Downregulation of either INCB28060 CD133 or HDAC6 results in increased beta-catenin acetylation and degradation, which correlates with decreased proliferation in vitro and tumor xenograft growth in vivo. Given that CD133 marks progenitor cells in a wide range of cancers, targeting CD133 may be a means to treat multiple cancer types.”
“Background: Although the proportion of women in medicine is growing, female physicians continue to be disadvantaged in professional activities. The purpose of the study was to determine and compare the professional activities of female and male primary care physicians in Andalusia and to assess the effect of the health center on the performance of these activities.\n\nMethods: Descriptive, cross-sectional,

and multicenter study. Setting: Spain. Participants: Population: urban health centers and their physicians. Sample: 88 health centers and 500 physicians.

Independent variable: gender. Measurements: Control LY3023414 in vitro variables: age, postgraduate family medicine specialty (FMS), patient quota, patients/day, hours/day housework from Monday to Friday, idem weekend, people at home with special care, and family situation. Dependent variables: 24 professional activities in management, teaching, research, and the scientific community. Self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive, bivariate, and multilevel logistic regression analyses.\n\nResults: Response: 73.6%. Female physicians: 50.8%. Age: female physicians, 49.1 +/- 4.3 yrs; male physicians, 51.3 +/- 4.9 yrs (p 0.001). Female physicians with FMS: 44.2%, male physicians

with FMS: 33.3% (p < 0.001). Female physicians dedicated more hours to housework and more frequently lived alone versus male physicians. There were no differences in healthcare variables. Thirteen of the studied activities MI-503 mouse were less frequently performed by female physicians, indicating their lesser visibility in the production and diffusion of scientific knowledge. Performance of the majority of professional activities was independent of the health center in which the physician worked.\n\nConclusions: There are gender inequities in the development of professional activities in urban health centers in Andalusia, even after controlling for family responsibilities, work load, and the effect of the health center, which was important in only a few of the activities under study.”
“Rare earth doped opaque aluminum tellurite ceramics exhibiting multicolor upconversion and color tunability have been synthesized and characterized. The multicolor fluorescence comprises of green, red, and blue upconversion emissions from Ho3+ and Tm3+ ions. By varying the intensity ratios between the upconversion emission bands, the fluorescence color can be tuned from multicolor to white color by changing the infrared wavelength pump power. The fluorescence color tunability in Ho3+/Tm3+/Yb3+ triply doped aluminum tellurite ceramics will lead to new applications in the field of multicolor fluorescence technology.

\n\nObjectives\n\nTo assess the effect of interventions to reduce or resolve ankle equinus in people with neuromuscular PFTα cell line disease.\n\nSearch strategy\n\nWe searched the Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group Trials Specialized Register (August 2009), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The

Cochrane Library Issue 3, 2009), MEDLINE (1966 to August 2009), EMBASE (1980 to August 2009), CINAHL 1982 to August 2009), AMED (1985 to August 2009) and The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) (1929 to August 2009). We searched the reference lists of identified articles and also contacted known experts in the field to identify additional or unpublished data.\n\nSelection criteria\n\nRandomised controlled trials evaluating interventions for increasing ankle dorsiflexion range of motion in neuromuscular disease. Outcomes included ankle dorsiflexion range of motion, functional improvement, foot alignment, foot and ankle muscle strength, health-related quality of life, satisfaction with the intervention and adverse events.\n\nData collection and analysis\n\nTwo authors

independently selected papers, assessed trial quality and extracted data.\n\nMain results\n\nFour studies involving 149 participants met inclusion criteria for this review. Two studies assessed the effect of night splinting in a total of 26 children and adults with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A. There were no statistically or clinically significant differences between wearing a night splint and not wearing a night splint. One study assessed the efficacy of prednisone treatment in 103 boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. learn more While a daily dose of prednisone at 0.75 mg/kg/day resulted

in significant improvements in some strength and function parameters compared with placebo, there was no significant difference in ankle range of motion between groups. Increasing the prednisone dose to 1.5 mg/kg/day had no significant effect on ankle range of motion. One study evaluated early surgery in 20 young boys with Duchenne Proteasome inhibitor muscular dystrophy. Surgery resulted in increased ankle dorsiflexion range at 12 months but functional outcomes favoured the control group. By 24 months, many boys in the surgical group experienced a relapse of achilles tendon contractures.\n\nAuthors’ conclusions\n\nThere is no evidence of significant benefit from any intervention for increasing ankle range of motion in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A or Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Further research is required.”
“Objective : To characterize the importance of the vertical angle of the sacral curvature (VASC) in lumbar disc herniations.\n\nMethods : Morphological data derived from lumbar sagittal MRI imaging. The statistical significance of the findings are discussed. The angles of 60 female patients with lumbar disc herniations (LDH) were compared with the 34 female patients without LDH.\n\nResults : 128 of the 185 patients met our inclusion criteria.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Adherence to pediatric asthma controller medication, measured as the medication possession ratio over 24 months. RESULTS In the intention-to-treat analysis, inhaled corticosteroid adherence

was 25.4% higher in the intervention group than in the usual care group (24-month mean [SE] adherence, 44.5%[1.2%] vs 35.5%[1.1%], respectively; P smaller than .001). Asthma-related urgent care events did not differ between the 2 groups. The intervention effect was consistent in subgroups stratified by age, sex, race/ethnicity, body mass index, and disease-related characteristics. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE The intervention’s significant impact on adherence demonstrates strong potential for low-cost SR adherence programs integrated with an Selleck Compound C electronic health record. The absence of change in urgent learn more care visits may be attributable to the already low number of asthma urgent care visits within Kaiser Permanente Colorado. Application of electronic health record-leveraged SR interventions may reduce health care utilization when applied in a population with less-controlled asthma.”
“The mechanisms that regulate the pruning of mammalian axons

are just now being elucidated. Here, we describe a mechanism by which, during developmental sympathetic axon competition, winning axons secrete brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in an activity-dependent fashion, which binds to the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) on losing axons www.selleckchem.com/products/ldk378.html to cause their degeneration and, ultimately, axon pruning. Specifically, we found that pruning of rat and mouse sympathetic axons that project to the eye requires both activity-dependent BDNF and p75NTR. p75NTR and BDNF are also essential for activity-dependent axon pruning in culture, where they mediate pruning by directly causing axon degeneration. p75NTR, which is enriched in losing axons, causes

axonal degeneration by suppressing TrkA-mediated signaling that is essential for axonal maintenance. These data provide a mechanism that explains how active axons can eliminate less-active, competing axons during developmental pruning by directly promoting p75NTR-mediated axonal degeneration.”
“The rhodium-catalyzed intramolecular carboacylation of quinolinyl ketones serves as an ideal subject for the mechanistic study of carbon-carbon bond activation. Combined kinetic and NMR studies of this reaction allowed the identification of the catalytic resting state and determination of the rate law, (12)C/(13)C kinetic isotope effects, and activation parameters. These results have identified the activation of a ketone-arene carbon-carbon single bond as the turnover-limiting step of catalysis and provided quantitative detail into this process.”
“We report the case of an eighteen-month-old child who suffered a tympanic membrane perforation caused by a digital thermometer. This injury led to a CSF leak.

Patients mainly described medications as a little/not at all effective (40.0%) or somewhat effective (52.9%). Current Overall Health rating was 52.9 (+/- 17.8) and FIQ total score was 54.8 (+/- 17.3). FIQ total score was used to define FM severity, and 17 patients scored 0- < 39 (mild FM), 33 patients 39- < 59 (moderate FM), and 38 scored 59-100 (severe

FM). As FM severity level worsened, patients had poorer overall health status and perceived their prescription medications to be less effective. Average cost/FM patient was higher MAPK Inhibitor Library for severe ((sic) 10,087) vs. moderate ((sic) 6,633) or mild FM ((sic) 5,473); however, the difference was not significant.\n\nConclusions: In a sample of 88 patients with FM from France, we found that FM poses a substantial economic and human burden on patients and society. FM severity level was significantly associated with patients’ health status and core symptom domains.”
“The photoenhanced uptake of nitrogen dioxide

(NO2) to the surface of commercially available self-cleaning window glass has been studied under controlled laboratory conditions. This material is one of an array of modem building products which incorporate titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles and are finding increasing use in populated Staurosporine urban areas. Amongst the principal drivers for the use of these materials is that they are thought to facilitate the irreversible removal of pollutants such as NO2 and organic molecules from the atmosphere and thus act to remediate air quality. While it appears that TiO2 materials do indeed remove organic molecules from built environments, in this study we show that the photoenhanced uptake

of NO2 to one example material, self-cleaning window glass, is in fact accompanied by the substantial formation (50-70%) of gaseous nitrous acid (HONO). This finding has direct and serious implications for the use of these materials in SBE-β-CD Microbiology inhibitor urban areas. Not only is HONO a harmful respiratory irritant, it is also readily photolysed by solar radiation leading to the formation of hydroxyl radicals (OH) together with the re-release of NO, as NO. The net effect of subsequent OH initiated chemistry can then be the further degradation of air quality through the formation of secondary pollutants such as ozone and VOC oxidation products. In summary, we suggest that a scientifically conceived technical strategy for air quality remediation based on this technology, while widely perceived as universally beneficial, could in fact have effects precisely opposite to those intended. (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Body condition is an important trait that reflects the capacity of individuals to acquire food or resist disease, eventually allowing successful reproduction and survival. We first quantified the effects of condition on life history and a secondary sexual trait using long-term lifetime data on condition in a migratory bird species, the barn swallow, Hirundo rustica.

Results: Eight hTERT-specific SECs (SEC-1-8) were successfully constructed. In comparison to that of the negative control SEC, the hTERT-specific SECs, especially, SEC-4, SEC-5, SEC-7 and SEC-8 significantly reduced the activity of hTERT in HepG2 cells at 48 hours after transfection. Moreover, the mRNA and protein expression levels of hTERT as well as the cell viability were significantly reduced by SECs. Knockdown of hTERT by SECs in HepG2 cells led to cell apoptosis. Conclusions: Our developed simple SEC was a powerful strategy for screening highly effective RNAi-targeted sequences and showed promise for gene therapy of HCC.”
“Practice

and research on detained girls has mainly been problem oriented, overlooking these minors’ own perspective on and selleck chemicals satisfaction with life. The aim of this study was to examine how girls evaluate multiple domains of quality of life (QoL) and how each domain is affected by psychiatric (co)morbidity, trauma, and socioeconomic status (SES). An abbreviated version of the World Health Organization (WHO) QoL Instrument was used to assess the girls’ (N = 121; BIX 01294 manufacturer M (age) = 16.28) QoL prior to detention. This self-report questionnaire

consists of two benchmark items referring to their overall QoL and health, and 24 remaining items measuring their QoL regarding four domains (physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment). The Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children-IV was used to assess the past-year prevalence of psychiatric disorders and life-time trauma exposure. Detained girls perceived their QoL almost as good as the 12- to 20-year-olds from the WHO’s international field trial on all but one domain (i.e., psychological health). They were most satisfied with their social relationships and least satisfied with their

psychological health. Psychiatric disorders, trauma, and low SES were distinctively and negatively related to various domains of QoL. The girls’ psychological health was most adversely affected by psychosocial and socioeconomic problems, while these variables had an almost negligible impact on their satisfaction with their social relationships. selleck screening library The particularity of each domain of QoL supports a multidimensional conceptualization of QoL. Regarding treatment, psychological health appears as a domain of major concern, while social relationships might serve as a source of resilience.”
“A distributed limbic-corticostriatal circuitry is implicated in cue-induced drug craving and relapse. Exposure to drug-paired cues not only precipitates relapse, but also triggers the reactivation and reconsolidation of the cue-drug memory. However, the limbic cortical-striatal circuitry underlying drug memory reconsolidation is unclear.

01). Thrombin generation as indicated by prothrombin fragment F 1+2 levels was reduced during PCI

in the UFH group (P<0.01) but not with bivalirudin. Soluble CD40 ligand is associated with thrombosis and levels were higher in the bivalirudin group irrespective of GPIlb/Illa at the same stages (P<0.05).\n\nConclusions: Bivalirudin has some early advantages on platelet activation when compared to this website UFH. However, there are significant limitations in its mechanism of action, particularly a lack of release of tissue factor pathway inhibitor.”
“The objective of this study was to examine the relationships of Doppler cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) asymmetry measures with developmental outcomes in term infants. Doppler CBFV parameters (peak systolic velocity [PSV] and mean velocity [MV]) of the bilateral middle cerebral arteries of 52 healthy term infants were prospectively Geneticin research buy examined on postnatal days 1-5, and then their motor, cognitive and language development was evaluated with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition, at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months of age. The left CBFV asymmetry measure (PSV or MV) was calculated by subtracting the right-side value from the left-side value. Left CBFV asymmetry measures were significantly positively related to motor scores at 6 (r = 0.3-0.32, p < 0.05) and 12 (r = 0.35, p < 0.05) months of age, but were not related to cognitive or language outcome.

Thus, the leftward hemodynamic status of the middle cerebral arteries, as measured by cranial Doppler ultrasound in the neonatal period, predicts early motor outcome in term Cilengitide purchase infants. (E-mail: [email protected]) (C) 2013 World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology.”
“Berg RM, Plovsing RR, Damgaard M. Teaching baroreflex physiology to medical students: a comparison of quiz-based and conventional teaching strategies in a laboratory exercise. Adv Physiol Educ 36: 147-153, 2012; doi:10.1152/advan.00011.2012.-Quizbased

and collaborative teaching strategies have previously been found to be efficient for the improving meaningful learning of physiology during lectures. These approaches have, however, not been investigated during laboratory exercises. In the present study, we compared the impact of solving quizzes individually and in groups with conventional teaching on the immediate learning during a laboratory exercise. We implemented two quizzes in a mandatory 4-h laboratory exercise on baroreflex physiology. A total of 155 second-year medical students were randomized to solve quizzes individually (intervention group I, n = 57), in groups of three to four students (intervention group II, n = 56), or not to perform any quizzes (control; intervention group III, n = 42). After the laboratory exercise, all students completed an individual test, which encompassed two recall questions, two intermediate questions, and two integrated questions.

This review Fedratinib research buy describes methods used to accumulate and validate these findings and points to approaches-now being put in place at some centers-to implementing them in

clinical care.”
“In the present work, the retention time (RT) of acylcarnitines, collected by ultra-performance liquid-chromatography after formation of butyl esters, is modelled by quantitative structure-retention relationship (QSRR) method. The investigated set consists of free carnitine and 46 different acylcarnitines, including the isomers commonly monitored in screening metabolic disorders. To describe the structure of (butylated) acylcarnitines, a large number of computational molecular descriptors generated by software Dragon are subjected to variable selection methods aimed at identifying a small informative subset. The QSRR model is established using two different approaches: the multi linear regression (MLR) combined

with a genetic algorithm (GA) variable selection and the partial least square (PLS) regression after iterative stepwise elimination (ISE) of useless descriptors. Predictive performance of both models is evaluated using an external set consisting of 10 representative acylcarnitines, and, successively, by repeated random data partitions between the calibration and prediction sets. Finally, a principal component analysis (PCA) is performed on the model variables to facilitate the interpretation buy SB203580 of the established QSRRs. A PLS model based on seven latent variables extracted from 20 molecular descriptors selected by ISE permits to calculate/predict the retention time of acylcarnitine check details with accuracy better than 5%, whereas a 6-dimensional model identified by GA-MLR provides a slightly worse performance. (C) 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V.”
“Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of IV iron supplementation of anemic, critically ill trauma patients. Design: Multicenter, randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Setting: Four trauma ICUs.

Patients: Anemic (hemoglobin smaller than 12 g/dL) trauma patients enrolled within 72 hours of ICU admission and with an expected ICU length of stay of more than or equal to 5 days. Interventions: Randomization to iron sucrose 100 mg IV or placebo thrice weekly for up to 2 weeks. Measurements and Main Results: A total of 150 patients were enrolled. Baseline iron markers were consistent with functional iron deficiency: 134 patients (89.3%) were hypoferremic, 51 (34.0%) were hyperferritinemic, and 64 (42.7%) demonstrated iron-deficient erythropoiesis as evidenced by an elevated erythrocyte zinc protoporphyrin concentration. The median baseline transferrin saturation was 8% (range, 2-58%). In the subgroup of patients who received all six doses of study drug (n = 57), the serum ferritin concentration increased significantly for the iron as compared with placebo group on both day 7 (808.0 ng/mL vs 457.0 ng/mL, respectively, p smaller than 0.

In addition, other E. coli proteins HflK, HflC and HflD also influence lysogeny by acting upon CII Among these, HflD (22.9 kDa), a peripheral membrane protein that is exposed towards the cytoplasm, interacts with CII and decreases the frequency

of lysogenization of lambda by stimulating the degradation of CII In this study, we show that in addition to helping CII degradation, HflD inhibits the DNA binding by CII, thereby inhibiting CII-dependent transcription activation. From biochemical, OSI-744 mouse biophysical and modelling studies we also suggest that HflD-CII interaction takes place through the Cys31-accessible surface area of monomeric HflD, which binds to tetrameric CII as a 1:1 complex. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.”
“In late 2008, bluetongue virus (BTV) serotype 6 (BTV-6), which had never occurred in Europe before, was first detected in the Netherlands and Germany.

While the origin of the virus remains unknown, the prevalence of infections in cattle was investigated in a virological (N=28,658) and serological (N=2075) field survey in Lower Saxony, where 45 cases confined to the district Grafschaft Bentheim were found. Blood from affected animals was used for the experimental infection of three cattle with different BTV antibody status, leading to sustained viraemia in one animal naive for BTV. Of two animals that had detectable antibodies against BTV serotype 8, NU7441 concentration one became transiently infected and seroconverted for BTV-6 while the other did not react. In conclusion, while only a very limited spread of BTV-6 could be observed in the field, experimental infection of cattle did not AZD9291 show substantial differences of the course of infection in comparison to other BTV serotypes. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.”
“Epidemiological

data support the concept that phenols and polyphenols in diet are safe and nontoxic, and have long-lasting beneficial effects on human health. The potential target for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) research has been on the discovery of natural compounds that can be used in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Propolis is one of the richest sources of plant phenolics (flavonoids and phenolic acids). The ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) and its polyphenols possess immunomodulatory, chemopreventive, and antitumor effects. Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) is a naturally occurring anticancer agent that preferentially induces apoptosis in cancer cells and is not toxic to normal cells. Endogenous TRAIL plays a significant role in immunosurveillance and defense against cancer cells. However, as more tumor cells are reported to be resistant to TRAIL-mediated death, it is important to develop new strategies to overcome this resistance. EEP and polyphenols isolated from propolis have been shown to sensitize cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis.

7%). Daptomycin yielded a MIC(50)/MIC(90) of 0.5/1 mu g/mL in MRSA, compared with 1/2 mu g/mL for linezolid, vancomycin, and teicoplanin. Daptomycin MICs were in the range of <= 0.125-2 mu g/mL Only I MRSA strain had a reproducible daptomycin MIC of 2 mu g/mL. Among CoNS isolates, the MIC range for daptomycin was <= 0.125-1 mu g/mL Daptomycin was equally active against oxacillin-susceptible and oxacillin-resistant strains.\n\nConclusion: Selleck Etomoxir Daptomycin was highly active against the staphylococci isolates

studied. The activity of this agent was not affected by resistance to other antibiotics such as oxacillin, teicoplanin, linezolid, ciprofloxacin, orgentamicin. These data suggest that daptomycin may be useful for the treatment of severe infection caused by MRSA or CoNS. (C) 2008 Elsevier Espana, S.L. All rights reserved.”
“Despite the fact that childbirth by caesarean section (CS) does not provide significant health benefits for either the mother or the newborn, there has been a noticeable upward trend in CS births in Iran over the last two

decades. The aim of the current study was to determine the effect of using the Extended Parallel Process Model for childbirth education on decreasing the number of births by CS among Iranian women. This field study consisted of three steps. ML323 concentration In step one; a formative evaluation was conducted using a pre-test questionnaire based on the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM). In step two, a structured

childbirth education program was developed based mainly EPPM. In step three, evaluation of the outcome was conducted by comparing the scores from the post-test questionnaire and CS rates between two groups. Two hundred and eighty-four low-risk pregnant women from antenatal clinics participated find protocol in and completed the study, and they were assigned to experimental and control groups that consisted of 145 and 139 women, respectively. Follow-up pairwise comparisons using paired t-test between the comparative groups indicated significant statistical changes for the outcome variable, i.e., the intention to have vaginal birth, from the pretest to posttest in the experimental group’s score (p < 0.001, 95% CI = -3/7 – -2/8), but such a finding was not observed in the control group. Furthermore, the rate of caesarean delivery was significantly decreased in the experimental group compared with control group (66.2% and 48.2%, respectively) and the odds of giving birth by CS was 2.1 times greater in the control group (p < 0.001). Using EPPM-based childbirth education was found to effectively lower the rate of intended and actual caesarean births. The findings also indicated that childbirth preparation programs that place emphasis on promoting mothers’ self-awareness and self-confidence increased the probability of their having normal childbirth. [Sepideh Hajian, Mohammad Shariati, Khadijeh Mirzaii Najmabadi, Masood Younesian, Mohammad Esmail Ajami.

The largest increases, over three-fold, were seen in GPX3, gp91 phox, p47phox, heme oxygenase, and interleukin-8 (IL-8). Tpl2 mRNA was uniquely elevated in all three fat depots from CAD patients, and its expression in SAT, but not in EAT or substernal fat, was directly correlated with homeostasis model assessment

of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) values. Compared to controls, there were no associations between circulating levels of IL-8, lipocalin-2, nerve growth factor (NGF), RANTES, CD-163, GPX-3, monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1)/CCL2, leptin, soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (sFLT1), fatty acid binding protein-4 (FABP-4), and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and increases in their gene expression

in EAT adjacent to CAD.\n\nConclusions: Expression of proinflammatory, redox, endothelial cell, Sotrastaurin chemical structure and angiogenic genes in EAT is depot specific and supports the hypothesis that pathophysiologically EAT contributes locally to CAD. CAD links with these fat depots might involve Tpl2 as a primary response indicator.”
“A lectin was purified from the leaves of Allium altaicum and corresponding gene was cloned. The lectin namely Allium altaicum agglutinin (AAA) was similar to 24 kDa homodimeric protein and similar to a typical garlic leaf lectin. It was synthesized as 177 amino acid residues BMS-345541 chemical structure pre-proprotein, which consisted of 28 and 43 amino acid long N and C-terminal signal peptides, respectively. The plant expressed this protein more in scapes and flowers in comparison to the bulbs and leaves. Hemagglutination activity (with rabbit erythrocytes) YM155 inhibitor was 1,428 fold higher as compared to Allium sativum leaf agglutinin

(ASAL) although, the insecticidal activity against cotton aphid (Aphis gossypii) was relatively low. Glycan array revealed that AAA had higher affinity towards GlcAb1-3Galb as compared to ASAL. Homology analysis showed 57-94% similarity with other Allium lectins. The mature protein was expressed in E. coli as a fusion with SUMO peptide in soluble and biologically active form. Recombinant protein retained high hemagglutination activity.”
“We have developed a top-gate type of field-effect transistor with a single-crystal SrTiO3 channel and a DyScO3 gate insulator stack consisting of an epitaxial interface layer and an amorphous breakdown barrier layer. We show that the zero-bias conductivity of the transistor channel is strongly affected by the presence of charged traps in the amorphous gate insulator. Low off-state current could only be achieved in devices that were fabricated at an oxygen ambient pressure of 10 mTorr. At lower pressures, metallic channel interfaces were obtained, even after post-annealing in air.