Gibbs’ energy of formation of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x (tetragonal)

The high temperature ceramic oxide superconductor YBa2Cu3O7-x (1–2–3 compound) is generally synthesized in an oxygen-rich environment. Hence any method for determining its thermodynamic stability should operate at a high oxygen partial pressure. A solid-state cell incorporating CaF2 as the electrolyte and functioning under pure oxygen at a pressure of 1·01 × 105 Pa has been employed for the determination of the Gibbs’ energy of formation of the 1–2–3 compound. The configuration of the galvanic cell can be represented by: Pt, O2, YBa2Cu3O7-x , Y2BaCuO5, CuO, BaF2/CaF2/BaF2, BaZrO3, ZrO2, O2, Pt. Using the values of the standard Gibbs’ energy of formation of the compounds BaZrO3 and Y2BaCuO5 from the literature, the Gibbs’ energy of formation of the 1–2–3 compound from the constituent binary oxides has been computed at different temperatures. The value ofx at each temperature is determined by the oxygen partial pressure. At 1023 K for O content of 6·5 the Gibbs’ energy of formation of the 1–2–3 compound is −261·7 kJ mol−1

Time's up. Or is it? Journalists’ Perceptions of Sexual Violence and Newsroom Changes after #MeTooIndia

The #MeToo movement, which engulfed much of India’s news and entertainment industry in October 2018, was projected by many as a watershed moment for Indian journalism. Driven largely through social media activism, it created significant media discourse and public outcry, leading to the ‘outing’ and resignation of scores of journalists. This paper explores the perception of #MeTooIndia in regional and national newsrooms. Drawing on Manuel Castells’s ideas of networked social movement, we consider the origins of #MeTooIndia, including its mediation on private and social networks. We then draw on 190 semi-structured interviews with journalists working in 14 languages across the six administrative zones of India to explore the ‘cause’ of the campaign—the prevalence of sexual harassment and sexual violence in workspaces—before turning our attention to the impact, or potential for impact, that journalists saw in it. We find most journalists felt the movement was “good”, but did not think it influenced their newsroom environment or newswork in any meaningful manner. Regional journalists expressed more pessimism about the #MeTooIndia, men more so than women

Retinoids regulate TGFβ signaling at the level of Smad2 phosphorylation and nuclear accumulation

AbstractIndirect regulation of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β signaling by retinoids occurs on a long-term timescale, secondary to transcriptional events. Studies by our group show loss of retinoid X receptor (RXR) alpha results in increased TGFβ2 in the midgestational heart, which may play a role in the cardiac defects seen in this model [S.W. Kubalak, D.R. Hutson, K.K. Scott and R.A. Shannon, Elevated transforming growth factor beta2 enhances apoptosis and contributes to abnormal outflow tract and aortic sac development in retinoic X receptor alpha knockout embryos, Development 129 (2002) 733–746.]. Acute and direct interactions between retinoid and TGFβ signaling, however, are not clearly understood. Treatment of dispersed hearts and NIH3T3 cells for 1 h with TGFβ and retinoids (dual treatment) resulted in increased phosphorylated Smad2 and Smad3 when compared to treatment with TGFβ alone. Of all dual treatments, those with the RXR agonist Bexarotene, resulted in the highest level of phosphorylated Smad2, a 7-fold increase over TGFβ2 alone. Additionally, during dual treatment phosphorylation of Smad2 occurs via the TGFβ type I receptor but not by increased activation of the receptor. As loss of RXRα results in increased levels of Smad2 phosphorylation in response to TGFβ treatment and since nuclear accumulation of phosphorylated Smad2 is decreased during dual treatment, we propose that RXRα directly regulates the activities of Smad2. These data show retinoid signaling influences the TGFβ pathway in an acute and direct manner that has been unappreciated until now

Adrenal Oncocytic Neoplasm with Uncertain Malignant Potential

Adrenal oncocytic neoplasms (AONs) are a rare group of tumours with a somewhat uncertain natural history and clinical behaviour. Out of 46 cases of AON reported to date, 6 cases were histologically classified as neoplasms with uncertain malignant potential. We report the case of a 35-year-old male with an incidentally detected large AON with mostly benign morphology and some characteristics which would make its behaviouruncertain

Rise of robots in surgical territory

Robotic surgery is a rapid advancement in the scientific strata of artificial intelligence and has evolved into a refined tool for the surgeons. Over the last 30 years, this field has evolved in leaps and bounds with wide applications in the field of surgery by improving the dexterity and accessibility for the surgeons in various array of major complicated cases. The surgical armamentarium has been strengthened by evolution of robotic surgery to an extent that man may be replaced by artificial intelligence-based robots in the operation theatre, thereby eliminating the possibility of human errors and limitations

Global Current Practices of Ventilatory Support Management in COVID-19 Patients: An International Survey

Background: As the global outbreak of COVID-19 continues to ravage the world, it is important to understand how frontline clinicians manage ventilatory support and the various limiting factors. / Methods: An online survey composed of 32 questions was developed and validated by an international expert panel. / Results: Overall, 502 respondents from 40 countries across six continents completed the survey. The mean number (±SD) of ICU beds was 64 ± 84. The most popular initial diagnostic tools used for treatment initiation were arterial blood gas (48%) and clinical presentation (37.5%), while the national COVID-19 guidelines were the most used (61.2%). High flow nasal cannula (HFNC) (53.8%), non-invasive ventilation (NIV) (47%), and invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) (92%) were mostly used for mild, moderate, and severe COVID-19 cases, respectively. However, only 38.8%, 56.6% and 82.9% of the respondents had standard protocols for HFNC, NIV, and IMV, respectively. The most frequently used modes of IMV and NIV were volume control (VC) (36.1%) and continuous positive airway pressure/pressure support (CPAP/PS) (40.6%). About 54% of the respondents did not adhere to the recommended, regular ventilator check interval. The majority of the respondents (85.7%) used proning with IMV, with 48.4% using it for 12– 16 hours, and 46.2% had tried awake proning in combination with HFNC or NIV. Increased staff workload (45.02%), lack of trained staff (44.22%) and shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) (42.63%) were the main barriers to COVID-19 management. / Conclusion: Our results show that general clinical practices involving ventilatory support were highly heterogeneous, with limited use of standard protocols and most frontline clinicians depending on isolated and varied management guidelines. We found increased staff workload, lack of trained staff and shortage of PPE to be the main limiting factors affecting global COVID-19 ventilatory support management

Polysulfide-triggered fluorescent indicator suitable for super-resolution microscopy and application in imaging

A new physiologically benign and cell membrane permeable BODIPY based molecular probe, MB-Sn, specifically senses intracellular hydrogen polysulfides (H2Sn, n > 1) localized in the endoplasmic reticulum. This reagent is suitable for mapping the intracellular distribution of H2Sn by wide-field as well as super-resolution Structured Illumination Microscopy (SIM)

Coexistence of perseveration and apathy in the TDP-43^Q331K knock-in mouse model of ALS–FTD

Perseveration and apathy are two of the most common behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSDs) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis–frontotemporal dementia (ALS–FTD). Availability of a validated and behaviourally characterised animal model is crucial for translational research into BPSD in the FTD context. We behaviourally evaluated the male TDP-43Q331K mouse, an ALS–FTD model with a human-equivalent mutation (TDP-43Q331K) knocked into the endogenous Tardbp gene. We utilised a panel of behavioural tasks delivered using the rodent touchscreen apparatus, including progressive ratio (PR), extinction and visual discrimination/reversal learning (VDR) assays to examine motivation, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility, respectively. Relative to WT littermates, TDP-43Q331K mice exhibited increased responding under a PR schedule. While elevated PR responding is typically an indication of increased motivation for reward, a trial-by-trial response rate analysis revealed that TDP-43Q331K mice exhibited decreased maximal response rate and slower response decay rate, suggestive of reduced motivation and a perseverative behavioural phenotype, respectively. In the extinction assay, TDP-43Q331K mice displayed increased omissions during the early phase of each session, consistent with a deficit in activational motivation. Finally, the VDR task revealed cognitive inflexibility, manifesting as stimulus-bound perseveration. Together, our data indicate that male TDP-43Q331K mice exhibit a perseverative phenotype with some evidence of apathy-like behaviour, similar to BPSDs observed in human ALS–FTD patients. The TDP-43Q331K knock-in mouse therefore has features that recommend it as a useful platform to facilitate translational research into behavioural symptoms in the context of ALS–FTD