Ptychographic lensless coherent endomicroscopy through a flexible fiber bundle.

Conventional fiber-bundle-based endoscopes allow minimally invasive imaging through flexible multi-core fiber (MCF) bundles by placing a miniature lens at the distal tip and using each core as an imaging pixel. In recent years, lensless imaging through MCFs was made possible by correcting the core-to-core phase distortions pre-measured in a calibration procedure. However, temporally varying wavefront distortions, for instance, due to dynamic fiber bending, pose a challenge for such approaches. Here, we demonstrate a coherent lensless imaging technique based on intensity-only measurements insensitive to core-to-core phase distortions. We leverage a ptychographic reconstruction algorithm to retrieve the phase and amplitude profiles of reflective objects placed at a distance from the fiber tip, using as input a set of diffracted intensity patterns reflected from the object when the illumination is scanned over the MCF cores. Our approach thus utilizes an acquisition process equivalent to confocal microendoscopy, only replacing the single detector with a camera.

Fourier holographic endoscopy for imaging continuously moving objects.

Coherent fiber bundles are widely used for endoscopy, but conventional approaches require distal optics to form an object image and acquire pixelated information owing to the geometry of the fiber cores. Recently, holographic recording of a reflection matrix enables a bare fiber bundle to perform pixelation-free microscopic imaging as well as allows a flexible mode operation, because the random core-to-core phase retardations due to any fiber bending and twisting could be removed in situ from the recorded matrix. Despite its flexibility, the method is not suitable for a moving object because the fiber probe should remain stationary during the matrix recording to avoid the alteration of the phase retardations. Here, we acquire a reflection matrix of a Fourier holographic endoscope equipped with a fiber bundle and explore the effect of fiber bending on the recorded matrix. By removing the motion effect, we develop a method that can resolve the perturbation of the reflection matrix caused by a continuously moving fiber bundle. Thus, we demonstrate high-resolution endoscopic imaging through a fiber bundle, even when the fiber probe changes its shape along with the moving objects. The proposed method can be used for minimally invasive monitoring of behaving animals.

The relationship between exposure to environmental noise and risk of atopic dermatitis, asthma, and allergic rhinitis.

BACKGROUND: Noise is defined as unwanted sound. It may induce negative emotions and mental health problems and may even lead to increased suicide risk. However, the impact of noise exposure on environmental diseases and disease severity is not well understood. This study aimed to elucidate the association between night-time noise exposure and the prevalence of environmental diseases in South Korea. METHODS: We conducted an analysis of the Environmental Disease Database provide by the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) from 2013 to 2017. After spatially interpolating the noise data provided by the National Noise Information System (NNIS), night-time noise values in the district level were obtained by calculating the mean noise values at the administrative district level. The linear regression analyses were performed to test the association between the age-standardized prevalence ratio (SPR) and the night-time noise exposure in the district level. RESULTS: In areas with high night-time noise exposure (≥55 dB), the SPR for atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis were 1.0515 (95 % confidence interval [CI]:1.0508-1.0521) and 1.0202 (95 % CI:1.0201-1.0204), respectively, which were higher than those in the general population. The SPR for environmental diseases, including atopic dermatitis, asthma, and allergic rhinitis, was 1.0104 (95 % CI:1.0103-1.0105). Additionally, a significant linear association was observed between the level of nocturnal noise exposure and the total hospitalization period for atopic dermatitis (ß = 399.3, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: We provide evidence of a significant association between night-time environmental noise and environmental diseases, particularly atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis. Furthermore, we observed a significant linear association between night-time noise exposure and the severity of atopic dermatitis.

Nanomaterials for IoT Sensing Platforms and Point-of-Care Applications in South Korea.

Herein, state-of-the-art research advances in South Korea regarding the development of chemical sensing materials and fully integrated Internet of Things (IoT) sensing platforms were comprehensively reviewed for verifying the applicability of such sensing systems in point-of-care testing (POCT). Various organic/inorganic nanomaterials were synthesized and characterized to understand their fundamental chemical sensing mechanisms upon exposure to target analytes. Moreover, the applicability of nanomaterials integrated with IoT-based signal transducers for the real-time and on-site analysis of chemical species was verified. In this review, we focused on the development of noble nanostructures and signal transduction techniques for use in IoT sensing platforms, and based on their applications, such systems were classified into gas sensors, ion sensors, and biosensors. A future perspective for the development of chemical sensors was discussed for application to next-generation POCT systems that facilitate rapid and multiplexed screening of various analytes.

Single-shot multiple-depth macroscopic imaging by spatial frequency multiplexing.

We present a low-coherence interferometric imaging system designed for 3-dimensional (3-D) imaging of a macroscopic object through a narrow passage. Our system is equipped with a probe-type port composed of a bundle fiber for imaging and a separate multimode optical fiber for illumination. To eliminate the need for mechanical depth scanning, we employ a spatial frequency multiplexing method by installing a 2-D diffraction grating and an echelon in the reference arm. This configuration generates multiple reference beams, all having different path lengths and propagation directions, which facilitates the encoding of different depth information in a single interferogram. We demonstrate the acquisition of 9 depth images at the interval of 250 µm for a custom-made cone and a plaster teeth model. The proposed system minimizes the need for mechanical scanning and achieves a wide range of depth coverage, significantly increasing the speed of 3-D imaging for macroscopic objects.

Preoperative Oral Carbohydrate Loading in Laparoscopic Gynecologic Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine whether carbohydrate loading improves the postoperative quality of recovery (QoR) better than the midnight fasting policy in laparoscopic gynecologic surgeries. DESIGN: Randomized, parallel-group trial. SETTING: Tertiary university hospital. PATIENTS: Female patients scheduled for laparoscopic gynecologic surgery for nonmalignant gynecologic diseases. INTERVENTIONS: Eighty-eight women were randomly assigned to the midnight fasting group (nil per os, NPO group) or the carbohydrate loading group (carbohydrate group). Patients in both groups adhered to the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol except for carbohydrate intake in the carbohydrate group. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The postoperative QoR was evaluated using the QoR 15-item questionnaire on postoperative day 2. The times to readiness for discharge of the groups were compared. The QoR 15-item questionnaire scores were 97.7 ± 23.0 in the NPO group and 99.6 ± 22.4 in the carbohydrate group; they were not statistically different (p = .702). The times to readiness for discharge of both groups were also not different: 36.8 ± 12.2 hours in the NPO group and 37.6 ± 11.8 hours in the carbohydrate group (p = .684). CONCLUSION: The benefit of carbohydrate beverage intake was not significant in laparoscopic gynecologic surgeries when following the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol.

A hybrid percolation transition at a finite transition point in scale-free networks.

Percolation transition (PT) means the formation of a macroscopic-scale large cluster, which exhibits a continuous transition. However, when the growth of large clusters is globally suppressed, the type of PT is changed to a discontinuous transition for random networks. A question arises as to whether the type of PT is also changed for scale-free (SF) network, because the existence of hubs incites the formation of a giant cluster. Here, we apply a global suppression rule to the static model for SF networks and investigate properties of the PT. We find that even for SF networks with the degree exponent 2<λ<3, a hybrid PT occurs at a finite transition point tc, which we can control by the suppression strength. The order parameter jumps at tc - and exhibits a critical behavior at tc +.

Association Between Carbon Monoxide Intoxication and Incidence of Ischemic Stroke: A Retrospective Nested Case-Control Study in South Korea.

OBJECTIVES: Severe neurological sequelae occur in patients with carbon monoxide (CO) intoxication; however, whether the latter increases the long-term risk of developing ischemic stroke is unclear. We investigated the association between CO intoxication and ischemic stroke using data from the Korean National Health Information Database. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective, nested case-control study of 27,984 individuals treated for CO intoxication and 27,984 sex- and age-matched controls. Initially, we calculated the overall incidence and hazard ratio (HR) of ischemic stroke using conditional logistic regression. Thereafter, we calculated the incidences and HRs according to covariates and follow-up periods. RESULTS: The CO intoxication group had a significantly higher risk of developing ischemic stroke than the control group (adjusted HR 2.31, 95% CI [confidence interval] = 2.01-2.65). Male sex (adjusted HR 2.73, 95% CI = 2.23-3.34), age <40 (adjusted HR 3.53, 95% CI = 2.15-5.82), low income (adjusted HR 2.55, 95% CI = 1.56-4.15), comorbidities (adjusted HR 2.59, 95% CI = 1.48-4.52), and current smokers (adjusted HR 3.55, 95% CI = 1.67-7.60) had a higher risk of ischemic stroke. The risk of ischemic stroke was highest within 2 years after CO intoxication (adjusted HR 7.47, 95% CI = 2.76-20.26), and even >6 years after, the risk remained significantly higher than in the control group (adjusted HR 1.84, 95% CI = 1.53-2.20). CONCLUSIONS: CO intoxication and the long-term risk of ischemic stroke are associated.

Visible-Light-Induced 1,3-Aminopyridylation of [1.1.1]Propellane with N-Aminopyridinium Salts.

Through the formation of an electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complex, strain-release aminopyridylation of [1.1.1]propellane with N-aminopyridinium salts as bifunctional reagents enabled the direct installation of amino and pyridyl groups onto bicyclo[1.1.1]pentane (BCP) frameworks in the absence of an external photocatalyst. The robustness of this method to synthesize 1,3-aminopyridylated BCPs under mild and metal-free conditions is highlighted by the late-stage modification of structurally complex biorelevant molecules. Moreover, the strategy was extended to P-centered and CF3 radicals for the unprecedented incorporation of such functional groups with pyridine across the BCP core in a three-component coupling. This practical method lays the foundation for the straightforward construction of new valuable C4-pyridine-functionalized BCP chemical entities, thus significantly expanding the range of accessibility of BCP-type bioisosteres for applications in drug discovery.

Provider, Staff, and Patient Perspectives on medical Visits Using Clinical Video Telehealth: A Foundation for Educational Initiatives to Improve Medical Care in Telehealth.

Clinical Video Telehealth (CVT) use is increasing and allows geographically separated care; however, this separation may affect participants behaviors. Using semi-structured in-depth interviews, we asked CVT nurse practitioners (NP), staff and patients at a VA Medical Center about perspectives on how CVT effects communication and identified three themes. They remarked on the complexity of scheduling appointments, local barriers to care, and acutely ill patients. NPs discussed how CVT altered sensory collection during the physical exam and differences in building provider-patient relationships. Patients perceptions mirrored these themes. NPs identified how CVT requires different workflow, behaviors, and use of their senses. Patients expressed similar concerns with CVT.

Photocatalytic Vicinal Aminopyridylation of Methyl Ketones by a Double Umpolung Strategy.

A photocatalytic double umpolung strategy for the vicinal aminopyridylation of ketones was developed using pyridinium N-N ylides. The inversion of the polarity of the pyridinium N-N ylides by single-electron oxidation successfully enables radical-mediated 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions with enolsilanes formed in situ from ketones, followed by homolytic cleavage of the N-N bond. Intriguingly, the nucleophilic amino and electrophilic pyridyl groups in the ylides can be installed at the nucleophilic α-position and electrophilic carbonyl carbon, respectively, which are typically inaccessible by their innate polarity-driven reactivity. This method accommodates a broad scope, and the utility was further demonstrated by the late-stage functionalization of complex biorelevant molecules. Moreover, the strategy can be successfully applied to enamides.

Iterative optimization of time-gated reflectance for the efficient light energy delivery within scattering media.

In complex media, light waves are diffused both in space and time due to multiple light scattering, and its intensity is attenuated with the increase of propagation depth. In this paper, we propose an iterative wavefront shaping method for enhancing time-gated reflection intensity, which leads to efficient light energy delivery to a target object embedded in a highly scattering medium. We achieved an over 10 times enhancement of reflectance at the specific flight time and demonstrated the focusing of light energy to the target object. Since the proposed method does not require reflection matrix measurement, it will be highly suited to samples in mechanically dynamic conditions.

Radiation-induced cutaneous angiosarcoma of the abdomen in a patient with cervical cancer: A case report.

Cutaneous angiosarcoma (CA) is a rare and aggressive malignant tumor that develops from vascular endothelium. Secondary CAs are often caused by radiotherapy and chronic lymphedema. Most radiation-induced CAs are associated with breast or gynecologic cancer. The prognosis of CA is extremely poor, with a 5-year survival rate ranging from 12% to 34%. Therapeutic options are limited, and surgical excision with negative margins remains the mainstay of treatment. We report a case of a 63-year-old woman who developed secondary CA at an irradiated site 7 years after receiving radiotherapy for cervical cancer.

Does Equi-Minimum Alveolar Concentration Value Ensure Equivalent Analgesic or Hypnotic Potency?: A Comparison between Desflurane and Sevoflurane.

BACKGROUND: Minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) has traditionally been used to compare the potency of volatile anesthetics. However, as it reflects the spinal mechanism of immobility rather than the cerebral mechanism of analgesia and hypnosis, it is doubtful that equi-MAC connotes equivalent analgesic or hypnotic potency. The level of analgesia and hypnosis can be assessed using surgical pleth index and bispectral index (BIS) values, respectively. This study was designed to compare the surgical pleth index and BIS values produced by equi-MAC of desflurane and sevoflurane in patients undergoing single-agent volatile anesthesia. METHODS: Eighty-nine patients were randomly allocated to two groups receiving either desflurane (n = 44) or sevoflurane (n = 45). Anesthesia was only maintained with assigned volatile anesthetic of age-corrected 1.0 MAC. Surgical pleth index values as an analgesic estimate and BIS values as a hypnotic estimate were obtained under standard tetanic stimulation. RESULTS: Post-stimulation surgical pleth index values (mean ± SD), the primary outcome, were significantly lower for the desflurane group than those for the sevoflurane group (49 ± 10 vs. 64 ± 14, difference, 15 [95% CI, 10 to 20], P < 0.001). The desflurane group showed significantly lower poststimulation BIS values (median [interquartile range]) than the sevoflurane group (36 [31 to 41] vs. 41 [38 to 47], difference, 6 [95% CI, 2 to 9], P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: During a steady-state of 1.0 MAC, desflurane and sevoflurane did not cause similar surgical pleth index and BIS values under the standardized nociceptive stimulus. These findings suggest that equi-MAC of desflurane and sevoflurane may not ensure equivalent analgesic or hypnotic potency. VISUAL ABSTRACT: An online visual overview is available for this article at http://links.lww.com/ALN/B726.

5-Bromo-4',5'-bis(dimethylamino)fluorescein: Synthesis and Photophysical Studies.

In this study, three new fluorescein derivatives-5-bromo-4',5'-dinitrofluorescein (BDNF), 5-bromo-4',5'-diaminofluorescein (BDAF), and 5-bromo-4',5'-bis(dimethylamino)fluorescein (BBDMAF)-were synthesized and their pH-dependent protolytic equilibria were investigated. In particular, BBDMAF exhibited pH-dependent fluorescence, showing strong emission only at pH 3-6. BBDMAF bears a bromine moiety and thus, can be used in various cross-coupling reactions to prepare derivatives and take advantage of its unique emission properties. To confirm this, the Suzuki and Sonogashira reactions of BBDMAF with phenylboronic acid and phenylacetylene, respectively, were performed, and the desired products were successfully obtained.

A method for named entity normalization in biomedical articles: application to diseases and plants.

BACKGROUND: In biomedical articles, a named entity recognition (NER) technique that identifies entity names from texts is an important element for extracting biological knowledge from articles. After NER is applied to articles, the next step is to normalize the identified names into standard concepts (i.e., disease names are mapped to the National Library of Medicine's Medical Subject Headings disease terms). In biomedical articles, many entity normalization methods rely on domain-specific dictionaries for resolving synonyms and abbreviations. However, the dictionaries are not comprehensive except for some entities such as genes. In recent years, biomedical articles have accumulated rapidly, and neural network-based algorithms that incorporate a large amount of unlabeled data have shown considerable success in several natural language processing problems. RESULTS: In this study, we propose an approach for normalizing biological entities, such as disease names and plant names, by using word embeddings to represent semantic spaces. For diseases, training data from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) disease corpus and unlabeled data from PubMed abstracts were used to construct word representations. For plants, a training corpus that we manually constructed and unlabeled PubMed abstracts were used to represent word vectors. We showed that the proposed approach performed better than the use of only the training corpus or only the unlabeled data and showed that the normalization accuracy was improved by using our model even when the dictionaries were not comprehensive. We obtained F-scores of 0.808 and 0.690 for normalizing the NCBI disease corpus and manually constructed plant corpus, respectively. We further evaluated our approach using a data set in the disease normalization task of the BioCreative V challenge. When only the disease corpus was used as a dictionary, our approach significantly outperformed the best system of the task. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed approach shows robust performance for normalizing biological entities. The manually constructed plant corpus and the proposed model are available at http://gcancer.org/plant and http://gcancer.org/normalization , respectively.

Reciprocal relationship between membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase and the algesic peptides of myelin basic protein contributes to chronic neuropathic pain.

Myelin basic protein (MBP) is an auto-antigen able to induce intractable pain from innocuous mechanical stimulation (mechanical allodynia). The mechanisms provoking this algesic MBP activity remain obscure. Our present study demonstrates that membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP/MMP-14) releases the algesic MBP peptides from the damaged myelin, which then reciprocally enhance the expression of MT1-MMP in nerve to sustain a state of allodynia. Specifically, MT1-MMP expression and activity in rat sciatic nerve gradually increased starting at day 3 after chronic constriction injury (CCI). Inhibition of the MT1-MMP activity by intraneural injection of the function-blocking human DX2400 monoclonal antibody at day 3 post-CCI reduced mechanical allodynia and neuropathological signs of Wallerian degeneration, including axon demyelination, degeneration, edema and formation of myelin ovoids. Consistent with its role in allodynia, the MT1-MMP proteolysis of MBP generated the MBP69-86-containing epitope sequences in vitro. In agreement, the DX2400 therapy reduced the release of the MBP69-86 epitope in CCI nerve. Finally, intraneural injection of the algesic MBP69-86 and control MBP2-18 peptides differentially induced MT1-MMP and MMP-2 expression in the nerve. With these data we offer a novel, self-sustaining mechanism of persistent allodynia via the positive feedback loop between MT1-MMP and the algesic MBP peptides. Accordingly, short-term inhibition of MT1-MMP activity presents a feasible pharmacological approach to intervene in this molecular circuit and the development of neuropathic pain.

Prevalence of and Factors Associated with Sarcopenia in Korean Cancer Survivors: Based on Data Obtained by the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2008-2011.

Using a representative dataset from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) from 2008 to 2011, we analyzed anthropometric and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-determined body composition findings for 493 cancer survivors (mean age a61.1 ± 12.6 years; 35.7% male). A much higher proportion of men (30.1%) than women (0.6%) met the criteria of sarcopenia. Subjects with a history of lung cancer, genitourinary cancer, or gastric cancer were prone to develop sarcopenia (31.6%, 26.3%, and 21.4%, respectively). Furthermore, sarcopenia was more prevalent among elderly (≥65 years; P < 0.001), those with a lower BMI level (<23 kg/m2; P < 0.001), heavy drinker (P = 0.012), or smoker (P < 0.001), and those with inadequate intakes of protein (P = 0.017) and vitamin A (P = 0.024). Multivariable logistic analyses revealed sarcopenia was significantly associated with male gender (odds ratio [OR], 68.14; 95% CI, 15.52-299.13), a BMI of <23 kg/m2 (OR 35.93, 95% CI, 8.24-156.67), and inadequate protein intake (OR 3.07, 95% CI, 1.30-7.22); these factors are significant predictors of sarcopenia in Korean cancer survivors.

Observation of a Biexciton Wigner Molecule by Fractional Optical Aharonov-Bohm Oscillations in a Single Quantum Ring.

The Aharonov-Bohm effect in ring structures in the presence of electronic correlation and disorder is an open issue. We report novel oscillations of a strongly correlated exciton pair, similar to a Wigner molecule, in a single nanoquantum ring, where the emission energy changes abruptly at the transition magnetic field with a fractional oscillation period compared to that of the exciton, a so-called fractional optical Aharonov-Bohm oscillation. We have also observed modulated optical Aharonov-Bohm oscillations of an electron-hole pair and an anticrossing of the photoluminescence spectrum at the transition magnetic field, which are associated with disorder effects such as localization, built-in electric field, and impurities.