and reconstruction of the ossicular chain. Localized cholesteatoma does not usually show residuals or recurrence. © 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.OBJECTIVE Phaeohyphomycosis caused by phaeoid fungi is a type of mycosis emerging worldwide which causes a wide variety of clinical manifestations. STUDY DESIGN A retrospective analysis of 11 cases diagnosed with fungal inflammation on cytology over a period of 6 years (2013-2018) was done along with culture/histopathologic confirmation. RESULTS Of the total of 11 cases, 9 cases presented with subcutaneous swellings and 1 case each with brain and lung lesions. The age range was 30-83 years (mean 53.6); 8 patients were male and 3 were female. Cytologic smears showed fungal profiles with septate tortuous hyphae, as well as swollen and narrow, yeast-like swellings with an irregular breadth of the hyphae in all cases. The fungal profiles were visualized on a Masson-Fontana stain. The background showed inflammatory cells, giant cells, and necrosis in variable proportions. Five cases were diagnosed as phaeohyphomycosis on cytology, whereas 3 cases were misdiagnosed as aspergillus and 2 as candida. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/pri-724.html In 1 case, typing of the fungus was not done. Histopathology was available in 5 cases, and in all these a diagnosis of phaeohyphomycosis was reached. Ten of the 11 cases had confirmation on fungal culture. CONCLUSIONS Phaeoid fungi are rarely seen in routine cytologic practice. Careful evaluation of cytologic smears and an awareness of the characteristic morphologic features of phaeohyphomycosis are helpful in arriving at a correct diagnosis. Fine needle aspiration cytology provides a rapid diagnosis, enabling prompt therapy. © 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.OBJECTIVE We evaluated the risk factors of inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) compared to non-IBC and according to histological subtype. METHODS Cases of IBC (n = 160) and controls of non-IBC (n = 580) were collected from the cohort of breast cancer patients treated in two oncology centers matched based on age at cohort entry. Data about breast cancer risk factors were collected. We evaluated correlation and ORs using conditional logistic regression analysis for each case group versus the control group. We also evaluated those factors in three further subgroups luminal (HR+, HER2-), HER2-overexpressing (HER2+, HR-), and triple-negative (TN) patients. RESULTS Long duration of breastfeeding of ≥12 months (OR = 4.64, 95% CI 2.97-7.26), body mass index ≤25 (OR = 2.48, 95% CI 1.71-3.58), and use of oral contraceptives (OR = 2.48, 95% CI 1.62-3.84) were the most significant risk factors in favor of IBC compared to non-IBC. There was no impact of contraceptives use in the luminal subgroup and no impact of long duration of breastfeeding in the TN subgroup. The role of socioeconomic and educational levels was unclear. Age at menarche, age at first pregnancy, and age at menopause were nonsignificant risk factors of IBC. CONCLUSION Reproductive risk factors were distinct in IBC patients reflecting the clinical entity of IBC. © 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.The inferior lobes are prominent bilateral brain areas in the hypothalamus of neopterygians among the ray-finned fishes. They are known as multisensory integration centers. As such, they should play a major role in fish evolution. In this study, a comparative morphometric analysis was performed. The morphology of the hypothalamus, where the inferior lobe is considered as fully developed first in Lepisosteus, was then re-examined. One hundred brains from different species of 60 families of ray-finned fishes were stained with cresyl violet and embedded in methacrylate. They were then cut on a microtome while conducting block-face imaging. The volumes were determined for the whole brain, brain areas, and nuclei. Since visual input represents a major sensory input for the inferior lobe, the nucleus glomerulosus, a visual-related nucleus in paracanthopterygian and acanthopterygian teleosts, and the tectum opticum were included in the investigations. The morphometric analysis revealed that the relative volume of the inferior lobes increases significantly from species of the Lepisosteiformes to the Tetraodontiformes. In addition, a positive correlation was detected between the relative volume of the inferior lobes and either the relative volume of the nucleus glomerulosus or the relative volume of the tectum opticum. These correlations, in combination with findings from previous hodological and behavioral studies, give rise to the speculation that the inferior lobes may be involved in higher cognitive processes and complex social interactions. © 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.Graphene Oxide (GO) and polyaniline (PANI) are very unique material with a broad potential in corrosion protection coating. To achieve maximum stability and anti-corrosion effect in polar medium, firstly itaconic acid doped PANI (DP) was readily prepared by one-step method, followed by forming GO and DP composite (GODP). Characterization by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and UV-vis absorption spectra (UV-vis) provides evidence for the successful doping of itaconic acid in PANI. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis shows that the d-spacing of the GO sheets increases slightly with the intercalation of DP. The morphological studies show disordered structures in GODP compared with original GO sheets due to the introduction of PANI molecules and the interaction of functional groups on the surface of GO sheets. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) reveals good thermal stability of DP and GODP. Quantum calculation further confirms the successful doping of itaconic acid, and the effective complex of GO and DP, providing a quantitative understanding for the curing mechanism. The crosslinking interaction among GODP, curing agent, and epoxy resin facilitates the formation of compact coating, leading to excellent corrosion resistance towards Mg alloy. © 2020 IOP Publishing Ltd.Design of highly-active, earth-abundant and stable electrocatalysts is important for efficient water splitting. In this work, we report the fabrication of RuP and Ru2P nanoparticles supported on ordered macroporous N-doped carbon hollow spheres (RuP/H-NC and Ru2P/H-NC) through a facile and scalable space-confined pyrolysis process. The RuP/H-NC catalyst exhibits Pt-like activity in alkaline electrolyte, by means of the macroporous structure with a larger specific area and more exposed active sites, as well as the synergistic effect between the RuP nanoparticles and N-doped carbon. Specifically, the RuP/H-NC catalyst yields superior hydrogen evolution reaction activity in terms of low overpotential of 19 mV in 1 M KOH to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and excellent durability, outperforming Ru2P/H-NC and most of the reported non-Pt catalysts. Further density function theory calculation reveals that RuP is more intrinsically active with favorable hydrogen adsorption Gibbs free energy than that of Ru2P.