Nanosecond vortex laser pulses with millijoule pulse energies from a Yb-doped double-clad fiber power amplifier.

Nanosecond vortex pulses were generated using a stressed, large-mode-area, Yb-doped, fiber amplifier with an off-axis coupling technique for the first time. A pulse energy of 0.83 mJ (corresponding to a peak power of 59 kW) was achieved at a pump power of 25.7 W. The optical-optical efficiency was measured to be 31%. The millijoule nanosecond vortex pulses will be potentially applied to novel material processing, such as metal microneedle fabrication.

Power scaling of a picosecond vortex laser based on a stressed Yb-doped fiber amplifier.

Power scaling of a picosecond vortex laser based on a stressed Yb-doped fiber amplifier is analyzed. An output power of 25 W was obtained for 53 W of pumping, with a peak power of 37 kW. Frequency doubling of the vortex output was demonstrated using a nonlinear PPSLT crystal. A second-harmonic output power of up to 1.5 W was measured at a fundamental power of 11.2 W.

Prenatal underdevelopment and schizophrenia: a case report of monozygotic twins.

A case is described herein of monozygotic twins discordant for schizophrenia that illustrates possible causal events of prenatal underdevelopment, morphological changes in the brain, poor premorbid functioning, and the development of schizophrenia. The affected twin was born with a birthweight of 1620 g, whereas the unaffected twin weighed 2300 g at birth. Marked differences in sociability and intelligence were observed between the twins from early childhood. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain revealed high-intensity signals in the white matter and enlarged ventricles in the affected twin, while no such abnormality was detected in the well twin. This twin pair suggests a possibility that hypoxic brain damage associated with prenatal underdevelopment may be a causal factor for abnormalities in psychosocial development and subsequent schizophrenia.

[Three patients with advanced nonresectable and recurrent gastric cancer responding to chronomodulation chemotherapy with tegafur + cisplatin + isovorin followed by CPT-11 administration].

Today, no effective chemotherapy regimen has been established for non-resectable or postoperative recurrent gastric cancer, and most such therapy seems to be palliative. Thus, a highly effective chemotherapy that allows good patient QOL is desired. We report three gastric cancer patients responding to chronomodulation chemotherapy (tegafur + cisplatin + Isovorin) based on circadian rhythms plus a new antitumor drug, CPT-11. The treatment protocol was tegafur 1,200 mg/body, days 1-12 (continuing 16 h, intravenously with 800 mg/body from 16 to 24 h, 400 mg/body from 24-8 h, for non-uniform administration), cisplatin 10 mg/body, days 1-5, 8-12, (16 h, one shot infusion), Isovorin 25 mg/body, days 1-5, 8-12 (16 h, one shot infusion), followed by CPT-11 100 mg/body, days 13 (one shot infusion). We performed 1 or 2 courses, and with 2 courses the CPT-11 dose was increased to 150 mg/body. The first patient was a 54-year-old female with advanced type 3 gastric cancer with liver metastasis (H3). After chemotherapy (2 courses), there was a 30% reduction in the advanced gastric cancer and a 95% reduction in the liver metastasis. The second patient was a 73-year-old male with recurrent type 1 gastric cancer in the remnant stomach 24 months after partial gastrectomy. After chemotherapy (1 course), there was a 45% reduction in advanced gastric recurrent cancer. The third patient was a 67-year-old male with advanced type 2 plus 3 gastric cancers with liver (H3) and abdominal lymph node metastases. After chemotherapy (1 course), there was a 70% reduction in the type 2 and 55% reduction in the type 3 advanced gastric cancer, and a 50% reduction in the liver metastasis and 35% reduction in the abdominal lymph node metastasis. The only adverse effect was grade 2 pancytopenia, gastrointestinal disorder, and alopecia. In conclusion, this regimen resulted in good intrachemotherapeutic QOL and was highly effective in advanced gastric cancer patients.

Novel polymorphisms in the promoter region of the neurotrophin-3 gene and their associations with schizophrenia.

Based on the neurodevelopmental hypothesis in the etiology of schizophrenia, neurotrophic factors may be involved in the pathogenesis of the illness. We searched for polymorphisms in the promoter region of the neurotrophin-3 (NTF3) gene by using denaturing high performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC). Six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were found. When these polymorphisms were examined for association with schizophrenia, a weakly significant difference was observed in the genotype distribution of the G/- 3004/A polymorphism between 184 schizophrenics and 185 controls (P < 0.05), although no statistically significant association was detected in a family-based sample of 50 trios (schizophrenics and their parents). With respect to the other polymorphisms, there was no significant association with schizophrenia. The G/- 3004/A polymorphism was in linkage disequilibrium with the CA repeat polymorphism in the first intron of the NTF3 gene. When haplotype-based analysis was performed, an increased frequency of the haplotype containing the G(- 3004) and the "A3" ([CA]23) alleles was observed for the schizophrenics compared to controls. Our results suggest that the G(- 3004)-A3 haplotype has a modest effect of giving susceptibility to schizophrenia.