Triangular Textures for Quark Mass Matrices

The hierarchical quark masses and small mixing angles are shown to lead to a simple triangular form for the U- and D-type quark mass matrices. In the basis where one of the matrices is diagonal, each matrix element of the other is, to a good approximation, the product of a quark mass and a CKM matrix element. The physical content of a general mass matrix can be easily deciphered in its triangular form. This parameterization could serve as a useful starting point for model building. Examples of mass textures are analyzed using this method.Comment: 10 pages, no figure

Challenges of Early Years leadership preparation: a comparison between early and experienced Early Years practitioners in England

Leadership has been under-researched in the Early Years (EY) sector of primary schools in England, especially in leading change for professional development. The aim of this paper is to theorise what the leadership culture for EY practitioners looks like, and how Initial Teacher Training providers and schools are preparing practitioners for leadership. Using case studies of EY practitioners in different stages of their career in primary schools, we offer an insight into their preparedness for leadership in EY, the implication being that leadership training requires an understanding and embedding of the EY culture and context. Interviews with both sample groups allowed for deeper insight into the lived world. Interviews were also conducted with the head teachers to gain an overview of the leadership preparation they provided. The main findings suggest that newer EY practitioners are better prepared for leadership from their university training in comparison to more experienced EY practitioners

AK2 deficiency compromises the mitochondrial energy metabolism required for differentiation of human neutrophil and lymphoid lineages

Reticular dysgenesis is a human severe combined immunodeficiency that is primarily characterized by profound neutropenia and lymphopenia. The condition is caused by mutations in the adenylate kinase 2 (AK2) gene, resulting in the loss of mitochondrial AK2 protein expression. AK2 regulates the homeostasis of mitochondrial adenine nucleotides (ADP, ATP and AMP) by catalyzing the transfer of high-energy phosphate. Our present results demonstrate that AK2-knocked-down progenitor cells have poor proliferative and survival capacities and are blocked in their differentiation toward lymphoid and granulocyte lineages. We also observed that AK2 deficiency impaired mitochondrial function in general and oxidative phosphorylation in particular - showing that AK2 is critical in the control of energy metabolism. Loss of AK2 disrupts this regulation and leads to a profound block in lymphoid and myeloid cell differentiation

Multiplexed, High Density Electrophysiology with Nanofabricated Neural Probes

Extracellular electrode arrays can reveal the neuronal network correlates of behavior with single-cell, single-spike, and sub-millisecond resolution. However, implantable electrodes are inherently invasive, and efforts to scale up the number and density of recording sites must compromise on device size in order to connect the electrodes. Here, we report on silicon-based neural probes employing nanofabricated, high-density electrical leads. Furthermore, we address the challenge of reading out multichannel data with an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) performing signal amplification, band-pass filtering, and multiplexing functions. We demonstrate high spatial resolution extracellular measurements with a fully integrated, low noise 64-channel system weighing just 330 mg. The on-chip multiplexers make possible recordings with substantially fewer external wires than the number of input channels. By combining nanofabricated probes with ASICs we have implemented a system for performing large-scale, high-density electrophysiology in small, freely behaving animals that is both minimally invasive and highly scalable

Light-based devices for the treatment of facial erythema and telangiectasia

Facial erythema is one of the most common outpatient complaints in dermatology. There are various causes of facial erythema and several devices are available for its treatment. Pulsed dye laser (PDL) and intense pulsed light (IPL) are the two common light devices used for these conditions. In this review, we evaluated the literature to assess efficacy of IPL versus PDL in facial erythema and telangiectasia. We searched published articles including clinical trials or reviews articles, case series, and case reports. Electronic databases (MEDLINE and PubMed) were searched to retrieve the articles. Reference lists of selected articles were also considered for the review. Articles published in English language until June 2021 were considered for this review

Role of the electro-thermo-mechanical multiple coupling on the operation of RF microswitch

A phenomenological approach is proposed to identify some effects occurring within the structure of the microswitch conceived for radio frequency application. This microsystem is operated via a nonlinear electromechanical action imposed by the applied voltage. Unfortunately, it can be affected by residual stress, due to the microfabrication process, therefore axial and flexural behaviors are strongly coupled. This coupling increases the actuation voltage required to achieve the so-called ‘‘pull-in'' condition. Moreover, temperature may strongly affect strain and stress distributions, respectively. Environmental temperature, internal dissipation of material, thermo-elastic and Joule effects play different roles on the microswitch flexural isplacement. Sometimes buckling phenomenon evenly occurs. Literature show that all those issues make difficult an effective computation of ‘‘pull-in'' and ‘‘pull-out'' voltages for evenly distinguishing the origin of some failures detected in operation. Analysis, numerical methods and experiments are applied to an industrial test case to investigate step by step the RF-microswitch operation. Multiple electro-hermomechanical coupling is first modeled to have a preliminary and comprehensive description of the microswitch behavior and of its reliability. ‘‘Pull-in'' and ‘‘pull-out'' tests are then performed to validate the proposed models and to find suitable criteria to design the RF-MEM

W18O49 Nanowires as Ultraviolet Photodetector

Photodetectors in a configuration of field effect transistor were fabricated based on individual W18O49 nanowires. Evaluation of electrical transport behavior indicates that the W18O49 nanowires are n-type semiconductors. The photodetectors show high sensitivity, stability and reversibility to ultraviolet (UV) light. A high photoconductive gain of 104 was obtained, and the photoconductivity is up to 60 nS upon exposure to 312 nm UV light with an intensity of 1.6 mW/cm2. Absorption of oxygen on the surface of W18O49 nanowires has a significant influence on the dark conductivity, and the ambient gas can remarkably change the conductivity of W18O49 nanowire. The results imply that W18O49 nanowires will be promising candidates for fabricating UV photodetectors

First-trimester cesarean scar pregnancy: a comparative analysis of treatment options from the international registry

Background: A cesarean scar pregnancy is an iatrogenic consequence of a previous cesarean delivery. The gestational sac implants into a niche created by the incision of the previous cesarean delivery, and this carries a substantial risk for major maternal complications. The aim of this study was to report, analyze, and compare the effectiveness and safety of different treatments options for cesarean scar pregnancies managed in the first trimester through a registry. Objective: This study aimed to evaluated the ultrasound findings, disease behavior, and management of first-trimester cesarean scar pregnancies. Study design: We created an international registry of cesarean scar pregnancy cases to study the ultrasound findings, disease behavior, and management of cesarean scar pregnancies. The Cesarean Scar Pregnancy Registry collects anonymized ultrasound and clinical data of individual patients with a cesarean scar pregnancy on a secure, digital information platform. Cases were uploaded by 31 participating centers across 19 countries. In this study, we only included live and failing cesarean scar pregnancies (with or without a positive fetal heart beat) that received active treatment (medical or surgical) before 12+6 weeks' gestation to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the different management options. Patients managed expectantly were not included in this study and will be reported separately. Treatment was classified as successful if it led to a complete resolution of the pregnancy without the need for any additional medical interventions. Results: Between August 29, 2018, and February 28, 2023, we recorded 460 patients with cesarean scar pregnancies (281 live, 179 failing cesarean scar pregnancy) who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were registered. A total of 270 of 460 (58.7%) patients were managed surgically, 123 of 460 (26.7%) patients underwent medical management, 46 of 460 (10%) patients underwent balloon management, and 21 of 460 (4.6%) patients received other, less frequently used treatment options. Suction evacuation was very effective with a success rate of 202 of 221 (91.5%; 95% confidence interval, 87.8-95.2), whereas systemic methotrexate was least effective with only 38 of 64 (59.4%; 95% confidence interval, 48.4-70.4) patients not requiring additional treatment. Overall, surgical treatment of cesarean scar pregnancies was successful in 236 of 258 (91.5%, 95% confidence interval, 88.4-94.5) patients and complications were observed in 24 of 258 patients (9.3%; 95% confidence interval, 6.6-11.9). Conclusion: A cesarean scar pregnancy can be managed effectively in the first trimester of pregnancy in more than 90% of cases with either suction evacuation, balloon treatment, or surgical excision. The effectiveness of all treatment options decreases with advancing gestational age, and cesarean scar pregnancies should be treated as early as possible after confirmation of the diagnosis. Local medical treatment with potassium chloride or methotrexate is less efficient and has higher rates of complications than the other treatment options. Systemic methotrexate has a substantial risk of failing and a higher complication rate and should not be recommended as first-line treatment

A Baseline for the Multivariate Comparison of Resting-State Networks

As the size of functional and structural MRI datasets expands, it becomes increasingly important to establish a baseline from which diagnostic relevance may be determined, a processing strategy that efficiently prepares data for analysis, and a statistical approach that identifies important effects in a manner that is both robust and reproducible. In this paper, we introduce a multivariate analytic approach that optimizes sensitivity and reduces unnecessary testing. We demonstrate the utility of this mega-analytic approach by identifying the effects of age and gender on the resting-state networks (RSNs) of 603 healthy adolescents and adults (mean age: 23.4 years, range: 12–71 years). Data were collected on the same scanner, preprocessed using an automated analysis pipeline based in SPM, and studied using group independent component analysis. RSNs were identified and evaluated in terms of three primary outcome measures: time course spectral power, spatial map intensity, and functional network connectivity. Results revealed robust effects of age on all three outcome measures, largely indicating decreases in network coherence and connectivity with increasing age. Gender effects were of smaller magnitude but suggested stronger intra-network connectivity in females and more inter-network connectivity in males, particularly with regard to sensorimotor networks. These findings, along with the analysis approach and statistical framework described here, provide a useful baseline for future investigations of brain networks in health and disease