Mesoscopic Conductance Fluctuations in 2D HgTe Semimetal.

Mesoscopic conductance fluctuations were discovered in a weak localization regime of a strongly disordered two-dimensional HgTe-based semimetal. These fluctuations exist in macroscopic samples with characteristic sizes of 100 µm and exhibit anomalous dependences on the gate voltage, magnetic field, and temperature. They are absent in the regime of electron metal (at positive gate voltages) and strongly depend on the level of disorder in the system. All the experimental facts lead us to the conclusion that the origin of the fluctuations is a special collective state in which the current is conducted through the percolation network of electron resistances. We suppose that the network is formed by fluctuation potential whose amplitude is higher than the Fermi level of electrons due to their very low density.

Long-Term Follow-Up of Unilateral Deep Brain Stimulation Targeting the Caudal Zona Incerta in 13 Patients with Parkinsonian Tremor.

INTRODUCTION: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an established treatment for Parkinson's disease (PD) and other movement disorders. The ventral intermediate nucleus of the thalamus is considered as the target of choice for tremor disorders, including tremor-dominant PD not suitable for DBS in the subthalamic nucleus (STN). In the last decade, several studies have shown promising results on tremor from DBS in the posterior subthalamic area (PSA), including the caudal zona incerta (cZi) located posteromedial to the STN. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term effect of unilateral cZi/PSA-DBS in patients with tremor-dominant PD. METHODS: Thirteen patients with PD with medically refractory tremor were included. The patients were evaluated using the motor part of the Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) off/on medication before surgery and off/on medication and stimulation 1-2 years (short-term) after surgery and at a minimum of 3 years after surgery (long-term). RESULTS: At short-term follow-up, DBS improved contralateral tremor by 88% in the off-medication state. This improvement persisted after a mean of 62 months. Contralateral bradykinesia was improved by 40% at short-term and 20% at long-term follow-up, and the total UPDRS-III by 33% at short-term and by 22% at long-term follow-up with stimulation alone. CONCLUSIONS: Unilateral cZi/PSA-DBS seems to remain an effective treatment for patients with severe Parkinsonian tremor several years after surgery. There was also a modest improvement on bradykinesia.

Synthesis and Characterization of a Novel Biocompatible Alloy, Ti-Nb-Zr-Ta-Sn.

Many current-generation biomedical implants are fabricated from the Ti-6Al-4V alloy because it has many attractive properties, such as low density and biocompatibility. However, the elastic modulus of this alloy is much larger than that of the surrounding bone, leading to bone resorption and, eventually, implant failure. In the present study, we synthesized and performed a detailed analysis of a novel low elastic modulus Ti-based alloy (Ti-28Nb-5Zr-2Ta-2Sn (TNZTS alloy)) using a variety of methods, including scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and tensile test. Additionally, the in vitro biocompatibility of the TNZTS alloy was evaluated using SCP-1, SaOs-2, and THP-1 cell lines and primary human osteoblasts. Compared to Ti-6Al-4V, the elastic modulus of TNZTS alloy was significantly lower, while measures of its in vitro biocompatibility are comparable. O2 plasma treatment of the surface of the alloy significantly increased its hydrophilicity and, hence, its in vitro biocompatibility. TNZTS alloy specimens did not induce the release of cytokines by macrophages, indicating that such scaffolds would not trigger inflammatory responses. The present results suggest that the TNZTS alloy may have potential as an alternative to Ti-6Al-4V.

Prediction of Electrode Contacts for Clinically Effective Deep Brain Stimulation in Essential Tremor.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an established neurosurgical treatment that can be used to alleviate symptoms in essential tremor (ET) and other movement disorders. The aim was to develop a method and software tool for the prediction of effective DBS electrode contacts based on probabilistic stimulation maps (PSMs) in patients with ET treated with caudal zona incerta (cZi) DBS. METHODS: A total of 33 patients (37 leads) treated with DBS were evaluated with the Essential Tremor Rating Scale (ETRS) 12 months after surgery. In addition, hand tremor and hand function (ETRS items 5/6 and 11-14) were evaluated for every contact during stimulation with best possible outcome without inducing side effects. Prediction of effective DBS electrode contacts was carried out in a retrospective leave-one-out manner based on PSMs, simulated stimulation fields, and a scoring function. Electrode contacts were ranked according to their likelihood of being included in the clinical setting. Ranked electrode contacts were compared to actual clinical settings. RESULTS: Predictions made by the software tool showed that electrode contacts with rank 1 matched the clinically used contacts in 60% of the cases. Contacts with a rank of 1-2 and 1-3 matched the clinical contacts in 83 and 94% of the cases, respectively. Mean improvement of hand tremor and hand function was 79 ± 21% and 77 ± 22% for the clinically used and the predicted electrode contacts, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Effective electrode contacts can be predicted based on PSMs in patients treated with cZi DBS for ET. Predictions may in the future be used to reduce the number of clinical assessments that are carried out before a satisfying stimulation setting is defined.