Testicular Adrenal Rest Tumours in Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia

In adult patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), the presence of testicular adrenal rest tumours (TART) is an important complication leading to gonadal dysfunction and infertility. These tumours can be already found in childhood and puberty. In this paper, we review the embryological, histological, biochemical, and clinical features of TART and discuss treatment options

Metatarsophalangeal joint stability: A systematic review on the plantar plate of the lesser toes

Background: Instability of the metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints of the lesser toes (digiti 2-5) is increasingly being treated by repair of the plantar plate (PP). This systematic review examines the anatomy of the plantar plate of the lesser toes, and the relation between the integrity of the plantar plates of the lesser toes and lesser MTP joint stability. Methods: The databases of Embase.com, Medline (Ovid), Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane, Pubmed not medline, Cinahl (ebsco), ProQuest, Lilacs, Scielo and Google Scholar were searched in June 2015 from inception. Studies were included if they were in English, contained primary data, and had a focus on plantar plate anatomy of the lesser toes or on the relationship between integrity of the plantar plate and MTP joint (in)stability. Study characteristics were extracted into two main tables and descriptive anatomical and histological data were summarized into one schematic 3D drawing of the plantar plate. Results: Nine studies were included in this systematic review, of which five addressed plantar plate anatomy as such and four focused directly and indirectly on plantar plate integrity related to MTP joint stability. Conclusion: This is the first systematic review regarding plantar plate anatomy related to MTP joint stability of the lesser toes. This review iterates the importance of plantar plate anatomy and integrity for MTP joint stability, and it delineates the lack of primary data regarding plantar plate anatomy of the lesser toes and MTP joint stability

Association between a 46-SNP Polygenic Risk Score and melanoma risk in Dutch patients with familial melanoma

Background Familial clustering of melanoma suggests a shared genetic predisposition among family members, but only 10%–40% of familial cases carry a pathogenic variant in a known high-risk melanoma susceptibility gene. We investigated whether a melanoma-specific Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) is associated with melanoma risk in patients with genetically unexplained familial melanoma. Methods Dutch familial melanoma cases (n=418) were genotyped for 46 SNPs previously identified as independently associated with melanoma risk. The 46-SNP PRS was calculated and standardised to 3423 healthy controls (sPRS) and the association between PRS and melanoma risk was modelled using logistic regression. Within the case series, possible differences were further explored by investigating the PRS in relation to (1) the number of primary melanomas in a patient and (2) the extent of familial clustering of melanoma. Results The PRS was significantly associated with melanoma risk, with a per-SD OR of 2.12 (95% CI 1.90 to 2.35, p<0.001), corresponding to a 5.70-fold increased risk (95% CI 3.93 to 8.28) when comparing the top 90th to the middle 40–60th PRS percentiles. The mean PRS was significantly higher in cases with multiple primary melanomas than in cases with a single melanoma (sPRS 1.17 vs 0.71, p=0.001). Conversely, cases from high-density melanoma families had a lower (but non-significant) mean PRS than cases from low-density families (sPRS 0.60 vs 0.94, p=0.204). Conclusion Our work underlines the significance of a PRS in determining melanoma susceptibility and encourages further exploration of the diagnostic value of a PRS in genetically unexplained melanoma families

Solid Surface Structure Affects Liquid Order at the Polystyrene/SAM Interface

We present a combined x-ray and neutron reflectivity study characterizing the interface between polystyrene (PS) and silanized surfaces. Motivated by the large difference in slip velocity of PS on top of dodecyl-trichlorosilane (DTS) and octadecyl-trichlorosilane (OTS) found in previous studies, these two systems were chosen for the present investigation. The results reveal the molecular conformation of PS on silanized silicon. Differences in the molecular tilt of OTS and DTS are replicated by the adjacent phenyl rings of the PS. We discuss our findings in terms of a potential link between the microscopic interfacial structure and dynamic properties of polymeric liquids at interfaces

Waterkwaliteit zonder toxiciteit

Schoon oppervlaktewater zonder microverontreinigingen – wie wil dat niet? Maar we gebruiken meer dan 100.000 chemische stoffen! Maatregelen zijn nodig, maar welke? Wat heb je aan kennis over individuele stoffen? En hoe onderzoek je mengsels? Met de Ecologische Sleutelfactor Toxiciteit (ESF-Toxiciteit) wordt het mogelijk om heel precies de stoffen en de plekken met de grootste risico’s te identificeren

Waterkwaliteit zonder toxiciteit

Schoon oppervlaktewater zonder microverontreinigingen – wie wil dat niet? Maar we gebruiken meer dan 100.000 chemische stoffen! Maatregelen zijn nodig, maar welke? Hoe ver kom je door individuele stoffen te onderzoeken? En hoe kijk je naar realistische mengsels? Sinds kort is er de Ecologische Sleutelfactor Toxiciteit (ESF-Toxiciteit). Hiermee wordt het mogelijk om te werken aan de verbetering van de waterkwaliteit door heel precies de stoffen en de plekken met de grootste risico’s te identificeren

Neutron-Electron EDM Correlations in Supersymmetry and Prospects for EDM Searches

Motivated by recent progress in experimental techniques of electric dipole moment (EDM) measurements, we study correlations between the neutron and electron EDMs in common supersymmetric models. These include minimal supergravity (mSUGRA) with small CP phases, mSUGRA with a heavy SUSY spectrum, the decoupling scenario and split SUSY. In most cases, the electron and neutron EDMs are found to be observable in the next round of EDM experiments. They exhibit certain correlation patterns. For example, if d_n ~ 10^{-27} e cm is found, d_e is predicted to lie in the range 10^{-28}-10^{-29} e cm.Comment: 16 pages,12 figures. To appear in JHEP. A note on stability of the correlations added in Conclusions; refs. and footnotes adde

Vegetative buffers for fan emissions from poultry farms: 2. ammonia, dust and foliar nitrogen

This study evaluated the potential of trees planted around commercial poultry farms to trap ammonia (NH3) and dust or particulate matter (PM). Norway spruce, Spike hybrid poplar, hybrid willow, and Streamco purpleosier willow were planted on five commercial farms from 2003 to 2004. Plant foliage was sampled in front of the exhaust fans and at a control distance away from the fans on one turkey, two laying hen, and two broiler chicken farms between June and July 2006. Samples were analyzed for dry matter (DM), nitrogen (N), and PM content. In addition, NH3concentrations were measured downwind of the exhaust fans among the trees and at a control distance using NH3 passive dosi–tubes. Foliage samples were taken and analyzed separately based on plant species. The two layer farms had both spruce and poplar plantings whereas the two broiler farms had hybrid willow and Streamco willow plantings which allowed sampling and species comparisons with the effect of plant location (control vs. fan). The results showed that NH3 concentration h− 1 was reduced by distance from housing fans (P ≤ 0.0001), especially between 0 m (12.01 ppm), 11.4 m (2.59 ppm), 15 m (2.03 ppm), and 30 m (0.31 ppm). Foliar N of plants near the fans was greater than those sampled away from the fans for poplar (3.87 vs. 2.56%; P ≤ 0.0005) and hybrid willow (3.41 vs. 3.02%; P ≤ 0.05). The trends for foliar N in spruce (1.91 vs. 1.77%; P = 0.26) and Streamco willow (3.85 vs. 3.33; P = 0.07) were not significant. Pooling results of the four plant species indicated greater N concentration from foliage sampled near the fans than of that away from the fans (3.27 vs. 2.67%; P ≤ 0.0001). Foliar DM concentration was not affected by plant location, and when pooled the foliar DM of the four plant species near the fans was 51.3% in comparison with 48.5% at a control distance. There was a significant effect of plant location on foliar N and DM on the two layer farms with greater N and DM adjacent to fans than at a control distance (2.95 vs. 2.15% N and 45.4 vs. 38.2% DM, respectively). There were also significant plant species effects on foliar N and DM with poplar retaining greater N (3.22 vs. 1.88%) and DM (43.7 vs. 39.9%) than spruce. The interaction of location by species (P ≤ 0.005) indicated that poplar was more responsive in terms of foliar N, but less responsive for DM than spruce. The effect of location and species on foliar N and DM were not clear among the two willow species on the broiler farms. Plant location had no effect on plant foliar PM weight, but plant species significantly influenced the ability of the plant foliage to trap PM with spruce and hybrid willow showing greater potential than poplar and Streamco willow for PM2.5(0.0054, 0.0054, 0.0005, and 0.0016 mg cm− 2; P ≤ 0.05) and total PM (0.0309, 0.0102, 0.0038, and 0.0046 mg cm− 2, respectively; P ≤ 0.001). Spruce trapped more dust compared to the other three species (hybrid willow, poplar, and Streamco willow) for PM10 (0.0248 vs. 0.0036 mg cm− 2; P ≤ 0.0001) and PM\u3e 10 (0.0033 vs. 0.0003 mg cm− 2; P = 0.052). This study indicates that poplar, hybrid willow, and Streamco willow are appropriate species to absorb poultry house aerial NH3–N, whereas spruce and hybrid willow are effective traps for dust and its associated odors

An Improved Experimental Limit on the Electric Dipole Moment of the Neutron

An experimental search for an electric-dipole moment (EDM) of the neutron has been carried out at the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL), Grenoble. Spurious signals from magnetic-field fluctuations were reduced to insignificance by the use of a cohabiting atomic-mercury magnetometer. Systematic uncertainties, including geometric-phase-induced false EDMs, have been carefully studied. Two independent approaches to the analysis have been adopted. The overall results may be interpreted as an upper limit on the absolute value of the neutron EDM of |d_n| < 2.9 x 10^{-26} e cm (90% CL).Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures. The published PRL is slightly more terse (e.g. no section headings) than this version, due to space constraints. Note a small correction-to-a-correction led to an adjustment of the final limit from 3.0 to 2.9 E-26 e.cm compared to the first version of this preprin