Bi-direction transmissible gate driver on array

Background In recent years, gate driver using amorphous silicon (a-Si) technology for the TFT-LCD has become the main stream due to the mature manufacturing, low-cost processing, and elimination of the gate driver ICs [1],[2]. However, it’s still three challenges of design the integrated gate driver by a-Si encounters which are the low field-effect mobility, low reliability issue under high voltage stress, and the lack of P-type transistor. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Etude comparative des complications liées à l’utilisation du cathéter veineux périphérique avec et sans système clos à bouchon hépariné

Introduction: L'utilisation correcte du système clos à bouchon hépariné sur les cathéters périphériques pendant les perfusions est une pratique courante dans les pays développés et aussi dans plusieurs pays en développement selon un consensus international établi. Nous comparons les résultats de la formation de thrombus et de l'infection liées au cathéter veineux périphérique chez les patients ayant bénéficié de perfusion avec système clos à bouchon hépariné (groupe expérimentale) et ceux qui ont été perfusé sans bouchon hépariné (groupe témoin). Méthodes: Nous avons colligé 100 patients hospitalisés pendant la période de Juillet 2014 à Décembre 2014 dans le service d'hospitalisation de chirurgie thoracique de l'hôpital du Mali qui ont été repartis en 2 groupes de 50 patients chacun pour une analyse comparative. L'observation du thrombus dans la lumière du cathéter est effectuée puis enregistré et tous les cathéters ont été repris pour réalisation de culture bactérienne au laboratoire dans les 2 groupes. Résultats: Dans le groupe témoin, il existe un thrombus dans la lumière du cathéter dans 36 cas (72%) et l'examen de culture bactérienne était positif dans 90%. Tandis que dans le groupe expérimental on retrouve 3 cas (6%) de thrombose du cathéter et on note une absence de germe dans l'examen bactériologique. Conclusion: L'utilisation correcte du système clos à bouchon hépariné lors des perfusions peutréduire et prévenir de façon significative les complications  liées au cathéter notamment l'occlusion par thrombus, leur migration et la survenue de l'infection.Pan African Medical Journal 2015; 2

Multi-source excited travelling-wave bowtie antenna based on a meander series of YBCO bicrystal Josephson junctions

Series superconducting Josephson junctions (JJs), as terahertz (THz) mixers, have attracted increasing attentions due to their advantages in solving the saturation problem of superconducting mixers, achieving higher mixing harmonics and higher sensitivity in THz band. However, the normal-state resistances of the series JJs are so low that there exists an impedance mismatch between the coupled antenna and the JJs. In this paper, a meander embedding travelling-wave bowtie antenna is proposed for a series of bicrystal JJs. With this antenna, not only the problem of impedance mismatch can be solved, but also more series JJs can be inserted into the antenna. Five and even seven series JJs in the meander match the proposed antenna well. Furthermore, combined current distribution, far-field radiation patterns and parameter study are investigated in the numerical simulation to analyze this antenna

Complementary genetic and genomic approaches help characterize the linkage group I seed protein QTL in soybean

Background: The nutritional and economic value of many crops is effectively a function of seed protein and oil content. Insight into the genetic and molecular control mechanisms involved in the deposition of these constituents in the developing seed is needed to guide crop improvement. A quantitative trait locus (QTL) on Linkage Group I (LG I) of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) has a striking effect on seed protein content. Results: A soybean near-isogenic line (NIL) pair contrasting in seed protein and differing in an introgressed genomic segment containing the LG I protein QTL was used as a resource to demarcate the QTL region and to study variation in transcript abundance in developing seed. The LG I QTL region was delineated to less than 8.4 Mbp of genomic sequence on chromosome 20. Using Affymetrix® Soy GeneChip and high-throughput Illumina® whole transcriptome sequencing platforms, 13 genes displaying significant seed transcript accumulation differences between NILs were identified that mapped to the 8.4 Mbp LG I protein QTL region. Conclusions: This study identifies gene candidates at the LG I protein QTL for potential involvement in the regulation of protein content in the soybean seed. The results demonstrate the power of complementary approaches to characterize contrasting NILs and provide genome-wide transcriptome insight towards understanding seed biology and the soybean genome

Effects of vitamin D supplementation on disabling foot pain in patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis

Objectives: This study aims to determine whether vitamin D supplementation or maintaining sufficient vitamin D level reduces foot pain over two years in patients with symptomatic knee OA. Methods: A post hoc study was conducted from a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial named the VItamin D Effect on Osteoarthritis (VIDEO) study. Symptomatic knee OA patients with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels between 12.5 nmol/L to 60 nmol/L were included and randomly allocated to either monthly vitamin D3 or placebo treatment (1:1) for 2 years. Manchester Foot Pain and Disability Index (MFPDI) was used to evaluate foot pain and Disabling foot pain was defined as at least one of the 10 functional limitation items (items 1-9,11) being documented as on 'most/every day(s)' in the last month. A repeated-measure mixed effect model was used to analyze the change of MFPDI scores between groups adjusting for potential confounders.Results: A total of 413 patients with a mean age of 63.2 years (49.7% males) were enrolled and 340 completed the study. The mean MFPDI score was 22.8±7.3, with 23.7% participants having disabling foot pain at baseline. There were significant differences in MFPDI scores change between groups over 2 years, with more improvements in vitamin D group than in placebo group (-0.03 vs. 1.30, P=0.013) and more improvement in those maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels (n=226) than those who did not (n=114) (-0.09 vs. 2.19, P=0.001). Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation and maintenance of sufficient vitamin D levels may improve foot pain in those with knee OA

Barriers and enablers in the implementation of a quality improvement program for acute coronary syndromes in hospitals: a qualitative analysis using the consolidated framework for implementation research

Background: Ischemic heart disease causes a high disease burden globally and numerous challenges in treatment, particularly in developing countries such as China. The National Chest Pain Centers Program (NCPCP) was launched in China as the first nationwide, hospital-based, comprehensive, continuous quality improvement (QI) program to improve early diagnosis and standardized treatment of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and improve patients’ clinical outcomes. With implementation and scaling up of the NCPCP, we investigated barriers and enablers in the NCPCP implementation process and provided examples and ideas for overcoming such barriers. Methods: We conducted a nationally representative survey in six cities in China. A total of 165 key informant interviewees, including directors and coordinators of chest pain centers (CPCs) in 90 hospitals, participated in semi-structured interviews. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, translated into English, and analyzed in NVivo 12.0. We used the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to guide the codes and themes. Results: Barriers to NCPCP implementation mainly arose from nine CFIR constructs. Barriers included the complexity of the intervention (complexity), low flexibility of requirements (adaptability), a lack of recognition of chest pain in patients with ACS (patient needs and resources), relatively low government support (external policies and incentives), staff mobility in the emergency department and other related departments (structural characteristics), resistance from related departments (networks and communications), overwhelming tasks for CPC coordinators (compatibility), lack of available resources for regular CPC operations (available resources), and fidelity to and sustainability of intervention implementation (executing). Enablers of intervention implementation were inner motivation for change (intervention sources), evidence strength and quality of intervention, relatively low cost (cost), individual knowledge and beliefs regarding the intervention, pressure from other hospitals (peer pressure), incentives and rewards of the intervention, and involvement of hospital leaders (leadership engagement, engaging). Conclusion: Simplifying the intervention to adapt routine tasks for medical staff and optimizing operational mechanisms between the prehospital emergency system and in-hospital treatment system with government support, as well as enhancing emergency awareness among patients with chest pain are critically important to NCPCP implementation. Clarifying and addressing these barriers is key to designing a sustainable QI program for acute cardiovascular diseases in China and similar contexts across developing countries worldwide. Trial registration: This study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR 2100043319), registered 10 February 2021