Effect of nematic ordering on electronic structure of FeSe.

Electronically driven nematic order is often considered as an essential ingredient of high-temperature superconductivity. Its elusive nature in iron-based superconductors resulted in a controversy not only as regards its origin but also as to the degree of its influence on the electronic structure even in the simplest representative material FeSe. Here we utilized angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations to study the influence of the nematic order on the electronic structure of FeSe and determine its exact energy and momentum scales. Our results strongly suggest that the nematicity in FeSe is electronically driven, we resolve the recent controversy and provide the necessary quantitative experimental basis for a successful theory of superconductivity in iron-based materials which takes into account both, spin-orbit interaction and electronic nematicity.

Histological, immunohistochemical and pathological features of the pituitary gland of odontocete cetaceans from the Western gulf of Mexico.

Pituitary glands were recovered from dolphins and small whales found stranded along the Texas coast of the Gulf of Mexico over a 15-year period (1991-2006). One hundred animals of 14 species were found to be suitable for inclusion in this study. Of these, 72 were Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Other species included were the melon-headed whale (Peponocephala electra), spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris), striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba), pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata), pygmy sperm whale (Kogia breviceps), dwarf sperm whale (Kogia sima), Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus), the short finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhyncha), false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens), Fraser's dolphin (Lagenorhynchus hosei), rough-tooth dolphin (Steno bredanensis), Gervais's beaked whale (Mesoplodon europaeus) and an infant sperm whale (Physeter catodon). The pituitary weights in T. truncatus ranged from 0.69 g in a 109-cm long neonate to 3.44 g in a large (277 cm) male. More typical weights were in the range of 0.95-2.35 g (mean=1.65+/-0.70 g) The cetacean pituitary consisted of two distinct parts, the adenohypophysis and the neurohypophysis, which were separated by a thin fibrous membrane in all species examined, in contrast to terrestrial mammals in which the parts are apposed and joined through a pars intermedia. Cell types were identified with conventional stains and immunohistochemistry. Cells positive for adrenocorticotropic hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, growth hormone, melanocyte stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone and prolactin were identified with appropriate antibodies. Lesions, which were few, included one pituicytoma of the pars nervosa and a squamous cyst in T. truncatus, and colloid cysts in several species. Nodular aggregates of single cell types were common, probably representing a physiological variant.

Comparative morphology of Lacazia loboi (syn. Loboa loboi) in dolphins and humans.

Lacazia loboi (syn. Loboa loboi), the etiological agent of lobomycosis, was compared in human and dolphin tissue using light and electron microscopy, and computer-assisted morphometrics. The histological features of the lesions were similar; however, preliminary electron microscopy data indicates that cell wall destruction may vary in the two hosts. Calcofluor stained tissue sections of human and dolphin tissue were examined with UV light microscopy and the images digitized. Measurements of area, minimum and maximum diameters, and perimeter were made. Student's t-test (alpha = 0.01) revealed that L. loboi cells infecting dolphin tissue were significantly smaller than those infecting human tissue. This study represents the first comparative analysis of the morphology of the etiological agent of this disease in its two known natural hosts. The data indicate that the organism may not be identical in the two hosts.

Isolation of fungal rDNA from bottlenose dolphin skin infected with Loboa loboi.

Fungal-specific primers targeted for highly conserved genomic nucleic acid sequences were used in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify DNA from lobomycosis lesions in a bottlenose dolphin. Sequence alignments of this DNA possessed high homology to fungal ribosomal DNA sequences found in the genus Cladosporium. When used for in situ hybridization, the riboprobe transcribed from a cloned PCR-generated fragment bound to Loboa loboi cells. These results support the hypothesis that L. loboi in dolphin tissue is a fungus.

[Incidence of hepatitis B markers in pregnancy. Comparison with the serological tests legally required for maternal care]. / Hepatitis-B-Marker-Inzidenz in der Schwangerschaft. Vergleich mit den gesetzlich vorgeschriebenen serologischen Untersuchungen im Rahmen der Mutterschaftsvorsorge.

In a prospective study (June 1981 to October 1985) the prevalence of positive hepatitis B findings was recorded for 15957 pregnant women, in addition to the usual legally required serological tests for syphilis, newborn haemolytic disease and rubella immunity. A positive TPHA test was obtained in 69 (0.4%). No rubella antibodies were detected in 1604 (10.1%). Antibodies to neonatal haemolytic disease were found in 65 pregnant women (0.4%) and HBs antigen in 180 (1.1%). Among 13,752 German pregnant women 81 were HBs antigen-positive (0.6%), among 763 pregnant women from southern Europe 29 (3.8%), among 1159 from the Near East the rate was 5.1%, and among 170 from the Far East or other non-European countries it was 6.5%. By extending the required tests during pregnancy to those for HBs antigen, hepatitis B carriers could be identified and maternofetal transmission of the disease prevented by simultaneous passive-active immunization of the newborn.

[Frequency and distribution of risk factors in hearing loss]. / Häufigkeit und Verteilung von Risikofaktoren beim Hörsturz.

In 45 patients with hearing loss we found metabolic and other "risk factors" above average. In 96% of those patients there was one "risk factor" at least. Latent (63.8%) or manifest diabetes (6.6%) was most frequent. Hyperuricemia was observed in 35.9% and hyperlipoproteinemia type IIa/IIb or IV in 24.2%. Non-metabolic risk factors (overweight, elevated blood pressure, smoking, stress) were found in 80% of the patients. It seems possible and more likely that hearing loss is caused by "risk factors" and consecutive vascular complications of the inner ear than by neurologic or orthopedic diseases. The diagnosis "hearing loss" should motivate the otologist to look for "risk factors" by interdisciplinary cooperation.