Wear resistance of nano-polycrystalline diamond with various hexagonal diamond contents

Wear resistance of nano-polycrystalline diamond (NPD) rods containing various amounts of hexagonal diamond has been tested with a new method for practical evaluation of the wear–resistance rate of superhard ceramics, in addition to the measurements of their Knoop hardness. The wear resistance of NPD has been found to increase with increasing synthesis temperature and accordingly decreasing proportion of hexagonal diamond. A slight increase in Knoop hardness with the synthesis temperature also has been observed for these samples, consistent with the results of the wear–resistance measurements. These results suggest that the presence of hexagonal diamond would not yield any observable increase in both hardness and wear resistance of NPD, contradictory to a recent prediction suggesting that hexagonal diamond is harder than cubic diamond. It is also demonstrated that NPD is superior to single crystal diamond in terms of relatively homogeneous wearing without any significant chipping/cracking.Зносостійкість нано-полікристалічних алмазних (НПА) стрижнів, з різним вмістом гексагонального алмазу, була протестована новим методом практичної оцінки швидкості зносу надтвердої кераміки, додатково до вимірюваня їх твердості по Кнупу. Було виявлено, що зносостійкість НПА збільшується зі зростанням температури синтезу і, відповідно, зі зменшенням частки гексагональних алмазів. Також, відповідно до результатів вимірювань зносостійкості, для цих зразків спостерігалося невелике збільшення твердості по Кнупу з температурою синтезу. Ці результати дозволяють припустити, що присутність гексагональних алмазів не приводить до будь-якого помітного збільшення як твердості, так і зносостійкості НПА, що суперечить недавньому припущенню про те, що гексагональний алмаз твердіший, ніж кубічний. Також показано, що НПА перевершує монокристал алмазу з точки зору відносно однорідного зношування без значних відколів/тріщин.Износостойкость нано-поликристаллических алмазных (НПА) стержней, с различным содержанием гексагонального алмаза, была протестирована новым методом практической оценки скорости износа сверхтвердой керамики, в дополнение к измерениям их твердости по Кнупу. Было обнаружено, что износостойкость НПА увеличивается с ростом температуры синтеза и, соответственно, с уменьшением доли гексагональных алмазов. Также, в соответствии с результатами измерений износостойкости, для этих образцов наблюдалось небольшое увеличение твердости по Кнупу с температурой синтеза. Эти результаты позволяют предположить, что присутствие гексагональных алмазов не приводит к какому-либо заметному увеличению как твердости, так и износостойкости НПА, что противоречит недавнему предположению о том, что гексагональный алмаз тверже, чем кубический. Также показано, что НПА превосходит монокристалл алмаза с точки зрения относительно однородного изнашивания без значительных сколов/трещин

Novel stable structure of Li3PS4 predicted by evolutionary algorithm under high-pressure

By combining theoretical predictions and in-situ X-ray diffraction under high pressure, we found a novel stable crystal structure of Li3PS4 under high pressures. At ambient pressure, Li3PS4 shows successive structural transitions from γ-type to β-type and from β-type to α type with increasing temperature, as is well established. In this study, an evolutionary algorithm successfully predicted the γ-type crystal structure at ambient pressure and further predicted a possible stable δ-type crystal structures under high pressure. The stability of the obtained structures is examined in terms of both static and dynamic stability by first-principles calculations. In situ X-ray diffraction using a synchrotron radiation revealed that the high-pressure phase is the predicted δ-Li3PS4 phase

Visuomotor Cerebellum in Human and Nonhuman Primates

In this paper, we will review the anatomical components of the visuomotor cerebellum in human and, where possible, in non-human primates and discuss their function in relation to those of extracerebellar visuomotor regions with which they are connected. The floccular lobe, the dorsal paraflocculus, the oculomotor vermis, the uvula–nodulus, and the ansiform lobule are more or less independent components of the visuomotor cerebellum that are involved in different corticocerebellar and/or brain stem olivocerebellar loops. The floccular lobe and the oculomotor vermis share different mossy fiber inputs from the brain stem; the dorsal paraflocculus and the ansiform lobule receive corticopontine mossy fibers from postrolandic visual areas and the frontal eye fields, respectively. Of the visuomotor functions of the cerebellum, the vestibulo-ocular reflex is controlled by the floccular lobe; saccadic eye movements are controlled by the oculomotor vermis and ansiform lobule, while control of smooth pursuit involves all these cerebellar visuomotor regions. Functional imaging studies in humans further emphasize cerebellar involvement in visual reflexive eye movements and are discussed

Synovial fluid concentrations of the C-propeptide of type II collagen correlate with body mass index in primary knee osteoarthritis

OBJECTIVE—To explore in a cross sectional study in patients with primary knee osteoarthritis (OA) the relations between body mass index (BMI), disease stage, and the concentrations of a putative joint fluid marker of type II collagen synthesis, procollagen II C-propeptide.
PATIENTS AND METHODS—The study included 142 patients with knee OA (median age 68, median BMI 24.1). OA was staged radiologically. The concentrations in synovial fluid of procollagen II C-propeptide were measured by a sandwich enzyme immunoassay.
RESULTS—Joint fluid concentrations of procollagen II C-propeptide were increased in knees with OA (median 3.7 ng/ml), compared with published reference values for knees in healthy adult volunteers (median 1.3 ng/ml). The concentrations of procollagen II C-propeptide were independently related to both OA stage and BMI (r(s) = 0.343,( )p < 0.0001 and r(s) = 0.253, p = 0.002,( )respectively).
CONCLUSIONS—Joint fluid concentrations of this putative marker of collagen II synthesis are high in early and mid-stage OA, but decrease in end stage disease. In addition and for the first time it was shown that the concentrations in synovial fluid of procollagen II C-propeptide increase with increasing BMI in primary knee OA. The increased joint fluid values of this marker in patients with primary knee OA and a high BMI, may reflect increased rates of collagen synthesis in their joint cartilage and could relate to the previously shown increased risk for disease progression in such patients.


Cognitive behavioral therapy for depression in Japanese Parkinson&#39;s disease patients: a pilot study

Issei Shinmei,1,2 Kei Kobayashi,3 Yuki Oe,1 Yuriko Takagishi,1,4 Ayako Kanie,1 Masaya Ito,1 Yoshitake Takebayashi,1,5 Miho Murata,3 Masaru Horikoshi,1 Roseanne D Dobkin6 1National Center for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Research, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan; 2Department of Neuropsychiatry, Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Medicine and Engineering, University of Yamanashi, Yamanashi, Japan; 3Department of Neurology, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan; 4Department of Psychology, Surugadai University, Saitama, Japan; 5Risk Analysis Research Center, The Institute of Statistical Mathematics, Tokyo, Japan; 6Department of Psychiatry, Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical school, NJ, USA Objectives: This study evaluated the feasibility of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for Japanese Parkinson&rsquo;s disease (PD) patients with depression. To increase cultural acceptability, we developed the CBT program using manga, a type of Japanese comic novel.Methods: Participants included 19 non-demented PD patients who had depressive symptoms (GRID-Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression score &ge;8). A CBT program comprising six sessions was individually administered. We evaluated the feasibility and safety of the CBT program in terms of the dropout rate and occurrence of adverse events. The primary outcome was depressive symptom reduction in the GRID-Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression upon completion of CBT. Secondary outcomes included changes in the self-report measures of depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Depression), anxiety (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Anxiety, State and Trait Anxiety Inventory, Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale), functional impairment, and quality of life (Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey).Results: Of the 19 participants (mean age =63.8&nbsp;years, standard deviation [SD] =9.9 years; mean Hohen&ndash;Yahr score =1.7, SD =0.8), one patient (5%) withdrew. No severe adverse event was observed. The patients reported significant improvements in depression (Hedges&rsquo; g =-1.02, 95% confidence interval =-1.62 to -0.39). The effects were maintained over a 3-month follow-up period. Most of the secondary outcome measurements showed a small-to-moderate but nonsignificant effect size from baseline to post-intervention.Conclusion: This study provides preliminary evidence that CBT is feasible among Japanese PD patients with depression. Similar approaches may be effective for people with PD from other cultural backgrounds. The results warrant replication in a randomized controlled trial. Keywords: CBT, anxiety, Japan, dPD, comorbidit