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OBJECTIVE: To determine if a correlation exists between the semiquantitative bone scintigraphy index (SQBSI) and serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP5b) activity, a novel osteoclast marker that has been shown [...]

The design and recording performance of dual stripe magnetoresistive read/inductive write heads with read widths of 4 [[micro]meter] and write widths of 4.5 [[micro]meter] are described. A linear density of 75 kfci (D50) was measured in heads with shield-to-shield spacing of 420 nm and 70 nm of dielectric separating the two magnetoresistive stripes. Large signal amplitude, linear crosstrack profile, and good second harmonic suppression are observed in accordance with theoretical expectations. Readback waveforms contain little baseline shift and the ratio of positive to negative peak amplitudes is very close to unity. Stable signals are seen for heads with and without exchange stabilization. Conductor topography in the read head is replicated in the write head and can adversely affect cross-track behavior. Non-planarity of the write head must be considered in the design of shared pole magnetoresistive heads.

Abstract Background Serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP 5b) activity is a marker of osteoclast number and is elevated in breast cancer (BC) patients with extensive bone metastasis, which might in turn reflect the tumour burden. We tested the hypothesis that baseline serum TRACP 5b activity and its interval change are potential prognostic markers of survival in BC patients with bone metastasis. Methods We analyzed the data from previous prospective studies. A total of 100 patients with newly diagnosed bone metastasis were included. Cox proportional regression model was used to evaluate the correlation between the overall survival time (OS) and baseline serum TRACP 5b activity and its interval changes. The least significant change (LSC) of TRACP 5b was calculated from data obtained from 15 patients with early BC. Results Estrogen receptor status (Hazard Ratio (HR) = 0.397; p = 0.003) and visceral metastasis (HR = 0.492; p = 0.0045) were significantly correlated with OS. The OS was significantly shorter in those patients with higher baseline TRACP 5b activity based on a cut-off value to delineate the highest tertile (HR = 3.524; p < 0.0001). Further analysis demonstrated that among patients in the highest tertile, OS was significantly longer in those patients who had achieved a decrease of serum TRACP 5b activity greater than the LSC (38.59%) (p = 0.0015). Conclusions We found that TRACP 5b activity and its interval change after treatment bore a prognostic role in BC patients with bone metastasis and a high baseline serum TRACP 5b activity. Further prospective phase II study is necessary to confirm these results.

Aims: To explore whether there is a different strength of association between self‐rated health and all‐cause mortality in people with type 2 diabetes across three country groupings: nine countries grouped together as 'established market economies'; Asia; and Eastern Europe. Methods: The ADVANCE trial and its post‐trial follow‐up were used in this study, which included 11 140 people with type 2 diabetes from 20 countries, with a median follow‐up of 9.9 years. Self‐rated health was reported on a 0–100 visual analogue scale. Cox proportional hazard models were fitted to estimate the relationship between the visual analogue scale score and all‐cause mortality, controlling for a range of demographic and clinical risk factors. Interaction terms were used to assess whether the association between the visual analogue scale score and mortality varied across country groupings. Results: The visual analogue scale score had different strengths of association with mortality in the three country groupings. A 10‐point increase in visual analogue scale score was associated with a 15% (95% CI 12–18) lower mortality hazard in the established market economies, a 25% (95% CI 21–28) lower hazard in Asia, and an 8% (95% CI 3–13) lower hazard in Eastern Europe. Conclusions: Self‐rated health appears to predict 10‐year all‐cause mortality for people with type 2 diabetes worldwide, but this relationship varies across groups of countries. What's new?: Self‐rated health is an independent predictor of mortality in people with diabetes.The visual analogue scale (VAS) score has a stronger association with mortality in Asia and a weaker association in Eastern Europe than in the 'established market economies' included in our study among people with type 2 diabetes.People with type 2 diabetes in different countries reporting the same VAS score can face different mortality risks.The VAS score can be a useful global health measure in clinical practice for people with type 2 diabetes, but adjustment would be required before it can be directly compared across countries and regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study which measured the magnetization fluctuations of uniformly magnetized media in sputtered CoP thin films as a function of Cr underlayer thickness. Experimental procedure; Results and discussion; Conclusions.

The thalassaemias are a major health problem, and approximately 1 in 14 of the population are carriers for one of the sub types. For the purpose of prevention and control of clinically severe disease, molecular diagnosis either pre-natally or ante natal with genetic counselling are increasingly important. The majority of mutations causing the thalassaemias have now been characterised and a small number of common mutations cause the bulk of disease in each particular population-base. With little more than 6 to 8 common mutations probes over 90% of thalassaemic patients can now be characterised but challenges remain in the 10% where the mutations are rare, or have not yet been determined. Newer developments in micro array technology in combination with current PCR based systems will lead to further characterisation of this group and aid proper genetic potential identification and control of the disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY This paper is the initial investigation into a new Lagrangian cell-centered hydrodynamic scheme that is motivated by the desire for an algorithm that resists mesh imprinting and has reduced complexity. Key attributes of the new approach include multidimensional construction, the use of flux-corrected transport (FCT) to achieve second order accuracy, automatic determination of the mesh motion through vertex fluxes, and vorticity control. Toward this end, vorticity preserving Lax-Wendroff (VPLW) type schemes for the two-dimensional acoustic equations were analyzed and then implemented in a FCT algorithm. Here, mesh imprinting takes the form of anisotropic dispersion relationships. If the stencil for the LW methods is limited to nine points, four free parameters exist. Two parameters were fixed by insisting that no spurious vorticity be created. Dispersion analysis was used to understand how the remaining two parameters could be chosen to increase isotropy. This led to new VPLW schemes that suffer less mesh imprinting than the rotated Richtmyer method. A multidimensional, vorticity preserving FCT implementation was then sought using the most promising VPLW scheme to address the problem of spurious extrema. A well-behaved first order scheme and a new flux limiter were devised in the process. The flux limiter is unique in that it acts on temporal changes and does not place a priori bounds on the solution. Numerical results have demonstrated that the vorticity preserving FCT scheme has comparable performance to an unsplit MUSCL-H algorithm at high Courant numbers but with reduced mesh imprinting and superior symmetry preservation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP 5b) activity is a marker of osteoclast number and is elevated in breast cancer (BC) patients with extensive bone metastasis, which might in turn reflect the tumour burden. We tested the hypothesis that baseline serum TRACP 5b activity and its interval change are potential prognostic markers of survival in BC patients with bone metastasis. Methods: We analyzed the data from previous prospective studies. A total of 100 patients with newly diagnosed bone metastasis were included. Cox proportional regression model was used to evaluate the correlation between the overall survival time (OS) and baseline serum TRACP 5b activity and its interval changes. The least significant change (LSC) of TRACP 5b was calculated from data obtained from 15 patients with early BC. Results: Estrogen receptor status (Hazard Ratio (HR) = 0.397; p = 0.003) and visceral metastasis (HR = 0.492; p = 0.0045) were significantly correlated with OS. The OS was significantly shorter in those patients with higher baseline TRACP 5b activity based on a cut-off value to delineate the highest tertile (HR = 3.524; p < 0.0001). Further analysis demonstrated that among patients in the highest tertile, OS was significantly longer in those patients who had achieved a decrease of serum TRACP 5b activity greater than the LSC (38.59%) (p = 0.0015). Conclusions: We found that TRACP 5b activity and its interval change after treatment bore a prognostic role in BC patients with bone metastasis and a high baseline serum TRACP 5b activity. Further prospective phase II study is necessary to confirm these results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Type 5 tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) has been a clinically relevant biomarker for about 50 years. It has always been a reliable and specific cytochemical marker for hairy cell leukemia and for differentiated cells of monocytic lineage. Only recently has the test for serum TRAP activity been accepted as sensitive and specific enough for clinical use as a marker of osteoclasts and bone resorption. This has come about through steady advances in knowledge about TRAP enzymology, structure, function, and molecular regulation and a consequent appreciation that TRAP isoforms 5a and 5b have very different clinical significance. As a measure of osteoclast number and bone resorption, TRAP 5b has diagnostic and prognostic applications in osteoporosis, cancers with bone metastasis, chronic renal failure, and perhaps other metabolic and pathologic bone diseases. Serum TRAP 5a, on the other hand, has no relationship to bone metabolism but seems instead to be a measure of activated macrophages and chronic inflammation. Exploration of the real clinical usefulness of serum TRAP 5a for diagnosis and disease management in a wide variety of chronic inflammatory diseases is only now beginning. This perspective traces the important basic scientific developments that have led up to the refinement of serum TRAP isoform immunoassays and their validation as biomarkers of disease. Many unanswered questions remain, providing a wealth of opportunity for continued research of this multifaceted enzyme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the role of tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRACP) isoforms 5a and 5b in the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The possibility that TRACP 5a and 5b can act as biochemical markers for inflammation and bone degradation in patients with RA is noted. Measurements of the effect of RA are compared to those of bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BALP) and C-telopeptides of type-1Collagen (ICTP), and cartilage glycoprotein-39 (YKL-40).

Diagnosis and follow-up of bone metastases in breast cancer patients usually rely on symptoms and imaging studies. Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP 5b) is a specific marker of osteoclasts and is herein proposed as a marker of bone metastasis in breast cancer patients. An immunoassay using a monoclonal antibody, 14G6, was used to measure the activity of serum TRACP 5b at pH 6.1 in 30 early breast cancer patients without bone metastasis and in 30 aged-matched breast cancer patients with bone metastasis. Another 60 normal volunteers were recruited as controls. Bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP), a traditional marker of bone turnover, was also measured in selected cases. The overall mean TRACP 5b activity in normal women was 2.83 ± 1.1 U/l, and it increased with age. The mean TRACP 5b activity in early breast cancer patients did not differ from that of the normal group (2.93 ± 0.64 vs. 2.83 ± 1.1 U/l; p = 0.66), whereas it was significantly higher in breast cancer patients with bone metastasis (5.42 ± 2.5 vs. 2.83 ± 1.1 U/l; p < 0.0001). BAP activity was significantly higher in breast cancer patients with bone metastasis than in early breast cancer patients (p = 0.004). Serum TRACP 5b activity correlated well with BAP activity in breast cancer patients with bone metastasis (p < 0.0001), but not in normal individuals or in patients without bone metastasis. TRACP 5b activity can be considered a surrogate indicator of bone metastasis in breast cancer patients. Copyright © 2004 National Science Council, ROC and S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is an intriguing disorder characterized by the accumulation of specialized dendritic cells called Langerhans cells in several diverse tissues and body sites. It has been cited in numerous case reports to be associated with a wide variety of malignant neoplasms. Although many hypotheses have been suggested, the basis for such associations remains essentially unknown. We describe another association here that to our knowledge has not been reported thus far: a solitary plasmacytoma occurring at a site of previous involvement by LCH. This constitutes a new addition to the now fairly lengthy list of malignant neoplasms that have been reported to occur in the setting of LCH. The possible reasons for such an association are discussed along with a brief review of LCH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A time-averaging transient testing technique has been developed to allow for a rapid measurement of the matrix parameters and other frequency-dependent characteristics of acoustical systems with or without mean flow. The technique is applicable to systems with substantial flow noise contamination which is either random or periodic in nature. Flow and no-flow experiments were conducted on laboratory models of exhaust mufflers, variable area ducts, and complex piping networks. Excellent agreement between theoretical and experimental results was obtained. This success not only demonstrated the feasibility of the experimental technique for a range of practical industrial applications but also confirmed certain theoretical postulations that have not yet been verified adequately through comparison with experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]