First direct observation of the Van Hove singularity in the tunneling spectra of cuprates

In two-dimensional lattices the electronic levels are unevenly spaced, and the density of states (DOS) displays a logarithmic divergence known as the Van Hove singularity (VHS). This is the case in particular for the layered cuprate superconductors. The scanning tunneling microscope (STM) probes the DOS, and is therefore the ideal tool to observe the VHS. No STM study of cuprate superconductors has reported such an observation so far giving rise to a debate about the possibility of observing directly the normal state DOS in the tunneling spectra. In this study, we show for the first time that the VHS is unambiguously observed in STM measurements performed on the cuprate Bi-2201. Beside closing the debate, our analysis proves the presence of the pseudogap in the overdoped side of the phase diagram of Bi-2201 and discredits the scenario of the pseudogap phase crossing the superconducting dome.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Use of liothyronine (T3) in hypothyroidism: Joint British Thyroid Association/Society for endocrinology consensus statement

\ua9 2023 The Authors. Clinical Endocrinology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Persistent symptoms in patients treated for hypothyroidism are common. Despite more than 20 years of debate, the use of liothyronine for this indication remains controversial, as numerous randomised trials have failed to show a benefit of treatment regimens that combine liothyronine (T3) with levothyroxine over levothyroxine monotherapy. This consensus statement attempts to provide practical guidance to clinicians faced with patients who have persistent symptoms during thyroid hormone replacement therapy. It applies to non-pregnant adults and is focussed on care delivered within the UK National Health Service, although it may be relevant in other healthcare environments. The statement emphasises several key clinical practice points for patients dissatisfied with treatment for hypothyroidism. Firstly, it is important to establish a diagnosis of overt hypothyroidism; patients with persistent symptoms during thyroid hormone replacement but with no clear biochemical evidence of overt hypothyroidism should first have a trial without thyroid hormone replacement. In those with established overt hypothyroidism, levothyroxine doses should be optimised aiming for a TSH in the 0.3–2.0 mU/L range for 3 to 6 months before a therapeutic response can be assessed. In some patients, it may be acceptable to have serum TSH below reference range (e.g. 0.1–0.3 mU/L), but not fully suppressed in the long term. We suggest that for some patients with confirmed overt hypothyroidism and persistent symptoms who have had adequate treatment with levothyroxine and in whom other comorbidities have been excluded, a trial of liothyronine/levothyroxine combined therapy may be warranted. The decision to start treatment with liothyronine should be a shared decision between patient and clinician. However, individual clinicians should not feel obliged to start liothyronine or to continue liothyronine medication provided by other health care practitioners or accessed without medical advice, if they judge this not to be in the patient\u27s best interest

(E)-3-[4-(Dimethyl­amino)­benzyl­idene]-2,3-di­hydro-1H,9H-pyrrolo­[2,1-b]quinazolin-9-one

The title compound, C20H19N3O, was obtained by condensation of 2,3-dihydro-1H,9H-pyrrolo­[2,1-b]quinazolin-9-one (alkaloid de­oxy­vasicinone, isolated from Peganum Harmala) with 4-(dimethyl­amino)­benzaldehyde in the presence of sodium methoxide. The 2,3-dihydro-1H,9H-pyrrolo­[2,1-b]quinazolin-9-one part of the mol­ecule is roughly planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.0178 Å) and is essentially coplanar with the benzil­idene ring (r.m.s. deviation = 0.0080 Å), forming a dihedral angle of 5.0 (1)°. The crystal structure is stabilized by two aromatic π–π stacking inter­actions observed between the benzene rings of neighboring mol­ecules [centroid–centroid distance = 3.7555 (19) Å

A Heuristic Solution of the Identifiability Problem of the Age-Period-Cohort Analysis of Cancer Occurrence: Lung Cancer Example

Background: The Age–Period–Cohort (APC) analysis is aimed at estimating the following effects on disease incidence: (i) the age of the subject at the time of disease diagnosis; (ii) the time period, when the disease occurred; and (iii) the date of birth of the subject. These effects can help in evaluating the biological events leading to the disease, in estimating the influence of distinct risk factors on disease occurrence, and in the development of new strategies for disease prevention and treatment. Methodology/Principal Findings: We developed a novel approach for estimating the APC effects on disease incidence rates in the frame of the Log-Linear Age-Period-Cohort (LLAPC) model. Since the APC effects are linearly interdependent and cannot be uniquely estimated, solving this identifiability problem requires setting four redundant parameters within a set of unknown parameters. By setting three parameters (one of the time-period and the birth-cohort effects and the corresponding age effect) to zero, we reduced this problem to the problem of determining one redundant parameter and, used as such, the effect of the time-period adjacent to the anchored time period. By varying this identification parameter, a family of estimates of the APC effects can be obtained. Using a heuristic assumption that the differences between the adjacent birth-cohort effects are small, we developed a numerical method for determining the optimal value of the identification parameter, by which a unique set of all APC effects is determined and the identifiability problem is solved

Novel genetic analysis for case-control genome-wide association studies: quantification of power and genomic prediction accuracy

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are routinely conducted for both quantitative and binary (disease) traits. We present two analytical tools for use in the experimental design of GWAS. Firstly, we present power calculations quantifying power in a unified framework for a range of scenarios. In this context we consider the utility of quantitative scores (e.g. endophenotypes) that may be available on cases only or both cases and controls. Secondly, we consider, the accuracy of prediction of genetic risk from genome-wide SNPs and derive an expression for genomic prediction accuracy using a liability threshold model for disease traits in a case-control design. The expected values based on our derived equations for both power and prediction accuracy agree well with observed estimates from simulations

Imaging the Two Gaps of the High-TC Superconductor Pb-Bi2Sr2CuO6+x

The nature of the pseudogap state, observed above the superconducting transition temperature TC in many high temperature superconductors, is the center of much debate. Recently, this discussion has focused on the number of energy gaps in these materials. Some experiments indicate a single energy gap, implying that the pseudogap is a precursor state. Others indicate two, suggesting that it is a competing or coexisting phase. Here we report on temperature dependent scanning tunneling spectroscopy of Pb-Bi2Sr2CuO6+x. We have found a new, narrow, homogeneous gap that vanishes near TC, superimposed on the typically observed, inhomogeneous, broad gap, which is only weakly temperature dependent. These results not only support the two gap picture, but also explain previously troubling differences between scanning tunneling microscopy and other experimental measurements.Comment: 6 page

Inverse magnetic catalysis in field theory and gauge-gravity duality

We investigate the surface of the chiral phase transition in the three-dimensional parameter space of temperature, baryon chemical potential and magnetic field in two different approaches, the field-theoretical Nambu-Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model and the holographic Sakai-Sugimoto model. The latter is a top-down approach to a gravity dual of QCD with an asymptotically large number of colors and becomes, in a certain limit, dual to an NJL-like model. Our main observation is that, at nonzero chemical potential, a magnetic field can restore chiral symmetry, in apparent contrast to the phenomenon of magnetic catalysis. This "inverse magnetic catalysis" occurs in the Sakai-Sugimoto model and, for sufficiently large coupling, in the NJL model and is related to the physics of the lowest Landau level. While in most parts our discussion is a pedagogical review of previously published results, we include new analytical results for the NJL approach and a thorough comparison of inverse magnetic catalysis in the two approaches.Comment: 37 pages, 11 figures, to appear in Lect. Notes Phys. "Strongly interacting matter in magnetic fields" (Springer), edited by D. Kharzeev, K. Landsteiner, A. Schmitt, H.-U. Ye

The incidence of liver injury in Uyghur patients treated for TB in Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, China, and its association with hepatic enzyme polymorphisms nat2, cyp2e1, gstm1 and gstt1.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Of three first-line anti-tuberculosis (anti-TB) drugs, isoniazid is most commonly associated with hepatotoxicity. Differences in INH-induced toxicity have been attributed to genetic variability at several loci, NAT2, CYP2E1, GSTM1and GSTT1, that code for drug-metabolizing enzymes. This study evaluated whether the polymorphisms in these enzymes were associated with an increased risk of anti-TB drug-induced hepatitis in patients and could potentially be used to identify patients at risk of liver injury. METHODS AND DESIGN: In a cross-sectional study, 2244 tuberculosis patients were assessed two months after the start of treatment. Anti-TB drug-induced liver injury (ATLI) was defined as an ALT, AST or bilirubin value more than twice the upper limit of normal. NAT2, CYP2E1, GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes were determined using the PCR/ligase detection reaction assays. RESULTS: 2244 patients were evaluated, there were 89 cases of ATLI, a prevalence of 4% 9 patients (0.4%) had ALT levels more than 5 times the upper limit of normal. The prevalence of ATLI was greater among men than women, and there was a weak association with NAT2*5 genotypes, with ATLI more common among patients with the NAT2*5*CT genotype. The sensitivity of the CT genotype for identifying patients with ATLI was 42% and the positive predictive value 5.9%. CT ATLI was more common among slow acetylators (prevalence ratio 2.0 (95% CI 0.95,4.20) )compared to rapid acetylators. There was no evidence that ATLI was associated with CYP2E1 RsaIc1/c1genotype, CYP2E1 RsaIc1/c2 or c2/c2 genotypes, or GSTM1/GSTT1 null genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: In Xinjiang Uyghur TB patients, liver injury was associated with the genetic variant NAT2*5, however the genetic markers studied are unlikely to be useful for screening patients due to the low sensitivity and low positive predictive values for identifying persons at risk of liver injury

Uptake of oxLDL and IL-10 production by macrophages requires PAFR and CD36 recruitment into the same lipid rafts

Macrophage interaction with oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) leads to its differentiation into foam cells and cytokine production, contributing to atherosclerosis development. In a previous study, we showed that CD36 and the receptor for platelet-activating factor (PAFR) are required for oxLDL to activate gene transcription for cytokines and CD36. Here, we investigated the localization and physical interaction of CD36 and PAFR in macrophages stimulated with oxLDL. We found that blocking CD36 or PAFR decreases oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. OxLDL induces IL-10 mRNA expression only in HEK293T expressing both receptors (PAFR and CD36). OxLDL does not induce IL-12 production. The lipid rafts disruption by treatment with βCD reduces the oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. OxLDL induces co-immunoprecipitation of PAFR and CD36 with the constitutive raft protein flotillin-1, and colocalization with the lipid raft-marker GM1-ganglioside. Finally, we found colocalization of PAFR and CD36 in macrophages from human atherosclerotic plaques. Our results show that oxLDL induces the recruitment of PAFR and CD36 into the same lipid rafts, which is important for oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. This study provided new insights into how oxLDL interact with macrophages and contributing to atherosclerosis development

The Surgical Infection Society revised guidelines on the management of intra-abdominal infection

Background: Previous evidence-based guidelines on the management of intra-abdominal infection (IAI) were published by the Surgical Infection Society (SIS) in 1992, 2002, and 2010. At the time the most recent guideline was released, the plan was to update the guideline every five years to ensure the timeliness and appropriateness of the recommendations. Methods: Based on the previous guidelines, the task force outlined a number of topics related to the treatment of patients with IAI and then developed key questions on these various topics. All questions were approached using general and specific literature searches, focusing on articles and other information published since 2008. These publications and additional materials published before 2008 were reviewed by the task force as a whole or by individual subgroups as to relevance to individual questions. Recommendations were developed by a process of iterative consensus, with all task force members voting to accept or reject each recommendation. Grading was based on the GRADE (Grades of Recommendation Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) system; the quality of the evidence was graded as high, moderate, or weak, and the strength of the recommendation was graded as strong or weak. Review of the document was performed by members of the SIS who were not on the task force. After responses were made to all critiques, the document was approved as an official guideline of the SIS by the Executive Council. Results: This guideline summarizes the current recommendations developed by the task force on the treatment of patients who have IAI. Evidence-based recommendations have been made regarding risk assessment in individual patients; source control; the timing, selection, and duration of antimicrobial therapy; and suggested approaches to patients who fail initial therapy. Additional recommendations related to the treatment of pediatric patients with IAI have been included. Summary: The current recommendations of the SIS regarding the treatment of patients with IAI are provided in this guideline