A Very Fast Three-Dimensional Impurity Profile Simulation Incorporating An Accumulated Diffusion Length and Its Application to the Design of Power MOSFETs

In this paper, we introduce a method for the fast simulation of 3D impurity profile simulation We analytically integrated the approximated non-linear transport equation and derived an analytical equation of 3D non-linear diffusion by introducing a new physical parameter, called the Accumulated Diffusion Length (ADL). This method allows us to simulate a 3D-profile by using a coupled 1D simulator and analytical equations, where the ADL is obtained during 1D simulation. Our new methodology is implemented in the 3D process simulator, SPIRIT-IWADL. Our 3D-TCAD system composed of SPIRIT-IIIIADL and our in-house device simulator was applied to the design of 3D-shaped power MOSFETs. 1

The Drosophila neural lineages: a model system to study brain development and circuitry

In Drosophila, neurons of the central nervous system are grouped into units called lineages. Each lineage contains cells derived from a single neuroblast. Due to its clonal nature, the Drosophila brain is a valuable model system to study neuron development and circuit formation. To better understand the mechanisms underlying brain development, genetic manipulation tools can be utilized within lineages to visualize, knock down, or over-express proteins. Here, we will introduce the formation and development of lineages, discuss how one can utilize this model system, offer a comprehensive list of known lineages and their respective markers, and then briefly review studies that have utilized Drosophila neural lineages with a look at how this model system can benefit future endeavors

Complex reconstructions in head and neck cancer surgery: decision making

Defects in head and neck after tumor resection often provide significant functional and cosmetic deformity. The challenge for reconstruction is not only the aesthetic result, but the functional repair. Cancer may involve composite elements and the in sano resection may lead to an extensive tissue defect. No prospective randomized controlled studies for comparison of different free flaps are available. There are many options to cover defects and restore function in the head and neck area, however we conclude from experience that nearly all defects in head and neck can be closed by 5 different free flaps: radial forearm flap, free fibula flap, anterior lateral thigh flap, lateral arm flap and parascapular flap

Whole genome sequencing to investigate the emergence of clonal complex 23 Neisseria meningitidis serogroup Y disease in the United States

In the United States, serogroup Y, ST-23 clonal complex Neisseria meningitidis was responsible for an increase in meningococcal disease incidence during the 1990s. This increase was accompanied by antigenic shift of three outer membrane proteins, with a decrease in the population that predominated in the early 1990s as a different population emerged later in that decade. To understand factors that may have been responsible for the emergence of serogroup Y disease, we used whole genome pyrosequencing to investigate genetic differences between isolates from early and late N. meningitidis populations, obtained from meningococcal disease cases in Maryland in the 1990s. The genomes of isolates from the early and late populations were highly similar, with 1231 of 1776 shared genes exhibiting 100% amino acid identity and an average πN = 0.0033 and average πS = 0.0216. However, differences were found in predicted proteins that affect pilin structure and antigen profile and in predicted proteins involved in iron acquisition and uptake. The observed changes are consistent with acquisition of new alleles through horizontal gene transfer. Changes in antigen profile due to the genetic differences found in this study likely allowed the late population to emerge due to escape from population immunity. These findings may predict which antigenic factors are important in the cyclic epidemiology of meningococcal disease

Pooled analysis of WHO Surgical Safety Checklist use and mortality after emergency laparotomy

Background The World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist has fostered safe practice for 10 years, yet its place in emergency surgery has not been assessed on a global scale. The aim of this study was to evaluate reported checklist use in emergency settings and examine the relationship with perioperative mortality in patients who had emergency laparotomy. Methods In two multinational cohort studies, adults undergoing emergency laparotomy were compared with those having elective gastrointestinal surgery. Relationships between reported checklist use and mortality were determined using multivariable logistic regression and bootstrapped simulation. Results Of 12 296 patients included from 76 countries, 4843 underwent emergency laparotomy. After adjusting for patient and disease factors, checklist use before emergency laparotomy was more common in countries with a high Human Development Index (HDI) (2455 of 2741, 89.6 per cent) compared with that in countries with a middle (753 of 1242, 60.6 per cent; odds ratio (OR) 0.17, 95 per cent c.i. 0.14 to 0.21, P <0001) or low (363 of 860, 422 per cent; OR 008, 007 to 010, P <0.001) HDI. Checklist use was less common in elective surgery than for emergency laparotomy in high-HDI countries (risk difference -94 (95 per cent c.i. -11.9 to -6.9) per cent; P <0001), but the relationship was reversed in low-HDI countries (+121 (+7.0 to +173) per cent; P <0001). In multivariable models, checklist use was associated with a lower 30-day perioperative mortality (OR 0.60, 0.50 to 073; P <0.001). The greatest absolute benefit was seen for emergency surgery in low- and middle-HDI countries. Conclusion Checklist use in emergency laparotomy was associated with a significantly lower perioperative mortality rate. Checklist use in low-HDI countries was half that in high-HDI countries.Peer reviewe

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)1.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field

Global variation in anastomosis and end colostomy formation following left-sided colorectal resection

Background End colostomy rates following colorectal resection vary across institutions in high-income settings, being influenced by patient, disease, surgeon and system factors. This study aimed to assess global variation in end colostomy rates after left-sided colorectal resection. Methods This study comprised an analysis of GlobalSurg-1 and -2 international, prospective, observational cohort studies (2014, 2016), including consecutive adult patients undergoing elective or emergency left-sided colorectal resection within discrete 2-week windows. Countries were grouped into high-, middle- and low-income tertiles according to the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI). Factors associated with colostomy formation versus primary anastomosis were explored using a multilevel, multivariable logistic regression model. Results In total, 1635 patients from 242 hospitals in 57 countries undergoing left-sided colorectal resection were included: 113 (6·9 per cent) from low-HDI, 254 (15·5 per cent) from middle-HDI and 1268 (77·6 per cent) from high-HDI countries. There was a higher proportion of patients with perforated disease (57·5, 40·9 and 35·4 per cent; P < 0·001) and subsequent use of end colostomy (52·2, 24·8 and 18·9 per cent; P < 0·001) in low- compared with middle- and high-HDI settings. The association with colostomy use in low-HDI settings persisted (odds ratio (OR) 3·20, 95 per cent c.i. 1·35 to 7·57; P = 0·008) after risk adjustment for malignant disease (OR 2·34, 1·65 to 3·32; P < 0·001), emergency surgery (OR 4·08, 2·73 to 6·10; P < 0·001), time to operation at least 48 h (OR 1·99, 1·28 to 3·09; P = 0·002) and disease perforation (OR 4·00, 2·81 to 5·69; P < 0·001). Conclusion Global differences existed in the proportion of patients receiving end stomas after left-sided colorectal resection based on income, which went beyond case mix alone

Race analysis for SystemC using model checking.

SystemC is a system-level modeling language that offers a wide range of features to describe concurrent systems at different levels of abstraction. The SystemC standard permits simulators to implement a deterministic scheduling policy, which often hides concurrency-related design flaws. We present a novel compiler for SystemC that integrates a very precise formal race analysis by means of model checking. Our compiler produces a simulator that uses the outcome of the analysis to perform partial order reduction. The key insight to make the model checking engine scale is to apply it only to tiny fractions of the SystemC model. We show that the outcome of the analysis is not only valuable to eliminate redundant context switches at runtime, but can also be used to diagnose race conditions statically. In particular, our analysis is able to reveal races that can remain undetected during simulation and is able to formally prove the absence of races. © 2010 ACM