Study of activation cross sections of proton induced reactions on barium: Production of 131Ba→131Cs

In the frame of a systematic study of charged particle production routes of the therapeutic radioisotope ¹³¹Cs, excitation functions of the ^natBa(p,x)^135,132mgLa, ^{ind135m,cum133m,cum133mg,cum131mg}Ba and ^{136mg,134mg,132,cum129}Cs reactions were measured in the 30?70 MeV energy range using stacked foil irradiation technique, activation method and gamma spectroscopy. Comparisons with new results of the ALICE-IPPE and EMPIRE-II codes and with existing data obtained with TALYS code are shown. From the measured cross section data integral yields were calculated and compared with experimental integral yield data reported in the literature. Potential use of proton induced reactions on Ba for production of ¹³¹Cs is discussed.     

Liverbase：人类肝脏蛋白质组数据库应用系统的研发

目的人类肝脏蛋白质组计划（HLPP）的顺利实施产出了大量的肝脏蛋白质组数据,这也是迄今最大的人类组织器官的蛋白质组数据。为帮助科学家方便有效地利用这些数据,我们开发了人类肝脏蛋白质组数据库Liverbase。方法 Liverbase基于MySQL、JSP、JavaBean和JDBC等技术而开发。主要针对数据库系统结构、数据处理及注释、数据库系统功能及使用三方面展开并进行详细的阐述。结果 Liverbase的主要功能是展示、管理和检索人类肝脏蛋白质组计划鉴定到的蛋白质及其功能注释信息。对每个鉴定到的蛋白质提供了全面的注释信息,整合了mRNA/蛋白质丰度信息。结论 Liverbase具有简捷实用、易于查询和访问、可扩展性好以及便于维护等特点。数据库的访问地址是http：//liverbase.hupo.org.cn。     

Automated truncation method for myocardial T2* measurement in thalassemia

Purpose:

To propose an automated truncation method for myocardial T2* measurement and evaluate this method on a large population of patients with iron loading in the heart and scanned at multiple magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) centers.

Materials and Methods:

A total of 550 thalassemia patients were scanned at 20 international centers using a variety of MR scanners (Siemens, Philips, or GE). A single mid‐ventricular short axis slice was imaged. All patient data were anonymized before the T2* were measured by expert observers using standard techniques. These same datasets were then retrospectively processed using the proposed automated truncation method by another independent observer and the resulting T2* measurements were compared with those of expert readings.

Results:

The T2* measurements using the automated method showed good agreement with those measured by expert observers using standard techniques (P = 0.95) with a low coefficient of variation (1.6%).

Conclusion:

This study demonstrates feasibility and good reproducibility of a new automated truncation method for myocardial T2* measurement. This approach simplifies the overall analysis and can be easily incorporated into T2* analysis software to facilitate further development of a fully automated myocardial tissue iron quantification. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2013;37:479–483. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

A long-term performance evaluation of the gamma-ray activity measurement laboratory in CPST,Lithuania

The quality control procedures used for two HPGe detectors (a well-type and a GAMMA-X coaxial) are described. Since 2001, check sources containing ¹³⁷Cs have been measured weekly for 7200s each, and the gamma-ray spectrometry system background was determined once per month for an acquisition time of 100,000 s. The laboratory participated in the international comparisons at environmental radioactivity level organized by the IAEA, Risø National Laboratory and NPL.     

Efficacy of botulinum-A for nocturnal bruxism pain and the occurrence of bruxism events: a meta-analysis and systematic review

The purpose of this study was to explore the treatment efficacy of botulinum-A (BTX-A) in nocturnal bruxism. Five electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, Embase and Clinical Trials) were searched to identify related randomised controlled trials up to September 1, 2020. Five evaluation indices were extracted, namely, the pain at rest and at chewing (PR and PC), the number of bruxism events (NBE) and the self-assessment by patients (SA), to assess the treatment efficacy of BTX-A in bruxism. All data analyses were conducted using Review Manager (Version 5.3; The Cochrane Collaboration, London, United Kingdom). Six studies were included in this review. The sample was composed of 148 participants. Compared with the placebo group, the BTX-A group showed the significantly improved the PR index scores (MD, 1.16 cm; 95%CI, 0.65 to 1.67 cm; p < 0.00001), slightly improved the PC index scores (SMD, 0.25; 95%CI -0.14 to 0.64; p = 0.21), and the NBEs were significantly decreased in the before-injection group compared with that in the after-injection group (MD, 1.72; 95%CI, 0.60 to 2.85; p = 0.003). The results of this study suggest that BTX-A possesses significant therapeutic efficiency for the relief of pain and events of bruxism. However, whether the events of bruxism would recur or rebound after botulinum toxin injection needs more follow-up clinical evidence.     

CD166pos Subpopulation From Differentiated Human ES and iPS Cells Support Repair of Acute Lung Injury

Previous efforts to derive lung progenitor cells from human embryonic stem (hES) cells using embryoid body formation or stromal feeder cocultures had been limited by low efficiencies. Here, we report a step-wise differentiation method to drive both hES and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells toward the lung lineage. Our data demonstrated a 30% efficiency in generating lung epithelial cells (LECs) that expresses various distal lung markers. Further enrichment of lung progenitor cells using a stem cell marker, CD166 before transplantation into bleomycin-injured NOD/SCID mice resulted in enhanced survivability of mice and improved lung pulmonary functions. Immunohistochemistry of lung sections from surviving mice further confirmed the specific engraftment of transplanted cells in the damaged lung. These cells were shown to express surfactant protein C, a specific marker for distal lung progenitor in the alveoli. Our study has therefore demonstrated the proof-of-concept of using iPS cells for the repair of acute lung injury, demonstrating the potential usefulness of using patient''s own iPS cells to prevent immune rejection which arise from allogenic transplantation.     

Factors associated with a risk of prosthetic knee buckling during walking in unilateral transfemoral amputees

BackgroundWalking and mobility are essential for a satisfactory quality of life. However, individuals with transfemoral amputations have difficulties in preventing falls due to prosthetic knee buckling, defined as the sudden loss of postural support during weight-bearing activities. The risk of prosthetic knee buckling can be evaluated by determining the prosthetic knee angular impulse (PKAI) during the early stance phase. However, little is known about the factors associated with PKAI in individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputations.Research questionWhat are the demographic factors that can be associated with the risk of prosthetic knee buckling, quantified by PKAI, during walking in individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputations?MethodsThirteen individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputations were instructed to perform level walking at a comfortable, self-selected speed on a straight, 10-m walkway. PKAI was calculated as the time integral of the prosthetic knee external flexion–extension moment during the initial 40 % of the prosthetic gait cycle. We used Pearson’s correlation coefficients to examine the relationship of PKAI with the following variables: the subject’s body height, body mass, and age; the time since amputation; and the current prosthesis use history. Furthermore, an independentt-test was used to compare PKAI according to the sex (male vs. female) and etiology (trauma vs. nontrauma).ResultsPKAI exhibited a significant negative linear relationship with the subject’s body height and body mass. However, it showed no significant correlation with age, the time since amputation, and the current prosthesis use history. It was also significantly greater in women than in men and was not significantly influenced by the etiology.SignificanceAwareness about demographic factors associated with PKAI during walking can contribute to fall assessments in gait rehabilitation programs for individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputations.