Stabilities of one-dimensional stationary states of Bose-Einstein condensates

We explore the dynamical stabilities of a quasi-one dimensional (1D) Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) consisting of fixed $N$ atoms with time-independent external potential. For the stationary states with zero flow density the general solution of the perturbed time evolution equation is constructed, and the stability criterions concerning the initial conditions and system parameters are established. Taking the lattice potential case as an example, the stability and instability regions on the parameter space are found. The results suggest a method for selecting experimental parameters and adjusting initial conditions to suppress the instabilities.Comment: 12 page

A phase I study of ridaforolimus in adult Chinese patients with advanced solid tumors

PURPOSE: Ridaforolimus (AP23573, MK-8669 or deforolimus) is an inhibitor of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), an important regulator in the cell survival pathway. This open-label, single center phase I study aimed to investigate the pharmacokinetic (PK) and safety profiles of ridaforolimus in Chinese patients with treatment-refractory advanced or relapsed solid tumors. The PK data generated from these Chinese patients were further compared with those previously reported in Caucasian and Japanese patient populations. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: The patients were given an oral dose of 40 mg of ridaforolimus on Day 1 of the study. On Day 8, patients were initiated on a treatment regimen that comprised a once daily dose of 40 mg of ridaforolimus for five consecutive days, followed by a 2-day off-drug interval. Patients repeated this regimen until disease progression or intolerance. Blood samples were collected at specific times pre- and post-treatment to establish the PK profile of ridaforolimus in all patients. RESULTS: Fifteen patients were given at least one dose of 40 mg of ridaforolimus. The median absorption lag-time was 2 hours, the median T(max) was 4 hours and the mean elimination half-life was 53 hours. The accumulation ratio for AUC(0-24hr) was 1.3 on day 19 (steady state)/day 1 (after a single dose). The most common drug-related adverse events (AEs) that occurred in ≥40% of patients were stomatitis, proteinuria, leukopenia, hyperglycemia, and pyrexia. Grade 3/4 drug-related AEs were anemia, stomatitis, fatigue, thrombocytopenia, constipation, gamma glutamyltransferase increase, and proteinuria. All 11 evaluable patients achieved stable disease. CONCLUSIONS: Oral ridaforolimus at a daily dose of 40 mg were generally well tolerated in Chinese patients with advanced or refractory solid tumors. Adverse events and PK profiles of ridaforolimus in this study were similar to those from Caucasian and Japanese patients reported previously

A targeted next-generation sequencing method for identifying clinically relevant mutation profiles in lung adenocarcinoma

Molecular profiling of lung cancer has become essential for prediction of an individual’s response to targeted therapies. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) is a promising technique for routine diagnostics, but has not been sufficiently evaluated in terms of feasibility, reliability, cost and capacity with routine diagnostic formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) materials. Here, we report the validation and application of a test based on Ion Proton technology for the rapid characterisation of single nucleotide variations (SNVs), short insertions and deletions (InDels), copy number variations (CNVs), and gene rearrangements in 145 genes with FFPE clinical specimens. The validation study, using 61 previously profiled clinical tumour samples, showed a concordance rate of 100% between results obtained by NGS and conventional test platforms. Analysis of tumour cell lines indicated reliable mutation detection in samples with 5% tumour content. Furthermore, application of the panel to 58 clinical cases, identified at least one actionable mutation in 43 cases, 1.4 times the number of actionable alterations detected by current diagnostic tests. We demonstrated that targeted NGS is a cost-effective and rapid platform to detect multiple mutations simultaneously in various genes with high reproducibility and sensitivity

Discharge protocol in acute pancreatitis: an international survey and cohort analysis

There are several overlapping clinical practice guidelines in acute pancreatitis (AP), however, none of them contains suggestions on patient discharge. The Hungarian Pancreatic Study Group (HPSG) has recently developed a laboratory data and symptom-based discharge protocol which needs to be validated. (1) A survey was conducted involving all members of the International Association of Pancreatology (IAP) to understand the characteristics of international discharge protocols. (2) We investigated the safety and effectiveness of the HPSG-discharge protocol. According to our international survey, 87.5% (49/56) of the centres had no discharge protocol. Patients discharged based on protocols have a significantly shorter median length of hospitalization (LOH) (7 (5;10) days vs. 8 (5;12) days) p < 0.001), and a lower rate of readmission due to recurrent AP episodes (p = 0.005). There was no difference in median discharge CRP level among the international cohorts (p = 0.586). HPSG-protocol resulted in the shortest LOH (6 (5;9) days) and highest median CRP (35.40 (13.78; 68.40) mg/l). Safety was confirmed by the low rate of readmittance (n = 35; 5%). Discharge protocol is necessary in AP. The discharge protocol used in this study is the first clinically proven protocol. Developing and testifying further protocols are needed to better standardize patients' care

A preliminary evaluation of targeted nanopore sequencing technology for the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid specimens

ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of targeted nanopore sequencing technology for the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis(M.tb.) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(BALF) specimens.MethodsA prospective study was used to select 58 patients with suspected pulmonary tuberculosis(PTB) at Henan Chest Hospital from January to October 2022 for bronchoscopy, and BALF specimens were subjected to acid-fast bacilli(AFB) smear, Mycobacterium tuberculosis MGIT960 liquid culture, Gene Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert MTB/RIF) and targeted nanopore sequencing (TNS) for the detection of M.tb., comparing the differences in the positive rates of the four methods for the detection of patients with different classifications.ResultsAmong 58 patients with suspected pulmonary tuberculosis, there were 48 patients with a final diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis. Using the clinical composite diagnosis as the reference gold standard, the sensitivity of AFB smear were 27.1% (95% CI: 15.3-41.8); for M.tb culture were 39.6% (95% CI: 25.8-54.7); for Xpert MTB/RIF were 56.2% (95% CI: 41.2-70.5); for TNS were 89.6% (95% CI: 77.3-96.5). Using BALF specimens Xpert MTB/RIF and/or M.tb. culture as the reference standard, TNS showed 100% (30/30) sensitivity. The sensitivity of NGS for pulmonary tuberculosis diagnosis was significantly higher than Xpert MTB/RIF, M.tb. culture, and AFB smear. Besides, P values of &lt;0.05 were considered statistically significant.ConclusionUsing a clinical composite reference standard as a reference gold standard, TNS has the highest sensitivity and consistency with clinical diagnosis, and can rapidly and efficiently detect PTB in BALF specimens, which can aid to improve the early diagnosis of suspected tuberculosis patients

Randomized controlled trial: neostigmine for intra-abdominal hypertension in acute pancreatitis

BACKGROUND: Intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) in acute pancreatitis (AP) is associated with deterioration in organ function. This trial aimed to assess the efficacy of neostigmine for IAH in patients with AP. METHODS: In this single-center, randomized trial, consenting patients with IAH within 2 weeks of AP onset received conventional treatment for 24 h. Patients with sustained intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) ≥ 12 mmHg were randomized to receive intramuscular neostigmine (1 mg every 12 h increased to every 8 h or every 6 h, depending on response) or continue conventional treatment for 7 days. The primary outcome was the percent change of IAP at 24 h after randomization. RESULTS: A total of 80 patients were recruited to neostigmine (n = 40) or conventional treatment (n = 40). There was no significant difference in baseline parameters. The rate of decrease in IAP was significantly faster in the neostigmine group compared to the conventional group by 24 h (median with 25th–75th percentile: −18.7% [− 28.4 to − 4.7%] vs. − 5.4% [− 18.0% to 0], P = 0.017). This effect was more pronounced in patients with baseline IAP ≥ 15 mmHg (P = 0.018). Per-protocol analysis confirmed these results (P = 0.03). Stool volume was consistently higher in the neostigmine group during the 7-day observational period (all P < 0.05). Other secondary outcomes were not significantly different between neostigmine and conventional treatment groups. CONCLUSION: Neostigmine reduced IAP and promoted defecation in patients with AP and IAH. These results warrant a larger, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase III trial. Trial registration Clinical Trial No: NCT02543658 (registered August /27, 2015). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13054-022-03922-4