Stark Effect of Hybrid Charge Transfer States at Planar ZnO/Organic Interfaces

We investigate the bias-dependence of the hybrid charge transfer state emission at planar heterojunctions between the metal oxide acceptor ZnO and three donor molecules. The electroluminescence peak energy linearly increases with the applied bias, saturating at high fields. Variation of the organic layer thickness and deliberate change of the ZnO conductivity through controlled photo-doping allow us to confirm that this bias-induced spectral shifts relate to the internal electric field in the organic layer rather than the filling of states at the hybrid interface. We show that existing continuum models overestimate the hole delocalization and propose a simple electrostatic model in which the linear and quadratic Stark effects are explained by the electrostatic interaction of a strongly polarizable molecular cation with its mirror image

Changes in prognostic and therapeutic parameters in prostate cancer from an epidemiological view over 20 years

&lt;b&gt;&lt;i&gt;Background:&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt; The study objective was to examine changes in prognosis and treatment of prostate cancer patients over 20 years and to evaluate their impact on survival. &lt;b&gt;&lt;i&gt;Patients and Methods:&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt; 38,861 prostate cancer patients diagnosed between 1990 and 2010 and living in the catchment area of the Munich Cancer Registry were analysed. &lt;b&gt;&lt;i&gt;Results:&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt; Pre-therapeutic prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing increased substantially in the early 1990s. A shift from capsule-exceeding tumours to capsule-limited tumours also took place especially in the 1990s. The proportion of radical prostatectomy increased continuously over the last 20 years from 20% to almost 50% whereas hormone therapy decreased from 55% to 18%. Radiation therapy and transurethral resection of the prostate increased slightly from about 5% to 10%. The 5- and 10-year relative survival rates increased from 92% to 97% and from 86% to 92%, respectively. &lt;b&gt;&lt;i&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt; 2 reasons may account for the rise in survival rates over 20 years: First, the establishment of widely used PSA testing resulted in a shift towards more favourable T categories due to the detection of many additional small tumours as well as the noticeable change in initial treatment strategy towards more radical prostatectomies. The second factor that likely increased survival was improvements in the therapies themselves.</jats:p

Colonoscopy and polypectomy: beside age, size of polyps main factor for long-term risk of colorectal cancer in a screening population

PURPOSE Despite national and international guideline recommendations, few studies have been conducted to estimate the impact of colonoscopy screening on long-term colorectal cancer incidence. Aim of this study was to determine the long-term impact of a full colonoscopy with polypectomy on colorectal cancer incidence in a large screening population. METHODS In this prospective observational cohort study, a total of 10,947 colonoscopy screening participants from within the scope of the Munich Cancer Registry were consecutively recruited from participating gastroenterology practices and their subsequent colorectal cancer incidence assessed. Predictive factors associated with colorectal cancer were also evaluated in univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS After a median follow-up of 14.24~years (95% CI 14.21-14.25), 93 colorectal cancer cases were observed. This is equivalent to a truncated age-standardized rate of 69.0 (95{\%} CI 43.3-94.7) for male and 43.4 (95{\%} CI 29.4-57.5) for female participants ($\geq$ 50~years at colonoscopy). The ratio of this observed to the expected rate from cancer registry data showed a 67{\%} decrease in colorectal cancer incidence in the male and 65{\%} in the female participants (p {\textless} 0.0001). In multivariate analysis of screening patients, age at screening (p {\textless} 0.0001) was the main predictive factor for colorectal cancer. In the subgroup with positive polyp findings, age (p {\textless} 0.0001) and the polyp size (p = 0.0002) were associated with colorectal cancer. CONCLUSION These results underline the significance of a full colonoscopy screening combined with polypectomy in reducing the total disease burden of colorectal cancer

Resilient or adaptable Islam? Multiculturalism, religion and migrants' claims-making for group demands in Britain, the Netherlands and France

This article investigates multiculturalism by examining the relationship between migrants’ group demands and liberal states’ policies for politically accommodating cultural and religious difference. It focuses especially on Islam. The empirical research compares migrants’ claims-making for group demands in countries with different traditions for granting recognition to migrants’ cultural difference – Britain, France and the Netherlands. Overall, we find very modest levels of group demands indicating that the challenge of group demands to liberal democracies is quantitatively less than the impression given by much multicultural literature. Group demands turn out to be significant only for Muslims, which holds across different countries. Qualitative analysis reveals problematic relationships between Islam and the state, in the overtly multicultural Dutch approach, within British race relations, and French civic universalism. This implies that there is no easy blueprint for politically accommodating Islam, whose public and religious nature makes it especially resilient to political adaptation

Post-stroke dementia - a comprehensive review

Post-stroke dementia (PSD) or post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) may affect up to one third of stroke survivors. Various definitions of PSCI and PSD have been described. We propose PSD as a label for any dementia following stroke in temporal relation. Various tools are available to screen and assess cognition, with few PSD-specific instruments. Choice will depend on purpose of assessment, with differing instruments needed for brief screening (e.g., Montreal Cognitive Assessment) or diagnostic formulation (e.g., NINDS VCI battery). A comprehensive evaluation should include assessment of pre-stroke cognition (e.g., using Informant Questionnaire for Cognitive Decline in the Elderly), mood (e.g., using Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), and functional consequences of cognitive impairments (e.g., using modified Rankin Scale). A large number of biomarkers for PSD, including indicators for genetic polymorphisms, biomarkers in the cerebrospinal fluid and in the serum, inflammatory mediators, and peripheral microRNA profiles have been proposed. Currently, no specific biomarkers have been proven to robustly discriminate vulnerable patients (‘at risk brains’) from those with better prognosis or to discriminate Alzheimer’s disease dementia from PSD. Further, neuroimaging is an important diagnostic tool in PSD. The role of computerized tomography is limited to demonstrating type and location of the underlying primary lesion and indicating atrophy and severe white matter changes. Magnetic resonance imaging is the key neuroimaging modality and has high sensitivity and specificity for detecting pathological changes, including small vessel disease. Advanced multi-modal imaging includes diffusion tensor imaging for fiber tracking, by which changes in networks can be detected. Quantitative imaging of cerebral blood flow and metabolism by positron emission tomography can differentiate between vascular dementia and degenerative dementia and show the interaction between vascular and metabolic changes. Additionally, inflammatory changes after ischemia in the brain can be detected, which may play a role together with amyloid deposition in the development of PSD. Prevention of PSD can be achieved by prevention of stroke. As treatment strategies to inhibit the development and mitigate the course of PSD, lowering of blood pressure, statins, neuroprotective drugs, and anti-inflammatory agents have all been studied without convincing evidence of efficacy. Lifestyle interventions, physical activity, and cognitive training have been recently tested, but large controlled trials are still missing