Compact and Low-Cost 3-D Printed Antennas Metalized Using Spray-Coating Technology for 5G mm-Wave Communication Systems

This letter presents a design of two compact, light, rigid, and low-cost three-dimensionally (3-D) printed millimeter-wave antennas for a fifth-generation (5G) communication system. The proposed antennas consist of a radiating slot that is surrounded by a rectangular cavity and corrugations, which boost the gain performance of the antennas. Furthermore, the proposed antennas are fabricated using 3-D printing technology, and they are metalized using novel, simple, and low-cost techniques, which utilize the commercial conducive spray-coating technology. The proposed antennas operate at a 28 GHz band, where the first design is fed by a waveguide to prove the performance, whereas the second design is fed by a microstrip line to demonstrate the ability to be integrated into a compact structure. Measurement results show a wide impedance bandwidth, which enables the proposed antenna design to be a strong candidate for 5G applications

The eigenvalue problem for the ∞-Bilaplacian

We consider the problem of finding and describing minimisers of the Rayleigh quotient Λ∞:=infu∈W2,∞(Ω)∖{0}∥Δu∥L∞(Ω)∥u∥L∞(Ω), Λ∞:=infu∈W2,∞(Ω)∖{0}‖Δu‖L∞(Ω)‖u‖L∞(Ω), where Ω⊆RnΩ⊆Rn is a bounded C1,1C1,1 domain and W2,∞(Ω)W2,∞(Ω) is a class of weakly twice differentiable functions satisfying either u=0u=0 on ∂Ω∂Ω or u=|Du|=0u=|Du|=0 on ∂Ω∂Ω . Our first main result, obtained through approximation by LpLp -problems as p→∞p→∞ , is the existence of a minimiser u∞∈W2,∞(Ω)u∞∈W2,∞(Ω) satisfying {Δu∞∈Λ∞Sgn(f∞)Δf∞=μ∞ a.e. in Ω, in D′(Ω), {Δu∞∈Λ∞Sgn(f∞) a.e. in Ω,Δf∞=μ∞ in D′(Ω), for some f∞∈L1(Ω)∩BVloc(Ω)f∞∈L1(Ω)∩BVloc(Ω) and a measure μ∞∈M(Ω)μ∞∈M(Ω) , for either choice of boundary conditions. Here Sgn is the multi-valued sign function. We also study the dependence of the eigenvalue Λ∞Λ∞ on the domain, establishing the validity of a Faber–Krahn type inequality: among all C1,1C1,1 domains with fixed measure, the ball is a strict minimiser of Ω↦Λ∞(Ω)Ω↦Λ∞(Ω) . This result is shown to hold true for either choice of boundary conditions and in every dimension

Open issues in mucopolysaccharidosis type I-hurler

Mucopolysaccharidosis I-Hurler (MPS I-H) is the most severe form of a metabolic genetic disease caused by mutations of IDUA gene encoding the lysosomal α-L-iduronidase enzyme. MPS I-H is a rare, life-threatening disease, evolving in multisystem morbidity including progressive neurological disease, upper airway obstruction, skeletal deformity and cardiomyopathy. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is currently the gold standard for the treatment of MPS I-H in patients diagnosed and treated before 2-2.5 years of age, having a high rate of success. Beyond the child's age, other factors influence the probability of treatment success, including the selection of patients, of graft source and the donor type employed. Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) with human recombinant laronidase has also been demonstrated to be effective in ameliorating the clinical conditions of pre-transplant MPS I-H patients and in improving HSCT outcome, by peri-transplant co-administration. Nevertheless the long-term clinical outcome even after successful HSCT varies considerably, with a persisting residual disease burden. Other strategies must then be considered to improve the outcome of these patients: one is to pursue early pre-symptomatic diagnosis through newborn screening and another one is the identification of novel treatments. In this perspective, even though newborn screening can be envisaged as a future attractive perspective, presently the best path to be pursued embraces an improved awareness of signs and symptoms of the disorder by primary care providers and pediatricians, in order for the patients' timely referral to a qualified reference center. Furthermore, sensitive new biochemical markers must be identified to better define the clinical severity of the disease at birth, to support clinical judgement during the follow-up and to compare the effects of the different therapies. A prolonged neuropsychological follow-up of post-transplant cognitive development of children and residual disease burden is needed. In this perspective, the reference center must guarantee a multidisciplinary follow-up with an expert team. Diagnostic and interventional protocols of reference centers should be standardized whenever possible to allow comparison of clinical data and evaluation of results. This review will focus on all these critical issues related to the management of MPS I-H

Impact of long-term elosulfase alfa treatment on respiratory function in patients with Morquio A syndrome

OBJECTIVE: To present long-term respiratory function outcomes from an open-label, multi-center, phase 3 extension study (MOR-005) of elosulfase alfa enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) in patients with Morquio A syndrome. METHODS: In part 1 of MOR-005, patients initially randomized to ERT in the 24-week pivotal study (MOR-004) remained on their regimen (2.0 mg/kg/week or every other week); placebo patients were re-randomized to one of the two regimens. During part 2, all patients received elosulfase alfa 2.0 mg/kg/week. Respiratory function was one of the efficacy endpoints evaluated in MOR-005. Change from MOR-004 baseline to 120 weeks of treatment for the combined population was determined and compared with results from untreated patients from a Morquio A natural history study (MorCAP). RESULTS: Maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV) improved up to week 72 and then stabilized; forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) increased continuously over 120 weeks. Mean increases in the modified per-protocol population was 9.2 % for FVC, 8.8 % for FEV1, and 6.1 % for MVV after 120 weeks. All patients ≤14 years showed respiratory improvements, presumably in part related to growth; however, these were greater in treated patients. For those >14 years, treated patients showed improvements, while deterioration occurred in untreated. Altogether, the improvements were significantly greater (P < 0.05) in treated patients. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term ERT is associated with sustained improvements in respiratory function in Morquio A. In younger patients (≤14 years), some improvement may be ascribed to growth. In older patients, other mechanisms, e.g., decreased glycosaminoglycan storage, are likely involved