This paper studies patient volume and the severity of case mix as they relate to physicians’ human capital accumulation and pace of technology adoption by exploring a quality signaling mechanism through which physicians build peer reputation. We show that volume building leads physicians to actively manage case mix and find that successful surgeries (particularly for difficult cases) raise futu...

One challenge in point-of-care (POC) diagnostics is the lack of room-temperature methods for RNA detection based on enzymatic amplification and visualization steps. Here we perform reverse transcription lesion-induced DNA (RT-LIDA), an isothermal method that only requires T4 ligase. RT-LIDA involves RNA-templated ligation primers to form complementary (cDNA) followed by toehold-mediated strand ...

DNA microarrays are invaluable tools for biosensing applications such as diagnostic detection of DNA and analysis of gene expression. Surface plasmon resonance imaging can detect unlabeled oligonucleotide targets adsorbed to the array elements. The variety of biosensing applications can be expanded by enzymatic manipulation of DNA microarray elements, and the sensitivity of detection can be enh...

Nicotinic receptor-mediated secretion of catecholamines from individual cultured bovine adrenal medullary chromaffin cells was measured and characterized with a voltametric microelectrode placed adjacent to the cells. Nicotine-induced secretion is associated with a large increase in chemical spikes that is temporally resolved into the apparent secretion of discrete packets of attomole quantitie...

In recent years, groundwater quality has become a global concern due to its effect on human life and natural ecosystems. To assess the groundwater quality in the Amol-Babol Plain, a total of 308 water samples were collected during wet and dry seasons in 2009. The samples were analysed for their physico-chemical and biological constituents. Multivariate statistical analysis and geostatistical te...

Whispering gallery mode resonances in liquid droplets and microspheres have attracted considerable attention due to their potential uses in a range of sensing and technological applications. We describe a whispering gallery mode sensor in which standard optical fibre is used as the whispering gallery mode resonator. The sensor is characterised in terms of the response of the whispering gallery ...

BACKGROUND Cholelithiasis is one of the most prevalent gastrointestinal disorders requiring hospitalization.  While different factors influence gallstone formation in patients, these factors are not the same in different societies or in different geographical locations. AIM To evaluate the epidemiology and risk factors associated with gallstone formation in a large population group, the prese...