Experimental data suggest a key role for endogenous olive PPO and PDX enzymatic activities in determining the phenolic profile of VOO. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Background: Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is an important cause of catheter-related bacteremia (CRB). The USA300 clone increasingly causes

healthcare associated infections. We compared children with SA-CRB due to USA300 versus non-USA300 isolates and identified risk factors for complications.

Methods: Children at Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) with SA-CRB were GSK1838705A identified from a prospective S. aureus surveillance study. S. aureus isolates were characterized by methicillin susceptibility and pulsed field gel electrophoresis.

Results: From August 2001 to October 2007, 112 children with a first episode of SA-CRB and corresponding isolates were identified. USA300 accounted for 21 isolates. Metastatic infection complicated 10.7% of cases and was associated with methicillin resistance. Other complications were recurrence (n = 16), death (n = 13), thrombosis (n = 9), and intravascular “”cast”" (n = 6). Four patients with non-USA300 SA-CRB had endocarditis. Prolonged bacteremia was more common in methicillin-resistant SA (12/29) than

in methicillin-susceptible SA SA-CRB (14/83) (P = 0.007). Complications were more common in patients with bacteremia >= 4 days (16/26 see more BYL719 concentration [61.5%]) versus patients with bacteremia >= 4 days (25/86 [29%]) (P = 0.003). The complication rate was lower in patients who had the catheter removed <4 days (22.5%) versus patients whose catheter was removed >= 4 days after infection or not removed (44.4%) (P = 0.02). Children with USA300 versus non-USA300 isolates did not differ with

respect to frequency or type of complications.

Conclusions: At Texas Children’s Hospital, the USA300 clone caused 19% of initial SA-CRB episodes and was associated with methicillin resistance. Complications occurred in 36.6% of the patients and were associated with prolonged bacteremia and catheter removal >= 4 days after infection or failure to remove the catheter.”
“Vibrio vulnificus is a halophilic Gram-negative bacillus found worldwide in warm coastal waters. The pathogen has the ability to cause primary sepsis in certain high-risk populations, including patients with chronic liver disease, immunodeficiency, iron storage disorders, end-stage renal disease, and diabetes mellitus. Most reported cases of primary sepsis in the USA are associated with the ingestion of raw or undercooked oysters harvested from the Gulf Coast. The mortality rate for patients with severe sepsis is high, exceeding 50% in most reported series. Other clinical presentations include wound infection and gastroenteritis.

Objective. The aim https://www.selleckchem.com/products/sbe-b-cd.html of this study was to assess

the leakage of Gd-DTPA into traumatic lesions of the human spinal cord using MRI.

Summary of Background Data. While MRI of acute spinal cord trauma is a routine type of clinical investigation, the time course of Gd-DTPA enhancement in traumatic spinal cord injury is not known.

Methods. In early stage after spinal cord injury (<24 hours) and at follow-up on day 4, 7, 14, 21, 28, and 84, the accumulation of Gd-DTPA within 30 minutes after bolus injection was investigated in sagittal and axial T2-weighted images and T1-weighted images.

Results. In 4 men aged between 23 and 55 years with severe paraparesis, the traumatic spinal cord lesion had a maximum of spatial extent after 7 days. Gd-enhancement was first detected on day 4 in T1-weighted images, was most pronounced between CA4P inhibitor day 7 and 28 but absent on day 84. The Gd-enhancement progressively increased in intensity after intravenous injection between 5 and 10 minutes when a maximum was reached, which remained stable for up to

30 minutes.

Conclusion. We used MRI to study the dynamics of post-traumatic Gd-DTPA leakage into the injured spinal cord. This appears as a promising approach for monitoring the local secondary lesion changes.”
“The interaction of photosynthesis and respiration has been studied in vivo under conditions of limited water supply and after consecutive rewatering. The role of the alternative (v(alt)) and cytochrome (v(cyt)) pathways on drought stress-induced suppression of photosynthesis and during photosynthetic recovery was examined in the Nicotiana sylvestris wild type (WT) and the complex I-deficient CMSII mutant. Although photosynthetic traits, including net photosynthesis (A(N)), stomatal (g(s)) and mesophyll conductances (g(m)), as well as respiration (v(cyt) and v(alt)) differed between well-watered CMSII and WT, similar reductions of A(N), g(s), and g(m) were observed during severe drought stress. However, total respiration (V(t)) remained slightly higher in CMSII due to the still increased v(cyt) (to match ATP demand).

v(alt) and maximum carboxylation rates remained almost unaltered in both genotypes, while in CMSII, changes in photosynthetic light harvesting (i.e. Chl a/b ratio) were detected. In both genotypes, find more photosynthesis and respiration were restored after 2 d of rewatering, predominantly limited by a delayed stomatal response. Despite complex I dysfunction and hence altered redox balance, the CMSII mutant seems to be able to adjust its photosynthetic machinery during and after drought stress to reduce photo-oxidation and to maintain the cell redox state and the ATP level.”
“Reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction contributes to the neurotoxicity of 1-methy-4-phenylpyridinium ion (MPP(+)). Increasing studies have shown that hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S) is an endogenous antioxidant gas.

DMOADs reduced need for TKR by 15%. Cost-effectiveness was most sensitive to likelihoods of suspended progression and pain relief. DMOADs costing $3,000/year achieved ICERs below $100,000/QALY if the likelihoods of suspended

progression and pain relief were 20% and 70%. At a cost of $5,000, these ICERs were attained if the likelihoods of suspended progression and pain relief were both 60%.

Conclusions: Cost, suspended progression, and pain relief are key drivers of value for DMOADs. Plausible combinations of these factors could reduce need for TKR and satisfy commonly cited cost-effectiveness criteria. (C) 2013 Osteoarthritis Research Society International. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Over the

last few years, new generations of anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have been developed for potential benefits over the classical, first-generation mAb Ricolinostat nmr rituximab. Compared with rituximab, new mAbs have enhanced antitumor activity resulting from increased complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) and/or BMN 673 in vitro antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and increased Fc binding affinity for the low-affinity variants of the Fc gamma RIIIa receptor (CD16) on immune effector cells. The second-generation mAbs, which include ofatumumab, veltuzumab, and ocrelizumab, are humanized or fully human to reduce immunogenicity, but with an unmodified Fc region. Ofatumumab is a fully human anti-CD20 IgG1 mAb in clinical development for hematological malignancies and autoimmune diseases. Ofatumumab specifically recognizes an epitope encompassing both the small and large extracellular loops of CD20 molecule, and is more effective than rituximab Navitoclax purchase at CDC induction and killing target cells. Veltuzumab (IMMU-106, hA20) is a humanized anti-CD20 mAb with complementarity-determining

regions similar to rituximab. This antibody has enhanced binding avidities and a stronger effect on CDC compared with rituximab. Ocrelizumab is a humanized mAb with the potential for enhanced efficacy in lymphoid malignancies compared with rituximab due to increased binding affinity for the low-affinity variants of the Fc gamma RIIIa receptor. The third-generation mAbs are also humanized mAbs, but in addition they have an engineered Fc to increase their binding affinity for the Fc gamma RIIIa receptor. The third-generation mAbs include AME-133v, PRO 131921 and GA-101. AME-133v (LY2469298) is a type I, humanized IgG1 mAb with enhanced affinity for Fc gamma RIIIa receptor and an enhanced ADCC activity compared with rituximab. PR0131921 is a humanized anti-CD20 mAb engineered to have improved binding to Fc gamma RIIIa and better ADCC compared with rituximab. GA-101 (RO5072759) is a fully humanized, type II, IgG1 mAb derived from humanization of the parental B-Lyl mouse antibody and subsequent glycoengineering using GlycoMab (R) technology.

The degree of association of the various factors with the survival outcome was calculated by using Kaplan-Meier estimator and Cox proportional hazard model techniques.

Results. A total of 95 patients were included in the analysis. The overall rate of recurrence (RR) was 34.7% (n = 33), with a median time to recurrence of 36 months (range 2-100 months). Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival rates at 5 years were 73.7% and 98.9%, respectively. Addition

of radiotherapy (RT) following resection significantly improved PFS (log-rank test, p = 0.008). In patients who underwent subtotal resection (STR), administering RT (STR + RT) improved outcome with the lowest failure rates (10.3%), superior to patients who underwent gross-total IWR-1-endo ic95 resection (GTR) alone (RR 43.1%; log-rank test, p < 0.001). Addition of RT to patients who underwent GTR was not beneficial (log-rank test, p = 0.628). In patients who had disseminated tumor selleck chemicals llc at presentation, adjuvant RT controlled the disease effectively. High-dose RT (>= 50 Gy) did not change PFS (log-rank test, p = 0.710).

Conclusions. Routine inclusion of RT in the treatment protocol for spinal MPEs in young patients should be considered. Complete

resection is always the goal of tumor resection. However, when complete resection does not seem to be possible in complex lesions, RT should be used as an adjunct to avoid aggressive resection and to minimize inadvertent injury to the surrounding neural tissues. High-dose RT (>= 50 Gy) did not provide additional survival benefits, although this association needs to be evaluated by prospective studies.”
“The purpose of neuroimaging meta-analysis is to localize the brain regions that are activated consistently in response to a certain intervention. As a commonly used technique, current coordinate-based meta-analyses (CBMA) of neuroimaging studies utilize relatively sparse information from published CDK phosphorylation studies, typically only using (x,y,z) coordinates of the activation peaks. Such CBMA methods have several limitations. First,

there is no way to jointly incorporate deactivation information when available, which has been shown to result in an inaccurate statistic image when assessing a difference contrast. Second, the scale of a kernel reflecting spatial uncertainty must be set without taking the effect size (e.g., Z-stat) into account. To address these problems, we employ Gaussian-process regression (GPR), explicitly estimating the unobserved statistic image given the sparse peak activation “”coordinate”" and “”standardized effect-size estimate”" data. In particular, our model allows estimation of effect size at each voxel, something existing CBMA methods cannot produce. Our results show that GPR outperforms existing CBMA techniques and is capable of more accurately reproducing the (usually unavailable) full-image analysis results.

Objective: The objective was to examine the association between adherence to the SEAD and the occurrence

of nonfatal acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Design: This was a population-based case-control study in Porto, Portugal. Cases were patients aged >= 18 y who were hospitalized with an incident AMI (n = 820), and controls were individuals without AMI selected at random from the resident population of the participating hospitals’ catchment area (n = 2196). A validated food-frequency questionnaire was administered in face-to-face interviews to assess dietary intake in the previous year. We developed an SEAD adherence index with 9 key components: fresh fish excluding cod, cod, red meat and pork products, dairy products, legumes and vegetables, vegetable soup, potatoes, whole-grain bread, and wine. A score AS1842856 datasheet of 1 or 0 was assigned to each food consumed and reflected consumption that was higher or lower, respectively, than the sex-specific median in controls.

Results: After adjustment for the main confounders, a PF-03084014 molecular weight 1-point increment

in the SEAD score was associated with a 10% reduced odds of AMI [odds ratio (OR): 0.90; 95% CI: 0.85, 0.96]. In comparison with individuals in the lower quartile of the SEAD index (lowest adherence), those in the upper quartile had a 33% lower likelihood of experiencing an AMI (OR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.51, 0.88; P for trend = 0.003). An SEAD index calculated by Bafilomycin A1 supplier reverse scoring for red meat and pork products and potatoes led to an even stronger inverse association between the SEAD and AMI (OR for the upper compared with the lower quartile of SEAD index: 0.40; 95% CI: 0.30, 0.52; P for trend < 0.001).

Conclusions:

Adherence to the SEAD was associated with lower odds of nonfatal AMI. However, some but not all food components of the SEAD may contribute to the very low coronary mortality in northern Portugal and Galicia. Am J Clin Nutr 2010;92:211-7.”
“We report on the observations of spontaneous spin polarized moments in 7.4 nm Pb/PbO nanoparticles, which give rise to re-entrantlike temperature profiles for the magnetic susceptibility and magnetization in the superconducting phase that develops below 6.86 K. Results reveal the existence of a magnetic component below T(C) and superconductivity remains at low temperatures. A 30-fold increase in the critical magnetic field is also found. Superconductivity mainly arises from the 5 nm Pb core, whereas the 1.2 nm PbO shell contributes to the appearance of a net magnetic moment in the 7.4 nm Pb/PbO core/shell particles. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3561766]“
“In this study, various polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites were prepared by melt blending method.

89 with 95% CI 0.49-1.63, P = .715. Similarly, adjusting for confounding variables and the alpha(2C) Del322-325 polymorphism the odds ratio of being Arg/Arg or Arg/Gly for the beta(1) Arg389Gly polymorphism and having an event was 1.13 selleck chemicals with 95% CI 0.52-2.17, P = .864.

Conclusions: The alpha(2C) Del322-325 polymorphism exclusively or in combination with the beta(1)Arg389 allele is not associated with an increased risk of adverse events in HE (J Cardiac Fail 2009:15:435-441)”
“We report a case of a 6-year-old girl with primary Burkitts’s lymphoma (BL) of endometrium and bilateral ovaries of 1-month duration. To the best of our

knowledge, few cases of childhood primary BL of bilateral BI 6727 cell line ovaries have been reported worldwide. However, extensive search of the published work did not reveal any case of primary BL of endometrium and both ovaries. Although rare, BL is a potentially curable malignancy with good prognosis.”
“Background: We investigated whether anabolic deficiency was linked to exercise intolerance in men with chronic heart failure (CHF). Anabolic hormones (testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, insulin-like growth factor 1 [IGF1]) contribute to exercise capacity in healthy men. This issue remains unclear in CHF.

Methods and Results: We Studied 205

men with CHF (age 60 +/- 11 years, New York Heart Association [NYHA] Class I/II/III/IV: 37/95/65/8; LVEF [lelt ventricular ejection fraction]: 31 +/- 8%). Exercise capacity was expressed as peak oxygen consumption (peak VO(2)), peak O(2) pulse, and ventilatory response to exercise (VE-VCO(2) slope). In multivariable models, reduced peak VO(2) (and reduced peak O(2) pulse) was associated with diminished serum total testosterone (TT) (P < .01) and free testosterone (eFT; estimated front TT and sex hormone globulin levels) (P < .01), which was independent this website of NYHA Class, plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic

peptide, and age. These associations remained significant even after adjustment for an amount of leg lean tissue. In multivariable models, high VE-VCO(2) slope was related to reduced serum IGF1 (P < .05), advanced NYHA Class (P < .05), increased plasma NT-proBNP (P < .0001), and borderline low LVEF (P = .07). In 44 men, reassessed after 2.3 +/- 0.4 years, a reduction in peak VO(2) (and peak O(2) Pulse) was accompanied by a decrease in TT (P < .01) and eFT (P <= .01). Increase in VE-VCO(2) slope was related only to an increase in plasma NT-proBNP (P < .05).

Conclusions: In men with CHF, low circulating testosterone independently relates to exercise intolerance. The greater the reduction of serum TT in the course of disease, the more severe the progression of exercise intolerance. Whether testosterone supplementation would improve exercise capacity in hypogonadal men with CHF requires further Studies.

Stimuli not normally reaching threshold may be perceived and normal sensations may be magnified to become dysphoric or painful. Problems of emptying viscera and maintaining continence may occur. Significant musculoskeletal disability may arise as well as abnormalities of the autonomic nervous system. There is an association with systemic disorders. Also, psychological, behavioural, sexual and social problems arise. In the chronic pelvic pain syndromes, treatment of the end organ has a limited role, and multidisciplinary as well as interdisciplinary management is essential. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Objective This study examines associations between caregiving styles and

p53 inhibitor caregivers’ and patients’ attachment orientations among couples facing advanced cancer. Four caregiving styles were examined: proximate, sensitive, controlling, and compulsive. Method A total

of 110 patients with https://www.selleckchem.com/products/ly3039478.html advanced gastrointestinal or lung cancer and their spouse caregivers were recruited. Measures included: the Experiences in Close Relationships Inventory, the Caregiving Questionnaire, and the Demand Subscale from the Caregiving Burden Scale. Results Caregivers reported high levels of proximate and sensitive caregiving and moderate levels of controlling and compulsive caregiving. Hierarchical regressions were conducted to examine the contribution of caregivers’ and patients’ attachment orientations to each caregiving style while controlling for caregiving demands. Both caregiving proximity and sensitive caregiving were negatively associated with caregivers’ avoidant attachment. Controlling caregiving was positively

related to caregivers’ avoidant and anxious attachment orientations. Selleckchem Tipifarnib Compulsive caregiving was positively associated with caregiving demand and caregivers’ attachment anxiety. In addition, compulsive caregiving was positively associated with patients’ attachment avoidance and negatively associated with patients’ attachment anxiety. Conclusions The study demonstrated two clusters of ways to provide care: otheroriented and self-oriented. The study revealed that both patients’ and caregivers’ attachment orientations contributed to caregivers’ patterns of caregiving. Insecure attachment orientations and resulting couple interaction patterns of demand-withdrawal and avoidance-pursuit are potential sources of distress that may benefit from exploration in psychotherapeutic interventions for couples facing advanced cancer. Copyright (c) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.”
“Objective: Impairments in the function of attention exacerbate the course of opiate dependence and may play a role in the relapsing nature of the disorder. This study used clinical measures and positron emission tomography (PET) to assess the functioning of sustained attention in subjects with a history of opiate dependence.

The simple, inexpensive protein precipitation and high-throughput method makes it a suitable

and valuable tool in the investigation of the clinical pharmacokinetics and bioequivalence.”
“Background and objectiveRecent genome-wide association studies have shown associations between variants at five loci (TNS1, GSTCD, HTR4, AGER and THSD4) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or lung function. However, their association with COPD has not been proven in Chinese Han population, nor have COPD-related phenotypes been studied. www.selleckchem.com/products/ipi-145-ink1197.html The objective of this study was to look for associations between five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in these novel candidate genes and COPD susceptibility or lung function in a Chinese Han population.

MethodsAllele and genotype data on 680 COPD patients and 687 healthy controls for sentinel SNP in these five loci were investigated. Allele frequencies and genotype distributions were

compared between cases and controls, and odds ratios were calculated. Potential relationships between these SNP and COPD-related lung function were assessed.

ResultsNo significant associations were found between any of the SNP and COPD in cases and controls. The SNP (rs3995090) in HTR4 was associated with COPD (adjusted P=0.022) in never-smokers, and the SNP (rs2070600) in AGER was associated with forced expiratory volume in 1s (FEV1%) predicted (=-0.066, adjusted P=0.016) PF-562271 purchase and FEV1/forced vital capacity (=-0.071, adjusted P=0.009) in all subjects.

ConclusionsThe variant at HTR4 was associated with COPD in never-smokers,

and the SNP in AGER was associated with pulmonary function in a Chinese Han population.

We demonstrate that variants in HTR4 are associated with COPD in never-smokers, and SNP in AGER are associated with lung function in a Chinese Han population.”
“Background. The recent Institute of Medicine Report assessing the state of pain care in the United States AG-881 acknowledged the lack of consistent data to describe the nature and magnitude of unrelieved pain and identify subpopulations with disproportionate burdens.

Objectives. We synthesized 20 years of cumulative evidence on racial/ethnic disparities in analgesic treatment for pain in the United States. Evidence was examined for the 1) magnitude of association between race/ethnicity and analgesic treatment; 2) subgroups at an increased risk; and 3) the effect of moderators ( pain type, setting, study quality, and data collection period) on this association.

Methods. United States studies with at least one explicit aim or analysis comparing analgesic treatment for pain between Whites and a minority group were included ( SciVerse Scopus database, 19892011).

Results. Blacks/African Americans experienced both a higher number and magnitude of disparities than any other group in the analyses.

Since 2006, China California Heart Watch has provided cardiac services in China’s Yunnan province. Our Grants for Kids program aims to diagnose and fund surgical and nonsurgical treatments

for underprivileged children with congenitally malformed hearts. This report analyzes our patient outcomes. From 2007 to 2010, 36 children with CHD underwent either surgical or percutaneous procedures at local Chinese medical centers, and 94% of our patients could be contacted for follow-up assessment. The mortality and complication rates of our patient population compare favorably with international data. Our study provides Selleck EVP4593 a model through which networking with local hospitals and regional cardiac centers can be an effective way to assist developing areas in providing cardiac care to rural underserved populations.”
“During the past 15 years, embryo transfer (ET) has become increasingly widespread within the sport-horse breeding industry. At present, however, the vast majority (>95%) of horse embryos are transferred fresh or after chilled storage for up to 24 h, whereas cryopreservation is rarely employed despite its obvious potential for simplifying recipient mare management and facilitating long-term storage and international transport of embryos. A number of inter-related factors have contributed to the slow development and implementation of equine embryo cryopreservation,

Selleckchem A1155463 and these include the following: (i) the absence of commercially available products for reliably stimulating superovulation; (ii) very poor pregnancy rates following cryopreservation of embryos > 300 mu m in diameter; (iii) difficulty in recovering embryos at early developmental stages amenable to cryopreservation; and (iv) interembryo variation in susceptibility to cryodamage. However, acceptable success rates (> 55% pregnancy) have been reported for both slow-frozen and vitrified small embryos (< 300 mu m), and there is Fer-1 in vitro renewed interest in cryopreservation, not only in the context of standard ET programmes, but also because it would facilitate pre-implantation genetic testing and allow wider

access to techniques for producing embryos in vitro, such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection and nuclear transfer. This article will review the current status of equine embryo cryopreservation.”
“Purpose: The aim of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of building a craniofacial virtual reality model by image fusion of 3-dimensional (3D) CT models and 3dMD stereophotogrammetric facial surface.

Methods: A CT scan and stereophotography were performed. The 3D CT models were reconstructed by Materialise Mimics software, and the stereophotogrammetric facial surface was reconstructed by 3dMD patient software. All 3D CT models were exported as Stereo Lithography file format, and the 3dMD model was exported as Virtual Reality Modeling Language file format. Image registration and fusion were performed in Mimics software.

During 6 months of follow-up, no cases of sudden death or arrhythmia were documented in either group. Patients with FMF who are continuously treated with low-dose colchicine and have not developed amyloidosis seem to have QT dispersion parameters similar to those of healthy subjects and therefore apparently have no increased risk of adverse cardiac events associated with abnormal

repolarization.”
“New thermoplastic poly(ether-urethane)s and poly(carbonate-urethane) s were synthesized by a one-step melt polymerization from poly(oxytetramethylene) diol (PTMO) and poly(hexane-1,6-diyl carbonate) diol (PHCD) as soft segments, 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, and 2,2′-[methylenebis(1,4-phenylenemethylenethio)]diethanol, 3,3′-[ methylenebis(1,4-phenylenemethylenethio)]dipropan-1-ol or 6,6′-[methylenebis(1,4-phenylenemethylenethio)]dihexan-1-ol AZD7762 research buy as unconventional chain extenders. The effects JNK-IN-8 in vitro of the kind and amount of the polymer diol and chain extender used on the structure and properties of the polymers were studied. The polymers were examined by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, atomic force microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), TGA

coupled with FTIR spectroscopy, and Shore hardness and tensile testing. The obtained high-molecular-weight polymers showed elastomeric or plastic properties. Generally, the PTMO-based polymers exhibited significantly lower glass-transition temperatures (up to -48.1 vs -1.4 degrees C), a higher degree of microphase separation, and ordering in hard-segment domains in comparison with the corresponding PHCD-based ones. Moreover, it was observed that the polymers with the PTMO soft segments showed poorer tensile strengths (up to 36.5 vs 59.6 MPa) but higher elongations at break. All of the polymers exhibited a relatively good thermal stability. Their temperatures of 1% mass loss were in the range 270-320

degrees C. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 123: 331-346, 2012″
“In this study, the shear fracture behaviors of the Cu6Sn5 grains at the Sn-4Ag/Cu interface were studied by indentation test; the fracture mechanisms and shear Tariquidar ic50 strength were characterized through analyzing the indentation curves and fracture morphologies. Experimental results reveal that shear fractures of the Cu6Sn5 grains occur at the foundation or the center portion, depending on their size and shape, and there are bursts on the force-depth curves corresponding to the fracture. The shear fracture strength of the Cu6Sn5 grains fractured at their center portion is close to the shear strength of the Cu6Sn5 intermetallic compounds, and its average value is about 670 MPa. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.