. The most frequent treatment-related toxicities across all doses were nausea, fatigue, lethargy, anorexia, proteinuria, and diarrhea, with infrequent hematologic toxicities. Pharmacokinetic data indicated rapid absorption, dose proportionality, and lack of drug accumulation. Although no objective tumor responses were seen, durable stable disease was observed in 16% of patients.<br></br> CONCLUSION: Dasatinib was well tolerated in this population, with a safety profile similar to that observed previously in leukemia patients, although with much less hematologic toxicity. Limited, although encouraging, preliminary evidence of clinical activity was observed. Doses of 120 mg twice daily (5D2) or 70 mg twice daily (CDD) are recommended for further studies in patients with solid tumors.<br></br&gt

A passive transmitter for quantum key distribution with coherent light

Signal state preparation in quantum key distribution schemes can be realized using either an active or a passive source. Passive sources might be valuable in some scenarios; for instance, in those experimental setups operating at high transmission rates, since no externally driven element is required. Typical passive transmitters involve parametric down-conversion. More recently, it has been shown that phase-randomized coherent pulses also allow passive generation of decoy states and Bennett-Brassard 1984 (BB84) polarization signals, though the combination of both setups in a single passive source is cumbersome. In this paper, we present a complete passive transmitter that prepares decoy-state BB84 signals using coherent light. Our method employs sum-frequency generation together with linear optical components and classical photodetectors. In the asymptotic limit of an infinite long experiment, the resulting secret key rate (per pulse) is comparable to the one delivered by an active decoy-state BB84 setup with an infinite number of decoy settings.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1009.383

Hydrogen Recovery by Methane Pyrolysis to Elemental Carbon

Use of a Sabatier reactor to recover the oxygen from the carbon dioxide exhaled by the crew on the International Space Station has been limited by the loss of the hydrogen contained in the methane it generates. Maximizing the oxygen recovered requires the hydrogen to be recovered from the methane product and recycled back to the Sabatier reactor. We describe the use of a tailored methane pyrolysis reactor to completely recover this hydrogen. The carbon-containing byproduct is elemental carbon, which is generated in the form of easily handled, non-sooty material that may have various uses. The process of creating this tailored carbon vapor deposition process involved exploration of the effects of temperature, pressure, substrate design and other variables to develop a high yield process that cleanly generates the desired products. Reaction kinetics and kinetics modelling were used to specify the temperature, pressure and reactor volume required to achieve the target conversion and to assure that the final average density was as high as possible. Reactor design included the selection of materials that will survive the high temperatures and environment in the pyrolysis reactor, and thermal modeling to achieve the required temperatures with minimum power consumption. The successful construction and demonstration of a brassboard prototype will allow the results of the chemical, thermal and mechanical models to be validated and should provide a useful alternative for a completely closed loop ECLS system. Integration of this technology with state-of-the-art (SOA) Sabatier hardware on ISS requires a complete understanding of the effects of impurities in the product hydrogen on the Sabatier catalyst. SOA Sabatier catalyst was evaluated over short and long-term exposure to anticipated contaminants to identify effects

Caspase-3 Activation via Mitochondria Is Required for Long-Term Depression and AMPA Receptor Internalization

NMDA receptor-dependent synaptic modifications, such as long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD), are essential for brain development and function. LTD occurs mainly by the removal of AMPA receptors from the postsynaptic membrane, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we show that activation of caspase-3 via mitochondria is required for LTD and AMPA receptor internalization in hippocampal neurons. LTD and AMPA receptor internalization are blocked by peptide inhibitors of caspase-3 and -9. In hippocampal slices from caspase-3 knockout mice, LTD is abolished whereas LTP remains normal. LTD is also prevented by overexpression of the anti-apoptotic proteins XIAP or Bcl-xL, and by a mutant Akt1 protein that is resistant to caspase-3 proteolysis. NMDA receptor stimulation that induces LTD transiently activates caspase-3 in dendrites, without causing cell death. These data indicate an unexpected causal link between the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and LTD.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Fellowship F32-NS046126)National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Intramural Research ProgramNational Institute of Mental Health (U.S.

Thoracic Surgery and the Elderly; Is Lobectomy Safe in Octogenarians?

Purpose: Non-small cell lung cancer is the most common malignancy of the elderly, with 5-year survival estimates of 16.8%. The prognostic benefit of surgical resection for early lung cancer is irrefutable and maintained irrespective of age, even in patients over 75 years. Concerningly, despite the prognostic benefit of surgery there are deviations from standard treatment protocols with increasing age due to concerns of increased morbidity and mortality with surgery, without evidence to support this. Method: A state-wide retrospective registry study of Queensland's Cardiac Outcomes Registry's (QCOR) Thoracic Database examining the influence of age on the safety of Lung Resection (1 January 2016–20 April 2022). Results: This included 1,232 patients, mean age at surgery was 66 years (range 14–91 years), with 918 thoracotomies performed. Three deaths occurred within 30-days (0.24%). Octogenarians (n=60) had lower rates of smoking (26% vs 6%), respiratory, cardiovascular, and cerebrovascular disease suggesting this subset of patients is carefully selected. Octogenarian status was not associated with an increased all-cause morbidity (p=0.09) or 30-day mortality (p=0.06). Further to this it was not associated with re-operation (4.4% vs 8.3%, p=0.1), increased postoperative stay (6.66 vs 6.65 days, p=0.99) or myocardial infarction. An independent predictor of morbidity was male sex (OR 1.58, CI 1.2–2.1 p=0.001). Conclusion: Age ≥80 years did not increase surgical morbidity or mortality in the appropriately selected patient and should not be a barrier to referral for consideration of surgical resection

Anticipated regret to increase uptake of colorectal cancer screening (ARTICS):a randomised controlled trial

Objective. Screening is key to early detection of colorectal cancer. Our aim was to determine whether a simple anticipated regret (AR) intervention could increase colorectal cancer screening uptake. Methods. We conducted a randomised controlled trial of a simple, questionnaire-based AR intervention, delivered alongside existing pre-notification letters. 60,000 adults aged 50-74 from the Scottish National Screening programme were randomised to: 1) no questionnaire (control), 2) Health Locus of Control questionnaire (HLOC) or 3) HLOC plus anticipated regret questionnaire (AR). Primary outcome was guaiac Faecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT) return. Secondary outcomes included intention to return test kit and perceived disgust (ICK). Results. 59,366 people were analysed as allocated (Intentionto- treat (ITT)); there were no overall differences between treatment groups on FOBT uptake (control: 57.3%, HLOC: 56.9%, AR: 57.4%). 13,645 (34.2%) people returned questionnaires. Analysis of the secondary questionnaire measures showed that AR had an indirect effect on FOBT uptake via intention, whilst ICK had a direct effect on FOBT uptake over and above intention. The effect of AR on FOBT uptake was also moderated by intention strength: for less than strong intenders only, uptake was 4.2% higher in the AR (84.6%) versus the HLOC group (80.4%) (95% CI for difference (2.0, 6.5)). Conclusion. The findings show that psychological concepts including anticipated regret and perceived disgust (ICK) are important factors in determining FOBT uptake. However, there was no simple effect of the AR intervention in the ITT. We conclude that exposure to AR in those with low intentions may be required to increase FOBT uptake. Current controlled trials: www.controlledtrials. com number: ISRCTN74986452

Comparison of Lung Cancer Surgery Outcomes in Queensland for Indigenous and Nonindigenous Australians

Introduction: Indigenous Australians (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) have lower overall survival from lung cancer compared with nonindigenous Australians. Indigenous Australians receive higher rates of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. The equity of peri-operative care and thoracic surgical outcomes in Australian indigenous populations have not been contemporarily evaluated. Methods: We performed a retrospective registry analysis of the Queensland Cardiac Outcomes Registry Thoracic Database evaluating all adult lung cancer resections across Queensland from January 1, 2016 to April 20, 2022. Evaluating the time from diagnosis to surgery, operative data, and postoperative morbidity and mortality comparing Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people with nonindigenous Australians. Results: There were 31 patients (2.56%) of 1208 who identified as indigenous. The mean age at surgery was 68.2 years versus 66 years in the indigenous and nonindigenous, respectively (p = 0.23). There was female predominance among indigenous patients (n = 28, 90.32%, p < 0.01) and the average body mass index was lower (22.52 versus 27.09, p < 0.01). There was no variation in the surgical parameters or histopathologic distribution of cancer type between groups. Multivariable logistic regression analysis suggested that indigenous patients were at elevated risk of blood transfusion (relative risk 3.9, p = 0.014, OR = 9.01, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.25–36.33, p < 0.01) and had greater transfusion requirements (risk ratio 4.08, p = 0.0116 and OR = 12.67, 95% CI: 2.25–71.49, p < 0.01); however, the influence of low absolute number of transfusions must be acknowledged here. Indigenous status was not associated with increased intensive care unit admission (OR = 1.79, 95% CI: 0.17–18.80, p = 0.62), return to operating theater (OR = 2.1, 95% CI: 0.24–18.15, p = 0.50), new atrial fibrillation (OR = 0.52, 95% CI: 0.07–4.01, p = 0.55), prolonged air leak (OR = 0.29, 95% CI: 0.04– 2.16, p = 0.228), or pneumonia postoperatively (OR = 4.77, 95% CI: 0.55–41.71, p = 0.16). With only three deaths, no meaningful trends were observed. Time from diagnosis to surgery was comparable in the indigenous and nonindigenous groups (88.6 d, 95% CI: 54.26–123.24 versus 86.2 d, 81.40–91.02, p = 0.87). Postoperative length of stay was not numerically or statistically different between groups. (indigenous 7.54 d versus nonindigenous 7.13 d, p = 0.90). Conclusions: Indigenous patients are more likely to receive a blood transfusion than nonindigenous patients during lung resection. Reassuringly, the perioperative care provided to indigenous Australians undergoing lung resection in Queensland seems to be comparable to that of the nonindigenous population