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Endometrial cytology may help in the early detection of this disease.
Anterior (ALIF) and lateral (LLIF) lumbar interbody fusion is associated with significant postoperative pain, opioid consumption and length of stay. Transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks improve these outcomes in other surgical subtypes but have not been applied to spine surgery. A retrospective study of 250 patients was performed to describe associations between TAP block and outcomes after ALIF/LLIF.
The electronic medical records of 129 patients who underwent ALIF or LLIF with TAP block were compared to 121 patients who did not. All patients were cared for under a standardized perioperative care pathway with comprehensive multimodal analgesia. Differences in patent demographics, surgical factors, length of stay (LOS), opioid consumption, opioid-related side effects and pain scores were compared in bivariable and multivariable regression analyses.
In bivariable analyses, TAP block was associated with a significantly shorter LOS, less postoperative nausea/vomiting and lower opioid consumption in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). In multivariable analyses, TAP block was associated with significantly shorter LOS (β - 12h, 95% CI (- 22, - 2h); p = 0.021). Preoperative opioid use was a strong predictive factor for higher opioid consumption in the PACU, opioid use in the first 24h after surgery and longer LOS. We did not find significant differences in pain scores at any times between the groups.
TAP block may represent an effective addition to pain management and opioid-reducing strategies and improve outcomes after ALIF/LLIF. Prospective trials are warranted to further explore these associations.
TAP block may represent an effective addition to pain management and opioid-reducing strategies and improve outcomes after ALIF/LLIF. Prospective trials are warranted to further explore these associations.
High-performance time-of-flight (TOF) positron emission tomography (PET) systems have the capability for rapid data acquisition while preserving diagnostic image quality. However, determining a reliable and clinically applicable cut-off of the acquisition time plays an important role in routine practice. This study aimed to assess the diagnostic equivalence of short acquisition time of 57 with routine 75seconds per bed position (s/BP) of [
F]-fluoro-deoxy-glucose (FDG) PET. Phantom studies applying EARL criteria suggested the feasibility of shortened acquisition time in routine clinical imaging by 3D TOF PET/CT scanners. Ninety-six patients with melanoma, lung or head and neck cancer underwent a standard whole-body, skull base-to-thigh or vertex-to-thigh [
F]-FDG PET/CT examination using the 3D TOF Ingenuity TF PET/CT system (Philips, Cleveland, OH). The [
F]-FDG activity applied was equal to 4MBq per kg body weight. Retrospectively, PET list-mode data were used to calculate a second PET study per patienuivalence was found between the 75s/BP and 57s/BP PET/CT images both for SUV
(p=0.004) and SUV
(p=0.003).
The results of this study demonstrate significant clinical and semiquantitative equivalence between short acquisition time of 57s/BP and standard 75s/BP 3D TOF [
F]-FDG PET/CT scanning, which may improve the patient's workflow in routine practice.
The results of this study demonstrate significant clinical and semiquantitative equivalence between short acquisition time of 57 s/BP and standard 75 s/BP 3D TOF [18F]-FDG PET/CT scanning, which may improve the patient's workflow in routine practice.The synthesis and characterization of four platinum(II) complexes using azobenzenes conveniently functionalized as ligands has been carried out. The characteristic photochemical behavior of the complexes due to the presence of azobenzene-type ligands and the role of the ligands in the activation of the complexes has been studied. Their promising cytotoxicity observed in HeLa cells prompted us to study the mechanism of action of these complexes as cytostatic agents. selleck products The interaction of the compounds with DNA, studied by circular dichroism, revealed a differential activity of the Pt(II) complexes upon irradiation. The intercalation abilities of the complexes as well as their reactivity with common proteins present in the blood stream allows to confirm some of the compounds obtained as good anticancer candidates.The alkaliphilic cyanobacterium Limnospira fusiformis is an integral part in food webs of tropical soda lakes. Recently, sudden breakdowns of Limnospira sp. blooms in their natural environment have been linked to cyanophage infections. We studied ultrastructural details and prophage components in the laboratory by means of confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). For a comparison at the subcellular level, we included transmission electron microscopy (TEM) material of infected cells collected during a field survey. Compared to TEM, CLSM has the advantage to rapidly providing results for whole, intact cells. Moreover, many cells can be studied at once. We chemically induced lysogenic cyanophages by means of mitomycin C (MMC) treatments and studied the ultrastructural alterations of host cells. In parallel, the number of cyanophages was obtained by flow cytometry. After treatment of the culture with MMC, flow cytometry showed a strong increase in viral counts, i.e., prophage induction. CLSM reflected the re-organization of L. fusiformis with remarkable alterations of thylakoid arrangements after prophage induction. Our study provides a first step towards 3D visualization of ultrastructure of cyanobacteria and showed the high potential of CLSM to investigate viral-mediated modifications in these groups.Plants produce a wide variety of secondary metabolites, which often are of interest to pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry. Plant-cell cultures allow producing these metabolites in a standardised manner, independently from various biotic and abiotic factors difficult to control during conventional cultivation. However, plant-cell fermentation proves to be very difficult, since these chemically complex compounds often result from the interaction of different biosynthetic pathways operating in different cell types. To simulate such interactions in cultured cells is a challenge. Here, we present a microfluidic bioreactor for plant-cell cultivation to mimic the cell-cell interactions occurring in real plant tissues. In a modular set-up of several microfluidic bioreactors, different cell types can connect through a flow that transports signals or metabolites from module to module. The fabrication of the chip includes hot embossing of a polycarbonate housing and subsequent integration of a porous membrane and in-plane tube fittings in a two-step ultrasonic welding process. The resulting microfluidic chip is biocompatible and transparent. Simulation of mass transfer for the nutrient sucrose predicts a sufficient nutrient supply through the membrane. We demonstrate the potential of this chip for plant cell biology in three proof-of-concept applications. First, we use the chip to show that tobacco BY-2 cells in suspension divide depending on a "quorum-sensing factor" secreted by proliferating cells. Second, we show that a combination of two Catharanthus roseus cell strains with complementary metabolic potency allows obtaining vindoline, a precursor of the anti-tumour compound vincristine. Third, we extend the approach to operationalise secretion of phytotoxins by the fungus Neofusicoccum parvum as a step towards systems to screen for interorganismal chemical signalling.Panax notoginseng is a traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of blood diseases, in which saponins were the main active components. Dammarenediol synthase (DS) is a key enzyme in the saponin synthesis pathway of P. notoginseng. The promoter is an important region to regulate gene expression, and the study of the promoter sequence provides important evidence for revealing the mechanism of gene expression regulation. However, there was still little research on the promoter function of P. notoginseng. In this study, the 1382 bp promoter upstream of DS from P. notoginseng was cloned and sequenced. The promoter sequence was analyzed by online databases. The plant expression vector fused with the β-glucuronidase gene was constructed and transferred into Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Then tobacco was injected, and its response to exogenous hormones (gibberellin and abscisic acid) was studied by transient expression to verify its unique action elements. The results showed that the tobacco leaves transferred with DS promoter had significantly increased GUS protease activity after spraying GA and ABA, indicating that both DS promoter can specifically and significantly respond to exogenous GA and ABA signal. These findings will help us to better understand the regulatory mechanisms of the upstream region of the DS gene and provide a basis for future research on the interaction of cis-acting elements of promoters with related transcription factors.
We assessed the value of computed tomography (CT) and automated Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) with net water uptake (NWU) to predict stroke onset time.
Two-hundred forty stroke patients with anterior circulation large-vessel occlusion were included. CT-ASPECTS-NWU values were calculated by comparing the mean Hounsfield units of affected ASPECTS regions with unaffected contralateral regions. The correlation between ASPECTS-NWU and stroke onset to CT time was assessed. ASPECTS-NWU predictive values were calculated to identify a stroke onset to CT time of within 4.5/6h.
A correlation existed between stroke onset to CT time and ASPECTS-NWU (r = 0.65, p < 0.001), which was affected by collateral status and infarct location. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for distinguishing a stroke onset to CT time of within 4.5h was 0.837 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.784-0.881; optimal cutoff 7%; sensitivity 87.10%; specificity 62.36%). The multi-index AUC was 0.884 (95% CI 0.837-0.922). The AUC for distinguishing a stroke onset to CT time of within 6h was 0.836 (95% CI 0.783-0.880; optimal cutoff 9%; sensitivity 72.73%; specificity 81.16%). The multi-index AUC was 0.881 (95% CI 0.834-0.920).
ASPECTS-NWU may be used to determine stroke onset time in patients with unwitnessed or wake-up stroke.
ASPECTS-NWU may be used to determine stroke onset time in patients with unwitnessed or wake-up stroke.
This work aimed to report the demographic and clinical characteristics of two new cases with non-paraneoplastic anti-Hu-associated gut motility impairment, and perform a thorough revision covering anti-Hu-associated paraneoplastic (PGID) and non-paraneoplastic (nPGID) gastrointestinal dysmotility.
Several case series have clearly established a relationship between certain type of cancers, the development of circulating anti-Hu antibodies, and the concomitant usually severe gastrointestinal dysmotility; in contrast, a few studies focused on anti-Hu-associated nPGID.
We searched for studies regarding anti-Hu-associated gastrointestinal manifestations and extracted data concerning clinical characteristics of patients, including specific demographic, oncological, neurological, gastrointestinal, histological, and treatment response features.
Forty-nine articles with a total of 59 cases of anti-Hu-associated gastrointestinal dysmotility were analyzed. The patients' age at symptom onset significantly differed between PGID and nPGID (median 61 vs 31years, p < 0.
