Elastic and thermo-elastic characterizations of thin resin films using colored picosecond acoustics and spectroscopic ellipsometry.

Colored Picosecond Acoustics (CPA) and Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (SE) are combined to measure elastic and thermoelastic properties of polymer thin-film resins deposited on 300 mm wafers. Film thickness and refractive index are measured using SE. Sound velocity and thickness are measured using CPA from the refractive index. Comparing the two thicknesses allows checking consistency between both approaches. The same combination is then applied at various temperatures from 19° to 180°C. As the sample is heated, both thickness and sound velocity change. By monitoring these contributions separately, the Temperature Coefficient on sound Velocity (TCV) and the Coefficient on Thermal Expansion are deduced. The protocol is applied to five industrial samples made of different thin-film resins currently used by microelectronic industry. Young's modulus varies from resin to resin by up to 20%. TCV is large on each resin and varies from one resin to another up to 57%.

Clinical factors associated with low serum progesterone levels on the day of frozen blastocyst transfer in hormonal replacement therapy cycles.

STUDY QUESTION: Which factors are associated with low serum progesterone (P) levels on the day of frozen embryo transfer (FET), in HRT cycles? SUMMARY ANSWER: BMI, parity and non-European geographic origin are factors associated with low serum P levels on the day of FET in HRT cycles. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: The detrimental impact of low serum P concentrations on HRT-FET outcomes is commonly recognized. However, the factors accounting for P level disparities among patients receiving the same luteal phase support treatment remain to be elucidated, to help clinicians predicting which subgroups of patients would benefit from a tailored P supplementation. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: Observational cohort study with 915 patients undergoing HRT-FET at a tertiary care university hospital, between January 2019 and March 2020. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: Patients undergoing single autologous blastocyst FET under HRT using exogenous estradiol and vaginal micronized progesterone for endometrial preparation. Women were only included once during the study period. The serum progesterone level was measured in the morning of the FET, in a single laboratory. Independent factors associated with low serum P levels (defined as ≤9.8 ng/ml, according to a previous published study) were analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression models. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: Two hundred and twenty-six patients (24.7%) had a low serum P level, on the day of the FET. Patients with a serum P level ≤9.8 ng/ml had a lower live birth rate (26.1% vs 33.2%, P = 0.045) and a higher rate of early miscarriage (35.2% vs 21.5%, P = 0.008). Univariate analysis showed that BMI (P < 0.001), parity (P = 0.001), non-European geographic origin (P = 0.001), the duration of infertility (P = 0.018) and the use of oral estradiol for endometrial preparation (P = 0.009) were significantly associated with low serum P levels. Moreover, the proportion of active smokers was significantly lower in the 'low P concentrations' group (P = 0.002). After multivariate analysis, BMI (odds ratio (OR) 1.06 95% CI (1.02-1.11), P = 0.002), parity (OR 1.32 95% CI (1.04-1.66), P = 0.022), non-European geographic origin (OR 1.70 95% CI (1.21-2.39), P = 0.002) and active smoking (OR 0.43 95% CI (0.22-0.87), P = 0.018) remained independent factors associated with serum P levels ≤9.8 ng/ml. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: The main limitation of this study is its observational design, leading to a risk of selection and confusion bias that cannot be ruled out, although a multivariable analysis was performed to minimize this. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS: Extrapolation of our results to other laboratories, or other routes and/or doses of administering progesterone also needs to be validated. There is urgent need for future research on clinical factors affecting P concentrations and the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms, to help clinicians in predicting which subgroups of patients would benefit from individualized luteal phase support. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S): No funding/no conflicts of interest. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: N/A.

Autophagy and Crohn's disease: at the crossroads of infection, inflammation, immunity, and cancer.

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are common inflammatory disorders of the gastrointestinal tract that include ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). The incidences of IBD are high in North America and Europe, affecting as many as one in 500 people. These diseases are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Colorectal cancer risk is also increased in IBD, correlating with inflammation severity and duration. IBD are now recognized as complex multigenetic disorders involving at least 32 different risk loci. In 2007, two different autophagy-related genes, ATG16L1 (autophagy-related gene 16-like 1) and IRGM (immunity-related GTPase M) were shown to be specifically involved in CD susceptibility by three independent genome-wide association studies. Soon afterwards, more than forty studies confirmed the involvement of ATG16L1 and IRGM variants in CD susceptibility and gave new information on the importance of macroautophagy (hereafter referred to as autophagy) in the control of infection, inflammation, immunity and cancer. In this review, we discuss how such findings have undoubtedly changed our understanding of CD pathogenesis. A unifying autophagy model then emerges that may help in understanding the development of CD from bacterial infection, to inflammation and finally cancer. The Pandora's box is now open, releasing a wave of hope for new therapeutic strategies in treating Crohn's disease.