168 research outputs found
Een man met een pijnlijke knie na een motorongeval
No full textA 48-year-old male presented with a painful right knee after a motorcycle accident. Peripheral pulsations in the lower right leg were absent. X-ray indicated a dislocation of the knee. Additional CT-scan revealed a dissection of the popliteal artery. Surgical exploration revealed extensive vascular, neurological and ligamentar damage
Identifying realistic recovery targets and conservation actions for tigers in a human dominated landscape using spatially-explicit densities of wild prey and their determinants
No full textAim
Setting realistic population targets and identifying actions for site and landscape-level recovery plans are critical for achieving the global target of doubling wild tiger numbers by 2022. Here, we estimate the spatially explicit densities of wild ungulate prey across a gradient of disturbances in two disjunct tiger habitat blocks (THBs) covering 5212 km2, to evaluate landscape-wide conditions for tigers and identify opportunities and specific actions for recovery.
Location
Western Terai Arc Landscape, India.
Methods
Data generated from 96 line transects in 15 systematically selected geographical cells (166.5 km2) were used to estimate spatially explicit densities of six wild ungulate prey species at a fine scale (1 km2). Employing distance-based density surface models, we derived species-specific estimates within three major forest land management categories (inviolate protected areas (PA), PAs with settlements and multiple-use forests). By scaling estimated prey densities using an established relationship, we predicted the carrying capacity for tigers within each THB.
Results
Species-specific responses of the six wild ungulates to natural-habitat and anthropogenic covariates indicated the need for targeted prey recovery strategies. Inviolate PAs supported the highest prey densities compared with PAs with settlements and multiple-use forests, and specifically benefited the principal tiger prey species (chital Axis axis and sambar Rusa unicolor). The estimated mean prey density of 35.16 (±5.67) individuals per km2 can potentially support 82 (62–106) and 299 (225–377) tigers across THB I and THB II, which currently support 2 (2–7) and 225 (199–256) tigers, respectively. This suggests a potential c. 68% increase in population size given existing prey abundances. Finally, while THB I represents a potential tiger recovery site given adequate prey, PAs where resettlement of pastoralists is underway represent potential prey recovery sites in THB II.
Main conclusions
This systematic approach of setting realistic population targets and prioritizing spatially explicit recovery strategies should aid in developing effective landscape conservation plans towards achieving global tiger conservation targets
Behavioral and Performance Consequences of U.S. Executive Equity Compensation and Ownership
No full textLogic and some empirical findings suggest that the consequences of the level of executive ownership and the size of stock option grants have non-monotic relations to firm performance. The size of option grants now typical in the U.S. is likely to encourage an excessive level of risk taking. Stock options are not an effective means of increasing executive ownership and are generally less efficient than full-value grants when comparing opportunity cost to the company and initial psychological value to the executive. Implications for research and compensation design are noted.
Phylogenetische und taxonomische Untersuchungen an der Subtribus Menthinae (Lamiaceae, Nepetoideae, Mentheae) unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Satureja-Komplexes
No full textHigh versus low dose Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for hepatic metastases
No full textIntroduction: Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) is a treatment option for patients with liver metastases. This study evaluated the impact of high versus low dose image-guided SBRT of hepatic metastases. Methods and materials: This is a single-center retrospective study of patients with liver metastases treated with SBRT. For analyses, patients were divided into two groups: ≤100 Gy and >100 Gy near-minimum Biological Effective Doses (BED 98%). The main outcomes were local control (LC), toxicity and overall survival (OS). Cox regression analyses were performed to determine prognostic variables on LC and OS. Results: Ninety patients with 97 liver metastases (77% colorectal) were included. Median follow-up was 28.6 months. The two-year LC rates in the ≤100 Gy and >100 Gy BED 98% group were 60% (CI: 41–80%) and 90% (CI: 80–100%), respectively (p = 0.004). Grade 3 toxicity occurred in 7% vs 2% in the ≤100 Gy and >100 Gy group (p = 0.23). Two-year OS rates in the ≤100 Gy and >100 Gy group were 48% (CI: 32–65%) and 85% (CI: 73–97%), respectively (p = 0.007). In multivariable Cox regression analyses, group dose and tumor volume were significantly correlated with LC (HR: 3.61; p = 0.017 and HR: 1.01; p = 0.005) and OS (HR: 2.38; p = 0.005 and HR: 1.01; p = <0.0001). Conclusion: High dose SBRT provides significantly better local control and overall survival than low dose SBRT without increasing toxicity. When surgical resection is not feasible, high dose SBRT provides an effective and safe treatment for liver metastases
Wound infection following implant removal of foot, ankle, lower leg or patella; a protocol for a multicenter randomized controlled trial investigating the (cost-)effectiveness of 2 g of prophylactic cefazolin compared to placebo (WIFI-2 trial)
No full textBackground: Elective implant removal (IR) after fracture fixation is one of the most common procedures within (orthopedic) trauma surgery. The rate of surgical site infections (SSIs) in this procedure is quite high, especially below the level of the knee. Antibiotic prophylaxis is not routinely prescribed, even though it has proved to lower SSI rates in other (orthopedic) trauma surgical procedures. The primary objective is to study the effectiveness of a single intravenous dose of 2 g of cefazolin on SSIs after IR following fixation of foot, ankle and/or lower leg fractures. Methods: This is a multicenter, double-blind placebo controlled trial with a superiority design, including adult patients undergoing elective implant removal after fixation of a fracture of foot, ankle, lower leg or patella. Exclusion criteria are: an active infection, current antibiotic treatment, or a medical condition contraindicating prophylaxis with cefazolin including allergy. Patients are randomized to receive a single preoperative intravenous dose of either 2 g of cefazolin or a placebo (NaCl). The primary analysis will be an intention-to-treat comparison of the proportion of patients with a SSI at 90 days after IR in both groups. Discussion: If 2 g of prophylactic cefazolin proves to be both effective and cost-effective in preventing SSI, this would have implications for current guidelines. Combined with the high infection rate of IR which previous studies have shown, it would be sufficiently substantiated for guidelines to suggest protocolled use of prophylactic antibiotics in IR of foot, ankle, lower leg or patella. Trial registration Nederlands Trial Register (NTR): NL8284, registered on 9th of January 2020, https://www.trialregister.nl/trial/828
Natural history of benign multiple sclerosis: Clinical and HLA correlates in a Western Australian cohort
No full textBackground: Benign multiple sclerosis (BMS) is a controversial term that has been used for MS patients with minimal disability decades after disease onset. Herein, we evaluated disease status after 20 years in a Western Australian cohort defined as BMS based on an Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score ≤ 3.0 at 10 years from onset. Methods: MS patients with an EDSS score ≤ 3.0 at 10 years from onset and minimum of 20 years follow up were included in the study. The 20-year EDSS score was considered the primary outcome. Associations with demographic and clinical characteristics and HLA-DRB1 genotype were investigated. Results: Among 120 patients with a benign course at 10 years, 78 (65%) remained benign at the 20-year follow up, but patients with an EDSS ≥ 2.5 were more likely to go on to develop more severe disability in the next decade. When considering factors associated with an increase in EDSS score ≤ 1 from 10 to 20 years, indicating limited progression, apart from the EDSS score at 10 years, poly-symptomatic presentation (p = 0.004) and cerebellar/brainstem mono-symptomatic presentation (p = 0.016) were independently associated with more rapid progression compared with other mono-symptomatic presentations. Carriage of the high risk HLA-DRB1*1501 allele was marginally associated with slower progression. Conclusions: In this geographically isolated MS cohort of predominantly Anglo-Celtic origin clinical progression in the benign MS group was similar to that in other published series from Western countries. These results are in keeping with the view that patients labeled as benign MS are part of a heterogeneous continuum of disease progression and do not possess unique clinical characteristics. Possible genetic determinants of a benign course warrant further investigation
Synthesis of conducting graphite-like nanometer wires via soluble precursors
No full textGraphite - like conducting materials were
encapsulated in the channels of new mesoporous MCM-
41 materials with typical channel diameters of 30-40 Ä.
Acrylonitrile was introduced into the hosts via vapor
transport, then polymerized with external radical
initiators, K2S2O8 and HNaSOß. The polymers in the host
cavities were further pyrolyzed at different temperatures
under vacuum or nitrogen atmosphere. The properties of
the polymer systems were studied while encapsulated or
after dissolution of the host. The crystallinity of the hosts
is intact after insertion of the polymer (even after
pyrolysis at 800°C). The formation of conducting
graphite - like materials inside the hosts was
demonstrated with Raman and UV spectra. The nitrogen
to carbon ratio of the pyrolyzed polymers depends on the
pyrolysis temperature and the polymer environment.
Most interestingly, the normalized AC absorption of
pyrolyzed polyacrylonitrile in MCM-41 (at 800°C) is
comparable to graphite
Measurement of WZ and ZZ production in pp collisions at √s = 8 TeV in final states with b-tagged jets
No full textOpen Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the
source are credited.
Funded by SCOAP3 / License Version CC BY 4.0.Measurements are reported of the WZ and ZZ production cross sections in proton-proton collisions at s √ =8 TeV in final states where one Z boson decays to b-tagged jets. The other gauge boson, either W or Z, is detected through its leptonic decay (either W→eν , μν or Z→e + e − , μ + μ − , or νν ¯ ). The results are based on data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 18.9 fb −1 collected with the CMS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The measured cross sections, σ(pp→WZ)=30.7±9.3(stat.)±7.1(syst.)±4.1(th.)±1.0(lum.)pb and σ(pp→ZZ)=6.5±1.7(stat.)±1.0(syst.)±0.9(th.)±0.2(lum.)pb , are consistent with next-to-leading order quantum chromodynamics calculationsBMWF and FWF (Austria); FNRS and FWO (Belgium); CNPq, CAPES, FAPERJ, and FAPESP (Brazil);
MES (Bulgaria); CERN; CAS, MoST, and NSFC (China); COLCIENCIAS (Colombia); MSES and CS (Croatia); RPF (Cyprus); MoER, SF0690030s09 and ERDF (Estonia); Academy of Finland, MEC, and HIP (Finland); CEA and CNRS/IN2P3 (France); BMBF, DFG, and HGF(Germany);GSRT(Greece);OTKAand NIH(Hungary);DAEand DST (India); IPM (Iran); SFI (Ireland); INFN (Italy); NRF and WCU (Republic of Korea); LAS (Lithuania);MOE and UM(Malaysia); CINVESTAV, CONACYT, SEP, and UASLP-FAI (Mexico); MBIE (New Zealand); PAEC (Pakistan); MSHE and NSC (Poland); FCT (Portugal); JINR (Dubna); MON, RosAtom, RAS and RFBR (Russia); MESTD (Serbia); SEIDI and CPAN (Spain); Swiss Funding Agencies (Switzerland);
NSC (Taipei); ThEPCenter, IPST, STAR and NSTDA(Thailand); TUBITAK and TAEK (Turkey); NASU and SFFR (Ukraine); STFC (United Kingdom); DOE and NSF (USA)
Exploring the Role of Topoisomerase II Beta in Macrophage Maturation and Pro-inflammatory Cytokine Production
No full textAlthough it is known that DNA topo IIβis required for the regulation of transcription during neural development and differentiation, it is not clear whether the enzyme is required during differentiation of human monocytes into macrophages and/or the subsequent transcription of
cytokine genes. To test this, a robust model of differentiation of monocyte-like cells into macrophage-like cells using U937 and HL-60 cells treated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was validated. Differentiation was determined by morphological and growth characteristics and CD11b surface antigen expression as determined by flow cytometry. qRT-PCR was also used to measure mRNA transcript levels of key genes known to be up-regulated during monocyte differentiation and the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines produced by differentiated cells were measured using ELISA.
siRNA topo IIβknockdown did not hinder monocyte-like cells from undergoing differentiation, however experiments revealed a correlation between topo IIβknockdown and secreted TNFα, with the latter decreasing when topo IIβwas reduced. This pattern was also noted when measuring IL-1βsecretion. Similar results were seen using a Murine transgenic fibroblast cell line lacking topo IIβ, which when stimulated with LPS secreted significantly lower levels of IL-6 compared to the wild type cells. Thus topo IIβexpression is necessary for
secretion of normal levels of the cytokines, TNFα, IL-1βand IL-6 in response to LPS at certain time points. In addition in the macrophage-like state of the two cell lines, the relative levels of the βisoform (mRNA and protein) were shown to be significantly increased
compared to α, further outlining the importance of topo IIβin the differentiated state. Chromatin immuno-precipitation followed by qPCR showed however that topo IIβwas not associated at three defined proximal promoter regions of either the TNFαand IL-1βgenes, although further studies are required to rule out a direct association of topo IIβwith these and other regions of the genes.
Down regulation of topo IIβprotein using the inhibitor ICRF-193 did not hinder monocyte-like cells from undergoing differentiation either. However, contrary to the knockdown results, a 6 h pre-treatment with 1 nM ICRF-193 increased TNFαlevels in these cells, both at the
mRNA and the protein level, along with a slight increase in secreted TNFα. NF-κB, EGR2, TLR4 and TLR2 transcript levels were also increased under these conditions. Thus further studies are required to determine if these increases are due to additional cellular effects of the
drug or whether topo IIβmay play an inhibitory effect on transcription.
Thus it is clear that topo IIβplays an important role in expression of cytokines and understanding the exact nature of this requires further research that may yield potential new avenues for treatment of disease
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