Evaluation of extensional and torsional stiffness of single actin filaments by molecular dynamics analysis.

It is essential to investigate the mechanical behaviour of cytoskeletal actin filaments in order to understand their critical role as mechanical components in various cellular functional activities. These actin filaments consisting of monomeric molecules function in the thermal fluctuations. Hence, it is important to understand their mechanical behaviour on the microscopic scale by comparing the stiffness based on thermal fluctuations with the one experimentally measured on the macroscopic scale. In this study, we perform a large-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulation for a half-turn structure of an actin filament. We analyse its longitudinal and twisting Brownian motions in equilibrium and evaluated its apparent extensional and torsional stiffness on the nanosecond scale. Upon increasing the sampling-window durations for analysis, the apparent stiffness gradually decreases and exhibits a trend to converge to a value that is close to the experimental value. This suggests that by extrapolating the data obtained in the MD analysis, we can estimate the experimentally determined stiffness on the microsecond to millisecond scales. For shorter temporal scales, the apparent stiffness is larger than experimental values, indicating that fast, local motions of the molecular structure are dominant. To quantify the local structural changes within the filament on the nanosecond scale and investigate the molecular mechanisms, such as the binding of the actin-regulatory proteins to the filaments, it is preferable to analyse the mechanical behaviour on the nanometre and nanosecond scales using MD simulation

Konfigurering och ibruktagning av KNX system

Detta examensarbete behandlar grunderna i KNX samt programmering av KNX enheter med datorprogrammet ETS 4. I arbetet beskrivs hur KNX systemet fungerar, hur det är uppbyggt och de olika överföringsmedium som kan användas då KNX enheter kommunicerar. Jag beskriver också hur ETS 4 installeras på datorn och hur man kommer igång med programmeringen av KNX enheterna. Inför detta examensarbete har jag studerat en del av ABB:s KNX enheter samt deras funktioner och konfigurationsmöjligheter. Syftet med detta examensarbete är att skapa en liten handbok för hur ett KNX system är uppbyggt samt hur KNX enheterna programmeras med ETS 4.Tämä opinnäytetyö käsittelee KNX:n perusteita ja KNX-laitteiden ohjelmointia ETS 4 tietokoneohjelman avulla. Työssä kuvaillaan, miten KNX-järjestelmä toimii, millä tavalla se on rakennettu sekä mitä eri siirtomedioita voidaan käyttää KNX-laitteiden viestinnässä. Työssä kuvaillaan myös, miten ETS-ohjelma asennetaan tietokoneella ja miten päästään aloittamaan KNX-laitteiden ohjelmointi. Ennen tätä opinnäytetyötä kirjoittaja on opiskellut ABB:n KNX-laitteita sekä niiden toimintoja ja konfiguraatiomahdollisuuksia. Opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena on tehdä pieni käsikirja, joka kertoo, miten KNX- järjestelmä on rakennettu sekä millä tavalla KNX-laitteet ohjelmoidaan ETS 4:llä.In this thesis I deal with the basics of KNX as well as the programming of KNX devices with the computer software ETS 4. In the thesis I describe how the KNX system works, how it is built and the different communication media that are used for communication between KNX devices. I also describe how ETS 4 is installed on a personal computer and how to get started with the programming of the KNX devices. When preparing for this thesis I studied a part of ABB’s KNX devices, their functions as well as their configuration possibilities. The purpose of this thesis is to create a small manual that can be used to see how a KNX system is built and to check how KNX devices are programmed with ETS 4

Two-week administration of rivaroxaban resolved left atrial thrombus

AbstractAn 89-year-old man visited our hospital complaining of palpitation. Electrocardiography showed atrial fibrillation, and transthoracic echocardiography demonstrated a mobile thrombus of 28.6mm×20.8mm in the left atrium. Administration of a direct factor Xa inhibitor rivaroxaban (10mg/day) was started. The thrombus reduced its size and disappeared completely 2 weeks after the commencement of rivaroxaban treatment. To our knowledge, this is the first case report that rivaroxaban successfully dissolved left atrial thrombus during a short period. Rivaroxaban might have a potential, not only to prevent de novo thrombus formation, but also to dissolve established thrombi by direct inhibition of free and thrombus-associated factor Xa.<Learning objective: The incidence of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation is increasing, and left atrial thrombus is the major cause of cardiogenic thrombo-embolism that we need to prevent. Recently, novel oral anticoagulants have been developed. The effects of these agents on intracardiac thrombus resolution have not been fully elucidated. Data from a large cohort study would be required to assess efficacy of novel oral anticoagulants for thrombus resolution.

High Field Magnetooptics of Diluted Magnetic Semiconductors(Magnetooptics)

Absorption and luminescence spectra of Cd_Mn_xSe (x=0.10 and 0.38) and reflectance spectra of Cd_Co_xSe (x=0.012) were investigated in high magnetic fields up to 25 T by a hybrid magnet and a magnetospectrometer with an optical fiber system

Prediction of pathologic node-negative clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma for optimal candidates undergoing sublobar resection

ObjectivePatients with pathologic node-negative early lung cancer may be optimal candidates for sublobar resection. We aimed to identify predictors of pathologic lymph node involvement in clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma.MethodsThe data from a multicenter database of 502 patients with completely resected clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma were retrospectively analyzed to determine the relationship between the lymph node metastasis status and tumor size on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) or maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) on [18F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT). Revised SUVmax was used to correct interinstitutional discrepancies.ResultsIn multivariate analyses, either a solid tumor size on HRCT (P = .001) or an SUVmax on FDG-PET/CT (P = .049) was an independent predictor of lymph node metastasis. The predictive criteria of pathologic node-negative early lung cancer were a solid tumor size of less than 0.8 cm or an SUVmax of less than 1.5. Patients who met the predictive criteria of pathologic node-negative disease had less pathologic invasiveness, such as lymphatic, vascular, or pleural invasion (P < .001), and better disease-free survival (P < .0001) than those who did not, and 86 (40.4%) of the 213 patients with T1b (2-3 cm) tumors met the predictive criteria.ConclusionsEither a solid tumor size or an SUVmax was a significant independent predictor of nodal involvement in clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma. The pathologic node-negative status criteria of a solid tumor size of less than 0.8 cm on HRCT or an SUVmax of less than1.5 on FDG-PET/CT may be helpful for avoiding systematic lymphadenectomy for clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma, even in cases of T1b (2-3 cm) tumor

The Early Decline of alpha-Fetoprotein and Des-gamma-Carboxy Prothrombin Predicts the Response of Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients

Introduction: Molecular targeting drugs are recommended as second-line treatment for intrahepatic advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, in Asia, hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) is also considered as a second-line treatment because it improves the survival of responders. The aim of this study was to predict responders and non-responders to HAIC with low-dose cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil (LFP) using tumor markers. Objective and Methods: The data of 47 patients who received LFP for the first time in our hospital were analyzed retrospectively. We evaluated the association between treatment response by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors and the changing ratio of the serum concentration of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP),Lens culinarisagglutinin-reactive fraction of AFP (AFP-L3), and des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) 2 weeks after LFP initiation. Results: The number of patients showing a complete response (CR), a partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), and progressive disease (PD) was 0 (0%), 20 (43%), 18 (38%), and 9 (19%), respectively. The AFP ratio showed significant positive correlations for PR vs. SD (p= 0.004) and PR vs. PD (p= 0.003). The DCP ratio correlated significantly for PR vs. SD (p= 0.02). The optimal cutoff values for responders were 0.79 for the AFP ratio and 0.53 for the DCP ratio. Prediction using both or either cutoff value showed 93% sensitivity, 53% specificity, a 94% negative predictive value, and a 57% positive predictive value. Conclusion: Optimal cutoff values for AFP and DCP ratios enable prediction of nonresponders to HAIC with LFP. This simple and early assessment method allows the use of HAIC and molecular targeting drugs for HCC treatment