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- Lin, Yi-Ting, et al.
(författare)
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Differences in the Microbial Composition of Hemodialysis Patients Treated with and without β-Blockers
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Personalized Medicine. - : MDPI. - 2075-4426. ; 11:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- β-blockers are commonly prescribed to treat cardiovascular disease in hemodialysis patients. Beyond the pharmacological effects, β-blockers have potential impacts on gut microbiota, but no study has investigated the effect in hemodialysis patients. Hence, we aim to investigate the gut microbiota composition difference between β-blocker users and nonusers in hemodialysis patients. Fecal samples collected from hemodialysis patients (83 β-blocker users and 110 nonusers) were determined by 16S ribosomal RNA amplification sequencing. Propensity score (PS) matching was performed to control confounders. The microbial composition differences were analyzed by the linear discriminant analysis effect size, random forest, and zero-inflated Gaussian fit model. The α-diversity (Simpson index) was greater in β-blocker users with a distinct β-diversity (Bray–Curtis Index) compared to nonusers in both full and PS-matched cohorts. There was a significant enrichment in the genus Flavonifractor in β-blocker users compared to nonusers in full and PS-matched cohorts. A similar finding was demonstrated in random forest analysis. In conclusion, hemodialysis patients using β-blockers had a different gut microbiota composition compared to nonusers. In particular, the Flavonifractor genus was increased with β-blocker treatment. Our findings highlight the impact of β-blockers on the gut microbiota in hemodialysis patients.
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| 2. |
- Hong, Kuo Bin, et al.
(författare)
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Monolithic high-index contrast grating mirror for a GaN-based vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser
- 2021
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Ingår i: Photonics Research. - 2327-9125. ; 9:11, s. 2214-2221
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper, a pulsed electrically pumped GaN-based vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) with one dielectric distributed Bragg reflector and one n-GaN monolithic high-index contrast grating (MHCG) mirror was demonstrated at room temperature. The reflectance of the n-GaN MHCG and cavity mode behaviors of the VCSEL with MHCG for varying n-GaN thickness, MHCG pattern diameter, and current aperture size were numerically investigated. Measured characteristics of the fabricated device showed that the lasing action started at an injection current of 10.2 mA, corresponding to a current density of about 15.1 kA=cm2. Above threshold, the measured slope efficiency was 6.2 × 10−3 W∕A, and the output power was 0.13 mW at 30 mA. Moreover, the measured lasing peak occurring at 403.4 nm and the longitudinal mode spacing of 5.6 nm were in good agreement with simulations. The incorporation of an n-GaN MHCG mirror not only greatly simplified the fabrication but also substantially improved the lasing characteristics in comparison to the previous work applying TiO2 HCG mirrors.
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| 3. |
- Wu, Ping-Hsun, et al.
(författare)
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Associations of Bone Turnover Markers with Cognitive Function in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis
- 2020
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Ingår i: Disease Markers. - : HINDAWI LTD. - 0278-0240 .- 1875-8630. ; 2020
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Patients undergoing hemodialysis experience a greater risk of cognitive impairment than the general population, but limited data elucidates the biomarkers on this. We evaluated the association of bone turnover markers on cognitive function among 251 prevalent hemodialysis enrollees in a cross-sectional study.Methods: 251 hemodialysis patients (median age=57.8, 55% men) and 37 control subjects (mean age=61.2, 56% men) without a prior stroke or dementia diagnosis were enrolled. Serum concentrations of 8 bone markers were analyzed as the association of cognitive function (Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI)) using linear regression analysis.Results: A lower cognitive function was noted in hemodialysis patients compared to control subjects. The receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL) was the only bone marker found to be associated with cognitive function (MoCA and CASI tests) in hemodialysis patients without a prior stroke or dementia diagnosis. In stepwise multiple linear regression analysis, the association remained significant in MoCA (beta=1.14, 95% CI 0.17 to 2.11) and CASI (beta=3.06, 95% CI 0.24 to 5.88). Short-term memory (beta=0.52, 95% CI 0.01 to 1.02), mental manipulation (beta=0.51, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.96), and abstract thinking (beta=0.57, 95% CI 0.06 to 1.09) were the significant subdomains in the CASI score related to RANKL.Conclusions: Serum RANKL levels were potentially associated with better cognitive function in hemodialysis patients. Further large-scale and prospective studies are needed to confirm our findings.
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