Critical boron-doping levels for generation of dislocations in synthetic diamond

Defects induced by boron doping in diamond layers were studied by transmission electron microscopy. The existence of a critical boron doping level above which defects are generated is reported. This level is found to be dependent on the CH4 /H2 molar ratios and on growth directions. The critical boron concentration lied in the 6.5–17.0 X 10 20 at/cm3 range in the direction and at 3.2 X 1021 at/cm 3 for the one. Strain related effects induced by the doping are shown not to be responsible. From the location of dislocations and their Burger vectors, a model is proposed, together with their generation mechanism.6 page

Virtualized Clinical Studies to Assess the Natural History and Impact of Gut Microbiome Modulation in Non-Hospitalized Patients with Mild to Moderate COVID-19 a Randomized, Open-Label, Prospective Study with a Parallel Group Study Evaluating the Physiologic Effects of KB109 on Gut Microbiota Structure and Function: A Structured Summary of a Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Study [preprint]

These 2 parallel studies (K031 and K032) aim to evaluate the safety of KB109 in addition to supportive self-care (SSC) compared with SSC alone in outpatients with mild to moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). KB109 is a novel synthetic glycan that was formulated to modulate the gut microbiome composition and metabolic output in order to increase beneficial short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) production in the gut. The K031 study is designed to evaluate the safety of KB109 and characterize its impact on the natural progression of COVID-19 in patients with mild to moderate disease. The K032 study is evaluating the effect of KB109 on the gut microbiota structure and function in this same patient population. Additionally, both studies are evaluating measures of health care utilization, quality of life (QOL), laboratory indices, biomarkers of inflammation, and serological measures of immunity in patients who received SSC alone or with KB109. Noteworthy aspects of these outpatient studies include study design measures aimed at limiting in-person interactions to minimize the risk of infection spread, such as use of online diaries, telemedicine, and at-home sample collection

Strike-slip faults mediate the rise of crustal-derived fluids and mud volcanism in the deep sea

We report on newly discovered mud volcanoes located at ∼4500 m water depth ∼90 km west of the deformation front of the accretionary wedge of the Gulf of Cadiz, and thus outside of their typical geotectonic environment. Seismic data suggest that fluid flow is mediated by a >400-km-long strike-slip fault marking the transcurrent plate boundary between Africa and Eurasia. Geochemical data (Cl, B, Sr, 87Sr/86Sr, δ18O, δD) reveal that fluids originate in oceanic crust older than 140 Ma. On their rise to the surface, these fluids receive strong geochemical signals from recrystallization of Upper Jurassic carbonates and clay-mineral dehydration in younger terrigeneous units. At present, reports of mud volcanoes in similar deep-sea settings are rare, but given that the large area of transform-type plate boundaries has been barely investigated, such pathways of fluid discharge may provide an important, yet unappreciated link between the deeply buried oceanic crust and the deep ocean

An Integrated TCGA Pan-Cancer Clinical Data Resource to Drive High-Quality Survival Outcome Analytics

For a decade, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) program collected clinicopathologic annotation data along with multi-platform molecular profiles of more than 11,000 human tumors across 33 different cancer types. TCGA clinical data contain key features representing the democratized nature of the data collection process. To ensure proper use of this large clinical dataset associated with genomic features, we developed a standardized dataset named the TCGA Pan-Cancer Clinical Data Resource (TCGA-CDR), which includes four major clinical outcome endpoints. In addition to detailing major challenges and statistical limitations encountered during the effort of integrating the acquired clinical data, we present a summary that includes endpoint usage recommendations for each cancer type. These TCGA-CDR findings appear to be consistent with cancer genomics studies independent of the TCGA effort and provide opportunities for investigating cancer biology using clinical correlates at an unprecedented scale. Analysis of clinicopathologic annotations for over 11,000 cancer patients in the TCGA program leads to the generation of TCGA Clinical Data Resource, which provides recommendations of clinical outcome endpoint usage for 33 cancer types

Comparison of central corneal thickness and anterior chamber depth measurements using three imaging technologies in normal eyes and after phakic intraocular lens implantation

Contains fulltext : 81835.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: The repeatability and interchangeability of imaging devices measuring central corneal thickness (CCT) and anterior chamber depth (ACD) are important in the assessment of patients considering refractive surgery. The purpose of this study was to investigate the agreement of CCT and ACD measurements using three imaging technologies in healthy eyes and in eyes after phakic intraocular lens implantation (pIOL). METHODS: In this comparative study, CCT and ACD were measured using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT), Orbscan II, and Pentacam in 33 healthy volunteers (66 eyes) and 22 patients (42 eyes) after pIOL implantation. Intraobserver repeatability was evaluated for all three devices in the healthy volunteer group. RESULTS: Pairwise comparison of CCT measurements showed significant differences between all devices (P < 0.001), except for the AS-OCT and Orbscan II in the healthy volunteer group (P = 0.422) and the Orbscan II and Pentacam in the pIOL group (P = 0.214). ACD measurements demonstrated significant differences between all pairwise comparisons in both groups (P < or = 0.001). Intraobserver reliability was high for CCT and ACD measurements in the healthy volunteer group, with coefficients of variation ranging from 0.6% to 1.2% and 0.4% to 0.5% respectively. CONCLUSIONS: CCT and ACD measurements using AS-OCT, Orbscan II, and Pentacam demonstrated high intraobserver reliability. However, these devices should not be used interchangeably for measurements of CCT and ACD in healthy subject and patients after pIOL implantation

Visual perception alterations in COVID-19: a preliminary study

AIM: To compare the visual perception (color and chromatic-achromatic contrast vision) of a small cohort of COVID-19 patients at the time of infection and after 6mo with that of a healthy population matched for sex and age. METHODS: A total of 25 patients (9 females, 16 males, mean age: 54±10y) with COVID-19 hospitalized in the COVID-19 Unit of the University Clinical Hospital of Valladolid were recruited for this preliminary study. Visual perception, as determined by monocular measurement of contrast sensitivity function (CSF) and color vision was assessed in each patient using the Optopad test. The results obtained were then compared with those of a sample of 16 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (5 females, 11 males, mean age: 50±6y) in which the same measurement procedure was repeated. Statistically significant differences between groups were assessed using the Mann-Whitney U test. Measurements were repeated after a minimum follow-up period of 6mo and statistically significant differences between the two time points in each group were assessed using the Wilcoxon signed rank test. RESULTS: Discrimination thresholds (color and chromatic-achromatic contrast vision) and their corresponding sensitivity, calculated as the inverse of the discrimination threshold, were evaluated. Analysis of the data revealed higher contrast threshold results (i.e., worse contrast sensitivity) in the COVID-19 group than in the control group for all spatial frequencies studied in the Optopad-CSF achromatic test and most of the spatial frequencies studied in the Optopad-CSF chromatic test for the red-green and blue-yellow mechanisms. In addition, color threshold results in the COVID-19 group were also significantly higher (i.e., worse color sensitivity) for almost all color mechanisms studied in the Optopad-Color test. At 6mo, most of the differences found between the groups were maintained despite COVID-19 recovery. CONCLUSION: The present results provide preliminary evidence that visual perception may be impaired in COVID-19, even when the infection has passed. Although further research is needed to determine the precise causes of this finding, analysis of CSF and color vision could provide valuable information on the visual impact of COVID-19

Supercapacitance from cellulose and carbon nanotube nanocomposite fibers

Copyright © 2013 American Chemical SocietyACS AuthorChoice open access articleMultiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT)/cellulose composite nanofibers have been prepared by electrospinning a MWNT/cellulose acetate blend solution followed by deacetylation. These composite nanofibers were then used as precursors for carbon nanofibers (CNFs). The effect of nanotubes on the stabilization of the precursor and microstructure of the resultant CNFs were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis, transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. It is demonstrated that the incorporated MWNTs reduce the activation energy of the oxidative stabilization of cellulose nanofibers from 230 to 180 kJ mol–1. They also increase the crystallite size, structural order, and electrical conductivity of the activated CNFs (ACNFs). The surface area of the ACNFs increased upon addition of nanotubes which protrude from the fiber leading to a rougher surface. The ACNFs were used as the electrodes of a supercapacitor. The electrochemical capacitance of the ACNF derived from pure cellulose nanofibers is demonstrated to be 105 F g–1 at a current density of 10 A g–1, which increases to 145 F g–1 upon the addition of 6% of MWNTs.The authors would like to thank the [Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council] EPSRC (EP/F036914/1 and EP/I023879/1), Guangdong and Shenzhen Innovative Research Team Program (No. 2011D052,KYPT20121228160843692), National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 21201175), R&D Funds for basic Research Program of Shenzhen (Grant No. JCYJ20120615140007998), and the Universities of Exeter and Manchester for funding this research

"Kultur" als Form symbolischer Gewalt: Grenzziehungsprozesse im Kontext von Migration am Beispiel der Schweiz

Die Schweiz gilt international als Modell eines gelungenen Multikulturalismus, dann nämlich wenn es das Zusammenleben der vier Sprachgruppen (Romands, DeutschschweizerInnen, TessinerInnen, RäteromanInnen) betrifft. Ein sprachlicher wie auch religiöser Pluralismus ist und war stets ein Grundbaustein des Selbstverständnisses der „Willensnation“ Schweiz. Geht es aber um MigrantInnen präsentiert sich die Geschichte anders, denn in diesem Falle erscheinen religiöse und ethnisch-kulturelle Pluralität vorwiegend als problematisch. MigrantInnen gehören entsprechend den öffentlichen und politischen Diskursen nicht zum multikulturellen Staat, vielmehr sind Prozesse kollektiver Grenzziehungen und damit Schließungsmechanismen zu beobachten, in denen Ethnizität, Religion und Kultur zu den wichtigsten Differenzierungsmerkmale werden, wie Gemeinsamkeiten gegen innen (SchweizerInnen) und Barrieren gegen außen (Ausländer, Migranten, Muslims, etc.) hergestellt werden. Ich argumentiere in diesem Kapitel, dass sich dieser „Kulturdiskurs“ im letzten Jahrzehnt verstärkt hat und gleichzeitig semantischen Verschiebungen unterworfen war. Mittels der Grenzziehungsperspektive wird historisch nachvollzogen, wie Zuwanderung und Integration in politischen Debatten und Gesetz zunehmend kulturalisiert und ethnisiert wurden. Ein Fallbeispiel aus der Forschung dient mir anschließend der Veranschaulichung dieser theoretischen Perspektive und dieses „neuen“ Essentialismus

Pan-Cancer Analysis of lncRNA Regulation Supports Their Targeting of Cancer Genes in Each Tumor Context

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are commonly dys-regulated in tumors, but only a handful are known toplay pathophysiological roles in cancer. We inferredlncRNAs that dysregulate cancer pathways, onco-genes, and tumor suppressors (cancer genes) bymodeling their effects on the activity of transcriptionfactors, RNA-binding proteins, and microRNAs in5,185 TCGA tumors and 1,019 ENCODE assays.Our predictions included hundreds of candidateonco- and tumor-suppressor lncRNAs (cancerlncRNAs) whose somatic alterations account for thedysregulation of dozens of cancer genes and path-ways in each of 14 tumor contexts. To demonstrateproof of concept, we showed that perturbations tar-geting OIP5-AS1 (an inferred tumor suppressor) andTUG1 and WT1-AS (inferred onco-lncRNAs) dysre-gulated cancer genes and altered proliferation ofbreast and gynecologic cancer cells. Our analysis in-dicates that, although most lncRNAs are dysregu-lated in a tumor-specific manner, some, includingOIP5-AS1, TUG1, NEAT1, MEG3, and TSIX, synergis-tically dysregulate cancer pathways in multiple tumorcontexts