Investigation of grain-boundary effect on hydrogen behaviors in single- and poly- crystalline medium-entropy CrCoNi alloy

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A New Onset of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Developed After Bee Venom Therapy

Lupus is a systemic autoimmune disease of an unknown origin, and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can be triggered by numerous stimuli. Bee venom therapy is an alternative therapy that is believed to be effective for various kinds of arthritis. We present here a case of a 49-year-old female who experienced a new onset lupus after undergoing bee venom therapy, and this looked like a case of angioedema. The patient was successfully treated with high dose steroids and antimalarial drugs. We discuss the possibility of bee venom contributing to the development of SLE, and we suggest that such treatment should be avoided in patients with lupus

Central Venous Stenosis Caused by Traction of the Innominate Vein due to a Tuberculosis-Destroyed Lung

We report a case of central venous stenosis due to a structural deformity caused by a tuberculosis-destroyed lung in a 65-year-old woman. The patient presented with left facial edema. She had a history of pulmonary tuberculosis, and the chest X-ray revealed a collapsed left lung. Angiography showed leftward deviation of the innominate vein leading to kinking and stenosis of the internal jugular vein. Stent insertion improved her facial edema

Cigarette smoke exacerbates mouse allergic asthma through Smad proteins expressed in mast cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Many studies have found that smoking reduces lung function, but the relationship between cigarette smoke and allergic asthma has not been clearly elucidated, particularly the role of mast cells. This study aimed to investigate the effects of smoke exposure on allergic asthma and its association with mast cells.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>BALB/c mice were sensitized and challenged by OVA to induce asthma, and bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) were stimulated with antigen/antibody reaction. Mice or BMMCs were exposed to cigarette smoke or CSE solution for 1 mo or 6 h, respectively. The recruitment of inflammatory cells into BAL fluid or lung tissues was determined by Diff-Quik or H&E staining, collagen deposition by Sircol assay, penh values by a whole-body plethysmography, co-localization of tryptase and Smad3 by immunohistochemistry, IgE and TGF-β level by ELISA, expressions of Smads proteins, activities of signaling molecules, or TGF-β mRNA by immunoblotting and RT-PCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Cigarette smoke enhanced OVA-specific IgE levels, penh values, recruitment of inflammatory cells including mast cells, expressions of smad family, TGF-β mRNA and proteins, and cytokines, phosphorylations of Smad2 and 3, and MAP kinases, co-localization of tryptase and Smad3, and collagen deposition more than those of BAL cells and lung tissues of OVA-induced allergic mice. CSE solution pretreatment enhanced expressions of TGF-β, Smad3, activities of MAP kinases, NF-κB/AP-1 or PAI-1 more than those of activated-BMMCs.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The data suggest that smoke exposure enhances antigen-induced mast cell activation via TGF-β/Smad signaling pathways in mouse allergic asthma, and that it exacerbates airway inflammation and remodeling.</p

Two Cases of Systemic Capillary Leak Syndrome that were Treated with Pentastarch

Systemic capillary leak syndrome (SCLS) is a condition that's caused by the shift of fluid and protein from the intravascular space to the interstitial space as a result of repetitive episodes of capillary hyperpermeability. The pathogenesis of SCLS is still unclear, but there's recently been a report showing this syndrome in association with monoclonal gammopathy. This syndrome can be a fatal disease because cardiovascular collapse can occur in the initial capillary leak phase. Although theophylline, diuretics, terbutaline, steroids, calcium antagonist, Ginkgo biloba extracts and plasmapheresis have been suggested as medication, none of them have been proven to be effective. Considering that this disease is self-limiting, conservative treatment in the acute phase is believed to be very important. Because hypoalbuminemia is very a common manifestation of SCLS, Pentastarch, which has a higher molecular weight than albumin, could be efficient to prevent cardiovascular collapse. We used 10% Pentastarch during the acute SCLS attacks of 2 patients and the patients both showed a dramatic response. Pentastarch may be helpful to treat SCLS in its initial capillary leak phase by the elevating blood pressure, and this might contribute to somewhat decreasing the acute mortality of SCLS

LOCATION DESIGN FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTERS BASED ON CATEGORY OF TREATABLE MEDICAL DISEASES AND CENTER CAPABILITY

Abstract: Through the development of a mathematical model, this paper studies the location design of emergency medical centers in a given region under the closest assignment rule. It is assumed that the capability and capacity to treat various categories of treatable medical diseases are provided for each candidate medical center. Once a candidate center is selected, it will receive subsidies from the government to support the offering of medical services at a competitive cost. It is further assumed that the number of patients occurring at each patient group node during a unit time is known along with the categories of their diseases. With the objective of minimizing the total subsidies paid, we select from among the candidate emergency medical centers subject to a maximum total budget and minimum desired survival rate constraints. The CPLEX version 12.1 solver is used to obtain an optimal solution. Simulation studies are conducted to assess the performance of our deterministic models in a stochastic context

Development of Formation Flying CubeSats and Operation Systems for the CANYVAL-C Mission: Launch and Lessons Learned

The CubeSat Astronomy NASA and Yonsei using Virtual telescope ALignment for Coronagraph (CANYVAL-C) is a technology demonstration mission that shows the concept of a virtual space telescope using two CubeSats in formation flying. The final goal of the mission is to obtain several images of the solar corona during an artificial solar eclipse created by the two CubeSats, Timon (1U CubeSat) and Pumbaa (2U CubeSat). To implement this mission, two CubeSats in formation flying and a ground segment have been developed. The CubeSats were constructed mainly with commercial off the shelf components, sharing the bus architecture. The payload of each CubeSat is a visible camera and an occulter to block the light from the photosphere of the Sun. The occulter is composed of tape measures and a black-colored polyimide film; the system size is smaller than 0.5U (10 × 10 × 5 cm3) while it stowed and enlarged to 0.75 × 0.75 m2 after spreading the film. The 3D-printed propulsion system is smaller than 0.5U and facilitates accurate positioning maneuvers of Pumbaa. The on-board computer has multi-task processing capabilities and a space-saving configuration which is integrated with the GNSS receiver and the UHF transceiver. The core technology for the mission implementation is the precise formation flying guidance, navigation, and control system with a cold-gas propulsion system and an inter-satellite link system. The specification of each CubeSat system was evaluated using numerical simulations and ground testing. To operate CubeSats, the ground segment was constructed with some components, including the UHF ground station (UGS), flight dynamics system (FDS), mission analysis and planning system (MAPS), and spacecraft operation system (SOS). Each component works under the environment of an integrated graphic user interface. In particular, the UGS handles the RF communication, data storage, and instrument control for tracking CubeSats. The FDS processes the navigation data to precisely estimate absolute position and velocity. Then, the MAPS determines the allowable mission schedule and parameter set for implementing maneuvers of each CubeSat. Using the MAPS, feasibility of the mission operation canbe ensured through numerical simulations based on the solutions from the FDS. Finally, the SOS is the interface system between each component, processing telemetry and generating telecommand. The CubeSats were launched on March 22, 2021, by Soyuz-2.1a with a Fregat stage