Schottky barrier solar cell

A method of fabricating a Schottky barrier solar cell is described. The cell consists of a thin substrate of low cost material with at least the top surface of the substrate being electrically conductive. A thin layer of heavily doped n-type polycrystalling germanium is deposited on the substrate after a passivation layer is deposited to prevent migration of impurities into the polycrystalline germanium. The polycrystalline germanium is recrystallized to increase the crystal sizes to serve as a base layer on which a thin layer of gallium arsenide is vapor-epitaxilly grown followed by a thermally-grown oxide layer. A metal layer is deposited on the oxide layer and a grid electrode is deposited to be in electrical contact with the top surface of the metal layer

Method of Fabricating Schottky Barrier solar cell

On a thin substrate of low cost material with at least the top surface of the substrate being electrically conductive is deposited a thin layer of heavily doped n-type polycrystalline germanium, with crystalline sizes in the submicron range. A passivation layer may be deposited on the substrate to prevent migration of impurities into the polycrystalline germanium. The polycrystalline germanium is recrystallized to increase the crystal sizes in the germanium layer to not less than 5 micros to serve as a base layer on which a thin layer of gallium arsenide is vapor epitaxially grown to a selected thickness. A thermally-grown oxide layer of a thickness of several tens of angstroms is formed on the gallium arsenide layer. A metal layer, of not more about 100 angstroms thick, is deposited on the oxide layer, and a grid electrode is deposited to be in electrical contact with the top surface of the metal layer. An antireflection coating may be deposited on the exposed top surface of the metal layer

Preclinical investigations using [177Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA toward its clinical translation for radioligand therapy of prostate cancer

[$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA was previously characterized with moderate albumin-binding properties enabling high tumor accumulation but reasonably low retention in the blood. The aim of this study was to investigate [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA in preclinical in vivo experiments and compare its therapeutic efficacy and potential undesired side effects with those of [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 and the previously developed [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-ALB-56. BALB/c nude mice without tumors were investigated on Day 10 and 28 after injection of 10 MBq radioligand. It was revealed that most plasma parameters were in the same range for all groups of mice and histopathological examinations of healthy tissue did not show any alternations in treated mice as compared to untreated controls. Based on these results, a therapy study over twelve weeks was conducted with PC-3 PIP tumor-bearing mice for comparison of the radioligands’s therapeutic efficacy up to an activity of 10 MBq (1 nmol) per mouse. In agreement with the increased mean absorbed tumor dose, [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA (~ 6.6 Gy/MBq) was more effective to inhibit tumor growth than [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 (~ 4.5 Gy/MBq) and only moderately less potent than [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-ALB-56 (~ 8.1 Gy/MBq). As a result, the survival of mice treated with 2 MBq of an albumin-binding radioligand was significantly increased (p < 0.05) compared to that of mice injected with [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 or untreated controls. The majority of mice treated with 5 MBq or 10 MBq [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA or [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-ALB-56 were still alive at study end. Hemograms of immunocompetent mice injected with 30 MBq [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA or 30 MBq [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 showed values in the same range as untreated controls. This was, however, not the case for mice treated with [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-ALB-56 which revealed a drop in lymphocytes and hemoglobin at Day 10 and Day 28 after injection. The data of this study demonstrated a significant therapeutic advantage of [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA over [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 and a more favorable safety profile as compared to that of [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-PSMA-ALB-56. Based on these results, [$^{177}$Lu]Lu-Ibu-DAB-PSMA may has the potential for a clinical translation

Comparison of Jugular vs. Saphenous Blood Samples, Intrarater and In-Between Device Reliability of Clinically Used ROTEM S Parameters in Dogs

Rotational Thromboelastometry (ROTEM) allows for the global assessment of hemostasis in whole blood samples. Preanalytical and analytical factors may influence test results, and data about the reliability and reproducibility of lyophilized ROTEM tests are scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of blood collection site on ROTEM S parameters and to assess intrarater and in-between device variability. A total of thirty, healthy, staff-owned dogs were included. Blood collection and ROTEM analysis were performed by trained staff according to a standardized protocol. Extrinsically activated (tissue factor; Ex-TEM S), with the addition of cytochalasin for platelet inhibition (Fib-TEM S), and intrinsically activated (In-TEM) analyses were performed. Analysis of our data showed significant variability for various Ex-TEM S and Fib-TEM S parameters from different collection sites and intrarater and in-between device measurements. We conclude that serial monitoring with ROTEM should be performed on the same device, with blood always taken from the same collection site using a standardized blood sampling technique. While In-TEM S, apart from maximum lysis, showed very stable and reliable results, we suggest interpreting especially clotting and clot formation parameters from Ex-TEM S and Fib-TEM S tests with caution and using duplicate measurements to detect outliers and to prevent initiation of incorrect therapies

Comparison of Jugular vs. Saphenous Blood Samples, Intrarater and In-Between Device Reliability of Clinically Used ROTEM S Parameters in Dogs.

Rotational Thromboelastometry (ROTEM) allows for the global assessment of hemostasis in whole blood samples. Preanalytical and analytical factors may influence test results, and data about the reliability and reproducibility of lyophilized ROTEM tests are scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of blood collection site on ROTEM S parameters and to assess intrarater and in-between device variability. A total of thirty, healthy, staff-owned dogs were included. Blood collection and ROTEM analysis were performed by trained staff according to a standardized protocol. Extrinsically activated (tissue factor; Ex-TEM S), with the addition of cytochalasin for platelet inhibition (Fib-TEM S), and intrinsically activated (In-TEM) analyses were performed. Analysis of our data showed significant variability for various Ex-TEM S and Fib-TEM S parameters from different collection sites and intrarater and in-between device measurements. We conclude that serial monitoring with ROTEM should be performed on the same device, with blood always taken from the same collection site using a standardized blood sampling technique. While In-TEM S, apart from maximum lysis, showed very stable and reliable results, we suggest interpreting especially clotting and clot formation parameters from Ex-TEM S and Fib-TEM S tests with caution and using duplicate measurements to detect outliers and to prevent initiation of incorrect therapies

Editorial

The 11th International Symposium on Operational Research (SOR’11) was organized by Slovenian Society INFORMATIKA – Section for Operational Research (SDI-SOR) in Dolenjske Toplice, Slovenia, during the week of 28 – 30 September 2011. At SOR’11 it was decided to publish a Special Issue of Business Systems Research Journal (SI of BSRJ) on innovative approaches to OR methodology and its applications in business, micro and macro-economics, management, finance, social sciences, energy, environment, transport and other areas. The call for papers for SI of BSRJ was open, and it was directed to the participants of SOR’11 as well as to other researchers and practitioners from the field of OR. We have received 9 submissions for this special issue, some of them being extended journal versions of short conference papers from proceedings (Zadnik Stirn et al., 2011). Each submission was first reviewed by the Guest Editors, and the papers were then blind reviewed by two experts

Awareness of health risks related to body art practices among youth in Naples, Italy: a descriptive convenience sample study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Body art practices have emerged as common activities among youth, yet few studies have investigated awareness in different age groups of possible health complications associated with piercing and tattooing.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We investigated perceptions of and knowledge about health risks. To highlight differences among age groups, we gathered data from students at high schools and universities in the province of Naples.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of 9,322 adolescents, 31.3% were pierced and 11.3% were tattooed. Of 3,610 undergraduates, 33% were pierced and 24.5% were tattooed (p < 0.05). A higher number of females were pierced in both samples, but there were no gender differences among tattooed students. Among high school students, 79.4% knew about infectious risks and 46% about non-infectious risks; the respective numbers among university students were 87.2% and 59.1%. Only 3.5% of students in high school and 15% of university undergraduates acknowledged the risk of viral disease transmission; 2% and 3% knew about allergic risks. Among adolescents and young adults, 6.9% and 15.3%, respectively, provided signed informed consent; the former were less knowledgeable about health risks (24.7% vs. 57.1%) (p < 0.05). Seventy-three percent of the high school students and 33.5% of the university students had body art done at unauthorized facilities. Approximately 7% of both samples reported complications from their purchased body art.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Results indicate a need for adequate information on health risks associated with body art among students in Naples, mainly among high school students. Therefore, adolescents should be targeted for public health education programs.</p

Iron- and erythropoietin-resistant anemia in a spontaneous breast cancer mouse model

Anemia of cancer (AoC) with its multifactorial etiology and complex pathology is a poor prognostic indicator for cancer patients. One of the main causes of AoC is cancer-associated inflammation that activates mechanisms, commonly observed in anemia of inflammation, where functional iron deficiency and iron-restricted erythropoiesis is induced by increased hepcidin levels in response to IL-6 elevation. So far only a few AoC mouse models have been described, and most of them did not fully recapitulate the interplay of anemia, increased hepcidin levels and functional iron deficiency in human patients. To test if the selection and the complexity of AoC mouse models dictates the pathology or if AoC in mice per se develops independently of iron deficiency, we characterized AoC in Trp53floxWapCre mice that spontaneously develop breast cancer. These mice developed AoC associated with high IL-6 levels and iron deficiency. However, hepcidin levels were not increased and hypoferremia coincided with anemia rather than causing it. Instead, an early shift in the commitment of common myeloid progenitors from the erythroid to the myeloid lineage resulted in increased myelopoiesis and in the excessive production of neutrophils that accumulate in necrotic tumor regions. This process could neither be prevented by iron nor erythropoietin (EPO) treatment. Trp53floxWapCre mice are the first mouse model where EPO-resistant anemia is described and may serve as a disease model to test therapeutic approaches for a subpopulation of human cancer patients with normal or corrected iron levels that do not respond to EPO