BACKGROUND Blond and white hair removal by laser is a complicated task with weak satisfactory results due to the deficiency in laser-absorbing chromophore. OBJECTIVE To investigate if repetitive sessions of photodynamic therapy (PDT) using external application of liposomal Rose bengal (RB) photosensitizer followed by intense pulsed light (IPL) exposure enables removal of gray and white hair. ...

The increasing incidence of obesity in developed nations represents an ever-growing challenge to health care by promoting diabetes and other diseases. The discovery of the hormone, leptin, a decade ago has facilitated the acquisition of new knowledge regarding the regulation of energy balance. A great deal remains to be discovered regarding the molecular and anatomic actions of leptin, however....

OBJECTIVE We present our experience in a series of 17 consecutive pediatric patients submitted to retroperitoneal laparoscopic renal biopsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS Retroperitoneal laparoscopic renal biopsy (LRB) was performed in 5 boys and 12 girls. Mean age was 8.1 years and age range from 2 to 12. Two or three trocars were used to expose the inferior pole of the kidney, remove enough cortica...

Base isolation has been used as one of the most wildly accepted seismic protection systems that should substantially dissociate a superstructure from its substructure resting on a shaking ground, thereby sustainably preserving entire structures against earthquake forces as well as inside non-structural integrities. Base isolation devices can operate very effectively against near-fault (NF) grou...

This study proposes a class of hybrid isolation systems constructed by combining Buckling Restrained Braces (BRBs) with Rubber Bearings (RBs) or Lead (LRBs) for mitigating the seismic responses in bearing-supported bridges under strong earthquakes. Firstly, two different (RB–BRB and LRB–BRB) were preliminarily designed based on energy-conservation concept case bridge Y-shaped piers, which can m...

OBJECTIVE We aimed to analyse the prevalence of having multiple lifestyle risk behaviours (LRB) and the potential relationship between excess weight (including overweight and obesity) and cumulative multiple LRB among adolescents in Barcelona, Spain. METHODS A cross-sectional study was performed among a representative sample of 3,114 secondary school students in Barcelona. Height and weight w...

This study examines the feasibility of applying adaptive fuzzy sliding mode control (AFSMC) strategies to reduce the dynamic responses of bridges constructed using a lead rubber bearing (LRB) isolation hybrid protective system. Recently developed control devices for civil engineering structures, including hybrid systems and semi-active systems, have been found to have inherent nonlinear propert...

Leptin directly suppresses the activity of orexigenic neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC). We examined c-Fos-like immunoreactivity (CFLIR) as a marker of ARC neuronal activity in db/db mice devoid of the signaling form of the leptin receptor (LRb) and s/s mice that express LRb(S1138) [which is defective for STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription) signaling]. Both ...