Abstract-Telecommunication systems integrated within garments and wearable products are such methods by which medical devices are making an impact on enhancing healthcare provisions around the clock. These garments when fully developed will be capable of alerting and demanding attention if and when required along with minimizing hospital resources and labour. Furthermore, they can play a major role in preventative ailments, health irregularities and unforeseen heart or brain disorders in apparently healthy individuals. This work presents the feasibility of investigating an Ultra-WideBand (UWB) antenna made from fully textile materials that were used for the substrate as well as the conducting parts of the designed antenna. Simulated and measured results show that the proposed antenna design meets the requirements of wide working bandwidth and provides 17 GHz bandwidth with compact size, washable and flexible materials. Results in terms of return loss, bandwidth, radiation pattern, current distribution as well as gain and efficiency are presented to validate the usefulness of the current manuscript design. The work presented here has profound implications for future studies of a standalone suite that may one day help to provide wearer (patient) with such reliable and comfortable medical monitoring techniques.

We have conducted a palaeomagnetic study on three sediment cores obtained from a single site in Lake Biwa, central Japan. A total of 1430 discrete samples from three cores show strong and stable remanence, which is carried by pseudo‐single‐domain magnetite. Palaeomagnetic records from individual cores show little scatter of directions, and there is excellent correlation among the records from the site. A composite palaeomagnetic secular variation (PSV) record for the Holocene was constructed after fine‐scale adjustment and stacking of the three records. The age model is based on two wide‐spread tephra layers: Kawagodaira (3150 yr BP, calendar years) and Kikai‐Akahoya (7250 yr BP). Our results show that the declinations and inclinations are strikingly similar to archaeomagnetic data from southwest Japan for the last 2000 years. The PSV record from Lake Biwa shows good correlation in directions with that of Beppu Bay, located about 500 km west of Lake Biwa, although the Beppu Bay record shows relatively smaller amplitudes of both inclination and declination, probably due to heavy smoothing of the initial results. When the Lake Biwa record is compared with the proposed type curve for southwest Japan, there is considerable disagreement throughout the Holocene. A re‐analysis of the data sets and other information used to construct the type curve revealed that the discrepancy in the results was due to inadequate age determination for the cores used in previous studies. We conclude that the stacked PSV record from Lake Biwa meets the criteria required for a reliable curve. Moreover, our results resolve the complications found in the correlation of PSV records in southwest Japan and thereby contribute to a better understanding of Holocene PSV.

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly integrating into modern technology and clinical practice. Although in its nascency, AI has become a hot topic of investigation for applications in clinical practice. Multiple fields of medicine have embraced the possibility of a future with AI assisting in diagnosis and pathology applications. In the field of gastroenterology, AI has been studied as a tool to assist in risk stratification, diagnosis, and pathologic identification. Specifically, AI has become of great interest in endoscopy as a technology with substantial potential to revolutionize the practice of a modern gastroenterologist. From cancer screening to automated report generation, AI has touched upon all aspects of modern endoscopy. Here, we review landmark AI developments in endoscopy. Starting with broad definitions to develop understanding, we will summarize the current state of AI research and its potential applications. With innovation developing rapidly, this article touches upon the remarkable advances in AI-assisted endoscopy since its initial evaluation at the turn of the millennium, and the potential impact these AI models may have on the modern clinical practice. As with any discussion of new technology, its limitations must also be understood to apply clinical AI tools successfully. clin endosc 2020;53:132-141

We have conducted paleomagnetic and environmental magnetic analysis of a sediment piston core recovered from Lake Biwa, central Japan. Tephrochronology and AMS radiocarbon dating showed that this core covers the time period since about 40 kyr BP. The variation of paleomagnetic direction shows a good agreement with the PSV record for the last 10 kyrs from the deeper water site (BIWA SV-3; Ali et al., 1999), although the amplitudes are subdued probably due to the relatively lower accumulation rate at the shallower site. Inclination lows of the pre-Holocene interval are correlated to PSV records reported from the marine sediments off Shikoku and in the Japan Sea. In addition, the variation of magnetic mineral concentration reflects environmental changes during the last glacial period. It is suggested that the flux of fine-grained magnetite, probably associated with greater precipitation, was increased during interstadial periods. The variation of anhysteretic remanent magnetization is likely correlated to the Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) cycles recorded in Greenland ice cores. An apparent swing of the PSV curve is recognized at about 27 ka, but evidence for the Mono Lake excursion at 32 ka around the D-O events 6 and 7 is unclear. Combination of the detailed paleomagnetic record and the sub-Milankovitch climate cycles thus provides better resolution for understanding geomagnetic secular variation and polarity excursions in space and time.

Catechol estrogens, especially 4-hydroxylated metabolites of 17β-estradiol (E2), are responsible for estrogen-induced carcinogenesis. 4-Hydroxyestradiol (4-OHE2), a major metabolite of E2 formed preferentially by cytochrome P-450 1B1, is oxidized to E2-3,4-quinone, which can react with DNA to yield the depurinating adducts 4-OHE2-1-N3Ade and 4-OHE2-1-N7Gua. The apurinic sites generated by the loss of these depurinating adducts induce mutations that could lead to cancer initiation. In the present study, we have evaluated the effects of N-acetycysteine (NAcCys) on the metabolism of two cell lines, MCF-10F (a normal human breast epithelial cell line) and E6 (a normal mouse mammary epithelial cell line), treated with 4-OHE2 or its reactive metabolite, E2-3,4-quinone. Extensive HPLC with electrochemical detection and UPLC-MS/MS analyses of the cell media demonstrated that the presence of NAcCys very efficiently shifted the estrogen metabolism towards protective methoxylation and conjugation pathways in multiple ways, while formation of depurinating DNA adducts was inhibited. Protection by NAcCys appears to be similar in both cell lines irrespective of their origin (human or mouse) or the presence of estrogen receptor-alpha. This finding suggests that NAcCys, a common dietary supplement, could be used as a potential chemopreventive agent to block the initial step in the genotoxicity caused by catechol estrogen quinones.

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The goal of this research is to develop a functional textile with better mechanical properties. Therefore, nano ZnO is synthesized, characterized, and applied to cotton fabric by mechanical thermo-fixation techniques. The synthesized nanoparticles are characterized by SEM and XRD analysis. The ZnO nanoparticle alone, ZnO nanoparticle with a binder, and ZnO with a binder and wax emulsion are then applied on cotton woven fabrics using three different recipes. The surface morphology of the treated fabric is studied using SEM and EDS. Antimicrobial activity, UV protection property, and crease resistance are all tested for their functional characteristics. In addition, all vital mechanical characteristics are assessed. The results suggest that using only nano ZnO or nano ZnO with a binder enhances functional features while deteriorating mechanical capabilities. Nano ZnO treatment with the third recipe, which includes the addition of an emulsion, on the other hand, significantly enhances mechanical and functional characteristics. Consequently, this study provides information to optimize the confidence of textile researchers and producers in using nano ZnO and understanding its features in key functional fabrics.