Paclitaxel combined with cis-platin as second-line treatment in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancers refractory to cis-platin.

We combined paclitaxel with cis-platin as second-line treatment in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who had previously undergone first-line therapy with cis-platin combined with cytotoxic drugs other than taxanes. The aim was to evaluate the effect of this cytotoxic combination in patients with refractory tumour to cis-platin. All 36 patients in the study population were evaluable for toxicity and 35 for response. Nine patients were stage IIIa, 15 IIIb and 12 IV. Prior treatment involved cis-platin plus vindesine and epirubicin or vinblastine and mitomycin-C; second-line treatment involved cis-platin (90 mg/m2) and paclitaxel (175 mg/m2), administered once every 3 weeks with 2-6 courses per patient. Partial response (40%) was obtained in 14 patients, 8 of whom had achieved minor response or stable disease after first-line treatment. Response duration was a minimum of 3 months. Toxicity was tolerable; only neurotoxicity was grade II in 16.7% of the patients. On the basis of our results, paclitaxel can be recommended as a very effective cytotoxic drug for NSCLC patients

Investigation of locked operation in a system of two passively mode-locked semiconductor lasers under weak lateral coupling

We study theoretically the operation of two semiconductor passively mode-locked lasers laterally coupled through evanescent fields. The investigation is carried out using a time domain traveling wave numerical model for twosection lasers (gain and absorption) enhanced to include weak mutual coupling. The study of the coupled system shows that although the operation is dominated mostly by instabilities and amplitude modulated pulse trains, under specific conditions, stable mode locking with lowintensity noise and time-synchronized pulses emerges. The influence of operational and geometrical parameters on the coupled dynamics is identified and discussed. © 2022 Optica Publishing Group

Hybrid field/transmission-line model for the study of coaxial corrugated waveguides

A transmission-line model is reformulated and combined with field theory to study the propagation characteristics in coaxial waveguides with wedge-shaped corrugations, either on the outer wall or the inner conductor. Numerical results show that this equivalent-circuit approach is in agreement with conventional full-wave methods presented in the literature. Additionally, this formulation overcomes numerical issues in the calculation of higher order Bessel functions, which usually conscript sophisticated expansion techniques. © 1963-2012 IEEE

Design of waveguide microwave pulse compressors using equivalent circuits

Microwave pulse compression using a waveguide cavity formed by an inductive iris and an H-plane T-junction with the auxiliary arm shorted is studied. The individual components' equivalent circuits are used to develop a back of the envelope calculation scheme, which estimates the key design choices regarding the length of the waveguide main cavity, the iris width and the shorted arm length. The analysis is extended to cover the impact of the aforementioned design choices on the charging time and the time evolution of the cavity standing wave. Verification is obtained by comparing a pulse compressor at 1.3 GHz with a full-wave 3-D commercial software. © 2014 IEEE

A combined experimental and simulation study on thickness dependence of the emission characteristics in multicolor single layer organic light-emitting diodes

The impact of the active layer thickness on the emission characteristics of multicolor single layer organic light-emitting diodes based on poly(9-vinylcarbazole) is examined by combining experimental results with model simulations. We compare experimental electroluminescence spectra with simulations using photon-emitting point dipoles and find a very good agreement. We also simulate the location of the recombination zone, considering that the emission probability distribution has a peak located 25 nm from the cathode, which decays exponentially above and below that point. Simulated radiation patterns show that microcavity effects dominate the thickness dependent emitting properties of these devices.</p

Reflection and transmission calculations in a multilayer structure with coherent, incoherent, and partially coherent interference, using the transmission line method

A generalized transmission line method (TLM) that provides reflection and transmission calculations for a multilayer dielectric structure with coherent, partial coherent, and incoherent layers is presented. The method is deployed on two different application fields. The first application of the method concerns the thickness measurement of the individual layers of an organic light-emitting diode. By using a fitting approach between experimental spectral reflectance measurements and the corresponding TLM calculations, it is shown that the thickness of the films can be estimated. The second application of the TLM concerns the calculation of the external quantum efficiency of an organic photovoltaic with partially coherent rough interfaces between the layers. Numerical results regarding the short circuit photocurrent for different layer thicknesses and rough interfaces are provided and the performance impact of the rough interface is discussed in detail. © 2015 Optical Society of America

Severe osteoporosis and mutation in NOTCH2 gene in a woman with Hajdu-Cheney syndrome

Hajdu-Cheney syndrome (HCS) is a rare genetic disorder characterised by acro-osteolysis, skull deformation and generalised osteoporosis. Recently, truncating mutations in the last exon of NOTCH2, a protein-coding gene, were found to be responsible. We present the case of a young woman with HCS in whom clinical and radiologic diagnosis was confirmed with DNA tests. © 2012 Elsevier Inc.

Optical modeling of hybrid polymer solar cells using a transmission-line model and comparison with experimental results

Organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells provide an efficient alternative solution compared to traditional PV devices. Their conversion efficiency is directly dependent to the light intensity in the photoactive layer. The present work proposes a fast, accurate, and easy-to-implement transmission-line model, which evaluates the light intensity in any layer inside a multilayer OPV cell. In particular, a plane optical wave impinging normally on a planar multilayer OPV configuration is considered and next the optical field distribution is determined. Numerical results and optimization guidelines for a hybrid PV configuration are presented and discussed. © 2006 IEEE

Chondroprotective effect of high-dose zoledronic acid: An experimental study in a rabbit model of osteoarthritis

To address the need to impact the subchondral bone-articular cartilage interaction for the treatment of degenerative osteoarthritis (OA), bisphosphonates may be used as a means to inhibit the subchondral bone resorption. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the chondroprotective effect of zoledronic acid (ZOL) in a model of OA. Eighteen adult male rabbits underwent an anterior cruciate ligament transection and were separated into two groups: ZOL group (n=10) received 0.6 mg/kg intravenous injection of ZOL on day 1, 15, and 29 and placebo group (n=8) received saline. The animals were euthanized at 8 weeks. Macroscopically, the ZOL group had significantly milder ulcerations, cartilage softening and fibrillation compared to the placebo group. Microscopically, morphology of the articular cartilage was better in the ZOL treated group compared with the placebo group, without complete disorganization in any section of the ZOL group. Furthermore, the chondrocytes in the ZOL treated group were mainly cloning, indicating cartilage repairing and regeneration process, while in the placebo group hypocellularity predominated. Additionally, subchondral necrosis was evident in some specimens of the placebo group. Zoledronic acid, in a high-dose regimen, proved to be chondroprotective in a well-established animal model of OA. © 2014 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Sequential treatment with teriparatide and strontium ranelate in a postmenopausal woman with atypical femoral fractures after long-term bisphosphonate administration

Objective: Despite the existence of numerous case series, no evidenced-based medical management for atypical fractures associated with bisphosphonate (bP) treatment has been established. Design: We report the outcome of teriparatide (TRP) administration followed by strontium ranelate (SR) in a woman with a complete and an incomplete contralateral atypical fracture of the femoral diaphysis (AFF) associated with bP treatment. The spontaneous complete AFF was managed with intra medullary nailing, discontinuation of BP and initiation TRP. Results: Eleven months later, she suffered a contralateral incomplete AFF. At the completion of the TRP treatment, she had only slight discomfort in the femur with the incomplete AFF. BMD testing revealed increase of 7.61% at the lumbar spine (Ls) and 0.8% at the hip. Following TRP, 1-year SR treatment resulted in further BMD increase of 9.2% at the Ls and 1.4% in the hip, while she does not report any pain. Bone markers remain within the normal range. Conclusion: Our case indicates that sequential therapy with TRP and SR in cases of AFF might be a rational treatment option. However, there is a need for additional information concerning the effect of TRP and SR, given alone or sequentially, in these patients in order to incorporate these drugs into the management of AFF