Liquids with High Compressibility.

Compressibility is a fundamental property of all materials. For fluids, that is, gases and liquids, compressibility forms the basis of technologies such as pneumatics and hydraulics and determines basic phenomena such as the propagation of sound and shock waves. In contrast to gases, liquids are almost incompressible. If the compressibility of liquids could be increased and controlled, new applications in hydraulics and shock absorption could result. Here, it is shown that dispersing hydrophobic porous particles into water gives aqueous suspensions with much greater compressibilities than any normal liquids such as water (specifically, up to 20 times greater over certain pressure ranges). The increased compressibility results from water molecules being forced into the hydrophobic pores of the particles under applied pressure. The degree of compression can be controlled by varying the amount of porous particles added. Also, the pressure range of compression can be reduced by adding methanol or increased by adding salt. In all cases, the liquids expand back to their original volume when the applied pressure is released. The approach shown here is simple and economical and could potentially be scaled up to give large amounts of highly compressible liquids.

The Application Value of the Renal Region of Interest Corrected by Computed Tomography in Single-Kidney Glomerular Filtration Rate for the Evaluation of Patients With Moderate or Severe Hydronephrosis.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the application value of the renal region of interest (ROI) corrected by computed tomography (CT) in single-kidney glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in patients with hydronephrosis. Methods: A total of 46 patients with hydronephrosis were divided into four groups based on their degree of unilateral hydronephrosis: a normal group (left kidney and right kidney) and three abnormal groups (mild, moderate, and severe hydronephrosis). GFR was measured using the two-sample method (tGFR). The single-kidney GFR of each patient was derived from differential renal function values in dynamic renal imaging multiplied by GFR. The single-kidney GFRs, including GFR from the Gates method (gGFRsingle) and CT area-corrected GFR (aGFRsingle), were compared with tGFRsingle. A paired-sample t-test and Pearson's test were used for data analysis. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: There were no significant differences between aGFRsingle and tGFRsingle in patients in the normal, mild hydronephrosis, and moderate hydronephrosis groups (t = -0.604∼1.982, all p > 0.05), but there was a significant difference between them in the severe hydronephrosis group (t = 2.302, p < 0.05). There were no significant differences between gGFRsingle and tGFRsingle in the normal and mild hydronephrosis groups (t = 0.194∼0.962, all p > 0.05), but there was a significant difference between them in the moderate and severe hydronephrosis groups (t = 3.321, 3.494, p < 0.05). Both gGFRsingle and aGFRsingle were correlated with tGFRsingle, with aGFRsingle being more strongly correlated (r = 0.890, p < 0.001). Conclusion: In patients with moderate hydronephrosis, aGFRsingle is more strongly correlated with tGFRsingle than gGFRsingle. However, in patients with severe hydronephrosis and accompanying renal morphological changes, the aGFRsingle measured by the renal ROI area-correction method using CT has higher accuracy and better clinical application value than the conventional gGFRsingle.

Solitary Hepatic Metastasis From Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma.

ABSTRACT: Papillary thyroid carcinoma commonly metastasizes to regional lymph nodes. However, metastasis to liver alone is extremely rare. Here we present a 36-year-old woman who underwent total thyroidectomy and bilateral neck lymph nodes dissection for papillary thyroid carcinoma and received radioiodine (131I) ablation therapy for 2 times 1 month and 5 months after surgery, respectively. The images after the 131I therapy showed a solitary occult metastasis in the liver.

Two new compounds from the stewed Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua and their protective effect against Aß25-35 induced cytotoxicity and oxidative stress damage.

A new alkaloid polygonatine C (3-(2'-furaldehyde-5'-methoxymethyl)5,6,7,8 -tetrahydroindolizin-8-one, 1) and a new saponin huangjingsterol B (3-ß-hydroxyspirost-5,25-diene-12-one, 2), together with three known compounds 3-5 were isolated from the ethanolic extract of the Stewed Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua. The structures of these new compounds were identified by extensive spectroscopic analysis including 1D and 2D NMR and MS, as well as chemical methods. The new compounds were tested for their Protective effect against Aß25-35 induced cytotoxicity and oxidative stress damage in PC12 cells. The results indicated that compounds 1-2 can be considered as promising lead compounds for further research on Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment.

Extent of compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout in nursing: A meta-analysis.

AIMS: A meta-analysis was conducted of the prevalence rates of compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout to identify the factors influencing these rates. BACKGROUND: The extents of compassion fatigue and burnout adversely affect nursing efficiency. However, the reported prevalence rates vary considerably. METHODS: Data were acquired from electronic databases. Random effects meta-analyses were performed to obtain pooled estimates of the prevalence rates of compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout and their respective instrumental scores. Meta-regression analyses were performed to identify factors influencing these rates. RESULTS: Data from 21 studies were used for the meta-analysis. The prevalence rates of compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and burnout were 47.55%, 52.55% and 51.98%, respectively. The possession of Bachelor's or Master's degrees by the nurses was significantly inversely associated with the percent prevalence of compassion fatigue (coefficient: -1.187) and burnout (coefficient: -0.810). The compassion fatigue score was also significantly inversely associated with nursing status as registered or licensed practical nurse (coefficient: -0.135). CONCLUSION: In nursing, the prevalence rates of compassion fatigue and burnout are high. Better education and training may have a moderating effect on compassion fatigue and burnout and could improve the quality of life of nurses.