Systematic Cu-63 NQR studies of the stripe phase in La(1.6-x)Nd(0.4)Sr(x)CuO(4) for 0.07 <= x <= 0.25

We demonstrate that the integrated intensity of Cu-63 nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) in La(1.6-x)Nd(0.4)Sr(x)CuO(4) decreases dramatically below the charge-stripe ordering temperature T(charge). Comparison with neutron and X-ray scattering indicates that the wipeout fraction F(T) (i.e. the missing fraction of the integrated intensity of the NQR signal) represents the charge-stripe order parameter. The systematic study reveals bulk charge-stripe order throughout the superconducting region 0.07 <= x <= 0.25. As a function of the reduced temperature t = T/T(charge), the temperature dependence of F(t) is sharpest for the hole concentration x=1/8, indicating that x=1/8 is the optimum concentration for stripe formation.Comment: 10 pages of text and captions, 11 figures in postscript. Final version, with new data in Fig.

Gas/particle Interaction in Ultrasound Agitated Gas Flow

AbstractAcoustic waves imply specific force and stress distributions onto particles in a gaseous environment. In this paper time-dependent and time-averaged acoustic forces of resonant standing ultrasound waves on rigid particles and agglomerates in gaseous environment are investigated by numerical simulation. The calculated resonant standing wave field is validated using experimental data. Acoustic forces are calculated for cylindrical and spherical particle geometries and the resulting values are compared with analytic correlations from literature. The position of the bodies in respect to the sound source was varied to study the local dependence of the acoustic force. Characteristics of gas/particle interaction in ultrasound agitated gas flow are discussed

Primary Biliary Cholangitis : advances in management and treatment of the disease

Primary Biliary Cholangitis, previously known as Primary Biliary Cirrhosis, is a rare disease, which mainly affects women in their fifth to seventh decades of life. It is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by a progressive damage of interlobular bile ducts leading to ductopenia, chronic cholestasis and bile acids retention. Even if the disease usually presents a long asymptomatic phase and a slow progression, in many patients it may progress faster toward cirrhosis and its complications. The 10\uc2\ua0year mortality is greater than in diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus/Hepatitis C Virus coinfection and breast cancer. Ursodeoxycholic acid is the only treatment available today, but even if effective in counteracting the disease progression for the majority of patients, in approximately 40% is not able to decrease effectively the alkaline phosphatase, a surrogate marker of disease activity. Recently, obeticholic acid received the European Medicines Agency conditional approval, as add on treatment in patients non responders or intolerant to ursodeoxycholic acid. The present paper illustrates the opinion of a working group, composed by clinical pharmacologists, gastroenterologists/hepatologists with specific expertise on Primary Biliary Cholangitis and patient associations, on the state of the art and future perspectives of the disease management. The agreement on the document was reached through an Expert Meeting

The diagnosis and treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a slowly progressive cholestatic liver disease of autoimmune etiology. The initial presentation of PBC is various from asymptomatic, abnormal liver biochemical tests to overt cirrhosis. The diagnosis of PBC is based on cholestatic biochemical liver tests, presence of antimitochondrial antibody and histologic findings of nonsuppurative destructive cholangitis. Although the diagnosis is straightforward, it could be underdiagnosed because of its asymptomatic presentation, or underrecognition of the disease. UDCA in a dose of 13-15 mg/kg is the widely approved therapy which can improve the prognosis of patients with PBC. However, one-third of patients does not respond to UDCA therapy and may require liver transplantation. Every effort to diagnose PBC in earlier stage and to develop new therapeutic drugs and clinical trials should be made

Clinical realism: a new literary genre and a potential tool for encouraging empathy in medical students

Background: Empathy has been re-discovered as a desirable quality in doctors. A number of approaches using the medical humanities have been advocated to teach empathy to medical students. This paper describes a new approach using the medium of creative writing and a new narrative genre: clinical realism. Methods: Third year students were offered a four week long Student Selected Component (SSC) in Narrative Medicine and Creative Writing. The creative writing element included researching and creating a character with a life-changing physical disorder without making the disorder the focus of the writing. The age, gender, social circumstances and physical disorder of a character were randomly allocated to each student. The students wrote repeated assignments in the first person, writing as their character and including details of living with the disorder in all of their narratives. This article is based on the work produced by the 2013 cohort of students taking the course, and on their reflections on the process of creating their characters. Their output was analysed thematically using a constructivist approach to meaning making. Results: This preliminary analysis suggests that the students created convincing and detailed narratives which included rich information about living with a chronic disorder. Although the writing assignments were generic, they introduced a number of themes relating to illness, including stigma, personal identity and narrative wreckage. Some students reported that they found it difficult to relate to “their” character initially, but their empathy for the character increased as the SSC progressed. Conclusion: Clinical realism combined with repeated writing exercises about the same character is a potential tool for helping to develop empathy in medical students and merits further investigation

Positive and negative allosteric effects of thiacalix[4]arene-based receptors having urea and crown-ether moieties

Heteroditopic receptors (4ₐ₋ₑ) based on a thiacalix[4]arene in the 1,3-alternate conformation, which have two urea moieties linking various phenyl groups substituted with either electron-donating or -withdrawing groups at their m-, or p-positions with a crown-ether moiety at the opposite side of the thiacalix[4]arene cavity, have been synthesized. The two examples with p-CH₃– (4b) and p-NO₂-substituted (4ₑ) phenyl groups have been characterized by X-ray crystallography. The binding properties of receptor 4ₑ were investigated by means of ¹H NMR spectroscopic and absorption titration experiments in CHCl₃–DMSO (10:1, v/v) solution in the presence of K⁺ ions and various anions. Interestingly, it was found that receptor 4ₑ, which possesses two p-nitrophenyl ureido moieties, can complex most efficiently in the urea cavity or the crown-ether moiety; and the plausible allosteric effect of receptor 4ₑ was also studied

Characterization of 9-Nitrocamptothecin Liposomes: Anticancer Properties and Mechanisms on Hepatocellular Carcinoma In Vitro and In Vivo

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third most common cause of cancer related mortality worldwide. 9-Nitrocamptothecin (9NC) is a potent topoisomerase-I inhibitor with strong anticancer effect. To increase the solubility and stability, we synthesized a novel 9NC loaded liposomes (9NC-LP) via incorporating 9NC into liposomes. In the present study, we determined the effects of 9NC and 9NC-LP on in vitro and in vivo, and the underlying mechanisms. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We first analyzed the characteristics of 9NC-LP. Then we compared the effects of 9NC and 9NC-LP on the proliferation and apoptosis of HepG2, Bel-7402, Hep3B and L02 cells in vitro. We also investigated their anticancer properties in nude mice bearing HCC xenograft in vivo. 9NC-LP has a uniform size (around 190 nm) and zeta potential (∼-11 mV), and exhibited a steady sustained-release pattern profile in vitro. Both 9NC and 9NC-LP could cause cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in a dose-dependent and p53-dependent manner. However, this effect was not ubiquitous in all cell lines. Exposure to 9NC-LP led to increased expression of p53, p21, p27, Bax, caspase-3, caspase-8, caspase-9 and apoptosis-inducing factor, mitochondrion-associated 1 and decreased expression of Bcl-2, cyclin E, cyclin A, Cdk2 and cyclin D1. Furthermore, 9NC-LP exhibited a more potent antiproliferative effect and less side effects in vivo. Western blot analysis of the xenograft tumors in nude mice showed similar changes in protein expression in vivo. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: In conclusion, 9NC and 9NC-LP can inhibit HCC growth via cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptosis. 9NC-LP has a more potent anti-tumor effect and fewer side effects in vivo, which means it is a promising reagent for cancer therapy via intravenous administration

A study of anion binding behaviour of 1,3-alternate thiacalix[4]arene-based receptors bearing urea moieties

© 2016 The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique. Three novel thiacalix[4]arene receptors 4 a-c each with a 1,3-alternate conformation and possessing two urea moieties linking various phenyl groups substituted with either para electron-donating or -withdrawing groups have been synthesized. The binding properties of these receptors were investigated by means of 1 H NMR spectroscopy and UV-vis absorption titration experiments using various anions. The structures and complexation energies were also studied by density functional theory (DFT) methods. The results suggested that receptor 4 c , which possesses two p-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl ureido moieties, can complex most efficiently in the urea cavity and exhibits high selectivity towards F - and AcO - ions