Giant valley-Zeeman coupling in the surface layer of an intercalated transition metal dichalcogenide.

Spin-valley locking is ubiquitous among transition metal dichalcogenides with local or global inversion asymmetry, in turn stabilizing properties such as Ising superconductivity, and opening routes towards 'valleytronics'. The underlying valley-spin splitting is set by spin-orbit coupling but can be tuned via the application of external magnetic fields or through proximity coupling. However, only modest changes have been realized to date. Here, we investigate the electronic structure of the V-intercalated transition metal dichalcogenide V1/3NbS2 using microscopic-area spatially resolved and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. Our measurements and corresponding density functional theory calculations reveal that the bulk magnetic order induces a giant valley-selective Ising coupling exceeding 50 meV in the surface NbS2 layer, equivalent to application of a ~250 T magnetic field. This energy scale is of comparable magnitude to the intrinsic spin-orbit splittings, and indicates how coupling of local magnetic moments to itinerant states of a transition metal dichalcogenide monolayer provides a powerful route to controlling their valley-spin splittings.

Knowledge about cervical cancer, Pap test, and barriers to women's participation in screening in Belgrade, Serbia.

INTRODUCTION: Cervical cancer (CC) is a serious public health concern in Serbia, due to opportunistic screening still being in force, which led to twice higher than the average incidence rate of cervical cancer in Europe. Despite the fact that early detection and treatment services of CC are available at no additional cost, majority of women use inadequate screening services in Serbia. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the link between the knowledge about CC and Papanicolaou (Pap) test and perception of barriers to women's participation in CC screening. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 300 women aged 21 to 69, with a place of residence in the city of Belgrade (Serbia), who were attending for their medical examination to the University Clinic of Gynecology and Obstetrics - "Narodni front", from June through December 2014. A survey instrument to collect data was an adapted questionnaire for the assessment of knowledge about and barriers to CC and Pap test. Patients were divided into three groups: a study group consisted of women attending irregularly (over three years), women who never participated in screening, and a control group that included women regularly participating in screening. RESULTS: Women regularly participating in screening (52.7%) had adequate knowledge about CC and Pap test, while women who irregularly (79.4%) or never participated (71.9%) did not have any adequate knowledge. There was a significant statistical difference between the CC and Pap test awareness in a group of respondents who regularly participated in comparison to respondents who irregularly or never participated in screening (x²= 27.772, p = 0.000). Regarding knowledge about human papillomavirus (HPV), 80% of women did not know that Pap test cannot be used for detection of HPV, as well as that abnormal Pap test result may be due to HPV (61.7%). Majority of women (93.7%) had poor knowledge about Pap test role in CC early detection and considered Pap test to be used to diagnose CC. The authors found a significant statistical correlation between participation of women in screening and barriers. Women who were irregular or never participated, had barriers such as: lack of time (F = 9.51; p = 0,000), difficult access to Healthcare facilities (F = 11.29; p = 0.000), lack of knowledge about the Pap test procedure (F = 21.27,p = 0.000), discomfort (F = 9.36; p = 0.000), and anxiety of Pap test results (F = 3.35; p = 0.036). Women who regularly participated did not have prejudice when choosing a gynecologist, unlike the other two groups that preferred a female gynecologist (F = 3.61; p = 0.028). CONCLUSION: This study showed that the level of knowledge about CC and Pap test in women is an important factor associated with regular participation in screening. It is necessary to take educational measures in order to raise awareness of women regarding risk factors, as well as to overcome fear and shame, with the ultimate aim to reduce frequency and mortality rate caused by CC in Serbia.

A magnetic-resonance-compatible limb-positioning device to facilitate magic angle experiments in vivo.

Owing to their highly ordered structure, tendons and cartilage appear with low signal intensity when imaged using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners. A significant increase in signal can be observed when these structures are oriented at 55 degrees (termed the magic angle) with respect to the static field B0. There is a clear clinical importance in exploiting this effect as part of the diagnosis of injury. Experimental studies of this phenomenon have been made harder by the practical difficulties associated with tissue positioning and orientation in the confined environment of closed-bore scanners. An MRI-compatible mechatronic system has been developed, which is capable of positioning a number of limbs to a desired orientation inside the scanner, to be used as a diagnostic and research tool. It is actuated with a novel pneumatic motor consisting of a heavily geared-down air turbine, presenting high torques and good accuracy. The system is shown to be magnetic resonance compatible and the results of preliminary trials using the device to image the Achilles tendon of human volunteers at different orientations are presented. An increase of four fold to thirteen fold in signal intensity can be observed at the magic angle.

A review of magnetic resonance imaging compatible manipulators in surgery.

Developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), coupled with parallel progress in the field of computer-assisted surgery, mean that an ideal environment has been created for the development of MRI-compatible robotic systems and manipulators, capable of enhancing many types of surgical procedure. However, MRI does impose severe restrictions on mechatronic devices to be used in or around the scanners. In this article a review of the developments in the field of MRI-compatible surgical manipulators over the last decade is presented. The manipulators developed make use of different methods of actuation, but they can be reduced to four main groups: actuation transmitted through hydraulics, pneumatic actuators, ultrasonic motors based on the piezoceramic principle and remote manual actuation. Progress has been made concerning material selection, position sensing, and different actuation techniques, and design strategies have been implemented to overcome the multiple restrictions imposed by the MRI environment. Most systems lack the clinical validation needed to continue on to commercial products.

A robotic system for blood sampling.

A robotic system to take blood samples autonomously from the forearm is presented and preliminary results are discussed which demonstrate its feasibility. Force/position profiles, while pressing a flat-headed probe against the surface of the skin, enable the determination of a vein's location to within 1 mm on a phantom. When a needle is inserted, the characteristic force/position profile, on puncturing the vein wall, is distinctive enough to implement automatic needle withdrawal to prevent overshoot. Future developments of the project are presented that provide both an autonomous blood sampling robot and a force-feedback surgical trainer.

[Use of prostin E2 in the treatment of stomatitis caused by radiotherapy]. / Primena prostina E2 u lecenju stomatitisa kao nuspojave radioterapije.

Patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy for malignancies often develop annoying inflammation of the oral mucosa as a side-effect of cytotoxic therapy. As prostaglandins are known to be cytoprotective Prostin E2 was given to 10 patients with neoplasms of the ear, nose, pharynx or larynx, or of the maxillofacial region, who received radiotherapy. The reference group was made up of five patients with the analogous diagnosis who received the conventional therapy with Hexoral sol. One patient was not administered any therapy. The patients that were given Prostin E2 did not develop either the inflammatory process or stomatitis. In the reference group the inflammatory process appeared in two patients and lesions were noticed in one patient. Excellent results, although still preliminary, pointed out that preventive local administration of Prostin E2 was superior to the conventional therapy and that accordingly, Prostin E2 should be regarded as the drug of choice.

[The effect of complete thymic extract on motility and progressive motility of spermatozoa in asthenozoospermia]. / Dejstvo celokupnog ekstrakta timusa na motilitet i progresivni motilitet spermatozoida kod astenozoospermije.

The thymic gland is involved in immunologic and endocrinologic heomostasis of the body. Neonatal thymectomy of experimental animals leads to gonadal dysgenesis. Both eostrogen and androgen receptors have been identified in thymic epitelial cells, and sex steroids can be modulated by secretion of thymosin. High levels of thymosin alpha-1 in seminal plasma are correlated with sperm count, viability and motility in fertile males as compared to infertile ones. In this study we examined the effects of complete thymic extract on motility and progressive motility of spermatozoa obtained from asthenozoospermic men. In the first part of experiment, we studied the influence of complete thymic extract, as a bioactive medium component, on movement of spermatozoa samples with initial motility lower than 30%, in vitro. The study was carried out on two groups of sperm samples, 40 samples each, obtained by masturbation after a 72-hour-abstinence. After completed liquefaction at room temperature (30-40 min.), we determined the usual parameters of sperm quality. Total motility (M%) and progressive motility (PM%) of spermatozoa were analyzed in 10 microscopic view fields. Each group of sperm samples was prepared by swim-up and swim-down method. Then, we estimated the total motility and progressive motility of "washed" spermatozoa in every sample. In addition, every sample was divided in two equal parts. One part was immediately left in thermostat (control). To the second part we added 0.2 mg of complete thymic extract before incubation (experimental group). Total and progressive motilities were analyzed after 1, 4, 12 and 24 hours of incubation. The t-test was used for statistical analysis of results. The second part of the study was carried out on a group of 10 asthenozoospermic men (volunteers). We examined the influence of complete thymic extract, as intra-muscular injection, in a doze of 150 mg daily, during seven days, on motility and progressive motility of spermatozoa. Sperm samples were obtained by masturbation after four days of abstinence. We compared the parameters before and after the therapy. They were statistically processed by a method of difference. The results showed that the complete thymic extract increased the total and progressive motilities of spermatozoa separated by swim-down method (p < 0.001), in vitro (Table 1-4). The parenteral application of complete thymic extract, statistically significantly increased motility and progressive motility of spermatozoa in asthenozoospermic men (p < 0.05) (Table 5). These findings could be useful in assisted reproductive technology.

[Health education as a factor in decreasing traffic accidents]. / Zdravstveno-odgojne aktivnosti kao faktor smanjenja saobracajnog traumatizma.

Traffic security in post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina is getting worse. Use of motor vehicles and frequency of roads are in constant increase. Import of cars of different types, models, ages and quality caused that we are among the countries with insufficiently developed traffic security. Critical group of the traffic participants consists of young people and children. Their behaviour in traffic depends on their knowledge and attitude gained at home and school. Goal of this paper is to point out the importance of health-education activities in traffic security development. Evaluation was performed among the school children in a transit area in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Results show that school children have no enough knowledge about traffic rules; 13.4% of them don't know a single traffic sign. Even 19.9% of them got injured in traffic accidents, out of which 41.4% got injured while riding a bicycle and 22.4% as pedestrians. These initial results show that level of children's traffic culture can be raised only through systematic and permanent education within regular curriculum. Topics on traffic security should be an integral part of education programme, and presented through various subjects.

Intrapulmonary arteriovenous shunting may be a universal phenomenon in patients with the superior cavopulmonary anastomosis: a radionuclide study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the extent of intrapulmonary right to left shunting in children after bidirectional cavopulmonary anastomosis (BCPA). DESIGN: Prospective study of patients who underwent BCPA in a single centre. PATIENTS: 17 patients with complex cyanotic congenital cardiac malformations who underwent BCPA at 1-45 months of age (median 21 months) were evaluated 15-64 months postoperatively (median 32 months). Five children between 1 and 10 years (median 5 years) with normal or surgically corrected intracardiac anatomy and peripheral pulmonary circulation who required V/Q scanning for other reasons were used as controls. INTERVENTIONS: All patients underwent cardiac catheterisation to exclude angiographically demonstrable venovenous collaterals followed by pulmonary perfusion scanning using (99m)technetium ((99m)Tc) labelled albumen microspheres to quantify the intrapulmonary right to left shunt. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Percentage of intrapulmonary right to left shunt. RESULTS: The mean (SD) level of physiological right to left shunting found in the control group was 5.4 (2.3)%. All patients with BCPA showed the presence of a significantly higher level of intrapulmonary shunting (26.8 (16.9)%, p < 0.001). The degree of shunting was significantly increased in the subgroup of 11 patients with BCPA as the only source of pulmonary blood flow (34.9 (15.8)%), when compared to the six remaining patients with an additional source of pulmonary blood supply (12.0 (2.6)%, p < 0.001). There was a negative correlation between age at BCPA and the shunt percentage found in the patients with a competitive source of pulmonary blood flow (r = -0.63, p < 0. 01). CONCLUSIONS: Intrapulmonary right to left shunting develops in all patients following BCPA. This may be caused by a sustained and inappropriate vasodilatation resulting from absence or decreased levels of a substance that inhibits pulmonary vasodilatation. Augmenting BCPA with an additional source of blood flow containing hepatic factor limits the degree of intrapulmonary arteriovenous shunting and may help provide successful longer term palliation.