Tylerford9756

However, such studies cannot demonstrate the causal link with disease occurrence, as exposure is assessed after tumour development. Studies with different methodological approach are therefore required for defining the role of anthropogenic environmental chemicals in thyroid carcinogenesis. Molecular imaging of biologic molecules and cellular processes is increasingly accessible through hyperpolarization of chemically-equivalent stable isotopes, most commonly 13C. However, many molecules are poor candidates for imaging due to their biophysical properties, particularly short spin-lattice relaxation times (T1). The inability to consistently predict the T1 from molecular structure, lack of experimental data for many biologically-relevant molecules and the high cost of developing probes can limit the development of hyperpolarized probes. We describe an in silico pipeline for modeling the estimated T1 of molecules of interest in order to address this deficiency. Applying a hybrid approach that incorporates molecular dynamics as well as quantum mechanics, this pipeline estimated T1 values that closely matched empirically determined values providing proof-of-principle that this approach may be used to facilitate MR probe development. Published by Elsevier Inc.BACKGROUND Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive tumour with poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to identify genetic mutations associated with poor or extended survival in patients who received palliative chemotherapy. METHODS A total of 720 patients diagnosed with MPM between 2005 and 2015 were identified. Overall survival (OS) was longer than 30 months from diagnosis for 27 patients. Twelve of 27 (44%) of the pleural biopsies from long-term survivors were retrieved and matched with 12 biopsies from patients who survived less than 12 months; one biopsy was then excluded for poor DNA quality. RESULTS A total of 11 patients had a mean OS of 5.5 months, whereas 12 patients lived more than 30 months (mean OS 55.8 ± 25). Mutational analysis identified 428 alterations; of which, 148, classified as somatic and functional, were considered further. Among these, 85% were missense variants, 8% were variants causing a stop gain and 6% were splice variants. Loss-of-function mutations in UQCRC1 were significantly associated with reduced survival in patients with MPM (p = 0.027), while a higher frequency of mutations in MXRA5 and RAPGEF6 was registered in long-term survivors. CONCLUSION This is the first study evaluating the relationship between the mutational profile and outcome in patients with MPM after palliative chemotherapy. UQCRC1 codes for cytochrome b-c1 complex subunit 1 which plays a fundamental role in normal mitochondrial functions and in cell metabolism. Recent studies described UQCRC1 deregulation in other cancers. Our results suggest a possible role for mitochondrial metabolism in the biology of mesothelioma. Optical photogrammetry software has been applied to scanning electron microscope images to obtain 3D models and quantitative data on carbon particles and graphite nanoparticles. Image acquisition has been automated by the use of external macro software. Mesh data has been reconstructed from a number of images taken at multiple sample stage tilt angles with a supplementary measurement of TEM grids for method validation. ZLN005 This 3D model has been scaled and processed to obtain values such as the volume, height and surface area of the samples and has been quantitatively compared to 2D measurements. At the extreme spectrum of consciousness during sleep, some patients with rare hypersomnias reported experiencing a specific night 'blackout' when sleeping, i.e., an absence of experiences or recall of them from sleep onset to offset. Thus, we explored through questionnaires the conscious experiences (dreaming experience, mind, self) during the night in 133 patients with idiopathic hypersomnia, 108 patients with narcolepsy, and 128 healthy controls. The night blackout was more frequent in idiopathic hypersomnia than in narcolepsy and control groups. Patients with idiopathic hypersomnia and frequent night amnesia had lower dream recall frequencies, and felt more often sleep as deep and mind as blank during the night. They had a higher proportion of slow wave sleep on their (retrospectively collected) sleep recordings than those without night blackout. This night blackout provides a new model for studying loss of consciousness during sleep, here as a contentless, selfless and timeless feeling upon awakening. PURPOSE Hospital occupancy (HospOcc) pressures often lead to longer intensive care unit (ICU) stay after physician recognition of discharge readiness. We evaluated the relationships between HospOcc, extended ICU stay, and patient outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS 7-year retrospective cohort study of 8500 alive discharge encounters from 4 adult ICUs of a tertiary hospital. We estimated associations between i) HospOcc and ICU transfer delay; and ii) ICU transfer delay and hospital mortality. RESULTS Median (IQR) ICU transfer delay was 4.8 h (1.6-11.7), 1.4% (119) suffered in-hospital death, and 4% (341) were readmitted. HospOcc was non-linearly related with ICU transfer delay, with a spline knot at 80% (mean transfer delay 8.8 h [95% CI 8.24, 9.38]). Higher HospOcc level above 80% was associated with longer transfer delays, (mean increase 5.4% per % HospOcc increase; 95% CI, 4.7 to 6.1; P  less then  .001). Longer ICU transfer delay was associated with increasing odds of in-hospital death or ICU readmission (odds ratio 1.01 per hour; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.01; P = .04) but not with ICU readmission alone (OR 1.01 per hour; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.01, P = .14). CONCLUSIONS ICU transfer delay exponentially increased above a threshold hospital occupancy and may be associated with increased hospital mortality. PURPOSE Comparison of medical specialization of repeated exposure to secondary trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms in pediatric nurses was examined. DESIGN AND METHODS The PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) was administered to 182 nurses over their first year on the job at a pediatric hospital (three time-points baseline, 3 month follow-up, and 1 year follow-up). Demographic characteristics (age groups, gender, education, and race) and previous healthcare experience on whether nurses met criteria for no, partial, or full PTSD across all three time-points was examined. Differences in unit assignment on total PTSD symptoms and symptoms of each criterion of PTSD (re-experiencing, avoidance, and arousal) were also examined. RESULTS No significant differences of both demographic characteristics and previous healthcare experience were found on these PTSD categories. However, both ICU and Hematology/Oncology units were more at risk for developing partial and full PTSD, respectively compared to other units.