Watsonoddershede5401
Our results indicate that by 2 February 2020, estimates of evolutionary rates and time scales had become possible. Analyses of subsequent data sets, that included between 47 and 122 genomes, converged at an evolutionary rate of about 1.1 × 10-3 subs/site/year and a time of origin of around late November 2019. Our study provides guidelines to assess the phylodynamic threshold and demonstrates that establishing this threshold constitutes a fundamental step for understanding the power and limitations of early data in outbreak genome surveillance.
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have neuroprotective and immunomodulatory properties, which are partly mediated by extracellular vesicles (EVs) secretion. We aimed to evaluate the effects of human Wharton's jelly-derived MSCs (WJ-MSCs) and their EVs on rat hippocampal cultures subjected to hydrogen peroxide (H
O
).
Hippocampal dissociated cultures were either co-cultured with WJ-MSCs or treated with their EVs prior to H
O
exposure and reactive oxygen species levels and cell viability were evaluated.
Coculture with WJ-MSCs or pre-incubation with EVs prior to the insult reduced reactive oxygen species after H
O
exposure. Cell viability was improved only when coculture was maintained following the insult, while EVs did not significantly improve cell viability.
WJ-MSCs have potential antioxidant and neuroprotective effects on hippocampal cultures which might be partially mediated by EVs.
WJ-MSCs have potential antioxidant and neuroprotective effects on hippocampal cultures which might be partially mediated by EVs.
We investigated quantitative ultrasound (QUS) in patients with node-positive head andneck malignancies for monitoring responses to radical radiotherapy (RT).
QUS spectral and texture parameters were acquired from metastatic lymph nodes 24h, 1 and 4weeks after starting RT. K-nearest neighbor and naive-Bayes machine-learning classifiers were used to build prediction models for each time point. Response was detected after 3months of RT, and patients were classified into complete and partial responders.
Single-feature naive-Bayes classification performed best with a prediction accuracy of 80, 86and 85% at 24h, week 1and 4, respectively.
QUS-radiomics can predict RT response at 3months as early as 24hwith reasonable accuracy, which further improves into 1week of treatment.
QUS-radiomics can predict RT response at 3 months as early as 24 h with reasonable accuracy, which further improves into 1 week of treatment.
Depression and anxiety are the most common psychiatric comorbidities in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU). Omalizumab is a monoclonal antibody approved for CSU treatment. We evaluated the prevalence of anxiety and depression in CSU patients before and after treatment with omalizumab.
A total of30 patients were enrolled in the study 15 patients affected by CSU and treated with omalizumab and the other 15 healthy subjects did not receive any systemic therapy. All patients were evaluated using Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, CRPand erythrocyte sedimentation rate, at baseline and after 6months.
The omalizumab group after 6months of therapy had a decrease of all the scores and biomarkers.
Omalizumab allowed an improvement of urticaria and mental comorbidities.
Omalizumab allowed an improvement of urticaria and mental comorbidities.
Breast cancer patients over the age of 65 are more likely to suffer chemotherapy side effects, with premature discontinuation, which negatively affects survival.
We conducted a retrospective cohort study enrolling breast cancer patients; dose reductions or interruptions of chemotherapy have been collected, as well as side effects. Progression-free survival was determined by Kaplan-Meier and evaluated for its association with reduction/suspension. The study included 128 women (median age 71).
Nineteen patients experienced cardiotoxicity, while dosage of chemotherapy was reduced in 23 patients (18.0%), and 14 (10.9%) had premature interruptions. Dose reduction/interruptions were associated with numerically worse progression-free survival (78.2 vs 94.8months;p=0.10).
Reduction/discontinuation of chemotherapy due to side effects affected nearly 30% of our population, potentially worsening outcomes.
Reduction/discontinuation of chemotherapy due to side effects affected nearly 30% of our population, potentially worsening outcomes.Cancer immunotherapy has become a stronghold in modern oncology. Enitociclib molecular weight Immune checkpoint inhibitors, in particular anti-PD-1 and anti-PD-L1 antibodies, are approved for the treatment of several solid cancers. In the near future, an increasing number of patients will be eligible for immunotherapy. Therefore, the management of immune-related adverse events is a daily challenge in clinical practice, among which hepatic immune-related toxicity has been described as a rare adverse event. We report the case of a patient treated with nivolumab (an anti-PD-L1 antibody) for a stage IV resected melanoma who developed recurrence of steroid-refractory liver toxicity that was later discovered to be associated with acute exacerbation of chronic undiagnosed hepatitis B. The patient significantly benefited from antiviral treatment. We conclude that serological viral screening is strongly recommended before starting immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment.
To evaluate the performance of VITEK
MS with DNA sequencing for laboratory diagnosis of non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) species in a resource-limited setting.
sequencing and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry (VITEK
MS) was performed at a tertiary-care hospital in India. MALDI-TOF results were confirmed by 16S rRNA sequencing. In addition, sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region was performed on slowly growing NTM.
Commonest species isolated were
,
and
.
sequencing and MALDI-TOF results had agreement of 94.5% for rapidly growing and 77.5% for slowly growing NTM.
There is good correlation between VITEK
MS and sequencing for rapidly growing NTM. For slowly growing species, sequencing would be required in a third isolates.
There is good correlation between VITEK®MS and sequencing for rapidly growing NTM. For slowly growing species, sequencing would be required in a third isolates.
Metastatic prostate cancer is responsible for a large proportion of deaths worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify metastatic cells and determine if stromal invasion by cancer cells differs from those during metastasis.
Tissue biopsy/prostatectomy samples, visualized by transmission electron microscopy, identified that metastatic cells are a lineage of stem cells, which have dedifferentiated into cancerous columnar/cuboidal cells. link2 These cells demonstrate nuclear plasticity; the loss of nuclear membranes and boundary between nucleus and cytoplasm; and the presence of electron dense molecules, which can readily pass through basement membranes and enter the capillary, ready for dissemination to metastatic sites.
This is the first study to demonstrate differences between invasive and metastatic cell types.
This is the first study to demonstrate differences between invasive and metastatic cell types.
Current guidelines recommend p16 immunohistochemistry (IHC) for testing human papillomavirus (HPV) in oropharyngeal carcinoma (OPSCC). We evaluated the value of adding DNA
hybridization (ISH) to p16 IHC.
Fifty patients with OPSCC were analyzed. Concordance between HPV-DNA ISH and p16 IHC was measured by Gwet's agreement coefficient.
p16 IHC was positive in 35/48 (72.9%), negative in 8/48 (16.7%) patients. Wide spectrumDNA-ISH was positive in 9/23 (39%) and negative in 14/23 (60.9%) patients. High-risk 16/18 (HR) HPV DNA-ISH was positive in 11/23 (47.8%) and negative in 12 (52.2%) patients. The agreement between HPV DNA-ISH and p16 IHC is fair (Gwet's AC1=0.318).
The agreement between p16 IHC and HPV-DNA ISH was fair. However, ISH sensitivity was low. Our findings add to the current data that p16 IHC testing is reliable and may be enough as a stand-alone test for HPV detection in OPSCC.
The agreement between p16 IHC and HPV-DNA ISH was fair. However, ISH sensitivity was low. Our findings add to the current data that p16 IHC testing is reliable and may be enough as a stand-alone test for HPV detection in OPSCC.The biological importance of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the field of medicine - related to cervical carcinogenesis - has been extensively reported in the last decades. link3 For the first time, a direct correlation between cause and effect to explain a cancer development was completely achieved in medical research. Consequently, the Nobel Prize was awarded to HZ Hausen in 2008 for his efforts to understand the effects of persistent infection of oncogenic types of HPV and malignancy transformation. The aim of the present review was to summarize the principal elements of HPV characteristics and their importance in oncology.Neuropsychiatric symptoms, including abnormal behavior, after oseltamivir use among influenza patients have been of concern. In recent years, many case reports of neuropsychiatric events during or after oseltamivir treatment were reported; however, literature review revealed no such cases in Lebanon. Oseltamivir is the most widely prescribed medication against influenza and is generally well tolerated, causing random gastrointestinal disturbances, including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. However, in rare instances, it has been reported to stimulate behavioral activities in adolescents. We report herein a case of an oseltamivir-related neuropsychiatric event in a female adolescent in Lebanon, which resolved 2 days after stopping the drug.
Phenobarbital overdose can cause coma and even death. The consciousness disturbance is often prolonged due to its long half-life. In this study, we investigated the efficacy of direct hemoperfusion (DHP) for the removal of phenobarbital by measuring the blood levels of phenobarbital.
Study subjects included five patients with phenobarbital poisoning who were transferred to our hospital. Direct hemoperfusion was carried out in three of the five patients (six times in total), and the elimination rate was calculated by measuring the blood levels before and after DHP. Furthermore, the disappearance rate of phenobarbital without DHP was calculated in all five patients (seven times in total) for comparison with the elimination rate.
The elimination rate of phenobarbital with DHP was significantly higher than the disappearance rate without DHP..
This study suggests that early introduction of DHP should be considered as a treatment option for phenobarbital poisoning.
This study suggests that early introduction of DHP should be considered as a treatment option for phenobarbital poisoning.There are concerns about the possibility of SARS-CoV-2 reinfection and recently, a patient with SARS-CoV-2 re-infection (or COVID-19) confirmed by epidemiological, clinical, serological and genomic analyses have been published. We have noticed another patient with SARS-CoV-2 re-infection based on clinical and laboratory studies A 23-year-old woman presented to her hospital with fever (39°C), chills, fatigue, cough, headache, sore throat, muscle and joint pain on April 9, 2020. On examination, oropharynx was mildly hyperemic, and chest auscultation was normal. SARS-CoV-2 PCR from nasopharyngeal specimen was ordered. She was given isotonic saline and acetaminophen and prescribed azithromycin and acetaminophen and sent home for isolation. SARS-CoV-2 PCR was reported positive and she was given hydroxychloroquine for five days. She improved in 10 days and PCR studies on April 22, and April 27 remained negative. On 4 August 2020, she was re-admitted with fever (38.7°C), chills, fatigue, loss of appetite, taste and smell loss, muscle and joint pain.