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Sante Publique 2018 Sep;S2(HS2):33-46

This article describes the changing modalities of action designed to address social inequalities in health recommended in France, in the light of WHO and other international guidelines. Content analysis of policy recommendations identified eleven categories of actions and five types of changes as a function of target populations and the resources deployed. Recommendations have evolved from interventions designed to improve access to primary care to interventions on the social determinants of health, from reinforcement of individual capacities to global empowerment, from interventions on target populations to social inclusion of everyone, from promotion of health investments to increased financial regulation, from a favourable public health policies approach to a health approach in all policies. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1894:123-131

Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Robert C. Byrd Health Science Center, School of Medicine,, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA.

Mitochondria hold a critical role in cell metabolism and homeostasis. Mitochondrial injury plays central part in deciding cell fate especially in programmed cell death pathways. Various nanomaterials lead to different cell death modalities by inducing mitochondrial injury. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1903:281-289

Institute for Computational Genomics, Centre of Medical Technology (MTZ), RWTH Aachen University Medical School, Aachen, Germany.

Drug-target networks have an important role in pharmaceutical innovation, drug lead discovery, and recent drug repositioning tasks. Many different in silico approaches for the identification of new drug-target interactions have been proposed, many of them based on a particular class of machine learning algorithms called kernel methods. These pattern classification algorithms are able to incorporate previous knowledge in the form of similarity functions, i. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1903:203-218

Computational Biology, GSK R&D, Collegeville, PA, USA.

Computational prediction of the clinical success or failure of a potential drug target for therapeutic use is a challenging problem. Novel network propagation algorithms that integrate heterogeneous biological networks are proving useful for drug target identification and prioritization. These approaches typically utilize a network describing relationships between targets, a method to disseminate the relevant information through the network, and a method to elucidate new associations between targets and diseases. Read More

J Mol Neurosci 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of Biochemistry, Western University, Medical Sciences Building, Rm 342, 1151 Richmond St. North, London, ON, N6A 5C1, Canada.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) facilitates multiple aspects of neuronal differentiation and cellular physiology by activating the high-affinity receptor tyrosine kinase, TrkB. While it is known that both BDNF and TrkB modulate cellular processes involved in learning and memory, exactly how TrkB cross-talks and modulates signaling downstream of excitatory ionotropic receptors, such as the NMDA receptor (NMDAR), are not well understood. A model that we have investigated involves the signaling molecule RasGrf1, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for both Ras and Rac. Read More

J Mol Neurosci 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Institute of Neuroanatomy, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Wendlingweg 2, 52074, Aachen, Germany.

Widespread inflammatory lesions within the central nervous system grey and white matter are major hallmarks of multiple sclerosis. The development of full-blown demyelinating multiple sclerosis lesions might be preceded by preactive lesions which are characterized by focal microglia activation in close spatial relation to apoptotic oligodendrocytes. In this study, we investigated the expression of signaling molecules of oligodendrocytes that might be involved in initial microglia activation during preactive lesion formation. Read More

Ann Biomed Eng 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of Applied Physics, University of Eastern Finland, POB 1627, 70211, Kuopio, Finland.

Currently, there are no clinically available tools or applications which could predict osteoarthritis development. Some computational models have been presented to simulate cartilage degeneration, but they are not clinically feasible due to time required to build subject-specific knee models. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop a template-based modeling method for rapid prediction of knee joint cartilage degeneration. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1883:303-321

Division of Genetics and Genomics, The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland, UK.

Module network inference is a statistical method to reconstruct gene regulatory networks, which uses probabilistic graphical models to learn modules of coregulated genes and their upstream regulatory programs from genome-wide gene expression and other omics data. Here, we review the basic theory of module network inference, present protocols for common gene regulatory network reconstruction scenarios based on the Lemon-Tree software, and show, using human gene expression data, how the software can also be applied to learn differential module networks across multiple experimental conditions. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1883:283-302

Bioinformatics and Systems Biology (BioSys) Unit, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Inferring gene regulatory networks from expression data is a very challenging problem that has raised the interest of the scientific community. Different algorithms have been proposed to try to solve this issue, but it has been shown that different methods have some particular biases and strengths, and none of them is the best across all types of data and datasets. As a result, the idea of aggregating various network inferences through a consensus mechanism naturally arises. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1883:251-282

Department of Statistics and Systems Biology Centre, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.

Gaussian process dynamical systems (GPDS) represent Bayesian nonparametric approaches to inference of nonlinear dynamical systems, and provide a principled framework for the learning of biological networks from multiple perturbed time series measurements of gene or protein expression. Such approaches are able to capture the full richness of complex ODE models, and can be scaled for inference in moderately large systems containing hundreds of genes. Related hierarchical approaches allow for inference from multiple datasets in which the underlying generative networks are assumed to have been rewired, either by context-dependent changes in network structure, evolutionary processes, or synthetic manipulation. Read More

Methods Mol Biol 2019 ;1883:143-160

UMR MIA-Paris, AgroParisTech, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, Paris, France.

This chapter addresses the problem of reconstructing regulatory networks in molecular biology by integrating multiple sources of data. We consider data sets measured from diverse technologies all related to the same set of variables and individuals. This situation is becoming more and more common in molecular biology, for instance, when both proteomic and transcriptomic data related to the same set of "genes" are available on a given cohort of patients. Read More

Diabetes Ther 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, 501-1194, Japan.

Introduction: Glycated hemoglobin (A1c) and glycated albumin (GA) are often used as indicators of glycemic control. In this study, we determined whether prednisolone (PSL) administration lowers plasma GA.

Methods: We investigated the factors affecting GA using multivariate analysis in 48 subjects with connective tissue diseases (CTDs). Read More

Forensic Sci Med Pathol 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Pediatrics, NYU School of Medicine, 450 E 29th Street, ACLS 824, New York, NY, 10016, USA.

Determining the cause of unexplained death in all age groups, including infants, is a priority in forensic medicine. The triple risk model proposed for sudden infant death syndrome involves the intersection of three risks: (1) a critical developmental period in homeostatic control (2), exogenous stressors, and (3) a vulnerable infant. Even though sex and age factor into some forms of inherited arrhythmogenic deaths in young individuals and adults, more appropriate a dual-risk disease model for adults involves exogenous stressors and a vulnerable individual. Read More

Matern Child Health J 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Division of Home Visiting and Early Childhood Systems, HRSA, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD, 20857, USA.

Purpose Using a standardized approach and metrics to estimate home visiting costs across multiple evidence-based models and regions could improve the consistency and accuracy of cost estimates, allow stakeholders to observe trends in cost allocation, analyze how home visiting costs vary, and develop future program budgets. Between October 2015 and December 2018, we developed and pilot-tested the Home Visiting Budget Assistance Tool (HV-BAT) to standardize the collection of home visiting program costs and analyze costs for local implementing agencies (LIAs). Methods We recruited LIAs that implemented at least one of nine evidence-based home visiting models in 15 states implementing the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program. Read More

Demography 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Fertility & Family Statistics Branch, U.S. Census Bureau, 4600 Silver Hill Road, Washington, DC, 20233, USA.

Multiple-partner fertility (MPF) occurs when a person has biological children with more than one partner. The 2014 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), a nationally representative panel study of individuals and households in the United States, is the first such survey to include a direct question about whether respondents are MPF parents. Understanding the prevalence of such families is important given the known socioeconomic correlates of MPF and the ramifications of entering MPF for both individuals and families. Read More

AIDS Behav 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Africa Health Research Institute, K-RITH Tower Building, 719 Umbilo Road, Congella, Private Bag X7, Durban, South Africa.

While human mobility has been implicated in fueling the HIV epidemic in South Africa, the link between migration and HIV has not been systematically reviewed and quantified. We conducted a systematic review of the role of migration in HIV risk acquisition and sexual behaviour based on 29 studies published between 2000 and 2017. Furthermore, we performed a meta-analysis of the association between migration and HIV risk acquisition in four of the studies that used HIV incidence as an outcome measure. Read More

AIDS Behav 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Health Services Research and Development, Seattle, WA, USA.

To quantify health care facility-level variation in pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) use in the Veteran's Health Administration (VHA); to identify facility characteristics associated with PrEP use. Retrospective analysis of the health care facility-level rate of PrEP initiation in VHA through June 30, 2017. Standardized PrEP initiation rates were used to rank facilities. Read More

Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, Diagnóstico Maipú, Av Maipú 1668, B1602ABQ, Vicente López, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

We explored the impact of gender and cardiovascular risk factors (RF) in the distribution and burden of coronary and extra-coronary atherosclerotic plaques among patients undergoing ECG-gated thoracoabdominal computed tomography angiography (CTA) from the supra-aortic trunks to the femoral arteries. We included a consecutive cohort of patients who underwent ECG-gated thoracoabdominal aortic CTA from the supra-aortic trunks to the pubic symphysis. We evaluated the number of coronary segments with plaques [segment-involvement score (SIS)]; and the extra-coronary atherosclerotic plaque burden, comprising the aorta and supra-aortic trunks, iliofemoral arteries, and visceral arteries (extra-coronary SS). Read More

AAPS J 2018 Dec 13;21(1). Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of OMNI Biomarker Development, Genentech Inc, South San Francisco, California, USA.

The interleukin (IL)-17 pathway has been implicated in the pathophysiology of many autoimmune diseases. MCAF5352A is a humanized monoclonal antibody which targets both IL-17A and IL-17F, thereby inhibiting the activity of IL-17 dimers (IL-17AA, IL-17AF, and IL-17FF). The pharmacokinetic profile of MCAF5352A has been characterized in both a Phase Ia single ascending dose study and a Phase Ib multiple ascending dose study. Read More

Parasitol Res 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Department of Pathobiology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G2W1, Canada.

Differentiating the Eimeria species causing cecal coccidiosis in turkeys is challenging. To obtain benchmark biological data for Eimeria gallopavonis Hawkins 1952 and Eimeria meleagridis Tyzzer 1929 and to support the stability of the species concept for each, genetically typed, single oocyst-derived lines of E. gallopavonis Weybridge strain and E. Read More

Sports Med Open 2018 Dec 13;4(1):55. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Åstrand Laboratory of Work Physiology, The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, Stockholm, Sweden.

Background: Strength and power development are abilities important for athletic performance in many sports. Generally, resistance training based on gravity is used to improve these qualities. Flywheel training instead utilizes kinetic energy transferred to a flywheel. Read More

Diabetologia 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Aims/hypothesis: Identifying rare coding variants associated with albuminuria may open new avenues for preventing chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease, which are highly prevalent in individuals with diabetes. Efforts to identify genetic susceptibility variants for albuminuria have so far been limited, with the majority of studies focusing on common variants.

Methods: We performed an exome-wide association study to identify coding variants in a two-stage (discovery and replication) approach. Read More

Eur Radiol 2018 Dec 13. Epub 2018 Dec 13.

ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, Piazza dell'Ospedale Maggiore, 3, 20162, Milan, Italy.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the performance of gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced MRI and gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI in the hepatobiliary phase (HBP) in cirrhotic patients with different degrees of liver dysfunction.

Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we analyzed the unenhanced phase and the HBP of 131 gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced MRI examinations (gadobenate dimeglumine group) and 127 gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI examinations (gadoxetic acid group) performed in 249 cirrhotic patients (181 men and 68 women; mean age, 64.8 years) from August 2011 to April 2017. Read More

Lab Chip 2018 Dec 14. Epub 2018 Dec 14.

Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, 1 Castle Point on Hudson, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, USA.

We report here a novel pumpless, 96-well plate-based platform for high-throughput dynamic multicellular culture and chemosensitivity evaluation. A gravity-driven flow strategy was developed to generate and sustain the flow rate of culture medium within 10% in the platform's 20 culture chambers. The ability of the platform to generate and sustain the medium flow was demonstrated by computational simulation, flow visualization, and ascertaining the previously known effect of flow-induced shear stress on the stimulated osteogenic differentiation of osteoblasts. Read More

Lab Chip 2018 Dec 14. Epub 2018 Dec 14.

Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA.

Oxygen tension is a central component of the cellular microenvironment and can serve as a trigger for changes in cell phenotype and function. There is a strong need to precisely control and modulate oxygen tension in cell culture systems in order to more accurately model the physiology and pathophysiology observed in vivo. The objective of this paper was to develop a simple, yet effective strategy for local control of oxygen tension in microfluidic cell cultures. Read More

JCO Clin Cancer Inform 2018 25;2018. Epub 2018 Jul 25.

Hira S. Mian, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; and Tanya M. Wildes and Mark A. Fiala, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO.

Purpose: To develop a frailty index using the Rockwood Accumulation of Deficits approach for the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey (MHOS) and apply it in a subset of older patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Methods: Data from 2,692,361 patients without cancer, > 66 years of age, in SEER-MHOS linked databases between 1998 and 2009 were analyzed. A frailty index was constructed, resulting in a 25-item scale; cutoff values were created for individuals classified as frail. Read More

J Spine Surg 2018 Sep;4(3):560-567

Department of Orthopaedics, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH, USA.

Background: Wound complications can occur in up to 20% of patients following multilevel posterior spinal fusion. Currently, the use of local flaps has been reported in high-risk patients with a history of spinal neoplasm, radiation therapy, exposed hardware, multiple spine surgeries, or wound infections. However, there are no reports of prophylactic muscle flap wound closure in patients undergoing multi-level spinal fusion for degenerative pathology. Read More

eNeurologicalSci 2018 Dec 23;13:51-52. Epub 2018 Nov 23.

Synthon BV, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

IEEE Int Interdiscip Conf Cogn Methods Situat Aware Decis Support 2018 Jun 2;2018:77-82. Epub 2018 Aug 2.

Department of Anesthesia, MGH, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.

In the surgical setting, team members constantly deal with a high-demand operative environment that requires simultaneously processing a large amount of information. In certain situations, high demands imposed by surgical tasks and other sources may exceed team member's cognitive capacity, leading to cognitive overload which may place patient safety at risk. In the present study, we describe a novel approach to integrate an objective measure of team member's cognitive load with procedural, behavioral and contextual data from real-life cardiac surgeries. Read More

Sci Adv 2018 Dec 12;4(12):eaau5294. Epub 2018 Dec 12.

Complex Systems Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and IT, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

We examine salient trends of influenza pandemics in Australia, a rapidly urbanizing nation. To do so, we implement state-of-the-art influenza transmission and progression models within a large-scale stochastic computer simulation, generated using comprehensive Australian census datasets from 2006, 2011, and 2016. Our results offer a simulation-based investigation of a population's sensitivity to pandemics across multiple historical time points and highlight three notable trends in pandemic patterns over the years: increased peak prevalence, faster spreading rates, and decreasing spatiotemporal bimodality. Read More

Eur J Radiol Open 2019 5;6:1-8. Epub 2018 Dec 5.

Dept of Surgery and Urology, Danderyd University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.

Background: Ablation therapies for tumours are becoming more used as ablation modalities evolve and targeting solutions are getting better. There is an increasing body of long-term results challenging resection and proving lower morbidities and costs. The aim of this paper is to share the experiences from a high-volume centre in introducing computer assisted targeting solutions and efficient ablation modalities like microwave generators and irreversible electroporation. Read More

Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2018 Dec 18;11:131-142. Epub 2018 Oct 18.

Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous autoimmune disease characterized by high levels of pathogenic autoantibodies and tissue damage. Multiple studies showed that dendritic cell (DC) activation plays a critical role in SLE pathogenesis. Human alpha 1 antitrypsin (hAAT) is a serine proteinase inhibitor with potent anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective properties. Read More

Front Vet Sci 2018 28;5:291. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis Davis, CA, United States.

Sepsis is the leading cause of critical illness and mortality in human beings and animals. Neutrophils are the primary effector cells of innate immunity during sepsis. Besides degranulation and phagocytosis, neutrophils also release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), composed of cell-free DNA, histones, and antimicrobial proteins. Read More

Front Vet Sci 2018 28;5:280. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

School of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom.

Chiari-like malformation (CM) and syringomyelia (SM) is a frequent diagnosis in predisposed brachycephalic toy breeds since increased availability of MRI. However, the relevance of that MRI diagnosis has been questioned as CM, defined as identification of a cerebellar herniation, is ubiquitous in some breeds and SM can be asymptomatic. This article reviews the current knowledge of neuroanatomical changes in symptomatic CM and SM and diagnostic imaging modalities used for the clinical diagnosis of CM-pain or myelopathy related to SM. Read More

Front Med (Lausanne) 2018 28;5:332. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

Aix-Marseille Université, IRD 198, MEPHI, IHU Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a nucleic acid method which has been used to identify mycobacteria including in clinical microbiology laboratory and point of care settings. Previously published LAMP protocols for detection of mycobacterial species used conventional specific primer and targeted the 16S rRNA, , and insertion sequence genes. We developed and evaluated a LAMP assay targeting a mycobacterial gene conserved sequence and incorporating degenerate primers. Read More

Front Med (Lausanne) 2018 28;5:328. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

Detector for Molecular Imaging Lab (DMIL), Instituto de Instrumentacion para Imagen Molecular (i3M), Centro Mixto CSIC - Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, Spain.

There are drawbacks with using a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanner design employing the traditional arrangement of multiple detectors in an array format. Typically PET systems are constructed with many regular gaps between the detector modules in a ring or box configuration, with additional axial gaps between the rings. Although this has been significantly reduced with the use of the compact high granularity SiPM photodetector technology, such a scanner design leads to a decrease in the number of annihilation photons that are detected causing lower scanner sensitivity. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 26;8(1):e1522471. Epub 2018 Sep 26.

Institute of Immunology, Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel, Kiel, Germany.

TGF-β is a pleiotropic cytokine with multiple roles in immunity. Apart from its suppressive activity, TGF-β is a driving cytokine in the differentiation of induced regulatory T cells (iTreg) but also in the polarization of interleukin-9 (IL-9) producing T helper 9 (Th9) T cells. Human Vδ2 expressing γδ T cells exert potent cytotoxicity towards a variety of solid tumor and leukemia/lymphoma target cells and thus are in the focus of current strategies to develop cell-based immunotherapies. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 19;8(1):e1513440. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown great potential in treating solid tumors, inducing durable remission and prolonged survival time in responders. Despite their promise, a large fraction of patients remains unresponsive to these treatments highlighting the need for biomarkers that can predict patient sensitivity. Pre-treatment gene expression profiles for patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors have recently become available, establishing a new medium by which to discover biomarkers that predict therapy response. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 19;8(1):e1512329. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.

Multiple immunotherapeutics have been approved for cancer patients, however advanced solid tumors are frequently refractory to treatment. We evaluated the safety and immunogenicity of a vaccination approach with multimodal oncolytic potential in non-human primates (NHP) (). Primates received a replication-deficient adenoviral prime, boosted by the oncolytic Maraba MG1 rhabdovirus. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 2;8(1):e1509173. Epub 2018 Nov 2.

Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, South China Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell immunotherapies have shown remarkable efficacy in treating multiple types of hematological malignancies but are not sufficiently effective at treating solid tumors. NKG2D is a strong activating receptor for NK cells and a co-stimulatory receptor for T cells. NKG2D signal transduction depends on DNAX-activating protein 10 (DAP10). Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 1;8(1):e1486953. Epub 2018 Oct 1.

Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Sipuleucel-T is the only FDA-approved immunotherapy for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The mechanism by which this treatment improves survival is not fully understood. We have previously shown that this treatment can induce the recruitment of CD4 and CD8 T cells to the tumor microenvironment. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 22;8(1):e1486949. Epub 2018 Oct 22.

Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Unit of Internal Medicine "Guido Baccelli", University of Bari Medical School, Bari, Italy.

Endothelial cells (EC) line the bone marrow microvasculature and are in close contact with CD8 T cells that come and go across the permeable capillaries. Because of these intimate interactions, we investigated the capacity of EC to act as antigen-presenting cells (APC) and modulate CD8 T cell activation and proliferation in bone marrow of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) and monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance. We found that EC from MM patients show a phenotype of semi-professional APC given that they express low levels of the co-stimulatory molecules CD40, CD80 and CD86, and of the inducible co-stimulator ligand (ICOSL). Read More

J Clin Imaging Sci 2018 15;8:46. Epub 2018 Nov 15.

Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Kentucky, College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky, USA.

Endoscopic intervention is well validated for the control of upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB). In cases of refractory bleeding, transarterial embolization is a safe and effective alternative. Ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) commonly known as Onyx is an inherently black liquid embolic approved for use in cerebrovascular arteriovenous malformations and is increasingly used as an embolic agent in multiple peripheral and visceral territories. Read More

Biodes Manuf 2018 25;1(2):77-88. Epub 2018 May 25.

1Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, CB2 1PZ UK.

It is envisaged that the creation of cellular environments at multiple length scales, that recapitulate in vivo bioactive and structural roles, may hold the key to creating functional, complex tissues in the laboratory. This review considers recent advances in biofabrication and bioprinting techniques across different length scales. Particular focus is placed on 3D printing of hydrogels and fabrication of biomaterial fibres that could extend the feature resolution and material functionality of soft tissue constructs. Read More

Borderline Personal Disord Emot Dysregul 2018 7;5:19. Epub 2018 Dec 7.

2Department of Psychological Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.

Background: Linehan (1993)'s biosocial model posits that borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms develop as a result of a transactional relationship between pre-existing emotional vulnerability and an invalidating childhood environment. Little work, however, has investigated cultural factors that may influence the relationship between childhood invalidation and BPD symptoms. The present study investigated the association between parental invalidation and BPD symptoms, and the role of conformity and self-construal as potential moderators of this association. Read More

Mol Clin Oncol 2018 Dec 19;9(6):656-660. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

Department of Urology, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.

There is an increasing proportion of individuals aged 70 years and older, as well as an increasing life expectancy worldwide. The present study may guide the management of older patients with elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA). The medical records of 241 older men aged >70 years who underwent multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) before prostate biopsy (PBx) at our institution were reviewed retrospectively. Read More

Mol Clin Oncol 2018 Dec 5;9(6):617-621. Epub 2018 Oct 5.

Department of Radiology, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110004, P.R. China.

A cardiac lipoma and a cardiac liposarcoma are very uncommon conditions; however, the simultaneous development of the two is extremely rare. In addition, the symptoms of these conditions are not evident in the vast majority of cases, making them easily missed during diagnosis. The present case report describes a case of well-differentiated cardiac liposarcoma with a concomitant myocardial lipoma that was misdiagnosed as multiple cardiac lipomas. Read More

Mol Clin Oncol 2018 Dec 5;9(6):587-591. Epub 2018 Oct 5.

Department of Surgical Oncology, Gifu University School of Medicine, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan.

Pathological complete response is achievable with mFOLFOX6 plus cetuximab therapy for unresectable colorectal cancer with multiple paraaortic lymph node metastases (mCRC) despite right-sided colonic origin. A 62-year-old woman with synchronous paraaortic lymph node metastases of transverse colon cancer was treated with mFOLFOX6 plus cetuximab as first-line therapy. The tumor size was markedly decreased following 6 courses of chemotherapy, and all lymph node metastases had disappeared. Read More

Biomed Rep 2018 Dec 24;9(6):531-539. Epub 2018 Oct 24.

Department of Molecular Medicine, Princess Al-Jawhara Center for Genetics and Inherited Diseases, Arabian Gulf University, Manama 329, Bahrain.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) has become prevalent in the Arabian Gulf area with high incidence in Bahrain due to environmental influences and genetic susceptibilities, but there is a lack of study into human leukocyte antigen (HLA) types in patients with MS in Bahrain. The present study aimed to study the HLA types expressed in MS patients compared with in control subjects. Blood samples from 50 Bahraini patients with MS and 50 Bahraini control subjects' were subjected to HLA tissue typing by polymerase chain reaction using sequence-specific primers. Read More

Biomed Rep 2018 Dec 17;9(6):523-530. Epub 2018 Oct 17.

Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid 22110, Jordan.

In the present study, the aim was to investigate the association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration and measures of glycemic control including hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and fasting blood glucose (FBG) in adult patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) from the north of Jordan. Another aim was to compare serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D between patients with good glycemic control and patients with uncontrolled DM. This was a cross-sectional study that included 261 participants with DM. Read More