48 research outputs found
Electric and Magnetic Tuning Between the Trivial and Topological Phases in InAs/GaSb Double Quantum Wells
Among the theoretically predicted two-dimensional topological insulators,
InAs/GaSb double quantum wells (DQWs) have a unique double-layered structure
with electron and hole gases separated in two layers, which enables tuning of
the band alignment via electric and magnetic fields. However, the rich
trivial-topological phase diagram has yet to be experimentally explored. We
present an in situ and continuous tuning between the trivial and topological
insulating phases in InAs/GaSb DQWs through electrical dual-gating.
Furthermore, we show that an in-plane magnetic field shifts the electron and
hole bands relatively to each other in momentum space, functioning as a
powerful tool to discriminate between the topologically distinct states
Effects of demineralization on the stable isotope analysis of bone samples
RATIONALE: The sampling of sequential, annually formed bone growth layers for stable carbon (δ(13)C values) and nitrogen (δ(15)N values) isotope analysis (SIA) can provide a time series of foraging ecology data. To date, no standard protocol exists for the pre-SIA treatment of cortical samples taken from fresh, modern, bones. METHODS: Based on the SIA of historical bone, it is assumed that fresh bone samples must be pre-treated with acid prior to SIA. Using an elemental analyzer coupled to an isotope ratio mass spectrometer to measure stable carbon and nitrogen ratios, we tested the need to acidify cortical bone powder with 0.25M HCl prior to SIA to isolate bone collagen for the determination of δ(13)C and δ(15)N values. We also examined the need for lipid extraction to remove potential biases related to δ(13)C analysis, based on a C:N ratio threshold of 3.5. RESULTS: It was found that acidification of micromilled cortical bone samples from marine turtles does not affect their δ(15)N values, and the small effect acidification has on δ(13)C values can be mathematically corrected for, thus eliminating the need for pre-SIA acidification of cortical bone. The lipid content of the cortical bone samples was low, as measured by their C:N ratios, indicating that lipid extracting cortical bone samples from modern marine turtles is unnecessary. CONCLUSIONS: We present a standard protocol for testing fresh, modern cortical bone samples prior to SIA, facilitating direct comparison of future studies. Based on the results obtained from marine turtle bones, pre-acidification and lipid removal of cortical bone are not recommended. This is especially useful as there is frequently not enough bone material removed via micromilling of sequential growth layers to accommodate both acid treatment and SIA
Interventions outside the workplace for reducing sedentary behaviour in adults under 60 years of age
Background Adults spend a majority of their time outside the workplace being sedentary. Large amounts of sedentary behaviour increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and both allâcause and cardiovascular disease mortality. Objectives Primary ⢠To assess effects on sedentary time of nonâoccupational interventions for reducing sedentary behaviour in adults under 60 years of age Secondary ⢠To describe other health effects and adverse events or unintended consequences of these interventions ⢠To determine whether specific components of interventions are associated with changes in sedentary behaviour ⢠To identify if there are any differential effects of interventions based on health inequalities (e.g. age, sex, income, employment) Search methods We searched CENTRAL, MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, CINAHL, PsycINFO, SportDiscus, and ClinicalTrials.gov on 14 April 2020. We checked references of included studies, conducted forward citation searching, and contacted authors in the field to identify additional studies. Selection criteria We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and cluster RCTs of interventions outside the workplace for communityâdwelling adults aged 18 to 59 years. We included studies only when the intervention had a specific aim or component to change sedentary behaviour. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently screened titles/abstracts and fullâtext articles for study eligibility. Two review authors independently extracted data and assessed risk of bias. We contacted trial authors for additional information or data when required. We examined the following primary outcomes: deviceâmeasured sedentary time, selfâreport sitting time, selfâreport TV viewing time, and breaks in sedentary time. Main results We included 13 trials involving 1770 participants, all undertaken in highâincome countries. Ten were RCTs and three were cluster RCTs. The mean age of study participants ranged from 20 to 41 years. A majority of participants were female. All interventions were delivered at the individual level. Intervention components included personal monitoring devices, information or education, counselling, and prompts to reduce sedentary behaviour. We judged no study to be at low risk of bias across all domains. Seven studies were at high risk of bias for blinding of outcome assessment due to use of selfâreport outcomes measures. Primary outcomes Interventions outside the workplace probably show little or no difference in deviceâmeasured sedentary time in the short term (mean difference (MD) â8.36 min/d, 95% confidence interval (CI) â27.12 to 10.40; 4 studies; I² = 0%; moderateâcertainty evidence). We are uncertain whether interventions reduce deviceâmeasured sedentary time in the medium term (MD â51.37 min/d, 95% CI â126.34 to 23.59; 3 studies; I² = 84%; very lowâcertainty evidence) We are uncertain whether interventions outside the workplace reduce selfâreport sitting time in the short term (MD â64.12 min/d, 95% CI â260.91 to 132.67; I² = 86%; very lowâcertainty evidence). Interventions outside the workplace may show little or no difference in selfâreport TV viewing time in the medium term (MD â12.45 min/d, 95% CI â50.40 to 25.49; 2 studies; I² = 86%; lowâcertainty evidence) or in the long term (MD 0.30 min/d, 95% CI â0.63 to 1.23; 2 studies; I² = 0%; lowâcertainty evidence). It was not possible to pool the five studies that reported breaks in sedentary time given the variation in definitions used. Secondary outcomes Interventions outside the workplace probably have little or no difference on body mass index in the medium term (MD â0.25 kg/m², 95% CI â0.48 to â0.01; 3 studies; I² = 0%; moderateâcertainty evidence). Interventions may have little or no difference in waist circumference in the medium term (MD â2.04 cm, 95% CI â9.06 to 4.98; 2 studies; I² = 65%; lowâcertainty evidence). Interventions probably have little or no difference on glucose in the short term (MD â0.18 mmol/L, 95% CI â0.30 to â0.06; 2 studies; I² = 0%; moderateâcertainty evidence) and medium term (MD â0.08 mmol/L, 95% CI â0.21 to 0.05; 2 studies, I² = 0%; moderateâcertainty evidence) Interventions outside the workplace may have little or no difference in deviceâmeasured MVPA in the short term (MD 1.99 min/d, 95% CI â4.27 to 8.25; 4 studies; I² = 23%; lowâcertainty evidence). We are uncertain whether interventions improve deviceâmeasured MVPA in the medium term (MD 6.59 min/d, 95% CI â7.35 to 20.53; 3 studies; I² = 70%; very lowâcertainty evidence). We are uncertain whether interventions outside the workplace improve selfâreported lightâintensity PA in the shortâterm (MD 156.32 min/d, 95% CI 34.34 to 278.31; 2 studies; I² = 79%; very lowâcertainty evidence). Interventions may have little or no difference on step count in the shortâterm (MD 226.90 steps/day, 95% CI â519.78 to 973.59; 3 studies; I² = 0%; lowâcertainty evidence) No data on adverse events or symptoms were reported in the included studies. Authors' conclusions Interventions outside the workplace to reduce sedentary behaviour probably lead to little or no difference in deviceâmeasured sedentary time in the short term, and we are uncertain if they reduce deviceâmeasured sedentary time in the medium term. We are uncertain whether interventions outside the workplace reduce selfâreported sitting time in the short term. Interventions outside the workplace may result in little or no difference in selfâreport TV viewing time in the medium or long term. The certainty of evidence is moderate to very low, mainly due to concerns about risk of bias, inconsistent findings, and imprecise results. Future studies should be of longer duration; should recruit participants from varying age, socioeconomic, or ethnic groups; and should gather quality of life, costâeffectiveness, and adverse event data. We strongly recommend that standard methods of data preparation and analysis are adopted to allow comparison of the effects of interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour