A Single-Phase Embedded Z-Source DC-AC Inverter

In the conventional DC-AC inverter consisting of two DC-DC converters with unipolar output capacitors, the output capacitor voltages of the DC-DC converters must be higher than the DC input voltage. To overcome this weakness, this paper proposes a single-phase DC-AC inverter consisting of two embedded Z-source converters with bipolar output capacitors. The proposed inverter is composed of two embedded Z-source converters with a common DC source and output AC load. Though the output capacitor voltages of the converters are relatively low compared to those of a conventional inverter, an equivalent level of AC output voltages can be obtained. Moreover, by controlling the output capacitor voltages asymmetrically, the AC output voltage of the proposed inverter can be higher than the DC input voltage. To verify the validity of the proposed inverter, experiments were performed with a DC source voltage of 38 V. By controlling the output capacitor voltages of the converters symmetrically or asymmetrically, the proposed inverter can produce sinusoidal AC output voltages. The experiments show that efficiencies of up to 95% and 97% can be achieved with the proposed inverter using symmetric and asymmetric control, respectively

Characteristics of second primary breast cancer after ovarian cancer: a Korea central cancer registry retrospective study

BackgroundSecond primary cancer has become an important issue among cancer survivors. This study sought to determine the differences in clinicopathologic outcomes between second primary breast cancer (SPBC) after ovarian cancer and primary breast cancer (PBC) in the Republic of Korea.Methods and materialsWe searched the Korea Central Cancer Registry and identified 251,244 breast cancer cases that were diagnosed between 1999 and 2017. The incident rate and standardized incidence ratio (SIR) were calculated. Demographic and clinical characteristics and overall survival (OS) rates were estimated according to age, histological type, and cancer stage.ResultsAmong the 228,329 patients included, 228,148 were patients with PBC, and 181 patients had SPBC diagnosed after ovarian cancer (OC). The mean ages at diagnosis were 56.09 ± 10.81 years for SPBC and 50.65 ± 11.40 years for PBC. Patients with SPBC were significantly less likely than patients with PBC to receive adjuvant radiotherapy (14.92% vs. 21.92%, p = 0.02) or adjuvant chemotherapy (44.75% vs. 55.69%, p < 0.01). Based on the age-standardized rate (ASR), the incidence of SPBC after OC was 293.58 per 100,000 ovarian cancer patients and the incidence of PBC was 39.13 per 100,000 women. The SIR for SPBC was 1.27 (1.09-1.46, 95% Confidence interval) in the patients overall. The 5-year OS rates were 72.88% and 89.37% for SPBC and PBC (p < 0.01). The OS rate in SPBC decreased significantly with advanced stage and older age.ConclusionThe incidence of breast cancer is about 1.27 times higher in ovarian cancer patients than in healthy people. The survival outcomes were worse for SPBC than for PBC and were related to older age and advanced stage. Active screening for breast cancer is necessary in ovarian cancer patients

Carbonic anhydrase XII expression is associated with histologic grade of cervical cancer and superior radiotherapy outcome

BACKGROUND: To investigate whether expression of carbonic anhydrase XII (CA12) is associated with histologic grade of the tumors and radiotherapy outcomes of the patients with invasive cervical cancer. METHODS: CA12 expression was examined by immunohistochemical stains in cervical cancer tissues from 183 radiotherapy patients. Histological grading was classified as well (WD), moderately (MD) or poorly differentiated (PD). Oligonucleotide microarray experiment was performed using seven cervical cancer samples to examine differentially expressed genes between WD and PD cervical cancers. The association between CA12 and histological grade was analyzed by chi-square test. CA12 and histological grades were analyzed individually and as combined CA12 and histologic grade categories for effects on survival outcome. RESULTS: Immunohistochemical expression of CA12 was highly associated with the histologic grade of cervical cancer. Lack of CA12 expression was associated with PD histology, with an odds ratio of 3.9 (P = 0.01). Microarray analysis showed a fourfold reduction in CA12 gene expression in PD tumors. CA12 expression was marginally associated with superior disease-free survival. Application of the new combined categories resulted in further discrimination of the prognosis of patients with moderate and poorly differentiated tumor grade. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that CA12 may be used as a novel prognostic marker in combination with histologic grade of the tumors

Effects of Glycyrrhizae Radix Pharmacopuncture Intravenous Injection on Ischemia-induced Acute Renal Failure in Rabbits

Objectives: The present study was undergone to determine whether Glycyrrhizae Radix pharmacopuncture intravenous injection exerts beneficial effect against the ischemia-induced acute renal failure in rabbits. Methods: Rabbits were treated with Glycyrrhizae Radix pharmacopuncture via i.v., followed by renal ischemia/reperfusion. The fractional excretion of glucose and phosphate were measured and the malondialdehyde content was also determined. The morphological changes of cortical part of kidney also observed with light microscope. Results: Renal ischemia/reperfusion caused increase of the fractional excretion of glucose and phosphate in ischemia-induced animals, which was prevented by Radix Glycyrrhizae extract treatment. Ischemia/reperfusion increased lipid peroxidation, which was prevented and morphological changes also altered by Radix Glycyrrhizae pharmacopuncture administration. Conclusions: These results indicate that lipid peroxidation plays a critical role in ischemia-induced acute renal failure and Glycyrrhizae Radix pharmacopuncture exerts the protective effect against acute renal failure induced by renal ischemia/reperfusion

Characterization of Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus Clones from the NIH Miniature Pig BAC Library

Pigs have been considered as donors for xenotransplantation in the replacement of human organs and tissues. However, porcine endogenous retroviruses (PERVs) might transmit new infectious disease to humans during xenotransplantation. To investigate PERV integration sites, 45 PERV-positive BAC clones, including 12 PERV-A, 16 PERV-B, and 17 PERV-C clones, were identified from the NIH miniature pig BAC library. The analysis of 12 selected full-length sequences of PERVs, including the long terminal repeat (LTR) region, identified the expected of open reading frame length, an indicative of active PERV, in all five PERV-C clones and one of the four PERV-B clones. Premature stop codons were observed in only three PERV-A clones. Also, eleven PERV integration sites were mapped using a 5000-rad IMpRH panel. The map locations of PERV-C clones have not been reported before, thus they are novel PERV clones identified in this study. The results could provide basic information for the elimination of site-specific PERVs in selection of pigs for xenotransplantation

A STUDY ON THE GRIP FORCE DURING PUTTING STROKE

There are lots of variables to affect the control of ball movement during golf putting. Among several variables, it is believed that grip force during putting stroke is one of the important variables. However, there is not much quantitative evidence from published literature (Delay 1997, Gwyn 1993). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to quantify the grip force by comparing putts performed by elite and novice golfers and to identify the relationship between kinematic parameters and the grip force at 16 different parts of subjects’ right and left hand at each putting phase

Functional and structural characteristics of anticancer peptide Pep27 analogues

BACKGROUND: A secreted peptide Pep27 initiates the cell death program in S. pneumoniae through signal transduction. This study was undertaken to evaluate the relation between the structure and cytotoxic activity of Pep27 and its analogues on cancer cells. RESULTS: Pep27anal2 characterized substituting ((2)R→W), ((4)E→W), ((11)S→W) and ((13)Q→W) in native Pep27, exhibited greater hydrophobicity and anticancer activity than Pep27 and other analogues. The IC(50 )values of Pep27anal2 were approximately 10 – 30 μM in a number of cell lines (AML-2, HL-60, Jurkat, MCF-7 and SNU-601). Confocal microscopy showed that Pep27anal2-FITC was localized in the plasma membrane, and then moving from the membrane to subcellular compartments with the initiation of membrane blebbing. Flow cytometric analysis using propidium iodide and Annexin V also revealed that Pep27anal2 induced apoptosis with minor membrane damage. Electron microscopy revealed that Pep27 induced apoptosis in Jurkat cells. The anticancer activity of Pep27anal2 was neither abrogated by pan-caspase inhibitor (Z-VAD-fmk) nor related to cytochrome c release from mitochondria. The 3D solution structures of these two Pep27 peptides revealed that both form a random coil conformation in water; however, they adopted stable α-helical conformations in solutions. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that Pep27anal2 can penetrate the plasma membrane, and then induce apoptosis in both caspase-and cytochrome c-independent manner. The hydrophobicity of Pep27anal2 appears to play an important role in membrane permeabilization and/or anticancer properties. The structure-functional relationships of these peptides are also discussed. It is proposed that Pep27anal2 is a potential candidate for anticancer therapeutic agents

Beneficial Effect of Efonidipine, an L- and T-Type Dual Calcium Channel Blocker, on Heart Rate and Blood Pressure in Patients With Mild-to-Moderate Essential Hypertension

Background and Objectives: Efonidipine hydrochloride, an L- and T-type dual calcium channel blocker, is suggested to have a heart rate (HR)-slowing action in addition to a blood pressure (BP)-lowering effect. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of efonidipine on HR and BP in patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension. Subjects and Methods: In a multi-center, prospective, open-labeled, single-armed study, we enrolled 53 patients who had mild-to-moderate hypertension {sitting diastolic BP (SiDBP) 90-110 mmHg}. After a 2-week washout, eligible patients were treated with efonidipine (40 mg once daily for 12 weeks). The primary end point was the change in HR from baseline to week 12. The secondary end-point included the change in trough sitting BP and 24-hour mean BP between baseline and week 12. Laboratory and clinical adverse events were monitored at each study visit (4, 8, and 12 weeks). Results: Fifty-two patients were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. After 12 weeks of treatment with efonidipine, the resting HR decreased significantly from baseline to week 12 (from 81.5??5.3 to 71.8??9.9 beats/minute (difference, -9.9??9.0 beats/minute), p<0.0001}. The trough BP {sitting systolic blood pressure (SiSBP) and SiDBP} and 24-hour mean BP also decreased significantly (SiSBP: from 144.6??8.2 to 132.9??13.5 mmHg, p<0.0001; SiDBP: from 96.9??5.4 to 88.3??8.6 mmHg, p<0.0001, 24-hour mean systolic BP: from 140.4??13.5 to 133.8??11.6 mmHg, p<0.0001; 24-hour mean diastolic BP: from 91.7??8.7 to 87.5??9.5 mmHg, p<0.0001). Conclusion: Efonidipine was effective in controlling both HR and BP in patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension. Copyright ?? 2010 The Korean Society of Cardiology