3,328 research outputs found
Polydispersity Effects in Colloid-Polymer Mixtures
We study phase separation and transient gelation in a mixture consisting of
polydisperse colloids and non-adsorbing polymers, where the ratio of the
average size of the polymer to that of the colloid is approximately 0.063.
Unlike what has been reported previously for mixtures with somewhat lower
colloid polydispersity, the addition of polymers does not expand the
fluid-solid coexistence region. Instead, we find a region of fluid-solid
coexistence which has an approximately constant width but an unexpected
re-entrant shape. We detect the presence of a metastable gas-liquid binodal,
which gives rise to two-stepped crystallization kinetics that can be
rationalized as the effect of fractionation. Finally, we find that the
separation into multiple coexisting solid phases at high colloid volume
fractions predicted by equilibrium statistical mechanics is kinetically
suppressed before the system reaches dynamical arrest.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Comparison of antiemetic efficacy of granisetron and ondansetron in Oriental patients: a randomized crossover study.
A double-blind randomized crossover trial was performed to compare the antiemetic efficacy of two 5-HT3 receptor antagonists, granisetron and ondansetron, in Chinese patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil) for breast cancer. Twenty patients were randomized to receive chemotherapy with either granisetron on day 1 and ondansetron on day 8 of the first cycle followed by the reverse order in the second cycle, or vice versa. The number of vomiting episodes and the severity of nausea in the first 24 h (acute vomiting/nausea) and the following 7 days (delayed vomiting/nausea) were studied. Acute vomiting was completely prevented in 29 (72.5%) cycles with granisetron and 27 (67.5%) cycles with ondansetron, and treatment failure (>5 vomiting episodes) occurred in two (5%) cycles with each agent (P = NS). Acute nausea was completely controlled in 15 (37.5%) cycles with granisetron and 14 (35%) cycles with ondansetron, whereas severe acute nausea occurred in four (10%) cycles with each agent (P = NS). However, complete response for delayed vomiting was observed in only 21 (52.5%) cycles with granisetron and 22 (55%) cycles with ondansetron (P = NS), and delayed nausea was completely controlled in only 11 (27.5%) and ten (25%) cycles respectively (P = NS). In conclusion, both granisetron and ondansetron are effective in controlling acute nausea and vomiting in Chinese patients, with equivalent antiemetic efficacy. Control of delayed nausea and vomiting is less satisfactory
Caspase-Cleaved Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein Within Cerebellar White Matter of the Alzheimer\u27s Disease Brain
Although the cerebellum is generally thought of as an area spared of Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) pathology, recent evidence suggests that balance and mobility dysfunction may be magnified in affected individuals. In the present study, we sought to determine the degree of pathological changes within the cerebellum utilizing an antibody that specifically detects caspase-cleaved GFAP within degenerating astrocytes. Compared to control subjects, application of this antibody, termed the GFAP caspase-cleavage product (GFAPccp) antibody, revealed widespread labeling in cerebellar white matter with little staining observed in grey matter. Staining was observed within damaged astrocytes, was often localized near blood vessels and co-localized with other markers of apoptosis including TUNEL and caspase-cleaved tau. Of interest was the association of beta-amyloid deposition in white matter together with GFAPccp in cerebellar AD sections. In contrast, utilizing the tangle marker, PHF-1, neuritic pathology was completely absent in AD cerebellar sections. It is suggested that the observed pathological changes found in the white matter of the cerebellum may contribute to the declined motor performance in AD
Low-background temperature sensors fabricated on parylene substrates
Temperature sensors fabricated from ultra-low radioactivity materials have
been developed for low-background experiments searching for neutrinoless
double-beta decay and the interactions of WIMP dark matter. The sensors consist
of electrical traces photolithographically-patterned onto substrates of
vapor-deposited parylene. They are demonstrated to function as expected, to do
so reliably and robustly, and to be highly radio-pure. This work is a
proof-of-concept study of a technology that can be applied to broad class of
electronic circuits used in low-background experiments
Glasses in hard spheres with short-range attraction
We report a detailed experimental study of the structure and dynamics of
glassy states in hard spheres with short-range attraction. The system is a
suspension of nearly-hard-sphere colloidal particles and non-adsorbing linear
polymer which induces a depletion attraction between the particles. Observation
of crystallization reveals a re-entrant glass transition. Static light
scattering shows a continuous change in the static structure factors upon
increasing attraction. Dynamic light scattering results, which cover 11 orders
of magnitude in time, are consistent with the existence of two distinct kinds
of glasses, those dominated by inter-particle repulsion and caging, and those
dominated by attraction. Samples close to the `A3 point' predicted by mode
coupling theory for such systems show very slow, logarithmic dynamics.Comment: 22 pages, 18 figure
Diffusive Evolution of Stable and Metastable Phases II: Theory of Non-Equilibrium Behaviour in Colloid-Polymer Mixtures
By analytically solving some simple models of phase-ordering kinetics, we
suggest a mechanism for the onset of non-equilibrium behaviour in
colloid-polymer mixtures. These mixtures can function as models of atomic
systems; their physics therefore impinges on many areas of thermodynamics and
phase-ordering. An exact solution is found for the motion of a single, planar
interface separating a growing phase of uniform high density from a
supersaturated low density phase, whose diffusive depletion drives the
interfacial motion. In addition, an approximate solution is found for the
one-dimensional evolution of two interfaces, separated by a slab of a
metastable phase at intermediate density. The theory predicts a critical
supersaturation of the low-density phase, above which the two interfaces become
unbound and the metastable phase grows ad infinitum. The growth of the stable
phase is suppressed in this regime.Comment: 27 pages, Latex, eps
A cluster mode-coupling approach to weak gelation in attractive colloids
Mode-coupling theory (MCT) predicts arrest of colloids in terms of their
volume fraction, and the range and depth of the interparticle attraction. We
discuss how effective values of these parameters evolve under cluster
aggregation. We argue that weak gelation in colloids can be idealized as a
two-stage ergodicity breaking: first at short scales (approximated by the bare
MCT) and then at larger scales (governed by MCT applied to clusters). The
competition between arrest and phase separation is considered in relation to
recent experiments. We predict a long-lived `semi-ergodic' phase of mobile
clusters, showing logarithmic relaxation close to the gel line.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
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