The Gravitational Lensing Effect on the CMB Polarisation Anisotropy in the {\Lambda}-LTB Model

A local void modifies the sky distribution pattern of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarisation by gravitational lensing and produces B-modes from E-modes for an off-center observer. In order to see whether this effect can be used to observationally test the validity of the local void model, we calculate this lensing effect by solving the propagation of CMB polarisation along null geodesics close to the central light cone in the general Lema\^itre-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) model perturbatively. In particular, we give general formulas for the correlations of E and B observed by an off-center observer and show that E_l^m and B_l^m are correlated for the same value of l, i.e., is proportional to {\delta}_{l, l'}, while <E_l^m E_l'^m'> is proportional to {\delta}_{|l'-l|, 1}. This feature can be used to distinguish the gravitational lensing effect by a local void from those by normal shear field of galaxies.Comment: 22 pages in the PTPTeX style, 2 figures, 1 table; revised argument in Section 4.4 and added Section 5.4 in response to referee's comment

Clinical results of Hi-tech Knee II total knee arthroplasty in patients with rheumatoid athritis: 5- to 12-year follow-up

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a common form of treatment to relieve pain and improve function in cases of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Good clinical outcomes have been reported with a variety of TKA prostheses. The cementless Hi-Tech Knee II cruciate-retaining (CR)-type prosthesis, which has 6 fins at the anterior of the femoral component, posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) retention, flat-on-flat surface component geometry, all-polyethylene patella, strong initial fixation by the center screw of the tibial base plate, 10 layers of titanium alloy fiber mesh, and direct compression molded ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), is appropriate for TKA in the Japanese knee.</p> <p>The present study was performed to evaluate the clinical results of primary TKA in RA using the cementless Hi-Tech Knee II CR-type prosthesis.</p> <p>Materials and methods</p> <p>We performed 32 consecutive primary TKAs using cementless Hi-Tech Knee II CR-type prosthesis in 31 RA patients. The average follow-up period was 8 years 3 months. Clinical evaluations were performed according to the American Knee Society (KS) system, knee score, function score, radiographic evaluation, and complications.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mean postoperative maximum flexion angle was 115.6°, and the KS knee score and function score improved to 88 and 70 after surgery, respectively. Complications, such as infection, occurred in 1 patient and revision surgery was performed. There were no cases of loosening in this cohort, and prosthesis survival rate was 96.9% at 12 years postoperatively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results suggest that TKA using the cementless Hi-Tech Knee II CR-type prosthesis is a very effective form of treatment in RA patients at 5 to 12 years postoperatively. Further long-term follow-up studies are required to determine the ultimate utility of this type of prosthesis.</p

Fgf20b is required for the ectomesenchymal fate establishment of cranial neural crest cells in zebrafish.

In cranial skeletal development, the establishment of the ectomesenchymal lineage within the cranial neural crest is of great significance. Fgfs are polypeptide growth factors with diverse functions in development and metabolism. Fgf20b knockdown zebrafish embryos showed dysplastic neurocranial and pharyngeal cartilages. Ectomesenchymal cells from cranial neural crest cells were significantly decreased in Fgf20b knockdown embryos, but cranial neural crest cells with a non-ectomesnchymal fate were increased. However, the proliferation and apoptosis of cranial neural crest cells were essentially unchanged. Fgfr1 knockdown embryos also showed dysplastic neurocranial and pharyngeal cartilages. The present findings indicate that Fgf20b is required for ectomesenchymal fate establishment via the activation of Fgfr1 in zebrafish

The saw-tooth sign as a clinical clue for intrathoracic central airway obstruction

BACKGROUND: The saw-tooth sign was first described by Sanders et al in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome as one cause of extrathoracic central airway obstruction. The mechanism of the saw-tooth sign has not been conclusively clarified. The sign has also been described in various extrathoracic central airway diseases, such as in burn victims with thermal injury to the upper airways, Parkinson’s disease, tracheobronchomalacia, laryngeal dyskinesia, and pedunculated tumors of the upper airway. CASE PRESENTATION: A 61-year-old man was referred to our hospital with a two-month history of persistent dry cough and dyspnea. He was diagnosed with lung cancer located in an intrathoracic central airway, which was accompanied by the saw-tooth sign on flow-volume loops. This peculiar sign repeatedly improved and deteriorated, in accordance with the waxing and waning of central airway stenosis by anti-cancer treatments. CONCLUSION: This report suggests that the so-called saw-tooth sign may be found even in intrathoracic central airway obstruction due to lung cancer

X-ray stress measurement of carbide in tool steel

金沢大学大学院自然科学研究科システム創成科学専攻Thin films deposited by physical vapor deposition (PVD) were studied in terms of residual stress by the authors. The final purpose of our study is to evaluate the stress state at the interface between a substrate and a thin film. In this study, JIS-SKH55 tool steel without thin-film deposition was used as the specimen. SKH55 is a dual-phase steel consisting of martensite α\u27Fe and alloyed carbide M6C2. The specimens were heated to 573K, 798K, 843K and 893K. Recently, the relationship between the misfit of plastic strain and stress obtained by X-ray stress measurement has been proposed by the authors using the Eshelby/Mori-Tanaka model (EMT model). The residual stress and the misfit of plastic strain were determined by X-ray stress measurement using the EMT model. Results showed that as annealing temperature increased, the compressive residual stress remained nearly constant up to about 800K, and decreased above 800K in both phases. The misfit of plastic strain also remained nearly constant up to about 800K, and reached zero above 800K