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Tunneling spectroscopy is widely used to examine the subgap spectra in semiconductor-superconductor nanostructures when searching for Majorana zero modes (MZMs). Typically, semiconductor sections controlled by local gates at the ends of hybrids serve as tunnel barriers. Besides detecting states only at the hybrid ends, such gate-defined tunnel probes can cause the formation of non-topological subgap states that mimic MZMs. Here, we develop an alternative type of tunnel probes to overcome these limitations. After the growth of an InSb-Al hybrid nanowire, a precisely controlled in-situ oxidation of the Al shell is performed to yield a nm-thick Al oxide layer. In such thin isolating layer, tunnel probes can be arbitrarily defined at any position along the hybrid nanowire by shadow-wall angle-deposition of metallic leads. This allows us to make multiple tunnel probes along single nanowire hybrids and to successfully identify Andreev bound states (ABSs) of various spatial extension residing along the hybrids., Comment: 38 pags, 5 figures

In most naturally occurring superconductors, electrons with opposite spins are paired up to form Cooper pairs. This includes both conventional $s$-wave superconductors such as aluminum as well as high-$T_c$, $d$-wave superconductors. Materials with intrinsic $p$-wave superconductivity, hosting Cooper pairs made of equal-spin electrons, have not been conclusively identified, nor synthesized, despite promising progress. Instead, engineered platforms where $s$-wave superconductors are brought into contact with magnetic materials have shown convincing signatures of equal-spin pairing. Here, we directly measure equal-spin pairing, proximity-induced from an $s$-wave superconductor into a semiconducting nanowire with strong spin-orbit interaction. We demonstrate such pairing using spin-selective quantum dots by showing that breaking a Cooper pair can result in two electrons with equal spin polarization. Our results demonstrate controllable detection of singlet and triplet pairing in the proximitized nanowire. Achieving such triplet pairing in a sequence of quantum dots will be required for realizing an artificial Kitaev chain.

Supplemental Material, sj-pdf-1-crd-10.1177_14799731211052301 for The effect of continuous positive airway pressure and mandibular advancement device on sleep bruxism intensity in obstructive sleep apnea patients by Helena Martynowicz, Tomasz Wieczorek, Piotr Macek, Anna Wojakowska, Rafał Poręba, Paweł Gać, Grzegorz Mazur, Robert Skomro, Joanna Smardz and Mieszko Więckiewicz in Chronic Respiratory Disease

Agnieszka Sławuta,1 Polański Jacek,1 Grzegorz Mazur,1 Beata Jankowska-Polańska2 1Department of Internal Medicine, Occupational Diseases, Hypertension and Clinical Oncology, Wroclaw Medical University, Wrocław, Poland; 2Department of Clinical Nursing, Faculty of Health Science, Wroclaw Medical University, Wrocław, PolandCorrespondence: Beata Jankowska-PolańskaDepartment of Clinical Nursing, Wroclaw Medical University, K. Bartla 5, Wrocław 51-616, PolandTel +48 71 784 18 24Fax +48 71 345 93 24Email beata.jankowska-polanska@umed.wroc.plIntroduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) and frailty syndrome (FS) are a part of the aging process. Both are still of great importance in the assessment of quality of life (QoL). There is definitely a lack of research clarifying the association between FS and QoL in AF patients.Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of FS on QoL in AF patients.Materials and Methods: The retrospective and observational study included 158 inpatients with mean age 69.8± 7.1 years, treated for AF in the cardiac department from 1 April 2019 to 31 June 2019. The following instruments were used: the Arrhythmia-Specific Questionnaire in Tachycardia and Arrhythmia (ASTA) and the Edmonton Frail Scale (EFS).Results: The mean level of frailty in the study group was 8.5± 5.0. In 25.9% of patients, the level of frailty was mild, in 10.1% moderate, and in 17.1% severe. Patients were divided into two groups based on their frailty status. In comparative analysis of the QoL, there were significant differences between the groups: the frail group had more intense symptoms of arrhythmia than the non-frail group (14.9± 4.1 vs 11.9± 4.9; p< 0.001). In the analysis of the total score impact of arrhythmia on QoL, the frail group had a significantly higher score than the non-frail group (23.5± 5.2 vs 14.5± 5.5), which confirmed the stronger negative impact of arrhythmia on QoL. In the regression coefficient analysis, the independent predictor of symptom severity and QoL was FS. However, we observed a negative impact of diabetes, which increased the impact of arrhythmia on QoL, and physical activity, which improved QoL and decreased the impact of symptoms on everyday life.Conclusion: Patients in the frail group have worse QoL and higher impact of arrhythmia on QoL in comparison to patients in the non-frail group. Frailty is an independent predictor of higher intensity of symptoms of arrhythmia and worse QoL. Diabetes and physical activity are predictors of QoL for patients with AF.Keywords: atrial fibrillation, frailty, older age

Background/Aim: In this study, we carried out a retrospective analysis of the efficacy and toxicity of bendamustine in patients with B-cell lymphoproliferative diseases. Methods: Bendamustine was administered both as monotherapy and in combined protocols to 92 patients, including 76 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and 16 patients with indolent lymphomas. Bendamustine plus rituximab was used to treat 65.2% of the patients, and 34.8% of the patients received bendamustine as monotherapy. Results: The overall response rate was 64.2%, including the complete response rate (18.5%) and the partial response rate (45.7%). The median overall survival (OS) was 11.5 months. Among the pretreatment parameters, β2-microglobulin (RR = 1.413; p = 0.001) and hemoglobin levels (RR = 0.85; p = 0.03) significantly influenced survival. The OS was significantly longer in patients who received ≤2 lines of previous therapy compared to >3 lines (p = 0.043; log-rank test) and those who received ≥4 courses of therapy with bendamustine (p = 0.0007; log-rank test). Toxicity was predominantly hematological, including grade III/IV neutropenia in 33.7%, thrombocytopenia in 13%, and anemia in 13% of patients. Conclusion: Bendamustine, both in monotherapy and in combination regimens, is an effective therapy with a favorable toxicity profile in patients with indolent B-cell malignancies.