354 research outputs found

    The overabundance of the perfect and the restriction of evidentiality in Standard Azerbaijani: A diachronic study of -(y)Ib and -mIş

    Get PDF
    This article investigates the historical development and reorganization of variation in the individual cells of the Standard Azerbaijani perfect paradigms, a phenomenon known as overabundance (Thornton 2011, 2012). Unlike many previous examples of overabundance in the literature, the variation of the present perfect in Standard Azerbaijani applies to all the relevant verb lexemes in the language and shows no indication of developing verb classes. Rather, the present study argues that, (i) while there is an ongoing reorganization of this variation, it is along lines of specialization for paradigmatic oppositions in person marking, and (ii) this reorganization is attributable to analogical extension on the basis of structural asymmetries in the person-marking of the evidential paradigm. Differentiation by Person (Dmitriyev 1927, Əfəndiyeva 2005) is an inherent structural property of the Azerbaijani verb paradigm, manifested by analogical change. The synchronic asymmetries in the perfect paradigms are best explained as the result frequency-sensitive changes, i.e., lower frequency categories (but not lexemes) correlate with the persistence of variation

    Micro-CT data of early physiological cancellous bone formation in the lumbar spine of female C57BL/6 mice

    Get PDF
    Micro-CT provides critical data for musculoskeletal research, yielding three-dimensional datasets containing distributions of mineral density. Using high-resolution scans, we quantified changes in the fine architecture of bone in the spine of young mice. This data is made available as a reference to physiological cancellous bone growth. The scans (n = 19) depict the extensive structural changes typical for female C57BL/6 mice pups, aged 1-, 3-, 7-, 10- and 14-days post-partum, as they attain the mature geometry. We reveal the micro-morphology down to individual trabeculae in the spine that follow phases of mineral-tissue rearrangement in the growing lumbar vertebra on a micrometer length scale. Phantom data is provided to facilitate mineral density calibration. Conventional histomorphometry matched with our micro-CT data on selected samples confirms the validity and accuracy of our 3D scans. The data may thus serve as a reference for modeling normal bone growth and can be used to benchmark other experiments assessing the effects of biomaterials, tissue growth, healing, and regeneration

    Postoperative Pain Trajectories in Cardiac Surgery Patients

    Get PDF
    Poorly controlled postoperative pain is a longstanding and costly problem in medicine. The purposes of this study were to characterize the acute pain trajectories over the first four postoperative days in 83 cardiac surgery patients with a mixed effects model of linear growth to determine whether statistically significant individual differences exist in these pain trajectories, and to compare the quality of measurement by trajectory with conventional pain measurement practices. The data conformed to a linear model that provided slope (rate of change) as a basis for comparing patients. Slopes varied significantly across patients, indicating that the direction and rate of change in pain during the first four days of recovery from surgery differed systematically across individuals. Of the 83 patients, 24 had decreasing pain after surgery, 24 had increasing pain, and the remaining 35 had approximately constant levels of pain over the four postoperative days

    Primary radiation damage in bone evolves via collagen destruction by photoelectrons and secondary emission self-absorption

    Get PDF
    X-rays are invaluable for imaging and sterilization of bones, yet the resulting ionization and primary radiation damage mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we monitor in-situ collagen backbone degradation in dry bones using second-harmonic-generation and X-ray diffraction. Collagen breaks down by cascades of photon-electron excitations, enhanced by the presence of mineral nanoparticles. We observe protein disintegration with increasing exposure, detected as residual strain relaxation in pre-stressed apatite nanocrystals. Damage rapidly grows from the onset of irradiation, suggesting that there is no minimal ‘safe’ dose that bone collagen can sustain. Ionization of calcium and phosphorous in the nanocrystals yields fluorescence and high energy electrons giving rise to structural damage that spreads beyond regions directly illuminated by the incident radiation. Our findings highlight photoelectrons as major agents of damage to bone collagen with implications to all situations where bones are irradiated by hard X-rays and in particular for small-beam mineralized collagen fiber investigations

    Gaps at the interface between dentine and self‐adhesive resin cement in post‐endodontic restorations quantified in 3D by phase contrast‐enhanced micro‐CT

    Get PDF
    Aim: To assess the extent of gaps between root dentine and titanium or fibreglass post restorations following cementation with a self-adhesive resin cement. Methodology: Fourteen root filled maxillary central incisors restored with prefabricated posts made of Fibreglass (n = 7) or Titanium (n = 7) and cemented with RelyX Unicem 2 were imaged by rapid, high-resolution phase contrast-enhanced micro-CT (PCE-CT) in a synchrotron X-ray imaging facility (ID19, ESRF, 34 KeV, 0.65 µm pixel resolution). Reconstructions were used to measure canal, cement and post perimeters and cross-sectional areas and interfacial gaps at 0.1 mm increments in the root canal space, along the cervical region of the tooth. Remnants of endodontic sealer (AH Plus), when present, were also quantified. Mann–Whitney and 2-way ANOVA tests were used to compare findings within slices and between the two post groups. Pearson correlation coefficients (r) were determined between the interfacial gaps and the other measured parameters. Results: Clearly detectable gaps were found in 45% (±14%) of the interfaces between dentine and cement, along the canal in the cervical area of the tooth beneath the core. The length of interfacial gaps was moderately correlated to the canal cross-sectional area, to the canal perimeter and to the canal area filled by cement (R = 0.52 ~ 0.55, P 0.01). Both post types had defect-free interfaces with cement. Endodontic sealer remnants were found on ~10% of the canal walls and were moderately correlated to the presence of gaps. Approximately 30% of the sealer-affected interfaces exhibited no detachment between dentine, sealer and cement. Conclusions: Self-adhesive cements had interfacial gaps along substantial regions of the root canal surface, which was not correlated with the amount of cement in the canal. PCE-CT proved to be an excellent non-destructive method to study root canal restorations of hydrated samples in 3D

    Hard X-ray phase-contrast-enhanced micro-CT for quantifying interfaces within brittle dense root-filling-restored human teeth

    Get PDF
    Bonding of resin composite fillings, for example following root-canal treatment, is a challenge because remaining gaps grow and lead to failure. Here, phase-contrast-enhanced micro-computed tomography (PCE-CT) is used to explore methods of non-destructive quantification of the problem, so that countermeasures can be devised. Five human central incisors with damaged crowns were root-filled followed by restoration with a dental post. Thereafter, the crowns were rebuilt with a resin composite that was bonded conventionally to the tooth with a dental adhesive system (Futurabond U). Each sample was imaged by PCE-CT in a synchrotron facility (ID19, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility) with a pixel size of 650 nm. The reconstructed datasets from each sample were segmented and analysed in a semi-automated manner using ImageJ. PCE-CT at sub-micrometre resolution provided images with an impressive increased contrast and detail when compared with laboratory micro-computed tomography. The interface between the dental adhesive and the tooth was often strongly disrupted by the presence of large debonded gaps (on average 34% ± 15% on all surfaces). The thickness of the gaps spanned 2 µm to 16 µm. There was a large variability in the distribution of gaps within the bonding area in each sample, with some regions around the canal exhibiting up to 100% discontinuity. Although only several micrometres thick, the extensive wide gaps may serve as gateways to biofilm leakage, leading to failure of the restorations. They can also act as stress-raising `cracks' that are likely to expand over time in response to cyclic mechanical loading as a consequence of mastication. The observations here show how PCE-CT can be used as a non-destructive quantitative tool for understanding and improving the performance of clinically used bonded dental restorations

    Colour and chemical stability of bismuth oxide in dental materials with solutions used in routine clinical practice

    Get PDF
    Bismuth(III) oxide is included as a radio-opacifier in dental materials, including hydraulic silicate cements, the material of choice for several endodontic procedures. It has been implicated in tooth discoloration after contact with endodontic irrigants, in particular NaOCl solution, To date, there has been no work on the chemistry: all reports have been of clinical findings only. The purpose now was to report the reactions leading to colour change from Bi2O3 in contact with solutions used in routine endodontic practice. Ten-gram portions of Bi2O3 were immersed in either water, NaOH, NaCl, NaOCl or HCl solution, either in the dark or exposed to visible light, and samples retrieved at 1, 4, 12 and 24 weeks. After washing, these were exposed to either added CO2 or not, for 1 week while drying, and under the same dark or light conditions. Changes in appearance were monitored by photography and colour measurement, and chemically by X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. 24-week material was studied using electron paramagnetic resonance and Raman spectroscopy; NaOCl-treated material was also examined by scanning electron microscopy. With water, NaCl and NaOH, bismuth subcarbonate was formed. With or without added carbon dioxide, discoloration occurred from pale yellow to light brown when exposed to light, and to a lesser extent in the dark, intensifying with time. In contrast, exposure to NaOCl rapidly formed a dark brown-black sodium bismuthate. With HCl, white BiOCl was formed. Bi2O3 is not at all inert in this context as is commonly believed, denying its principle of use. Previously unreported solution-mediated reaction occurs readily even in water and NaCl solution, forming new compounds that discolour. In contact with NaOCl sodium bismuthate is formed; severe darkening occurs rapidly. The reactivity is such that Bi2O3 is not indicated for dental materials and should be withdrawn from use

    Nanofatigue behaviour of single struts of cast A356.0 foam: cyclic deformation, nanoindent characteristics and sub-surface microstructure

    Get PDF
    Struts are the main load carrying elements in cyclically loaded open cell metal foams. Little is known about the local fatigue behaviour and the influence of the microstructure on nanoscale deformation mechanisms. Different to the bulk counterpart, the millimetre-sized struts in precision-cast AlSi7Mg0.3 foams contain only 1–2 Al-dendrites, Si-Al-eutectic and intermetallic phases. We applied cyclic nanoindentation to N = 105 to assess nanofatigue. The change in minimum depth per cycle and the ratio of minimum to maximum indentation depths versus the number of cycles correspond to cyclic plastic processes. These and the indent and pile-up morphologies were correlated with the microstructure and dislocation formations revealed by phase-contrast-enhanced micro-computed tomography and transmission electron microscopy. Our results reveal that Si-particles affect deformation within 5 to 10 μm from the indent, and that they favour the formation of fatigue induced dislocation cells in the affected volume. We believe that this interaction is mediated through residual stresses. Furthermore, local variations in microstructure strongly influence the cyclic deformation behaviour and the indent pile-up size and morphology. Interestingly, the results well coincide with observations during fatigue of the bulk alloy reported in the literature.DFG, 414044773, Open Access Publizieren 2019 - 2020 / Technische Universität BerlinDFG, 73847914, SPP 1420: Biomimetic Materials Research: Functionality by Hierarchical Structuring of Material
    corecore