Health and job-related factors associated with work ability in older working populations of Korea.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge about determinants of workability is crucial for designing interventions to increase the participation of older employees in the workforce and maintain or increase their productivity levels at work. AIMS: This study explored the impact of health conditions and job characteristics on poor work ability. METHODS: This study used data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA) from 2014 to 2020, which is a nationally representative population-based panel study of Korean citizens aged ≥45 years. The KLoSA survey assessed subjective work ability using work ability score. The participants were asked if they had been diagnosed with any underlying diseases by a physician. The job characteristics were assessed in terms of working conditions and satisfaction. Generalized estimating equations were used to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals for workers' health-related variables and job characteristics associated with poor work ability. RESULTS: The results showed that workers' health-related factors were associated with poor work ability; poor vision (OR = 1.52) and bad hearing ability (OR = 2.37); low gripping strength (OR = 2.29); poor self-rated health (OR = 3.77) and various diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, cancer, chronic lung disease, liver disease, heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, mental illness, arthritis, prostate disease, gastrointestinal disease and disc disease. Additionally, high physical work demands (OR = 1.51) and low job satisfaction (OR = 4.23) were highly correlated with poor work ability. CONCLUSIONS: The findings addressing poor work abilities caused by individuals' health- and job-related factors can help prioritize worker health management and the development of more effective human capital investment strategies at the workplace.

The rocky road to freedom: number of countries transited during defection and risk of metabolic syndrome among North Korean Refugees in South Korea.

OBJECTIVES: North Korean Refugees (NKRs) undergo defection, and this has been shown to impact their current health status in South Korea. However, little is understood about how the defection process is related to metabolic syndrome (MetS). This study regarded the defection process to be a quasi-measurement of traumatic experience and investigated whether defection was a risk factor for MetS among NKRs living in South Korea. STUDY DESIGN: This cross-sectional study obtained data from the Korea University Anam Hospital in Seoul. NKRs (N = 847) voluntarily completed questionnaires and underwent at least one medical examination between October 2008 and July 2021. METHODS: Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate whether the number of countries transited by NKRs was associated with MetS by controlling for covariates. RESULTS: The prevalence of MetS among male and female NKRs in South Korea was 12.3% and 13.3%, respectively. The highest prevalence of MetS (33.4%) was among NKRs who had transited two countries. The number of months in transit countries (mean: 49.9 ± 51.7) and period of residence in South Korea (mean: 40.9 ± 40.9 months) were also considered. NKRs who transited three countries had a higher probability of MetS (odds ratio [OR] 2.660, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.161-6.097) than those who travelled directly to South Korea. NKRs who transited three countries and had only resided in South Korea for a short period had a higher probability of MetS (OR 3.424, 95% CI 1.149-10.208) than those who have lived in South Korea for a longer period. CONCLUSIONS: Considering the social vulnerability of NKRs and consequential health problems, there is an urgent need for appropriate support from the government and society.

A retrospective analysis of nonresponse to denosumab after hip fractures.

Denosumab is an effective antiresorptive drug commonly prescribed for the treatment of osteoporosis. However, some patients do not respond well to denosumab treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the factors underlying treatment nonresponses to denosumab in elderly patients following hip fracture. This retrospective study included 130 patients treated with denosumab after osteoporotic hip fracture between March 2017 and March 2020. The patients were categorized as denosumab nonresponders if they had a T-score <-3 that persisted between dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans, a >3% decrease in bone mineral density (BMD), or an incident fracture on denosumab therapy. We examined the baseline characteristics associated with blunted BMD responses and compared the groups following denosumab treatment for 12 months. Of 130 patients with baseline data, 105 patients (80.8%) were considered responders. No difference in baseline vitamin D, calcium, BMI, age, gender, prior fracture history, or bisphosphonate use was observed between responders and nonresponders. A longer interval between denosumab injections was associated with suboptimal BMD response at both spine and total hip (p<0.001 and p=0.04, respectively). The overall L-BMD and H-BMD were significantly increased compared with pretreatment levels after denosumab treatment (5.7% and 2.5%, respectively). This study revealed that nonresponse was not strongly associated with certain baseline variables and it appears that the reponders and nonresponders were reasonably comparable in this study population. The results of our study highlight the importance of timely denosumab administration when using this drug for osteoporosis management. Physicians should keep these results in mind in clinical practice so that they can improve utilization of 6-month denosumab.

Anterior resection syndrome: a randomized clinical trial of a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist (ramosetron) in male patients with rectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: No effective treatment exists for anterior resection syndrome (ARS) following sphincter-saving surgery for rectal cancer. This RCT assessed the safety and efficacy of a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, ramosetron, for ARS. METHODS: A single-centre, randomized, controlled, open-label, parallel group trial was conducted. Male patients with ARS 1 month after rectal cancer surgery or ileostomy reversal were enrolled and randomly assigned (1 : 1) to 5 µg of ramosetron (Irribow®) daily or conservative treatment for 4 weeks. Low ARS (LARS) score was calculated after randomization and 4 weeks after treatment. The study was designed as a superiority test with a primary endpoint of the proportion of patients with major LARS between the groups. Primary outcome analysis was based on the modified intention-to-treat population. Safety was assessed by monitoring adverse events during the study. RESULTS: : A total of 100 patients were randomized to the ramosetron (49 patients) or conservative treatment group (51 patients). Two patients were excluded, and 48 and 50 patients were analysed in the ramosetron and control groups, respectively. The proportion of major LARS after 4 weeks was 58 per cent (28 of 48 patients) in the ramosetron group versus 82 per cent (41 of 50 patients) in the control group, with a difference of 23.7 per cent (95 per cent c.i. 5.58 to 39.98, P = 0.011). There were minor adverse events in five patients, which were hard stool, frequent stool or anal pain. These were not different between the two groups. There were no serious adverse events. CONCLUSION: : Ramosetron could be safe and feasible for male patients with ARS. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02869984 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov).

Two-weekly docetaxel in treatment of advanced breast cancer: A preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: Three-weekly docetaxel causes a high rate of febrile neutropenia, especially in the Asian population. Two-weekly docetaxel has been shown to reduce rate of febrile neutropenia in castrate-resistant prostate cancer patients. We conducted a preliminary study to investigate the safety of two-weekly docetaxel in advanced breast cancer patients. METHODS: We recruited 10 patients with advanced breast cancer with ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group) performance status score of zero to two, who needed chemotherapy in the first or second-line setting to receive two-weekly docetaxel for 8 cycles. The primary endpoint was safety and secondary endpoints were response rate and progression free survival. RESULTS: The most reported adverse events were haematological (anaemia 100% and neutropenia 90%). The febrile neutropenia rate was 10%. The overall response rate was 20%. The median progression free survival was 5.0 months. CONCLUSION: Two-weekly docetaxel may be a reasonable alternative treatment regimen for patients with advanced breast cancer in the first or second-line setting. This regimen is yet to be compared with standard 3-weekly schedule in a phase 3 randomised clinical trial.

Is calcium phosphate augmentation a viable option for osteoporotic hip fractures?

The use of calcium phosphate bone cement has been described to allow for retention of reduction. Therefore, we evaluated whether augmentation with resorbable calcium phosphate could improve fracture stability in osteoporotic hip fractures. The results showed that augmentation with calcium phosphate cement significantly improved the stability of intertrochanteric fractures. INTRODUCTION: The aim with this study was to measure whether augmentation with resorbable calcium phosphate cement could improve fracture stability in osteoporotic hip fractures. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 82 patients who underwent closed reduction and internal fixation with proximal femoral nail (PFN) for unstable intertrochanteric fractures between 2014 and 2017. In 42 of 82 patients, patients were treated with a PFN alone (group I). These patients were compared with 40 patients for whom the same device combined with calcium phosphate cement for augmentation was used (group II). Questionnaire surveys or telephone interviews were conducted and patients completed a self-report Harris hip score (HHS) and visual analog scale (VAS) scores. Radiographic outcomes including mean sliding distance of screw, femoral shortening, and varus collapse were compared. Postoperative complications were compared. RESULTS: Clinical outcomes at 6 months after surgery were equivalent in both groups. Screw sliding, femoral shortening, and varus collapse were all significantly reduced in the cemented group at the last follow-up (p < 0.001, p = 0.005, p < 0.001, respectively). A total of 9 (21%) complications occurred in group I. In contrast, 2 (5%) complications were seen in group II (p = 0.029). CONCLUSIONS: Augmentation with calcium phosphate cement significantly improved the stability of intertrochanteric fractures fixed with a PFN and reduced overall failure rates. We believe augmentation with resorbable calcium phosphate cement for osteoporotic hip fractures is a reasonable option in selected patients.

Effects of Astragalus membranaceus, Codonopsis pilosula and allicin mixture on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, faecal microbial shedding, immune response and meat quality in finishing pigs.

A 12-week trial with 120 [(Landrace×Yorkshire)×Duroc] pigs (45.65 ± 1.93 kg) was conducted to evaluate the effects of Astragalus membranaceus, Codonopsis pilosula and allicin mixture (HM) supplementation on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, faecal microbial shedding, immune response and meat quality in finishing pigs. Pigs were allocated to one of three treatments with 0, 0.025% (HM1) and 0.05% (HM2) HM supplementation in a randomized complete block design according to sex and BW. Each treatment contained 10 replications with four pigs (two barrows and two gilts) per pen. Dietary HM resulted in a higher G:F (p < 0.05) than CON group during weeks 7 to 12 and the overall periods. Pigs fed HM2 diet had higher ADG than pigs fed CON diet. Pigs fed HM2 supplementation diet led to a higher (p < 0.05) apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of dry matter (DM) and gross energy (GE) than pigs fed CON diet at week 6, while the supplementation of HM led to a higher (p < 0.05) ATTD of DM and GE than pigs fed CON diet at week 12. The faecal E. coli counts were reduced, and Lactobacillus counts were increased by increasing HM supplementation (p < 0.05). Pigs fed HM1 diet had higher (p < 0.05) WBC concentration than those fed CON and HM2 diets at week 6. Pigs fed HM-supplemented diet had higher (p < 0.05) IgG and IgA concentrations than those fed CON diet at week 12. Pigs fed HM diet noted better (p < 0.05) meat colour and redness value than pigs fed CON diet. Pig fed HM2 reduced (p < 0.05) the lightness value compared with CON group. In conclusion, dietary HM supplementation exerted beneficial effects on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, intestinal microbial balance (increased Lactobacillus counts and decreased E. coli counts), immune response and meat quality.

Treatment of Heavily Pre-treated Metastatic Breast Cancer with Eribulin: First local experience in Sabah.

There are many options in the treatment of heavily pretreated metastatic breast cancer however none of the therapeutic agents have shown promising improvement of survival with good toxicity profile. Eribulin is a novel nontaxane microtubule dynamics inhibitor. Two recent clinical trial showed that Eribulin improves progression-free and overall survival in this subset of patients. We report our experience with using Eribulin in five patients with metastatic breast cancer either in second or third-line setting, in our centre.

A Case of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma with Paraneoplastic Leukemoid Reaction: A Case Report.

We present a case of nasopharyngeal carcinoma complicated with hyperleucocytosis. After ruling our other causes we concluded that the hyperleucocytosis was due to paraneoplastic leukemoid reaction (PLR). The overall survival was 15 months which is rare among patients with PLR.

Prognostic implication of mucinous histology in colorectal cancer patients treated with adjuvant FOLFOX chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND: There have been controversies in prognostic impact of mucinous histology on colorectal cancer, and its implication in patients treated with adjuvant 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) is unclear. METHODS: Stage II and III colorectal cancer patients who underwent curative resection followed by adjuvant FOLFOX were included. Patients were grouped according to the mucinous content: >50%, mucinous adenocarcinoma (MAC); <50%, adenocarcinoma with intermediated mucinous component (AIM); and without any mucinous component, non-MAC (NMA). Clinicopathological features and disease-free survival (DFS) were compared. RESULTS: Among a total of 521 patients, 27 patients (5.2%) had MAC, 41 patients (7.9%) had AIM, and 453 patients (86.9%) had NMA. Mucinous adenocarcinoma and AIM had higher frequency of proximal location and microsatellite instability, but lower frequency of angiolymphatic invasion. Disease-free survival was significantly worse in the MAC compared with NMA (3-year DFS 57% and 86%, respectively; P<0.001) and AIM (3-year DFS 87%, P=0.01 vs MAC). Multivariate analysis revealed MAC as an independent negative prognostic factor of DFS (adjusted hazard ratio 7.96, 95% confidence interval 3.76-16.8). CONCLUSION: Adenocarcinoma with intermediated mucinous component and MAC have distinct clinicopathological features compared with NMA. Mucinous adenocarcinoma has an adverse prognostic impact on stage II or III colorectal cancer treated with adjuvant FOLFOX.

Electric double layer at the interface of ionic liquid-dielectric liquid under electric field.

The structure of the electric double layer (EDL) is analyzed in order to understand the electromechanical behavior of the interface of ionic liquid-dielectric liquid. The modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation proposed by Bazant et al. is solved to see the crowding and the overscreening effects that are the characteristics of an ionic liquid (Bazant, M. Z.; Storey, B. D.; Kornyshev, A. A. Double layer in ionic liquids: Overscreening versus crowding. Phys. Rev. Lett. 2011, 106, 046102.). From the simple one-dimensional (1-D) analysis, it is found that the changes of the composition and the material properties in the EDL are negligible except under some extreme conditions such as strong electric field over O(10(8)) V/m. From the electromechanical view points, an ionic liquid behaves like a pure conductor at the interface with a dielectric liquid. Based on these findings, three specific application problems are considered. In the first, a new method is suggested for measuring the interfacial tension of an ionic liquid-dielectric liquid system. The deformation of a charged ionic liquid droplet translating between two electrodes is used for this measurement. The second is for the Taylor cone problem, which includes an extreme electric field condition near the tip. The size of the critical region, where the EDL effect should be considered, is estimated by using the 1-D analysis result. Numerical computation is also performed to see the profiles of electric potential and the electric stress along the interface of the Taylor cone. Lastly, the electrowetting problem of the ionic liquid is considered. The discrepancies in the results of previous workers are interpreted by using the results of the present work. It is shown that all the results might be consistent if the leaking of the dielectric layer and/or the adsorption of ions is considered.

Morphological changes of the lateral meniscus in end-stage lateral compartment osteoarthritis of the knee.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the morphological changes of the lateral meniscus in end-stage lateral compartment osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. METHODS: One hundred fifty-eight knee joints from 133 patients that subsequently underwent total knee joint arthroplasty from January 2008 to December 2009 were enrolled. There were 26 men and 107 women. Their ages ranged from 56 to 81 (mean 67.4 ± 6.5 years). All study participants had complete obliteration of the lateral joint space identified by weight-bearing radiography. Meniscal position was assessed by measuring meniscal subluxation and meniscal height. The meniscal morphology was assessed using a modification of the whole-organ magnetic resonance imaging score (WORMS). The frequency of different meniscal morphology and their respective positions was calculated. RESULTS: The predominant type (42.4%, 53.8% and 52.5% in the anterior horn, mid-body and posterior horn, respectively) of abnormal meniscal morphology was a complete maceration/destruction or complete resection. The anterior horn of non-macerated lateral meniscus was more subluxed than that of the non-macerated medial meniscus in patients with lateral OA. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that the lateral meniscus in persons with end-stage lateral OA are mostly macerated or destroyed. Also, unlike isolated end-staged medial compartment OA, the anterior horn of the lateral meniscus in isolated end-stage lateral OA is commonly affected.

Short-term teriparatide therapy as an adjunctive modality for bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaws.

UNLABELLED: To review the effect of teriparatide as an adjunctive modality for bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaws (BRONJ), we describe a series of cases of teriparatide therapy for the treatment of BRONJ and serial changes of serum osteoclacin (s-OC) and serum C-terminal telopeptide cross-link of type I collagen (s-CTX). INTRODUCTION: Management of BRONJ is quite challenging and the currently recommended modalities for BRONJ are still suboptimal. For the improvement of bony remodeling, some clinicians advocated bisphosphonate holiday although validity of this drug holiday has been debated so far. Recently, the use of teriparatide was introduced in several cases, but the number of the publication is limited and mostly anecdotal so far. METHOD: Bisphosphonate was suspended and teriparatide was given to six patients diagnosed with BRONJ by single bone specialist. Medical record review and interviews were carried out. S-CTX and s-OC were measured at the baseline, 2 months and 3 months later teriparatide therapy. The outcome of the treatment and the change of biochemical markers were compared. RESULT: In all six patients, s-OC values were significantly elevated within 2 months after teriparatide treatment and the BRONJ lesions were healed. S-CTX values were also elevated in four patients, whereas those of the rest two patients stayed within minimal change. The change was marginally significant at 3 months. CONCLUSION: In terms of the multifactorial etiology of BRONJ, bone formation suppression was noticed in the patients. Based upon this finding, the short-term use of teriparatide might be beneficial to the resolution of BRONJ lesions by improving suppressed bone remodeling.

A switch to endoscopic mucosal resection after precutting following gastric perforation during endoscopic submucosal dissection: a simple and useful technique.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is safe and effective, but as the number of patients undergoing ESD has increased, so has the number of iatrogenic perforations. We describe the effectiveness and benefits of endoscopic mucosal resection after precutting (EMR-P) in a series of patients who developed a macroperforation during ESD. This was a retrospective, single-center case series from a prospectively maintained database in an academic tertiary care center. The study involved 16 patients with macroperforation out of 1171 patients who underwent ESD between November 2006 and January 2011. En bloc resection by EMR-P was achieved in 12 out of 16 patients (75%) and piecemeal resection in 4 (25%). All patients were discharged after a mean hospital stay of 6.8 days without further complications. There were no recurrences during the median follow-up period of 11.4 months. Macroperforation during ESD can be managed successfully by endoscopic closure, and EMR-P should then be considered.

Critical and off-critical miscibility transitions in model extracellular and cytoplasmic myelin lipid monolayers.

Monolayers based on the composition of the cytoplasmic (CYT) or extracellular (EXT) sides of the myelin bilayer form coexisting immiscible liquid phases similar to the liquid-ordered/liquid-disordered phases in phospholipid/cholesterol monolayers. Increasing the temperature or surface pressure causes the two liquid phases to mix, although in significantly different fashion for the CYT and EXT monolayers. The cerebroside-rich EXT monolayer is near a critical composition and the domains undergo coalescence and a circle-to-stripe transition along with significant roughening of the domain boundaries before mixing. The phase transition in the cerebroside-free cytoplasmic side occurs abruptly without domain coalescence; hence, the cytoplasmic monolayer is not near a critical composition, although the domains exhibit shape instabilities within 1-2 mN/m of the transition. The change in mixing pressure decreases significantly with temperature for the EXT monolayer, with dΠ(crit)/dT ∼ 1.5 mN/m/°C, but the mixing pressure of the CYT monolayer varies little with temperature. This is due to the differences in the nonideality of cholesterol interactions with cerebrosides (EXT) relative to phospholipids (CYT). EXT monolayers based on the composition of white matter from marmosets with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of multiple sclerosis, remain phase-separated at higher surface pressures than control, while EAE CYT monolayers are similar to control. Myelin basic protein, when added to the CYT monolayer, increases lipid miscibility in CYT monolayers; likely done by altering the dipole density difference between the two phases.

Cytokines in acute kidney injury (AKI).

In acute kidney injury (AKI), many cytokines are released by leukocytes and renal tubular cells in the injured kidney and are important components of both the initiation and extension of inflammation. Cytokines are 1) produced by the kidney and mediate AKI, 2) produced by the kidney, released into the blood or urine and serve as biomarkers of AKI, and 3) produced by the kidney or other organs in AKI and mediate or protect against distant organ injury. Further understanding of the role of cytokines in AKI may result in therapeutic approaches like cytokine inhibition that may reduce the degree of kidney injury itself, as well as deleterious effects of kidney injury on other organs.

Oral delivery of mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3, a synthetic peptide amide with leptin-like activity, in male C57BL/6J wild-type and ob/ob mice: effects on energy balance, glycaemic control and serum osteocalcin levels.

BACKGROUND: We have recently shown that intranasal administration of mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 reconstituted in Intravail to male Swiss Webster mice resulted in significantly higher bioavailability than commonly used injections methods of delivery. The absorption profile associated with intranasal delivery of mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 showed an early peak representing absorption across the nasal mucosa, and a later peak suggesting a gastrointestinal site of uptake. AIM AND METHODS: In the present study, we examined the effects of orally administered (by gavage) mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 on energy balance, glycaemic control and serum osteocalcin levels in male C57BL/6J wild-type and ob/ob mice allowed food and water ad libitum or calorie restricted by 40% of normal intake. RESULTS: In wild-type mice fed ad libitum, oral delivery of mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 reduced body weight gain, food intake and serum glucose, by 4.4, 6.8 and 28.2% respectively. Serum osteocalcin levels and water intake were essentially the same in control and treated wild-type mice. In ob/ob mice fed ad libitum, mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 reduced body weight gain, food intake, water intake and serum glucose by 11.6, 16.5, 22.4 and 24.4% respectively. Serum osteocalcin in ob/ob mice treated with mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 was elevated by 62% over controls. Calorie restriction alone caused significant weight loss in both wild-type (9.0%) and ob/ob (4.8%) mice, and mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 did not further enhance this weight loss. As expected, serum glucose levels in wild-type and ob/ob mice were significantly reduced by calorie restriction alone. Mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 further reduced serum glucose in wild-type mice and normalized levels in ob/ob mice. Calorie restriction alone reduced serum osteocalcin levels by 44.2% in wild-type mice and by 19.1% in ob/ob mice. Mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 prevented this decrease in groups of mice. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that oral delivery of mouse [d-Leu-4]-OB3 in Intravail is possible and may have potential not only as an alternative therapy in the treatment of human obesity and some of its associated metabolic dysfunctions, but also may help to prevent and/or reverse at least some of the bone loss which accompanies osteoporosis, anorexia nervosa and other wasting diseases.

Intranasal delivery of mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3, a synthetic peptide amide with leptin-like activity, improves energy balance, glycaemic control, insulin sensitivity and bone formation in leptin-resistant C57BLK/6-m db/db mice.

BACKGROUND: We have recently shown that intranasal administration of mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 reconstituted in Intravail(®) to male Swiss Webster mice resulted in significantly higher uptake and bioavailability when compared with commonly used injection methods of delivery. AIM AND METHODS: In this study, we examined the effects of intranasal delivery of mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 in Intravail(®) on energy balance, glucose regulation, insulin secretion and serum levels of osteocalcin, a specific and sensitive marker of bone formation. Genetically obese C57BLK/6-m db/db mice were allowed food and water ad libitum and given either Intravail(®) alone or mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 in Intravail(®) for 14 days by intranasal instillation. RESULTS: Mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 reduced body weight gain, daily food intake, daily water intake and serum glucose by 11.5, 2.2, 4.0 and 61.9%, respectively. Serum insulin levels in db/db mice given mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 were approximately threefold lower than those in mice receiving Intravail(®) alone. Mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 elevated serum osteocalcin in db/db mice by 28.7% over Intravail(®) treated control mice. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our study indicate that intranasal delivery of biologically active mouse [D-Leu-4]-OB3 in Intravail(®) is feasible and has significant effects on regulating body weight gain, food and water intake, serum glucose, insulin sensitivity and bone formation in leptin-resistant C57BLK/6-m db/db mice.

Fabrication of unique tungsten tips by the self-descending phenomenon of menisci.

This paper describes the fabrication of tungsten tips with high aspect ratios for use as probes in scanning tunneling microscopy. A Teflon bath with the hydrophobic property is employed as an etching bath instead of the use of conventional glass beakers. Hydrophobicity of the Teflon bath with a unique shape causes a gradual decrease of the meniscus during the etching process. Owing to this effect, tungsten tips with high aspect ratios and resonance frequencies can be easily fabricated without the help of any additional mechanical and electrical parts. The fabrication of W tips with radii of curvature down to 20 nm is demonstrated using the new method. The reproducibility of the unique W-tip structure is also experimentally confirmed.