BACKGROUND & AIMS: BACKGROUND:Several studies described the benefits of the heparin-surface-modified intraocular tens (HSM IOL) with regard to the reduced inflammation in routine extracapsular cataract extractions. However, limited information is available about the advantages of the HSM IOL in patients with an intraocular inflammation. AIM:To assess the eventual benefits of the HSM IOL compared to the regular polymethylmethacrylate intraocular lens (PMMA IOL) in patients with uveitis. METHODS:A retrospective study of 43 patients with uveitis of various origins who underwent an extracapsular cataract extraction (24 with HSM, 19 with PMMA IOL). The activity of intraocular inflammation, visual acuity, eventual complications, and medications were examined. Standardized follow-up dates were used (before surgery, one and fourteen days, five and eleven months after surgery.) RESULTS:No difference in the inflammatory, activity was noted between HSM and PMMA groups; neither at short term clinical evaluation, nor at five months after surgery. Despite a slightly better visual acuity in the HSM group before surgery, no long term differences were observed. After surgery the increase in visual acuity was similar for both groups, as well as the frequency of cystoid macular oedema (CMO) and synechiae. Fewer patients in HSM group required Nd:YAG posterior capsulotomy, but the difference was not significant. CONCLUSION:No clinical advantage was found when the HSM IOL was compared with the regular PMMA IOL in 43 patients with uveitis.

背景与目标：

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :The Smu0630 protein (AtlA) was recently shown to be involved in cell separation, biofilm formation, and autolysis. Here, transcriptional studies revealed that atlA is part of a multigene operon under the control of at least three promoters. The morphology and biofilm-forming capacity of a nonpolar altA mutant could be restored to that of the wild-type strain by adding purified AtlA protein to the medium. A series of truncated derivatives of AtlA revealed that full activity required the C terminus and repeat regions. AtlA was cell associated and readily extractable from with sodium dodecyl sulfate. Of particular interest, the surface protein profile of AtlA-deficient strains was dramatically altered compared to the wild-type strain, as was the nature of the association of the multifunctional adhesin P1 with the cell wall. In addition, AtlA-deficient strains failed to develop competence as effectively as the parental strain. Mutation of thmA, which can be cotranscribed with atlA and encodes a putative pore-forming protein, resulted in a phenotype very similar to that of the AtlA-deficient strain. ThmA was also shown to be required for efficient processing of AtlA to its mature form, and treatment of the thmA mutant strain with full-length AtlA protein did not restore normal cell separation and biofilm formation. The effects of mutating other genes in the operon on cell division, biofilm formation, or AtlA biogenesis were not as profound. This study reveals that AtlA is a surface-associated protein that plays a critical role in the network connecting cell surface biogenesis, biofilm formation, genetic competence, and autolysis.

背景与目标： : Smu0630蛋白 (AtlA) 最近被证明与细胞分离，生物膜形成和自溶有关。在这里，转录研究表明，atlA是至少三个启动子控制下的多基因操纵子的一部分。通过向培养基中添加纯化的AtlA蛋白，可以将非极性altA突变体的形态和生物膜形成能力恢复到野生型菌株。AtlA的一系列截短衍生物表明，完全活动需要C末端和重复区域。AtlA与细胞相关，易于用十二烷基硫酸钠提取。特别令人感兴趣的是，与野生型菌株相比，AtlA缺陷菌株的表面蛋白谱发生了显着变化，多功能粘附素P1与细胞壁的结合性质也发生了变化。此外，AtlA缺陷菌株未能像亲本菌株那样有效地发展能力。thmA的突变可以与atlA共同转录并编码推定的成孔蛋白，其表型与AtlA缺陷菌株的表型非常相似。还显示了将AtlA有效加工成成熟形式所需的ThmA，并且用全长AtlA蛋白处理thmA突变株不能恢复正常的细胞分离和生物膜形成。操纵子中其他基因的突变对细胞分裂，生物膜形成或AtlA生物发生的影响不那么深远。这项研究表明，AtlA是一种表面相关蛋白，在连接细胞表面生物发生，生物膜形成，遗传能力和自溶的网络中起关键作用。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :Accurate muscle geometry (muscle length and moment arm) is required to estimate muscle function when using musculoskeletal modelling. In shoulder, muscles are often modelled as a collection of independent line segments, leading to non-physiological muscles trajectory, especially for the rotator cuff muscles. To prevent this, a surface mesh model was developed and validated against 7 MRI positions in one participant. Mean moment arm errors was 11.4% for the line vs. 8.8% for the mesh model. While the model with independent lines led to some non-physiological trajectories, the mesh model gave lower misestimations of muscle lengths and moment arms.

背景与目标： : 使用肌肉骨骼模型时，需要准确的肌肉几何形状 (肌肉长度和力矩臂) 来估计肌肉功能。在肩部，肌肉通常被建模为独立线段的集合，从而导致非生理肌肉轨迹，尤其是对于肩袖肌肉。为了防止这种情况，开发了一个表面网格模型，并针对一名参与者的7个MRI位置进行了验证。11.4% 直线的平均力矩臂误差与网格模型的8.8%。虽然具有独立线条的模型导致了一些非生理轨迹，但网格模型对肌肉长度和力矩臂的误判较低。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: BACKGROUND:Ebstein anomaly is a rare and heterogeneous congenital heart defect affecting the tricuspid valve and right ventricular (RV) myocardium. Few studies have analysed the electrocardiographic features of Ebstein anomaly and none has addressed correlations with disease severity. METHODS:Patients with Ebstein anomaly who had undergone electrocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) within 6 weeks between 2001 and 2009 were included. Exclusion criteria were: associated congenital cardiac defect, previous RV myoplasty and/or reduction surgery, class I anti-arrhythmic drug therapy, and paced/pre-excited QRS. Standard electrocardiogram (ECG) findings were correlated with CMR-based RV measures and clinical profile. RESULTS:The mean age of the 63 study patients was 22 ± 13 years. An RV conduction delay (rsR' pattern in right precordial leads) was present in 45 patients (71%). The QRS duration correlated with anatomic RV diastolic volume (r = +0.56, P < 0.0001) and inversely with RV ejection fraction (EF; r = -0.62, P < 0.0001). The presence of QRS fractionation predicted greater atrialized RV volume (80 ± 31 vs. 45 ± 37 mL/m(2), P < 0.001). Normal QRS duration was associated with smaller anatomic RV diastolic volume (150 ± 57 vs. 256 ± 100 mL/m(2); P < 0.0001), higher RV EF (48 ± 6 vs. 34 ± 14%; P < 0.0001), higher oxygen consumption (VO(2)) at cardiopulmonary exercise (25.8 vs. 21.8 mL/kg/min, P = 0.05) and lower incidence of oxygen desaturation with exercise (25 vs. 65%, P = 0.02). CONCLUSION:Delayed and prolonged depolarization of the RV is common in patients with Ebstein anomaly. The QRS duration is a marker of RV enlargement and dysfunction. QRS fractionation is associated with a greater atrialized RV volume. A preserved surface ECG identifies a subset of patients with Ebstein anomaly with mild morphological and functional abnormalities and better clinical profile.

背景与目标：

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :In correlated systems, intermediate states usually appear transiently across phase transitions even at the femtosecond scale. It therefore remains an open question how to determine these intermediate states-a critical issue for understanding the origin of their correlated behaviour. Here we report a surface coordination route to successfully stabilize and directly image an intermediate state in the metal-insulator transition of vanadium dioxide. As a prototype metal-insulator transition material, we capture an unusual metal-like monoclinic phase at room temperature that has long been predicted. Coordinate bonding of L-ascorbic acid molecules with vanadium dioxide nanobeams induces charge-carrier density reorganization and stabilizes metallic monoclinic vanadium dioxide, unravelling orbital-selective Mott correlation for gap opening of the vanadium dioxide metal-insulator transition. Our study contributes to completing phase-evolution pathways in the metal-insulator transition process, and we anticipate that coordination chemistry may be a powerful tool for engineering properties of low-dimensional correlated solids.

背景与目标： : 在相关系统中，即使在飞秒范围内，中间状态通常也会在相变中短暂出现。因此，如何确定这些中间状态仍然是一个悬而未决的问题-这是了解其相关行为起源的关键问题。在这里，我们报告了一种表面配位路线，可以成功地稳定并直接成像二氧化钒的金属-绝缘体转变中的中间状态。作为原型金属-绝缘体过渡材料，我们在室温下捕获了一种不寻常的类似金属的单斜晶相，这早已被预测。L-抗坏血酸分子与二氧化钒纳米贝姆的配位键诱导电荷-载流子密度重组并稳定金属单斜晶体二氧化钒，解开二氧化钒金属-绝缘体转变的间隙打开的轨道选择性莫特相关性。我们的研究有助于完成金属-绝缘体转变过程中的相演化途径，我们预计配位化学可能是低维相关固体工程性质的有力工具。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :The PDZ (PSD-95/Drosophila discs-large protein/zonula occludens protein) domain-containing proteins Na(+)/H(+) exchanger regulatory factor 1 (NHERF1) and NHERF2 interact with the glutamate transporter GLAST. To characterize the roles of these NHERF proteins in the plasma membrane targeting of GLAST, we examined the interaction of green fluorescent protein (EGFP)-tagged GLAST with epitope-tagged NHERF proteins in human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293T cells. Co-expression of either NHERF protein increased the cell surface expression of EGFP-GLAST. Deletion of the C-terminal PDZ domain-binding motif caused an increase in EGFP-GLAST with immature endoglycosidase H-sensitive N-linked oligosaccharides, suggesting impaired exit of EGFP-GLAST from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that NHERF1 predominantly bound EGFP-GLAST containing immature N-glycans, whereas NHERF2 co-precipitated EGFP-GLAST with mature N-glycans. Expression of a dominant-negative mutant of the GTPase Sar1 increased the interaction of EGFP-GLAST with NHERF1 in the ER. By contrast, immunofluorescence microscopy showed that NHERF2 co-localized with EGFP-GLAST in ER-Golgi intermediate compartments (ERGICs), at the plasma membrane and in early endosomes, but not in the ER. These results suggest that NHERF1 interacts with GLAST during ER export, while NHERF2 interacts with GLAST in the secretory pathway from the ERGIC to the plasma membrane, thereby modulating the cell surface expression of GLAST.

背景与目标： : 含有PDZ (PSD-95/果蝇盘-大蛋白/小带闭塞蛋白) 结构域的蛋白Na(+)/H(+) 交换调节因子1 (NHERF1) 和NHERF2与谷氨酸转运蛋白GLAST相互作用。为了表征这些NHERF蛋白在GLAST质膜靶向中的作用，我们检查了绿色荧光蛋白 (EGFP) 标记的GLAST与表位标记的NHERF蛋白在人胚肾 (HEK) 293T细胞中的相互作用。NHERF蛋白的共表达增加了EGFP-GLAST的细胞表面表达。C末端PDZ结构域结合基序的缺失导致未成熟的内切糖苷酶H敏感的N连接寡糖的EGFP-GLAST增加，表明EGFP-GLAST从内质网 (ER) 的退出受损。免疫沉淀实验表明，NHERF1主要结合含有未成熟N-聚糖的EGFP-GLAST，而NHERF2与成熟N-聚糖共同沉淀EGFP-GLAST。GTPase Sar1的显性负突变体的表达增加了ER中EGFP-GLAST与NHERF1的相互作用。相比之下，免疫荧光显微镜显示NHERF2与EGFP-GLAST共定位在ER-高尔基体中间区室 (ERGICs)，质膜和早期内体中，但不在ER中。这些结果表明，在ER输出过程中，NHERF1与GLAST相互作用，而NHERF2在从能膜到质膜的分泌途径中与GLAST相互作用，从而调节GLAST的细胞表面表达。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :Enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulosic material is an essential step in the bioethanol production process. However, complete cellulose hydrolysis by cellulase is difficult due to the irreversible adsorption of cellulase onto cellulose. Thus, part of the cellulose remains in crystalline form after hydrolysis. In this study, after 96-h hydrolysis of Avicel crystalline cellulose, 47.1 % of the cellulase was adsorbed on the cellulose surface with 10.8 % crystalline cellulose remaining. In simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of 100 g/L Avicel with 1.0 filter paper unit/mL cellulase, a wild-type yeast strain produced 44.7 g/L ethanol after 96 h. The yield of ethanol was 79.7 % of the theoretical yield. On the other hand, a recombinant yeast strain displaying various cellulases, such as β-glucosidase, cellobiohydrolase, and endoglucanase, produced 48.9 g/L ethanol, which corresponds to 87.3 % of the theoretical yield. Higher ethanol production appears to be attributable to higher efficiency of cellulase displayed on the cell surface. These results suggest that cellulases displayed on the yeast cell surface improve hydrolysis of Avicel crystalline cellulose. Indeed, after the 96-h simultaneous saccharification and fermentation using the cellulase-displaying yeast, the amount of residual cellulose was 1.5 g/L, one quarter of the cellulose remaining using the wild-type strain, a result of the alleviation of irreversible adsorption of cellulases on the crystalline cellulose.

背景与目标： : 纤维素材料的酶水解是生物乙醇生产过程中必不可少的步骤。然而，由于纤维素酶不可逆地吸附在纤维素上，纤维素酶很难完全水解纤维素。因此，部分纤维素在水解后保持结晶形式。在这项研究中，在Avicel结晶纤维素水解96小时后，纤维素酶的47.1% 吸附在纤维素表面，剩余10.8% 结晶纤维素。在用1.0滤纸单位/mL纤维素酶同时糖化和发酵100g/L Avicel的过程中，野生型酵母菌株在96小时后产生44.7g/L乙醇。乙醇的产率是理论产率的79.7%。另一方面，显示各种纤维素酶 (例如 β-葡萄糖苷酶、纤维二糖水解酶和内切葡聚糖酶) 的重组酵母菌株产生48.9g/L乙醇，这相当于理论产量的87.3%。较高的乙醇产量似乎归因于细胞表面显示的纤维素酶效率较高。这些结果表明，酵母细胞表面显示的纤维素酶可改善Avicel结晶纤维素的水解。实际上，在使用显示纤维素酶的酵母进行96小时的同时糖化和发酵之后，残留纤维素的量为1.5g/L，为使用野生型菌株剩余纤维素的四分之一，这是纤维素酶在结晶纤维素上不可逆吸附的减轻的结果。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: PURPOSE:Amniotic membrane (AM) transplantation is an accepted procedure in ocular surgery. However, little is known of the interdonor and intradonor variability within the membrane. In addition, the effects of the methods of processing, storage, and preoperative preparation on the membrane are not fully elucidated. The purpose of this study was to use TGF-beta as an example to investigate interdonor and intradonor variability and to determine the effect of "handling " on TGF-beta1 within fresh, processed and stored, and transplantation-ready AM (TRAM). METHODS:Seventeen human AMs, both fresh and handled, were analyzed for TGF-beta1 by real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry, SDS-PAGE, and Western blotting. RESULTS:TGF-beta1 was the highest normalized expressed isoform of TGF-beta in all samples, but it varied between membranes of different donors and at different sites within the same membrane. The highest concentration was noted in the spongy layer. Removal of the spongy layer successfully removed the bulk of TGF-beta1 from TRAM. Latency-associated protein (LAP) and a latent TGF-beta-binding protein (LTBP) were also detected. CONCLUSION:TGF-beta1 is present in various regulatory forms in the AM. A degree of intermembrane and intramembrane variation is modified by handling. Unless a standardized protocol is adopted that delivers a membrane with consistent constituents, clinical outcomes may vary and comparisons may be invalid.

背景与目标：

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :A transmembrane extracellular matrix receptor of the integrin family, alpha 6 beta 4, is a component of the hemidesmosome, an adhesion complex of importance in epithelial cell-connective tissue attachment (Stepp, M. A., S. Spurr-Michaud, A. Tisdale, J. Elwell, and I. K. Gipson. 1990. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 87:8970-8974; Jones, J. C. R., M. A. Kurpakus, H. M. Cooper, and V. Quaranta. 1991. Cell Regulation. 2:427-438). Cytosolic components of hemidesmosomes include bullous pemphigoid (BP) antigens while extracellular components include a 125-kD component of anchoring filaments (CAF) and collagen type VII-containing anchoring fibrils. We have monitored the incorporation of the alpha 6 beta 4 integrins into forming hemidesmosomes in an in vitro wound-healing explant model. In epithelial cells recently migrated from the edges of unwounded sites over bare connective tissue, alpha 6 beta 4 first appears along the entire cell surface. At this stage, these cells contain little or no cytosolic hemidesmosomal components, at least as detectable by immunofluorescence using BP autoantibodies, whereas they are already positive for laminin and CAF. At a later stage, as cells become positive for cytosolic hemidesmosome components such as BP antigens as well as collagen type VII, alpha 6 beta 4 becomes concentrated along the basal pole of the epithelial cell where it abuts the connective tissue of the explant. Polyclonal antibodies to beta 4 do not interfere with the migration of epithelial cells in the explant. However, they prevent assembly of hemidesmosomal complexes and inhibit expression of collagen type VII in cells that have migrated over wound areas. In addition, they induce disruption of established hemidesmosomes in nonmigrating cells of the unwounded area of the explant. Monoclonal antibodies to alpha 6 have a more dramatic effect, since they completely detach epithelial cells in the unwounded area of the explant. Antibodies to CAF also detach epithelial cells in unwounded areas, apparently by inducing separation between epithelium and connective tissue at the lamina lucida of the basement membrane zone. These results suggest a model whereby polarization of alpha 6 beta 4 to the basal surface of the cells, perhaps induced by a putative anchoring filament-associated ligand, triggers assembly of hemidesmosome plaques.

背景与目标： : 整联蛋白家族的跨膜细胞外基质受体 α6β4是半染色体的组成部分，半染色体是上皮细胞-结缔组织附着中重要的粘附复合物 (Stepp，m.a.，S. Spurr-Michaud，A. Tisdale，J. Elwell，和I. K. Gipson。1990. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.美国。87:8970-8974; Jones，j.c.R.，M.Kurpakus，H. M. Cooper和V. Quaranta。1991.细胞调控。2:427-438)。半桥粒的胞质组分包括大疱性类天疱疮 (BP) 抗原，而细胞外组分包括锚定细丝 (CAF) 的125-kD组分和含VII型胶原的锚定原纤维。我们已经在体外伤口愈合外植体模型中监测了 α6β4整合素在形成半桥体中的掺入。在最近从裸露的结缔组织上未受伤部位的边缘迁移的上皮细胞中，α6β4首先出现在整个细胞表面。在这个阶段，这些细胞含有很少或没有胞质半染色体成分，至少可以通过使用BP自身抗体的免疫荧光检测到，而它们已经对层粘连蛋白和CAF呈阳性。在稍后的阶段，随着细胞对胞质半桥粒成分 (例如BP抗原) 以及VII型胶原呈阳性，α6β4沿着上皮细胞的基极集中，并与外植体的结缔组织邻接。针对 β4的多克隆抗体不会干扰外植体中上皮细胞的迁移。但是，它们阻止了半桥粒复合体的组装，并抑制了在伤口区域迁移的细胞中VII型胶原的表达。此外，它们还会诱导外植体未受伤区域的非迁移细胞中已建立的半桥粒的破坏。针对 α6的单克隆抗体具有更显着的作用，因为它们完全脱离了外植体未受伤区域的上皮细胞。针对CAF的抗体也可以通过诱导基底膜区的上皮和结缔组织之间的分离而分离未受伤区域的上皮细胞。这些结果提出了一个模型，其中 α6β4极化到细胞的基底表面，可能是由假定的锚定细丝相关配体诱导的，触发了半桥粒斑块的组装。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :The environmental mobility of newly deposited radionuclides in surface soil is driven by complex biogeochemical relationships, which have significant impacts on transport pathways. The partition coefficient (Kd) is useful for characterizing the soil-solution exchange kinetics and is an important factor for predicting relative amounts of a radionuclide transported to groundwater compared to that remaining on soil surfaces and thus available for transport through erosion processes. Measurements of Kd for 238U are particularly useful because of the extensive use of 238U in military applications and associated testing, such as done at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Site-specific measurements of Kd for 238U are needed because Kd is highly dependent on local soil conditions and also on the fine soil fraction because 238U concentrates onto smaller soil particles, such as clays and soil organic material, which are most susceptible to wind erosion and contribute to inhalation exposure in off-site populations. We measured Kd for uranium in soils from two neighboring semiarid forest sites at LANL using a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-based protocol for both whole soil and the fine soil fraction (diameters<45 microm). The 7-d Kd values, which are those specified in the EPA protocol, ranged from 276-508 mL g-1 for whole soil and from 615-2249 mL g-1 for the fine soil fraction. Unexpectedly, the 30-d Kd values, measured to test for soil-solution exchange equilibrium, were more than two times the 7-d values. Rates of adsorption of 238U to soil from solution were derived using a 2-component (FAST and SLOW) exponential model. We found significant differences in Kd values among LANL sampling sites, between whole and fine soils, and between 7-d and 30-d Kd measurements. The significant variation in soil-solution exchange kinetics among the soils and soil sizes promotes the use of site-specific data for estimates of environmental transport rates and suggests possible differences in desorption rates from soil to solution (e.g., into groundwater or lung fluid). We also explore potential relationships between wind erosion, soil characteristics, and Kd values. Combined, our results highlight the need for a better mechanistic understanding of soil-solution partitioning kinetics for accurate risk assessment.

背景与目标： : 新沉积的放射性核素在表层土壤中的环境迁移率是由复杂的生物地球化学关系驱动的，这些关系对运输途径有重大影响。分配系数 (Kd) 可用于表征土壤溶液交换动力学，并且是预测输送到地下水的放射性核素与残留在土壤表面的放射性核素的相对量相比的重要因素，因此可用于通过侵蚀过程进行运输。238U的Kd测量特别有用，因为238U在军事应用和相关测试中广泛使用，例如在洛斯阿拉莫斯国家实验室 (LANL) 进行的。需要对238U进行特定地点的Kd测量，因为Kd高度依赖于当地土壤条件，也高度依赖于精细的土壤分数，因为238U集中在较小的土壤颗粒上，例如粘土和土壤有机材料，这些颗粒最容易受到风蚀的影响并有助于异地人群的吸入暴露。我们使用基于美国环境保护局 (EPA) 的协议，针对整个土壤和细土部分 (直径 <45微米)，测量了LANL两个相邻的半干旱森林站点土壤中铀的Kd。EPA协议中指定的7-d Kd值的范围为整个土壤的g-1为276-508 mL，而细土部分的g-1为615-2249 mL。出乎意料的是，为测试土壤溶液交换平衡而测得的30 d Kd值是7-d值的两倍以上。使用2组分 (快速和慢速) 指数模型得出溶液中238U对土壤的吸附率。我们发现LANL采样点之间，整个土壤和细土之间以及7-d和30d Kd测量值之间的Kd值存在显着差异。土壤之间的土壤溶液交换动力学和土壤大小的显着变化促进了使用特定地点的数据来估算环境迁移速率，并暗示了从土壤到溶液 (例如，进入地下水或肺液) 的解吸速率可能存在差异。我们还探讨了风蚀，土壤特征和Kd值之间的潜在关系。结合起来，我们的结果强调了需要对土壤溶液分配动力学进行更好的机械理解，以进行准确的风险评估。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :Facile fabrication of nanostructured surface is of great importance for the use of titanium (Ti) implants in biomedical field. In this study, a low-cost and easy-to-operate method called HPT (hydrothermal & pressure) here has been developed and used to fabricate the expected nanostructured surface on Ti substrates. The effects of experimental parameters on the morphology of Ti surface were investigated and characterized. The results indicated that by altering the hydrothermal pressure, NaOH concentration and treating time, surface nanostructure like nanopetals or nanoflakes could be formed on the surface of Ti substrates. The orthogonal experiments were conducted to demonstrate the optimized operation conditions. A formation mechanism of the nanostructured titanate layer was proposed, revealing that the nanostructured layer could be formed via a special upward and downward co-growth manner. In vitro cell culture showed that the HPT treated Ti substrates, especially the T-10 sample, could greatly enhance the cell-material interactions, i.e. the cell proliferation and differentiation, focal protein adhesion, and osteogenic factor expression. The HPT method paves a new way to modify the surface of Ti implants with better bioactivity and promising prospect for future biomedical applications.

背景与目标： : 纳米结构表面的简便制造对于在生物医学领域中使用钛 (Ti) 植入物非常重要。在这项研究中，已经开发了一种称为HPT (水热 & 压力) 的低成本且易于操作的方法，并将其用于在Ti衬底上制造预期的纳米结构表面。研究并表征了实验参数对Ti表面形貌的影响。结果表明，通过改变水热压力，NaOH浓度和处理时间，可以在Ti基材表面形成类似纳米颗粒或纳米薄片的表面纳米结构。进行正交实验以证明优化的操作条件。提出了纳米结构钛酸盐层的形成机理，揭示了纳米结构层可以通过特殊的向上和向下共生长方式形成。体外细胞培养表明，经HPT处理的Ti底物，尤其是T-10样品，可以大大增强细胞与物质的相互作用，即细胞增殖和分化，聚焦蛋白粘附和成骨因子的表达。HPT方法为修饰Ti植入物表面提供了一种新方法，具有更好的生物活性，并有望在未来的生物医学应用中获得广阔的前景。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :We investigated the conditions under which inhomogeneity in electrical conductivity may significantly modify the magnetic evoked field (MEF) due to primary currents (i.e., neuronal currents) in the brain. In the case of an isolated turtle cerebellum immersed in a large bath of physiological saline, our theoretical analysis showed the cerebellar surface to significantly enhance the MEF due to a primary current, by a factor of as much as two, for experimentally determined values of the conductivities of the cerebellar tissue and saline. A further parametric investigation of the conductivity effect revealed that conductivity boundaries may significantly modify the MEF due to neuronal currents located within 1 mm of a conductivity boundary, as would be the case for active neurons near an edema, an anoxic fringe such as might occur during stroke, or a ventricle in the human head. For a stationary neural source, conductivity boundaries may modify the magnitude of its MEF without affecting its temporal waveform. However, this boundary effect was found to be small for a model geometry locally approximating cortical sources in a sulcus or a fissure, where the boundary effects from adjacent sulcal walls tend to cancel each other.

背景与目标： : 我们研究了电导率不均匀性可能会由于大脑中的主要电流 (即神经元电流) 而显着改变磁诱发场 (MEF) 的条件。如果将孤立的乌龟小脑浸入一个大的生理盐水浴中，我们的理论分析表明，由于一次电流，小脑表面显着提高了MEF，对于实验确定的小脑组织和盐水的电导率值，其系数高达两倍。对电导率效应的进一步的参数研究表明，由于位于电导率边界的1毫米内的神经元电流，电导率边界可能会显著地改变MEF，如在水肿、缺氧边缘 (例如在中风期间可能发生) 或人头部的心室附近的活动神经元的情况。对于固定神经源，电导率边界可能会改变其MEF的大小，而不会影响其时间波形。然而，对于局部近似于沟或裂缝中的皮质源的模型几何，发现这种边界效应很小，其中相邻沟壁的边界效应趋于相互抵消。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :The aim of this study was to assess the frequencies and patterns of naturally occurring genotypic resistance to nucleos(t)ide analogues (NUCs) and typical hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) amino acid substitutions in naive hemodialysis (HD) patients with chronic hepatitis B. In order to achieve this, the genotypic resistance to NUCs and HBsAg amino acid substitutions were classified into primary/compensatory resistance mutation and antiviral drug-associated potential vaccine-escape mutation (ADAPVEM)/typical HBsAg amino acid substitution, respectively. Direct sequencing of polymerase (pol) gene of hepatitis B virus (HBV) was performed on DNA samples obtained from 248 HBsAg-positive Turkish patients. Overall, 38% (n = 94) of HBsAg-positive HD patients had detectable HBV DNA in their serum. Naturally occurring primary and compensatory resistance mutations to NUCs were detected in 30% (n = 28) and 52% (n = 49) of HD patients, respectively. However, 6 types of ADAPVEMs and 48 types of typical HBsAg amino acid substitutions were found in 10.6% (n = 10) and 46% (n = 43) of the HD patients, respectively. Our study suggests that every HD patient diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B, who is a potential candidate for NUCs treatment, should also be monitored for the baseline pol gene sequence changes before the initial treatment, for a more effective management of future treatment options. Further, a relatively higher frequency of ADAPVEMs variants needs to be addressed as a public health problem.

背景与目标： : 这项研究的目的是评估天然发生的基因型对核苷 (酸) 类似物 (NUCs) 和典型乙型肝炎表面抗原 (HBsAg) 氨基酸替代的频率和模式在幼稚血液透析 (HD) 患者慢性乙型肝炎。为了实现这一目标，将对NUCs和HBsAg氨基酸取代的基因型抗性分别分为原发性/代偿性耐药突变和抗病毒药物相关潜在的疫苗逃逸突变 (ADAPVEM)/典型HBsAg氨基酸取代。乙型肝炎病毒 (HBV) 的聚合酶 (pol) 基因的直接测序是从248 HBsAg阳性土耳其患者获得的DNA样品。总体而言，38% (n = 94) HBsAg阳性HD患者的血清中可检测到HBV DNA。分别在30% (n = 28) 和52% (n = 49) 的HD患者中检测到自然发生的对NUCs的原发性和代偿性耐药突变。然而，在HD患者的10.6% (n = 10) 和46% (n = 43) 中分别发现了6种类型的ADAPVEMs和48种类型的典型HBsAg氨基酸取代。我们的研究表明，每个HD患者诊断为慢性乙型肝炎，谁是NUCs治疗的潜在候选者，也应该监测基线pol基因序列变化之前的初始治疗，以更有效地管理未来的治疗选择。此外，需要将相对较高的ADAPVEMs变体频率作为公共卫生问题来解决。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: :The cleanability of titanium and 316L stainless steel particles was studied in terms of their apparent surface charge density (sigma(app)). Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used as the model fouling agent. Curves for the sigma(app) of titanium and stainless steel particles showed the apparent points of zero charge (pzc(app)) of 4.6 and 8.5, respectively. Compared with the curve for the sigma(app) of stainless steel, that of titanium was characterized by small positive and large negative sigma(app) values. The isotherms for BSA adsorption and the saturation amount of BSA adsorbed on titanium and stainless steel depended largely on the intrinsic properties of BSA. In continuous cleaning in a plug-flow column fed by a 0.05M NaOH solution, BSA was found to be faster desorbed from titanium than from stainless steel, and smaller amounts of BSA remaining after 120-min cleaning were observed on titanium. Kinetic analysis showed that the two first-order desorption rate constants, reflecting the rate of BSA desorption in the initial and later stages of cleaning, for titanium were respectively 1.7-fold and 1.3-fold higher than those values for stainless steel. It could be suggested that the better cleanability of titanium was probably due to the small binding strength of BSA on slightly negatively-charged titanium surfaces and due to their large negative sigma(app) values under alkaline cleaning conditions.

背景与目标： : 根据钛和316L不锈钢颗粒的表观表面电荷密度 (sigma(app)) 研究了其可清洗性。牛血清白蛋白 (BSA) 用作模型结垢剂。钛和不锈钢颗粒的sigma(app) 曲线分别显示了4.6和8.5的零电荷 (pzc(app)) 的表观点。与不锈钢的sigma(app) 曲线相比，钛的特征是正负sigma(app) 值小。BSA吸附的等温线和BSA吸附在钛和不锈钢上的饱和度在很大程度上取决于BSA的固有性能。在由0.05M NaOH溶液进料的活塞流柱中连续清洗中，发现BSA从钛解吸比从不锈钢解吸更快，并且在钛上观察到120分钟清洗后剩余的BSA的量较少。动力学分析表明，钛的两个一级解吸速率常数 (反映了清洁初期和后期BSA解吸速率) 分别比不锈钢高1.7倍和1.3倍。可以认为，钛的更好的清洁性可能是由于BSA在带负电的钛表面上的结合强度较小，以及在碱性清洁条件下它们的负 σ (app) 值较大。

BACKGROUND & AIMS: BACKGROUND/PURPOSE:Several anti-viral drugs are approved for the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. However, whether quantitative hepatitis B surface antigen (qHBsAg) can predict the therapeutic response during long-term entecavir treatment remains unclear. METHODS:Fifty-five chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients who received entecavir for more than 2 years were enrolled. The serum qHBsAg level was measured by HBsAg II quant immunoassay. A significant decline in the qHBsAg level was defined as > 1 log reduction from baseline to 6 months of entecavir treatment. RESULTS:Of the 55 patients (41 males and 14 females with a mean age of 48.3 ± 11.4 years), 23 patients were positive for hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg). The median treatment period was 34 months, and ranged from 26 months to 43 months. A total of 288 serum samples were used to determine the qHBsAg levels. At year 3 of entecavir therapy, one (1.8%) patient had HBsAg seroclearance. A high qHBsAg level was defined as greater than 10,000 IU/mL. Patients with a high baseline qHBsAg level had a lower rate of virologic response at year 1 (37.5% vs. 89.7%, p < 0.001) and year 2 (56.2% vs. 94.9%, p = 0.001). In this study population, 14.5% had a significant decline of the qHBsAg level. A significant decline could not predict HBeAg loss in HBeAg-positive or virologic response in all patients. CONCLUSION:The baseline serum qHBsAg level can predict virologic response in entecavir-treated CHB patients. However, a significant decline in the qHBsAg level cannot predict serologic or virologic response of entecavir treatment.

背景与目标：