The Cost of Going for the Gavel: Individual Candidate Spending in Intermediate Appellate Court Elections

Substantial research in recent years has studied judicial campaign spending. Most of this research has concentrated on state supreme court elections. Less is known about candidate spending in lower-level judicial elections. Moreover, research has focused on the costs of campaigns with the race as the unit of analysis. This study probes patterns of spending by 470 candidates in all contested races for state immediate appellate court seats from 2000 to 2009. It makes the first comprehensive evaluation of the systematic factors that drive spending in lower-level judicial elections with the individual candidate as the unit of analysis. It explores several different explanations for variations in spending, as well

Intensive anticancer therapy in elderly patients – does it make sense? A case report

Anticancer therapy in elderly patients poses a great challenge for doctors since not all available therapeutic modalities can improve the wellbeing, alleviate symptoms or improve prognosis in this patient population. The paper presents a case of a 75-year-old woman diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer who, despite advanced age, received intensive anticancer therapy, i.e. surgical treatment (modified posterior exenteration with the resection of pelvic peritoneum and tumor invasion in the diaphragmatic peritoneum along with its fragment, subtotal colectomy, resection of the omentum, spleen and gastric fragment along with the gastro-transverse ligament and an end ileostomy) as well as adjuvant chemotherapy. Severe complications occurring during treatment were not directly related to the therapy, but resulted from the lack of proper patient care in a home setting

Catching-up and falling behind knowledge spillover from American to German machine tool makers

In our days, German machine tool makers accuse their Chinese competitors of violating patent rights and illegally imitating German technology. A century ago, however, German machine tool makers used exactly the same methods to imitate American technology. To understand the dynamics of this catching-up process we use patent statistics to analyze firms? activities between 1877 and 1932. We show that German machine tool makers successfully deployed imitating and counterfeiting activities in the late 19th century and the 1920s to catchup to their American competitors. The German administration supported this strategy by stipulating a patent law that discriminated against foreign patent holders and probably also by delaying the granting of patents to foreign applicants. Parallel to the growing international competitiveness of German firms, however, the willingness to guarantee intellectual property rights of foreigners was also increasing because German firms had now to fear retaliatory measures in their own export markets when violating foreign property rights within Germany

Indications for sexology consultation in women after surgical treatment due to breast cancer

Introduction and objectives. Surgical treatment due to brest cancer have an impact on women sexuality. There is a need for research about effective indications for sexology consultation in women after such treatment. The aim of this study is to determine the indications for sexology consultation in women after surgical treatment for breast cancer. Materials and method. We tested 42 women patients diagnosed with breast cancer who had undergone mastectomy 3 months before the study. 3 months after the surgery the women were surveyed using the Polish version of FSFI assessing sexual functioning in women. The result of PL-FSFI were compared with the control group. Results. It was found that the mean score of PL-FSFI in the study group 3 months after the surgery was 13.33 points (score range: 1.2–31.7; median 8.3 points) with a statistically significant difference in terms of areas: desire, arousal, lubrication and orgasm in favour of the control group. The total score of PL-FSFI was significantly lower in women after mastectomy than in women after breast-conserving surgery. It has been shown that sexually active women in whom the surgery concerned the right breast (on the side of the dominant hand) scored lower on the scale “sexual functioning” of QLQ-BR-23 than women with surgery of the left breast, with this difference being statistically significant. There was a statistically significant correlation between the baseline performance status on the Zubrod scale and the scales: desire, lubrication and satisfaction of PL-FSFI. Living in a small town proved to be statistically significant for predicting a lower risk of sexual dysfunction among the surveyed women. Conclusions. The women who underwent surgery due to breast cancer had a higher risk of sexual dysfunction compared to the general population. Higher risk of sexual dysfunction especially concerns women after mastectomy, those who underwent breast surgery on the side of the dominant hand, and those with a worse preoperative overall level of functioning of ≥ 1 point on the Zubrod scale. A lower risk of disorders was observed in women living in smaller towns. The above factors indicate the advisability for sexology consultation in women with breast cancer

Template-controlled piezoactivity of ZnO thin films grown via a bioinspired approach

Biomaterials are used as model systems for the deposition of functional inorganic materials under mild reaction conditions where organic templates direct the deposition process. In this study, this principle was adapted for the formation of piezoelectric ZnO thin films. The influence of two different organic templates (namely, a carboxylate-terminated self-assembled monolayer and a sulfonate-terminated polyelectrolyte multilayer) on the deposition and therefore on the piezoelectric performance was investigated. While the low negative charge of the COOH-SAM is not able to support oriented attachment of the particles, the strongly negatively charged sulfonated polyelectrolyte leads to texturing of the ZnO film. This texture enables a piezoelectric performance of the material which was measured by piezoresponse force microscopy. This study shows that it is possible to tune the piezoelectric properties of ZnO by applying templates with different functionalities

Anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity prevention with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor ramipril in women with low-risk breast cancer : results of a prospective randomized study

Background: Anthracycline‑induced cardiotoxicity (AIC) remains the main long‑term irreversible side effect in malignancy survivors. Cardiotoxicity prevention is one of the most reasonable approaches. Aims: In this prospective randomized open‑label study, we aimed to verify whether ramipril protects from early‑onset AIC in women with breast cancer (BC). Methods: We analyzed data from 96 women (median age, 47 years) with BC after breast surgery, without significant cardiovascular diseases, who were eligible for adjuvant anthracyclines. They were randomized to a ramipril or control arm. Cardiotoxicity was estimated with repeat echocardiography and themeasurement of troponin I and N‑terminal fragment of the prohormone brain natriuretic peptide (NT‑proBNP) levels over 1‑year follow‑up. Anthracycline‑induced cardiotoxicity was defined as a decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), elevated biomarker levels, and/or occurrence of heart failure (HF) or cardiac death. Results: A decrease in LVEF above 10‑percent points occurred in 6.3% of ramipril patients and 18.5% ofcontrols (P = 0.15). No cases of HF, cardiac death, or LVEF decline below 50% were reported. The percentage of patients with elevated NT‑proBNP levels increased with time in controls (P = 0.003) and remained unchanged in the ramipril arm. At the end of follow‑up, an increase in NT‑proBNP levels was more common and decline was less common in the control than ramipril arm (P = 0.01). No significant differences in troponin levels were found between the study arms. Ramipril was well tolerated in normotensive women. Conclusions: In relatively young women with BC without serious comorbidities, who received anthracyclines, 1‑year treatment with ramipril exerts potentially protective effects on cardiotoxicity assessed with NT‑proBNP levels

Evaluating the durability and performance of polyoxometalate-ionic liquid coatings on calcareous stones: Preventing biocolonisation in outdoor environments

Rock-based materials exposed to outdoor environments are naturally colonised by an array of microorganisms, which can cause dissolution and fracturing of the natural stone. Biocolonisation of monuments and architectures of important cultural heritage therefore represents an expensive and recurring problem for local authorities and private owners alike. In this area, preventive strategies to mitigate biocolonisation are generally preferred to curative approaches, such as mechanical cleaning by brush or high-pressure cleaning, to remove pre-existing patina. The aim of this work was to study the interaction between biocidal polyoxometalate-ionic liquid (POM-IL) coatings and calcareous stones and evaluate the capacity of these coatings to prevent biocolonisation through a series of accelerated ageing studies in climate chambers, carried out in parallel with a two-year period of outdoor exposure in north-eastern France. Our experiments show that POM-IL coatings did not affect water vapour transfer nor significantly alter the total porosity of the calcareous stones. Simulated weathering studies replicating harsh (hot and wet) climatic weather conditions demonstrated that the colour variation of POM-IL-coated stones did not vary significantly with respect to the natural uncoated stones. Accelerated biocolonisation studies performed on the weathered POM-IL-coated stones proved that the coatings were still capable of preventing colonisation by an algal biofilm. However, a combination of colour measurements, chlorophyll fluorescence data, and scanning electron microscopy imaging of stones aged outdoors in northern France for two years showed that coated and uncoated stone samples showed signs of colonisation by fungal mycelium and phototrophs. Altogether, our results demonstrate that POM-ILs are suitable as preventative biocidal coatings for calcareous stones, but the correct concentrations must be chosen to achieve a balance between porosity of the stone, the resulting colour variation and the desired duration of the biocidal effect over longer periods of time, particularly in outdoor environments

Thermochromic and solvatochromic properties of Lindqvist polyoxometalates

The thermochromic and solvatochromic properties of Lindqvist metal oxide clusters [VxM6−xO19]n− (x = 0, 1, 2, M = Mo, W) are reported. The cluster anions show pronounced changes of their electronic structure depending on their chemical environment (e.g. solvent polarity, temperature). These are rationalized using experimental and theoretical methods. A combined density functional theory and 51V-NMR study suggests that temperature-dependent changes in the structural dynamics of the metal oxide framework are the underlying cause for the observed thermochromism. The results might open new avenues for the design of molecular optical sensors

Assessing Retinal Structure In Complete Congenital Stationary Night Blindness and Oguchi Disease

Purpose To examine retinal structure and changes in photoreceptor intensity after dark adaptation in patients with complete congenital stationary night blindness and Oguchi disease. Design Prospective, observational case series. Methods We recruited 3 patients with complete congenital stationary night blindness caused by mutations in GRM6, 2 brothers with Oguchi disease caused by mutations in GRK1, and 1 normal control. Retinal thickness was measured from optical coherence tomography images. Integrity of the rod and cone mosaic was assessed using adaptive optics scanning light ophthalmoscopy. We imaged 5 of the patients after a period of dark adaptation and examined layer reflectivity on optical coherence tomography in a patient with Oguchi disease under light- and dark-adapted conditions. Results Retinal thickness was reduced in the parafoveal region in patients with GRM6 mutations as a result of decreased thickness of the inner retinal layers. All patients had normal photoreceptor density at all locations analyzed. On removal from dark adaptation, the intensity of the rods (but not cones) in the patients with Oguchi disease gradually and significantly increased. In 1 Oguchi disease patient, the outer segment layer contrast on optical coherence tomography was 4-fold higher under dark-adapted versus light-adapted conditions. Conclusions The selective thinning of the inner retinal layers in patients with GRM6 mutations suggests either reduced bipolar or ganglion cell numbers or altered synaptic structure in the inner retina. Our finding that rods, but not cones, change intensity after dark adaptation suggests that fundus changes in Oguchi disease are the result of changes within the rods as opposed to changes at a different retinal locus