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Andean highlanders are challenged by chronic hypoxia and many exhibit elevated hematocrit (Hct) and blunted ventilation compared to other high-altitude populations. While many Andeans develop Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS) and excessive erythrocytosis, Hct varies markedly within Andean men and women and may be driven by individual differences in ventilatory control and/or sleep events which exacerbate hypoxemia. To test this hypothesis, we quantified relationships between resting ventilation and ventilatory chemoreflexes, sleep desaturation, breathing disturbance, and Hct in Andean men and women. Ventilatory measures were made in 109 individuals (n = 63 men; n = 46 women), and sleep measures in 45 of these participants (n = 22 men; n = 23 women). In both men and women, high Hct was associated with low daytime SpO2 (p < 0.001 and p < 0.002, respectively) and decreased sleep SpO2 (mean, nadir, and time

This article examines how the value of higher education (HE) is currently being (re)framed in two European countries: England and Portugal. HE has been central to a global discourse on the future of knowledge economy, whilst also being subject to the policy framework of New Public Management. Being so, the changing value of HE is related to the ways in which its missions are understood and must be considered within the context of massification, as well as of a growing importance of employability. Drawing on published research and also considering national policy documents and statistical data produced by international organizations, the analysis demonstrates how HE in these two countries is currently being (re)framed, recognizing differences and similarities that express national specificities, as well as exploring how these have evolved within the wider national and pan-national policy context. Overall, the examination demanded going beyond the marketization approach by complementing it with the idea of public good and leads us to stress the importance of the tension between these two approaches as an analytical framework to better understand the changes occurring in different national contexts, within a transnational framework in which the knowledge economy and the central role of HE seems to be indisputably accepted.

X-ray free-electron lasers (FELs), which amplify light emitted by a relativistic electron beam, are extending nonlinear optical techniques to shorter wavelengths, adding element specificity by exciting and probing electronic transitions from core levels. These techniques would benefit tremendously from having a stable FEL source, generating spectrally pure and wavelength-tunable pulses. We show that such requirements can be met by operating the FEL in the so-called echo-enabled harmonic generation (EEHG) configuration. Here, two external conventional lasers are used to precisely tailor the longitudinal phase space of the electron beam before emission of X-rays. We demonstrate high-gain EEHG lasing producing stable, intense, nearly fully coherent pulses at wavelengths as short as 5.9 nm (~211 eV) at the FERMI FEL user facility. Low sensitivity to electron-beam imperfections and observation of stable, narrow-band, coherent emission down to 2.6 nm (~474 eV) make the technique a prime candidate for generating laser-like pulses in the X-ray spectral region, opening the door to multidimensional coherent spectroscopies at short wavelengths.

Polypharmacy, commonly described as the use of five or more prescribed medications, is a prevalent health issue among seniors because of the potential adverse side effects due to medication interactions. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the association between dietary patterns and number of medications used. We hypothesized that a plant-based diet and healthy lifestyle choices decreases morbidities and number of medications taken. Data on 328 participants, aged 60 years or older, were collected through questionnaires and measurements at the Loma Linda University Drayson Center in Loma Linda, CA, between 2015 and 2016. The dependent variable was the number of pills taken, used as counts, and the main exposure was the type of diet adopted. Negative binomial regression was used for analysis. Results suggest that a vegan diet reduces the number of pills by 58% compared to non-vegetarian (IRR=.42 [95% CI:.25-.70]), even after adjusting for covariates. Increases in age, body mass index (BMI), and presence of disease suggest an increased number of pills taken. A vegan diet showed the lowest amount of pills in this sample. Body mass index also had a significant positive association with the number of pills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanodroplets have demonstrated potential for the range detection of hadron radiotherapies. Our formulation uses superheated perfluorobutane (C4F10) stabilized by a poly(vinyl-alcohol) shell. High-LET (linear energy transfer) particles vaporize the nanodroplets into echogenic microbubbles. Tailored ultrasound imaging translates the generated echo-contrast into a dose distribution map, enabling beam range retrieval. This work evaluates the response of size-sorted nanodroplets to carbon-ion radiation. We studied how thesize of nanodroplets affects their sensitivity at various beam-doses and energies, as a function of concentration and shell cross-linking. First, we show the physicochemical characterization of size-isolated nanodroplets by differential centrifugation. Then, we report on the irradiations of the nanodroplet samples in tissue-mimicking phantoms. We compared the response of large (≈900 nm) and small (≈400 nm) nanodroplets to different carbon-ions energies and evaluated their dose linearity and concentration detection thresholds by ultrasound imaging. Additionally, we verified the beam range detection accuracy for the nanodroplets samples. All nanodroplets exhibited sensitivity to carbon-ions with high range verification precision. However, smaller nanodroplets required a higher concentration sensitivity threshold. The vaporization yield depends on the carbon-ions energy and dose, which are both related to particle count/spot. These findings confirm the potential of nanodroplets for range detection, with performance depending on nanodroplets' properties and beam parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Right-to-left shunt may be a cause of paradoxical embolization (and cryptogenic cerebral ischemic events). Patent foramen ovale and pulmonary arterio-venous malformations are the most common cause of paradoxical embolization; however, some rare cardiovascular lesions may cause a right-to-left shunt with consequent paradoxical embolization. We describe a case of a young child with superior sinus venosus atrial septal defect who underwent surgical closure and developed a cryptogenic cerebral ischemic attack due to a rare cause of paradoxical embolization, during a long-term follow-up. This case report cautions us to consider some rare causes of parodixal embolization such as systemic-pulmonary venous connections. The diagnosis should be always suspected in patients with paradoxical embolization without a patent foramen ovale and/or arterio-venous pulmonary malformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]