Tag: nevin manimala

Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2021 May 10:cebp.1848.2021. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-20-1848. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: A positive association between circulating C-reactive protein (CRP) and colorectal cancer (CRC) survival was reported in observational studies, which are susceptible to unmeasured confounding and reverse causality. We used a Mendelian randomization approach to evaluate the association between genetically-predicted CRP concentrations and CRC-specific survival.

METHODS: We used individual-level data for 16,918 eligible CRC cases of European ancestry from 15 studies within the International Survival Analysis of Colorectal Cancer Consortium. We calculated a genetic risk score based on 52 CRP-associated genetic variants identified from genome-wide association studies. Due to the non-collapsibility of hazard ratios from Cox proportional hazards models, we used the additive hazards model to calculate hazard differences (HD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between genetically-predicted CRP concentrations and CRC-specific survival, overall and by stage at diagnosis and tumor location. Analyses were adjusted for age at diagnosis, sex, body mass index, genotyping platform, study, and principal components.

RESULTS: Of the 5,395 (32%) deaths accrued over up to 10 years of follow-up, 3,808 (23%) were due to CRC. Genetically-predicted CRP concentration was not associated with CRC-specific survival (HD= -1.15, 95% CI: -2.76 to 0.47 per 100,000 person-years, P =0.16). Similarly, no associations were observed in subgroup analyses by stage at diagnosis or tumor location.

CONCLUSIONS: Despite adequate power to detect moderate associations, our results did not support a causal effect of circulating CRP concentrations on CRC-specific survival.

IMPACT: Future research evaluating genetically-determined levels of other circulating inflammatory biomarkers (i.e. interleukin-6) with CRC survival outcomes is needed.

PMID:33972368 | DOI:10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-20-1848

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2021 May 10:AAC.00546-21. doi: 10.1128/AAC.00546-21. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Chromoblastomycosis (CBM) is a chronic subcutaneous infection caused by genera of melanized fungi: Fonsecaea, Cladophialophora, Phialophora, Exophiala and Rhinocladiella Melanin is a virulence factor known to influence antifungal susceptibility. A specific inhibitor of melanin biosynthesis is tricyclazole. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of melanin inhibition on antifungal susceptibility of chromoblastomycosis agents and describe the susceptibility profile of some unusual CBM agents. Seventy-six clinical isolates, representing 13 species of the five main CBM agents genera, were studied. The antifungal susceptibility was performed according to the M38-A2 protocol of CLSI. In the melanin inhibition test, 16 mg/L of tricyclazole was added to the medium used in the inoculum preparation and the susceptibility assay. CBM agents were less susceptible to amphotericin B in comparison with azoles and terbinafine. The unusual species showed similar susceptibilities profiles to those of other species of the same genera. With tricyclazole exposition, MICs of terbinafine, posaconazole and itraconazole for Fonsecaea spp. significantly decreased (p<0,05). For Phialophora spp., this reduction was significative for posaconazole and itraconazole. For the other genera, there was a reduction in MICs of terbinafine and itraconazole, however, the statistical tests were not significant. Melanin inhibition can increase the antifungal susceptibility of most CBM agents to itraconazole and terbinafine, the main used drugs in the disease treatment. This increased susceptibility may open up new possibilities for therapy in refractory cases of CBM and/or caused by resistant fungal strains. Further studies are needed to confirm the same results in vivo.

PMID:33972246 | DOI:10.1128/AAC.00546-21

BMJ. 2021 May 10;373:n972. doi: 10.1136/bmj.n972.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the accuracy of the depression subscale of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-D) to screen for major depression among people with physical health problems.

DESIGN: Systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis.

DATA SOURCES: Medline, Medline In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations, PsycInfo, and Web of Science (from inception to 25 October 2018).

REVIEW METHODS: Eligible datasets included HADS-D scores and major depression status based on a validated diagnostic interview. Primary study data and study level data extracted from primary reports were combined. For HADS-D cut-off thresholds of 5-15, a bivariate random effects meta-analysis was used to estimate pooled sensitivity and specificity, separately, in studies that used semi-structured diagnostic interviews (eg, Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), fully structured interviews (eg, Composite International Diagnostic Interview), and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. One stage meta-regression was used to examine whether accuracy was associated with reference standard categories and the characteristics of participants. Sensitivity analyses were done to assess whether including published results from studies that did not provide raw data influenced the results.

RESULTS: Individual participant data were obtained from 101 of 168 eligible studies (60%; 25 574 participants (72% of eligible participants), 2549 with major depression). Combined sensitivity and specificity was maximised at a cut-off value of seven or higher for semi-structured interviews, fully structured interviews, and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Among studies with a semi-structured interview (57 studies, 10 664 participants, 1048 with major depression), sensitivity and specificity were 0.82 (95% confidence interval 0.76 to 0.87) and 0.78 (0.74 to 0.81) for a cut-off value of seven or higher, 0.74 (0.68 to 0.79) and 0.84 (0.81 to 0.87) for a cut-off value of eight or higher, and 0.44 (0.38 to 0.51) and 0.95 (0.93 to 0.96) for a cut-off value of 11 or higher. Accuracy was similar across reference standards and subgroups and when published results from studies that did not contribute data were included.

CONCLUSIONS: When screening for major depression, a HADS-D cut-off value of seven or higher maximised combined sensitivity and specificity. A cut-off value of eight or higher generated similar combined sensitivity and specificity but was less sensitive and more specific. To identify medically ill patients with depression with the HADS-D, lower cut-off values could be used to avoid false negatives and higher cut-off values to reduce false positives and identify people with higher symptom levels.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42015016761.

PMID:33972268 | DOI:10.1136/bmj.n972

J Acad Nutr Diet. 2021 May 7:S2212-2672(21)00237-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2021.04.009. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Food insecurity, a state of not being able to consistently access nutritious food due to financial constraints, has been associated with poor dietary intake among college students. The extent to which campus food resources contribute to this association is unknown.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the association between food insecurity and dietary intake in a sample of undergraduate students with unlimited meal plans and dining hall access at a large, public Midwestern university.

DESIGN: The study design is cross-sectional. The data used are baseline data from a broader sugar-sweetened beverage intervention study that were collected using a Qualtrics survey prior to the intervention.

PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: The sample consisted of 1033 undergraduate students recruited from 3 dining halls. The data were collected in November 2018.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Food security was assessed using the 6-item Short Form Food Security Survey Module. Dietary intake was assessed using the National Cancer Institute 26-item Dietary Screener Questionnaire and the Beverage Intake Questionnaire-15.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Generalized linear regression models were used to examine differences in dietary intake by students’ food security status, adjusting for students’ sociodemographic characteristics.

RESULTS: In the sample, 14% of students were food-insecure. After adjusting for sociodemographic variables, food-insecure students reported 9% lower intake of fruits (P = 0.02), 9% lower intake of vegetables (P < 0.001), 10% higher intake of dairy (P = 0.002), 6% higher intake of total added sugars (P = 0.01), 10% higher intake of added sugars from sugar-sweetened beverages (P = 0.01), 4% higher intake of calcium (P = 0.01), and 4% lower intake of fiber (P = 0.01) compared with food-secure students. With respect to beverage intake, food-insecure students had 56% higher intake of total sugar-sweetened beverages (P = 0.002), which was driven by 185% higher intake of energy and sports drinks (P = 0.001), and 121% higher intake of sweetened teas (P = 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS: Despite having identical food resources within campus dining halls, there were significant differences in the diets of college students by food security status.

PMID:33972204 | DOI:10.1016/j.jand.2021.04.009

Yi Chuan. 2021 May 20;43(5):487-500. doi: 10.16288/j.yczz.20-409.

ABSTRACT

Low pH with aluminum (Al) toxicity are the main limiting factors affecting crop production in acidic soil. Selection of legume crops with acid tolerance and nitrogen-fixation ability should be one of the effective measures to improve soil quality and promote agricultural production. The role of the rhizosphere microorganisms in this process has raised concerns among the research community. In this study, BX10 (Al-tolerant soybean) and BD2 (Al-sensitive soybean) were selected as plant materials. Acidic soil was used as growth medium. The soil layers from the outside to the inside of the root are bulk soil (BS), rhizosphere soil at two sides (SRH), rhizosphere soil after brushing (BRH) and rhizosphere soil after washing (WRH), respectively. High-throughput sequencing of 16S rDNA amplicons of the V4 region using the Illumina MiSeq platform was performed to compare the differences of structure, function and molecular genetic diversity of rhizosphere bacterial community of different genotypes of soybean. The results showed that there was no significant difference in alpha diversity and beta diversity in rhizosphere bacterial community among the treatments. PCA and PCoA analysis showed that BRH and WRH had similar species composition, while BS and SRH also had similar species composition, which indicated that plant mainly affected the rhizosphere bacterial community on sampling compartments BRH and WRH. The composition and abundance of rhizosphere bacterial community among the treatments were then compared at different taxonomic levels. The ternary diagram of phylum level showed that Cyanobacteria were enriched in WRH. Statistical analysis showed that the roots of Al-tolerant soybean BX10 had an enrichment effect on plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), which included Cyanobacteria, Bacteroides, Proteobacteria and some genera and species related to the function of nitrogen fixation and aluminum tolerance. The rhizosphere bacterial community from different sampling compartments of the same genotype soybean also were selectively enriched in different PGPR. In addition, the functional prediction analysis showed that there was no significant difference in the classification and abundance of COG (clusters of orthologous groups of proteins) function among different treatments. Several COGs might be directly related to nitrogen fixation, including COG0347, COG1348, COG1433, COG2710, COG3870, COG4656, COG5420, COG5456 and COG5554. Al-sensitive soybean BD2 was more likely to be enriched in these COGs than BX10 in BRH and WRH, and the possible reason remains to be further investigated in the future.

PMID:33972218 | DOI:10.16288/j.yczz.20-409

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2021 May 10:AAC.02565-20. doi: 10.1128/AAC.02565-20. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Pharmacokinetics and antifungal activity of the echinocandins anidulafungin (AFG), micafungin (MFG) and caspofungin (CAS) were assessed in ascites fluid and plasma of critically ill adults treated for suspected or proven invasive candidiasis. Ascites fluid was obtained from ascites drains or during paracentesis. The antifungal activity of the echinocandins in ascites fluid was assessed by incubation of Candida (C.) albicans and C. glabrata at concentrations of 0.03 to 16.00 μg/ml. In addition, ascites fluid samples obtained from our study patients were inoculated with the same isolates and evaluated for fungal growth. These patient samples had to be spiked with echinocandins to restore the original concentrations, because echinocandins had been lost during sterile filtration. In ascites fluid specimens of 29 patients, echinocandin concentrations were below the simultaneous plasma levels. Serial sampling in 20 patients revealed a slower rise and decline of echinocandin concentrations in ascites fluid than in plasma. Proliferation of C. albicans in ascites fluid was slower than in culture medium and growth of C. glabrata was lacking, even in the absence of antifungals. In CAS-spiked ascites fluid samples, fungal CFU counts moderately declined, whereas spiking with AFG or MFG, had no relevant effect. In ascites fluid of our study patients, echinocandin concentrations achieved by therapeutic doses did not result in a consistent eradication of C. albicans or C. glabrata Thus, therapeutic doses of AFG, MFG, or CAS may result in ascites fluid concentrations preventing relevant proliferation of C. albicans and C. glabrata, but do not warrant reliable eradication.

PMID:33972242 | DOI:10.1128/AAC.02565-20

Patient Educ Couns. 2021 Apr 27:S0738-3991(21)00283-4. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2021.04.018. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of a self-management program on activation and inner strength in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).

METHODS: This study assigned 86 patients with CVDs to an experimental and a comparison group utilizing alternate allocation based on a quasi-experimental design. The experimental group participated in a self-management program based on a theoretical framework in three stages, i.e. orientation-recognition, reinforcing-engaging and monitoring-follow-up; whereas the comparison group received routine care. The supportive program was administered through holding five individual face-to-face sessions, providing educational booklets and performing four phone-call follow-ups during three months after discharge. The outcomes were measured using the patient activation measure (PAM) and the inner strength scale (ISS).

RESULTS: The between group analysis indicated a statistically-significant difference in the mean score of patient activation (P < 0.001) in the two groups. Nevertheless, there was not a statistically-insignificant difference in the mean score of inner strength between the two groups (P < 0.104).

CONCLUSION: Although a three-month nurse-led self-management support program was found to improve patient activation levels, it was ineffective in promoting inner strength.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Psychosocial dynamics should be integrated in providing self-management program by nurses. To promote patient activation, tailored consultations is recommended.

PMID:33972129 | DOI:10.1016/j.pec.2021.04.018

Eur J Intern Med. 2021 May 7:S0953-6205(21)00143-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ejim.2021.04.020. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Clinical significance of anti-Ro52 antibodies in connective tissue diseases (CTD) is controversial. Anti-Ro52 antibodies might be associated with a more severe CTD phenotype, especially interstitial lung disease (ILD). The aims of this study were to evaluate ILD prevalence and severity, the prevalence of micro- or macroangiopathy and CTD-associated cancers in CTD with anti-Ro52 antibodies.

METHODS: CTD patients with anti-Ro52 antibody screening by immunoblot at diagnosis were enrolled. Two groups were retrospectively formed according to the presence of anti-Ro52 antibodies with an unbiased 1:1 matching on CTD types. Unsupervised multiple correspondence analysis and hierarchical clustering analysis were used to aggregate anti-Ro52 positive patients in subgroups.

RESULTS: 408 CTD patients were included. Anti-Ro52 antibodies were detected in 33 % of CTD patients. Anti-Ro52 antibodies were associated with ILD at CTD diagnosis (47.8% vs. 23.0%, OR 3.3 95% IC 1.4 to 8.0, p = 0.008), even after adjusting for the presence of anti-Ro60 antibodies, especially in patients with antisynthetase syndrome, primary Sjögren syndrome and systemic sclerosis. Micro- or macroangiopathy was more frequent in anti-Ro52 positive CTD patients (18.6% vs. 9.7%, p = 0.02) and CTD patients with anti-Ro52 antibodies experienced more frequent relapses and required more immunosuppressive drugs. Clusters 4 and 5 identified anti-Ro52 positive CTD patients with severe ILD and with clinical features of systemic sclerosis or antisynthetase syndrome respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: We found that anti-Ro52 antibodies were independently associated with ILD in CTD patients irrespective of CTD type. Anti-Ro52 antibodies could be associated with severity and a more relapsing disease course in CTD patients.

PMID:33972152 | DOI:10.1016/j.ejim.2021.04.020

J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2021 Mar 28:S1748-6815(21)00113-3. doi: 10.1016/j.bjps.2021.03.023. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with congenital auricular deformities and evaluate the long-term frequency of their self-correction. Ninety newborns were enrolled in the study, and data were collected within 2 weeks after birth and at 1 year. The shape of the auricle was classified into seven categories using a digital image. At 2 weeks after birth, several birth-related factors were evaluated in the auricular deformity and normal groups. At 1 year after birth, the images of auricles were compared with the images at birth, and the changes in the auricle shape were investigated. Congenital auricular deformities were observed in 139 out of 180 ears, and the major type noted was helix rim deformity (47 ears), followed by normal ears (41 ears), and cup ears (33 ears). Male sex was found to have a statistically significant association with the occurrence of auricular deformity. In the longitudinal study, among 43 neonates (86 ears) followed-up 12 months later, the self-correction rate was approximately 50%. The normal auricle and prominent ear increased, helix rim deformity and cup ear decreased significantly. The prognosis of deformity varied depending on the type of deformity. Considering the low self-correction rate in the prominent and cup ears, newborns with these deformities might be recommended to undergo management such as auricle molding technique, as required.

PMID:33972198 | DOI:10.1016/j.bjps.2021.03.023

Int J Dent Hyg. 2021 May 10. doi: 10.1111/idh.12510. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to establish the efficacy of sodium hypochlorite mouthwash (NaOCl-MW) compared with a control mouthwash on plaque and clinical parameters of periodontal disease.

METHODS: MEDLINE-PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane-CENTRAL databases were searched for clinical trials on patients with gingivitis or periodontitis that assessed the effect of NaOCl-MW in comparison with a negative or positive control on plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), and bleeding index (BI) scores and probing pocket depth (PPD). Data were extracted from the eligible studies.

RESULTS: Seven eligible papers were retrieved, which together represented six clinical trials. The studies showed considerable heterogeneity regarding methodological and clinical aspects that did not permit a meta-analysis. Two of the three studies in which NaOCl-MW was compared with a negative control showed that NaOCl-MW significantly reduced PI, GI, and BI, and no effect was found on PPD. In three studies, NaOCl-MW was assessed using chlorhexidine mouthwash (CHX-MW) as a positive control; no difference was found for GI and BI. One of the three comparisons showed a statistically significant PI score favoring NaOCl-MW. One study measured PPD and found it to be significant in favor of NaOCl-MW.

CONCLUSIONS: Studies with a negative control group provided very weak quality evidence for a very small beneficial effect of NaOCl-MW on PI, GI, and BI scores. Studies with a positive control group provided very weak quality evidence that NaOCl-MW had a similar effect as CHX-MW on PI, GI, and BI scores. The outcome for PPD was inconclusive.

PMID:33971082 | DOI:10.1111/idh.12510