IMPORTANCEAndrogen deprivation therapy (ADT) has been theorized to decrease the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with prostate cancer owing to a potential decrease in the tissuebased expression of the SARS-CoV-2 coreceptor transmembrane protease, serine 2 (TMPRSS2). OBJECTIVE To examine whether ADT is associated with a decreased rate of 30-day mortality from SARS-CoV-2 infection among patients with prostate cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This cohort study analyzed patient data recorded in the COVID-19 and Cancer Consortium registry between March 17, 2020, and February 11, 2021. The consortium maintains a centralized multi-institution registry of patients with a current or past diagnosis of cancer who developed COVID-19. Data were collected and managed using REDCap software hosted at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Initially, 1228patients aged 18 years or older with prostate cancer listed as their primary malignant neoplasm were included; 122 patients with a second malignant neoplasm, insufficient follow-up, or low-quality data were excluded. Propensity matching was performed using the nearest-neighbor method with a 1:3 ratio of treated units to control units, adjusted for age, body mass index, race and ethnicity, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score, smoking status, comorbidities (cardiovascular, pulmonary, kidney disease, and diabetes), cancer status, baseline steroid use, COVID-19 treatment, and presence of metastatic disease. EXPOSURES Androgen deprivation therapy use was defined as prior bilateral orchiectomy or pharmacologic ADT administered within the prior 3 months of presentation with COVID-19. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe primary outcome was the rate of all-cause 30-day mortality after COVID-19 diagnosis for patients receiving ADT compared with patients not receiving ADT after propensity matching. RESULTSAfter exclusions, 1106 patients with prostate cancer (before propensity score matching: median age, 73 years [IQR, 65-79 years]; 561 (51%) self-identified as non-Hispanic White) were included for analysis. Of these patients, 477 were included for propensity score matching (169 who received ADT and 308 who did not receive ADT). After propensity matching, there was no significant difference in the primary end point of the rate of all-cause 30-day mortality (OR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.42-1.42).

We report details of an experimental platform implemented at the National Ignition Facility to obtain in situ powder diffraction data from solids dynamically compressed to extreme pressures. Thin samples are sandwiched between tamper layers and ramp compressed using a gradual increase in the drive-laser irradiance. Pressure history in the sample is determined using high-precision velocimetry measurements. Up to two independently timed pulses of x rays are produced at or near the time of peak pressure by laser illumination of thin metal foils. The quasi-monochromatic x-ray pulses have a mean wavelength selectable between 0.6 Å and 1.9 Å depending on the foil material. The diffracted signal is recorded on image plates with a typical 2θ x-ray scattering angle uncertainty of about 0.2° and resolution of about 1°. Analytic expressions are reported for systematic corrections to 2θ due to finite pinhole size and sample offset. A new variant of a nonlinear background subtraction algorithm is described, which has been used to observe diffraction lines at signal-to-background ratios as low as a few percent. Variations in system response over the detector area are compensated in order to obtain accurate line intensities; this system response calculation includes a new analytic approximation for image-plate sensitivity as a function of photon energy and incident angle. This experimental platform has been used up to 2 TPa (20 Mbar) to determine the crystal structure, measure the density, and evaluate the strain-induced texturing of a variety of compressed samples spanning periods 2–7 on the periodic table.

Surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has potential for unique clinical, environmental, and military applications, among many others, but it is limited by a rapid decrease in signal with distance from the sensing surface. For this reason, much study of SERS‐based biosensing involves chemical or physical adsorption of analytes to an active surface. Adsorption, however, limits the types of analytes that can be detected and detection sensitivity. The three‐dimensional closely packed architecture of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires decorated with silver nanoparticles increases SERS intensity, allowing for adsorption‐free biosensing. This approach greatly expands the potential applications of Raman spectroscopy as a biosensing technique. This work demonstrates a significant SERS enhancement from silver nanoparticle‐decorated ZnO nanoprobes to the Raman spectra of crystal violet, melamine, and adenine solutions. These enhancements were quantified by comparing the intensity of Raman peaks from each of the three solutions through ZnO nanowires decorated with silver nanoparticles with that through bare ZnO nanowires. Estimated enhancement of the Raman signal accounted for the volume difference between solution affected by SERS and solution sensed by the Raman system. More importantly, the detected SERS signal is from molecules in solution and unadsorbed to the sensing surfaces. This lack of adsorption was confirmed by tracking the SERS enhancement of a crystal violet Raman peak over time. This greatly enhances the value and flexibility of Raman spectroscopy as a detection technique for a wide variety of applications. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

To my mom, Linda.iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThere are no words to express how grateful I am for all the people that have been part of my life during this journey. I could not have completed my PhD without their help, and I would first like to thank the two advisors that guided me through my graduate career.Professor Richard Mu accepted me as an REU student during my final summer as an undergraduate. After interacting with his group and getting a chance to do actual research in a lab, I changed my graduate path from computational physics to experimental physics and never looked back. Professor Mu's group has always felt like an extended family, where the members worked hard and helped each other without question. I also learned humility in his groupcelebrate the victories in the lab, but be mindful of the people and path that led to that point. I honestly can't begin to express how much I appreciate everything he has done to help me and my family over the years. He has been there through all of the ups and downs in my personal and professional life, and I am honored for the chance to continue to work with him in the future.Professor Richard Haglund accepted me into his group at Vanderbilt after I finished my Master's at Fisk University. I struggled at the beginning while trying to balance course work with research and family, and he gave me some of the best advice I've ever received. He told me that my future was in my hands and that I would fail or succeed based on my own actions. That motivated me to work harder than I had ever worked and is something I still carry with me today.I also want to thank Professor Haglund for instilling within me a deeper appreciation for the elegance of physics, from cascade lasers to perturbation theory. His depth of knowledge and work-life balance are inspiring, and I look forward to working with him in future projects. My mom and dad worked extremely hard to provide a solid foundation for me and my brother. I couldn't ask for better parents. My dad worked to provide for our family, and my mom put her career on hold to stay home with me and my brother. They encouraged us to reach for the stars and to always choose the right path, even if it was the more difficult one. I am who I am today due in large part to the sacrifices, encouragement, and love that my parents provided.

Fabrication and anneal parameters of electron beam-deposited silver nanoparticles can be optimized to maximize surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of dilute analytes.