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The use of hand-held dental X-ray units is increasing within Australia since their portability is advantageous in applications such as aged care. However, proximity of the operator to the X-ray unit raises radiation safety concerns. The aim of this study was to evaluate operator radiation exposure and methods of dose reduction for the Rextar X camera-style hand-held dental X-ray unit. Leakage and scattered radiation were measured using a solid state detector. Scatter was generated using a Perspex head phantom. Measurements of scattered radiation dose as a function of distance were made with and without a lead acrylic scatter shield (0.6 mm Pb equivalence at 100 kVp) attached to the X-ray unit. Without the scatter shield, doses to the operator from a single adult maxillary molar X-ray exposure were 0.69, 0.78 and 0.47 µGy at the left hand, right hand and eyes respectively. With the scatter shield attached, doses were reduced to 0.25, 0.12 and 0.15 µGy respectively, corresponding to a dose reduction of 64, 85 and 68%. The contribution from leakage radiation was insignificant in comparison. It is highly unlikely that an operator would reach occupational dose limits when using the Rextar X hand-held dental X-ray unit, even without the scatter shield in place. Nevertheless, it is strongly recommended that the scatter shield is attached to keep operator doses as low as reasonably achievable. Use of the scatter shield additionally ensures compliance with the Australian legislative requirement for a protective barrier and is considered a preferable alternative to X-ray protective clothing.The embodied creative practice of dance facilitates a particular kind of awareness or attunement which can inform both the therapeutic and the intellectual work of the Health Humanities. This paper therefore considers dance as a way of ‘doing’ Health Humanities in two interlinked ways dance as a way of healing and dance as a way of knowing. In bringing together carnal and the creative dimensions of human experience, dance offers us a way of making sense of our place in the world that provides us both with much needed existential security (tethering) and much needed epistemological freedom (untethering).Information concerning arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal geographical distribution in tropical and subtropical soils from the Atlantic Forest (a global hotspot of biodiversity) are scarce and often restricted to the evaluation of richness and abundance of AM fungal species at specific ecosystems or local landscapes. this website In this study, we hypothesized that AM fungal diversity and community composition in subtropical soils would display fundamental differences in their geographical patterns, shaped by spatial distance and land-use change, at local and regional scales. AM fungal community composition was examined by spore-based taxonomic analysis, using soil trap cultures. Acaulospora koskei and Glomus were found as generalists, regardless of mesoregions and land uses. Other Acaulospora species were also found generalists within mesoregions. Land-use change and intensification did not influence AM fungal composition, partially rejecting our first hypothesis. We then calculated the distance-decay of similarities amos.Dust is a major vehicle for the dispersal of microorganisms across the globe. While much attention has been focused on microbial dispersal in dust plumes from major natural dust sources, very little is known about the fractionation processes that select for the “dust microbiome.” The recent identification of highly emissive, agricultural land dust sources in South Africa has provided the opportunity to study the displacement of microbial communities through dust generation and transport. In this study, we aimed to document the microbial communities that are carried in the dust from one of South Africa’s most emissive locations, and to investigate the selective factors that control the partitioning of microbial communities from soil to dust. For this purpose, dust samples were generated at different emission sources using a Portable In-Situ Wind Erosion Lab (PI-SWERL), and the taxonomic composition of the resulting microbiomes was compared with the source soils. Dust emission processes resulted in the clear fractionation of the soil bacterial community, where dust samples were significantly enriched in spore-forming taxa. Conversely, little fractionation was observed in the soil fungal communities, such that the dust fungal fingerprint could be used to identify the source soil. Dust microbiomes were also found to vary according to the emission source, suggesting that land use significantly affected the structure and fractionation of microbial communities transported in dust plumes. In addition, several potential biological allergens of fungal origin were detected in the dust microbiomes, highlighting the potential detrimental effects of dust plumes emitted in South Africa. This study represents the first description of the fractionation of microbial taxa occurring at the source of dust plumes and provides a direct link between land use and its impact on the dust microbiome.

Immunotherapy for programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and its ligand, PD-L1, has been considered an effective treatment for ovarian cancer.

F-labeled fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (

F-FDG PET/CT) is a widely used noninvasive imaging tool for diagnosing several cancers. In this study, we investigated the association between PD-L1 expression and the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) using

F-FDG PET/CT.

We retrospectively analyzed clinical data of patients with ovarian cancer who underwent

F-FDG PET/CT. Patients were categorized into two groups according to PD-L1 expression results. The relationship between clinicopathological characteristics of patients with ovarian cancer and PD-L1 expression was examined.

SUVmax was significantly higher in PD-L1-positive tumors than in PD-L1-negative tumors (16.1 ± 5.2 and 12.7 ± 7.0, respectively; p = 0.026). There were no significant differences in age, histologic type, and tumor grade between the PD-L1-negative and PD-L1-positive groups.