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AbstractObjective:We present the first reported case of primary carcinoid tumour of the nasal septum.Method:Case report of our experience of a carcinoid tumour of the nasal septum. We discuss our clinical, radiological and pathological findings.Result:An 83-year-old woman presented with a history of left-sided nasal blockage. Clinical examination showed a unilateral, left-sided nasal polyp. Further imaging and histological analysis confirmed this to be a carcinoid tumour. Carcinoid tumours outside the gastrointestinal tract are rare. There have been reports of carcinoid tumours in the head and neck region, but no published cases occurring in the nasal septum. Our management involved wide surgical resection with regular follow up to monitor for recurrence and for the development of carcinoid syndrome. Four years from initial presentation, the patient remained free of the primary tumour and had displayed no signs or symptoms suggestive of carcinoid syndrome.Conclusion:To the authors' best knowledge, and after searching the world literature, the presented case represents the first report of primary carcinoid tumour of the nasal septum. Despite its rarity, this tumour should be considered as part of the differential diagnosis, as timely recognition and intervention are critical for successful treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enteric nervous system arises predominantly from vagal level neural crest cells that migrate into the foregut and then colonize the entire length of the gastrointestinal tract. Previous studies have demonstrated that glial cell line‐derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) promotes the migration of enteric neural crest‐derived cells (ENCs) in vitro, but a role for GDNF in the migration of ENCs in vivo has yet to be demonstrated. In this study, the effects of Gdnf haploinsufficiency on ENC rate of migration and number during mid embryonic development were examined. Although the entire gut of embryonic Gdnf+/− mice was colonized, a significant delay in the migration of ENCs along the embryonic hindgut was found. However, significant effects of Gdnf haploinsufficiency on ENC number were detected before the stage at which migration defects were first evident. As previous studies have shown a relationship between ENC number and migration, the effects of Gdnf haploinsufficiency on migration may be due to an indirect effect on cell number and/or a direct effect of GDNF on ENC migration. Gdnf haploinsufficiency did not cause any detectable change in the rate of neuronal differentiation of ENCs. Developmental Dynamics 236:134–141, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine the roles of specific genetic polymorphisms as predictors of response to treatment of early rheumatoid arthritis (RA).Subjects included 457 patients with early RA (duration of ?3 years) who participated in a randomized controlled trial comparing weekly methotrexate and 2 dosages of etanercept (10 mg twice weekly and 25 mg twice weekly). Our primary outcome measure was achievement of 50% improvement in disease activity according to the criteria of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR50 response) after 12 months of treatment. Subjects were genotyped for HLA–DRB1 alleles and polymorphisms in the following genes: TNF, LTA, TNFRSF1A, TNFRSF1B, FCGR2A, FCGR3A, and FCGR3B. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to define the impact of specific polymorphisms and haplotypes on response to treatment. Covariates for the multivariate analyses included sex, ethnicity, age, disease duration, and baseline values for rheumatoid factor and the tender and swollen joint counts.The presence of 2 HLA–DRB1 alleles encoding the shared epitope (SE) (compared with 1 or 0 copies) was associated with response to treatment with standard?dose etanercept (odds ratio [OR] 4.3, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.8–10.3). Among Caucasian patients, 2 extended haplotypes that included the HLA–DRB1 alleles *0404 and *0101 (both of which encode the SE) and 6 single?nucleotide polymorphisms in the LTA–TNF region were associated with response to treatment. In a multivariate model that included treatment received and the aforementioned covariates, the ORs for the association of these haplotypes with achievement of an ACR50 response at 12 months were 2.5 (95% CI 0.8–7.3) and 4.9 (95% CI 1.5–16.1) for the *0404? and *0101?containing haplotypes, respectively.Genetic variation in the HLA–DRB1 and the LTA–TNF regions is significantly associated with response to treatment of early RA. These findings may have clinical application through the identification of patients who are most likely to benefit from treatment with methotrexate or etanercept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arrays of manganese dioxide (MnO2), a pseudocapacitive material, have been deposited on the carbon fibers (CF) of a carbon woven fabric by electrodeposition from a solution containing manganese sulfate and sulfuric acid using galvanostatic square waves. The thickness of the MnO2 was varied by increasing/decreasing the time of deposition, and the electrochemical performance of the MnO2 has been analyzed. The CF serves as a substrate material with high surface area, good electrical conductivity and excellent mechanical strength. The electrochemical properties of the resultant electrode were examined by cyclic voltammogram (CV), galvanostatic charge/discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in a three-electrode system. From the specific capacitance calculations obtained from CV and charge–discharge, a high specific capacitance of 769 F g−1 @ 5 mV s−1 (low weight electrode) has been achieved. The maximum area capacitance, estimated from the charge–discharge curves, was 790 mF cm−2 @ 5 mV s−1. The high-performance is attributed to the double layer capacitance of the CFs combined with the pseudocapacitive nature of MnO2, the large surface area, and high degree of ordering of the ultrathin MnO2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combination of the lattice Boltzmann Shan-Chen pseudo-potential method for multiphase fluids (Shan and Chen 1993 Phys. Rev. E 47 1815) and a grey or partial bounce back lattice Boltzmann algorithm for effective media (Walsh et al 2009 Comput. Geosci. 35 1186), is demonstrated for application to liquid-vapour fluid dynamics in porous media with porosity spanning a very wide range of length scales. Liquid / vapour distributions in cellular like structures with cell walls of reduced permeability are seen to follow expectation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have observed and spatially resolved a set of seven A-type stars in the nearby Ursa Major moving group with the Classic, CLIMB, and PAVO beam combiners on the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy Array. At least four of these stars have large rotational velocities ( 170 ) and are expected to be oblate. These interferometric measurements, the stars’ observed photometric energy distributions, and values are used to computationally construct model oblate stars from which stellar properties (inclination, rotational velocity, and the radius and effective temperature as a function of latitude, etc.) are determined. The results are compared with MESA stellar evolution models to determine masses and ages. The value of this new technique is that it enables the estimation of the fundamental properties of rapidly rotating stars without the need to fully image the star. It can thus be applied to stars with sizes comparable to the interferometric resolution limit as opposed to those that are several times larger than the limit. Under the assumption of coevality, the spread in ages can be used as a test of both the prescription presented here and the MESA evolutionary code for rapidly rotating stars. With our validated technique, we combine these age estimates and determine the age of the moving group to be 414 ± 23 Myr, which is consistent with, but much more precise than previous estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]