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The present study aimed to investigate the effects of a combination of progesterone with different doses of E-17β on following end points: (1) ovarian follicular dynamics and emergence of a new follicular wave, and (2) superovulatory response and embryo yield. In Experiment 1, 28 ewes were randomly divided into four groups ( n = 7) to receive either 2.0 mg, 1.0 mg, 0.5 mg or none E-17β one day after insertion of a progesterone device. The different doses of estradiol similarly delayed the moment of follicular emergence (overall mean = 3.1 ± 1.0 days vs. control group = 0.86 ± 1.0 days; P < 0.01), but the emergence of the new wave showed greater synchronization with the 0.5 mg dosage of E-17β. In Experiment 2, sixty-two donor ewes received an internal progesterone release device (day -1) for 7 d and 1 d after the insertion of this device (day 0) were allocated randomly to receive 0.5 mg of E-17β or only the vehicle (control group). Superstimulation was initiated on day 3 with the administration of 133 mg of pFSH in eight decreasing doses. Contrary to expectations, the protocol with the administration of 0.5 mg E-17β did not improve the percentage of donors with > 2 CL, the number of CL and the production of embryos (P > 0.05). It was concluded that the combination of progesterone and 0.5 mg E-17β was more efficient in synchronizing the emergence of the new follicular wave, however this approach seems to be unnecessary in ewe's superovulation programs., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

The aim of this study was to use estrus synchronization protocols to favor fixed-time artificial insemination and consequently fixed-time embryo collection, and increase embryo production using eCG, in gits. In a cross over design, nine Piau breed gilts were subjected to 18 days of oral progesterone; P4 group did not receive any further; GnRH group received 25µg of GnRH 104 hours after the final application of P4; and eCG+GnRH group received 1000IU of eCG 24 hours after the final P4 in addition to GnRH for subsequent embryo collection, that was performed six days after first AI, by laparotomy. Artificial insemination was performed after 12 and 24 hours of estrus in P4 group, and 128 and 144 hours in GnRH and eCG+GnRH groups. The number of CL (8.6±3.9; 8.3±2.1; 26.7±15.0) and anovulatory follicles (4.3±3.7; 3.9±3.9; 17.2±9.5) was higher in the eCG+GnRH gilts ( P <0.05). However, the use of 1000 IU of eCG reduced ( P <0.05) the number of total structures (5.2±3.6; 5.1±3.1; 1.7±2.7), viable embryos (5.0±3.5; 4.8±3.3; 0.4±0.7), freezable embryos (3.6±3.4; 3.3±3.8; 0.1±0.3) and recovery rate (63.7±38.9; 58.6±24.7; 5.38±9.5). P4 and GnRH protocols were effective in the production and recovery of embryos. However, the use of 1000 IU of eCG, 24 hours after P4, was not effective in promoting the production of embryos, although the animals had superovulated., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: The authors have no conflict of interest to declare., (Copyright © The Author(s).)

Background: Considering the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic aspects of different medications, it is plausible that the age of a smoker could affect the half-life of these drugs. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of smoking cessation drugs (nicotine replacement therapy, bupropion, and varenicline) used either in isolation or in combination in adults under and over 60 years of age., Methods: Data were collected from 940 Brazilian patients participating in a smoking cessation program. Participants were prescribed smoking cessation medication to be used for at least 12 weeks and were followed for 52 weeks., Results: Cessation rates were significantly different among younger and older participants who were using nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) alone. Being over 60 years of age was significantly associated with increased cessation success among those who used NRT alone (OR 2.34, 95% CI: 1.36 to 4.04, p = 0.002). The effectiveness of varenicline and bupropion were not significantly different according to age groups., Conclusion: Using age as a predictor for tailoring smoking cessation drugs might potentially lead to a more individualized prescription of smoking cessation therapy. These results should be tested in randomized controlled trials., Competing Interests: CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS J. Scholz is the principal site investigator in Varenicline Trials sponsored by Pfizer. Other authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been employed to investigate the interaction between ZnO-(101[combining macron]0) and (12[combining macron]10) surfaces and organic functional groups. We analyze the influence of the surface coverage on the geometries and binding energies under a dry environment. Our calculations show that coverages θ = 1 ML are favored under ligand-rich conditions and a dry environment. However, based on thermodynamic considerations we suggest that these ligands may not be stable against adsorption of liquid water and water vapor.

The use of an amperometric biosensor for rapid salicylate determination in blood is described. Photolitography was used to make gold electrodes on a polyester film. The plastic microcell was characterized using cyclic voltammetry to demonstrate the electrochemical performance of the system. The biosensor was constructed by immobilizing salicylate hydroxylase onto the working electrode of the plastic electrochemical microcell. The optimized working conditions were 0.1 mol L(-1) phosphate buffer at pH 7.6 with 0.5 mmol L(-1) of NADH and 300 mV vs. Au as the applied potential. The resulting biosensor exhibited a high sensitivity (97.4 nA/mmol L(-1) salicylate) and an adequate linear response range (1.2x10(-4) to 1.0x10(-3)mol(-1)). The biosensor performance was verified by determining salicylate in spiked blood samples and the results were statistically equivalent to the values obtained from the standard Trinder spectrophotometric method, with a 95% confidence level. This study shows the potential development of a portable, inexpensive and disposable device for point-of-care monitoring., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A new self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) set of parameters for Ti-X pairs of elements (X = Ti, H, C, N, O, S) has been developed. The performance of this set has been tested with respect to TiO2 bulk phases and small molecular systems. It has been found that the band structures, geometric parameters, and cohesive energies of rutile and anatase polymorphs are in good agreement with the reference DFT data and with experiment. Low-index rutile and anatase surfaces were also tested. For molecular systems, binding and atomization energies close to their DFT analogues have been achieved. Large errors, however, have been found for systems in high-spin states and/or having multireference character of their wave functions. The correct performance of SCC-DFTB for surface reactions has been demonstrated via the water splitting on anatase (001) surface. The current SCC-DFTB set is a suitable tool for future in-depth investigation of chemical processes occurring on the surfaces of TiO2 polymorphs as well as for other processes of physicochemical interest.

An extended self-consistent charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) parametrization for Zn-X (X = H, C, N, O, S, and Zn) interactions has been derived. The performance of this new parametrization has been validated by calculating the structural and energetic properties of zinc solid phases such as bulk Zn, ZnO, and ZnS; ZnO surfaces and nanostructures; adsorption of small species (H, CO2, and NH3) on ZnO surfaces; and zinc-containing complexes mimicking the biological environment. Our results show that the derived parameters are universal and fully transferable, describing all the above-mentioned systems with accuracies comparable to those of first-principles DFT results.

The fabrication process of novel multichannel microfluidic devices with integrated electrodes for amperometric detection is described. Soft-lithography, lift-off and O(2) plasma surface activation sealing techniques were employed for rapid prototyping of cost effective PDMS/glass microchips. The capabilities of the proposed microdevices were demonstrated by the electrooxidation of hydroquinone and N-acetyl-p-aminophenol (APAP) on a Au working electrode at +800 mV and +700 mV, respectively, against a Au pseudo reference electrode, and of thiocyanate on a Cu working electrode at +700 mV against a Ag/AgCl (KCl saturated) reference electrode. Linear response over the range up to 1.0 mmol L(-1) for APAP and up to 4.0 mmol L(-1) for hydroquinone and thiocyanate were verified through calibration curves with correlation coefficients greater than 0.97 (minimum of five data points). The sensitivities for hydroquinone, thiocyanate, and APAP were 28, 19, and 78 microA mol(-1) L, respectively. Under the experimental conditions used, the estimated limits of detection were 0.21, 0.95, and 0.12 mmol L(-1) for hydroquinone, thiocyanate and APAP, respectively. The geometries of the devices were designed to allow fast calibration procedures and reliable results for in-field applications. Exerting a strong influence over the device performance, the sealing process was greatly enhanced by depositing auxiliary TiSiO(2) thin-films. The general performance of the system was verified by amperometric assays of N-acetyl-p-aminophenol standard solutions, and the influences exerted by the present fabrication methods regarding reproducibility and reliability are addressed. The proposed device was successfully applied in the determination of the concentration of APAP in two commercial formulations.

Objective: To study the effect of early reperfusion of infarct-related artery on QT(DeltaQT) dispersion interval, as well as how valuable it is as a marker for coronary reperfusion and ventricular arrhythmias., Methods: One hundred and six patients with reperfusion (WR) and 48 without reperfusion (WtR) who have received thrombolytic therapy in the acute phase of infarction were studied. ECG carried out on admission as well as on day 4 of patients course were analyzed. DeltaQT - defined as the difference between maximum and minimum QT interval - was measured by 12-lead ECG., Results: The reperfusion group showed significant DeltaQT reduction - from 89.66+/-20.47ms down to 70.95+/-21.65ms (p<0.001). On the other hand, the group without reperfusion showed DeltaQT significant increase - from 81.27+/-20.52ms up to 91.85+/-24.66ms (p<0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that reduction magnitude between pre- and post-thrombolysis DeltaQT was the independent factor to most effectively identify coronary reperfusion (OR 1.045, p<0.0001; CI 95%). No significant difference was found in dispersion measures when patients with ventricular arrhythmias were compared with those with no arrhythmias in the course of the first 48 hours., Conclusion: The study shows that DeltaQT is significantly reduced in patients with acute myocardial infarction submitted to successful thrombolysis, and is increased in infarcted patients with closed artery. DeltaQT reduction between the pre- and post-thrombolysis condition was a predictor for coronary reperfusion of those patients, and did not show correlation to ventricular arrhythmias.

Bone grafts are frequently used in the treatment of bone defects. Bone harvesting can cause postoperative complications and sometimes does not provide a sufficient quantity of bone. Therefore, synthetic biomaterials have been investigated as an alternative to autogenous bone grafts. The objective of this study was to evaluate the repair of bone defects by autogenous cancellous bone grafts or porous bioceramic discs of hydroxyapatite/phosphate cement mixture. Two 5-mm diameter defects were made in the skulls of rats and filled with the bioceramic material or cancellous bone. The rats were sacrificed 2, 4, 8 and 24 weeks after surgery and tissue samples were analyzed by radiography and histology. By the 24th week, the defects filled with autogenous cancellous bone grafts or bioceramic material showed similar volumes of bone tissue within the defect. However, defects treated with bioceramic material were almost completely closed as a result of the joining of ceramic fragments and the neoformed bone tissue, while those filled with autogenous grafts showed several areas filled with connective tissue. These results indicated that the osteointegration of bioceramic fragments allowed the reconstruction of parietal bone defects without the need for a bone graft.