Tag: pubmed

J Gastrointest Cancer. 2022 Oct 14. doi: 10.1007/s12029-022-00863-7. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: We investigated the localization of lymph node metastases, and the role of arterial vessel and specimen lengths in left- and right-sided colon cancer surgery, for survival.

METHODS: This was a prospective cross-sectional population-based study of specimens from patients who underwent standardized surgical resection for colon cancer in 2012-2015. The mesocolon of the specimens was divided into four sections for pathological analysis of lymph nodes. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the relationship between lymph node counts and patient- and surgery-related factors. For survival analysis, a multivariable Cox regression method was used.

RESULTS: A total of 317 patients (160 females) were included. Median (range) age was 74 (30-95) years. Median number of lymph node retrieval was 32 (8-198) and was associated with increased specimen length but not to arterial vessel length. One hundred and thirty-three (42%) patients had lymph node metastases. All patients had these located < 5 cm from the tumour. Ten, two, and three specimens had lymph node metastases around the central and peripheral ligation of the ileocolic artery and at the central ligation of the inferior mesenteric artery, respectively. The tumour stages in these specimens were T3-4N2M0-1. No statistically significant survival benefit was associated with longer arterial vessel length (p = 0.429).

CONCLUSIONS: Neither retrieval of lymph nodes nor statistically significant survival was affected by vessel length in standardized left- and right-sided colon cancer surgery.

PMID:36241960 | DOI:10.1007/s12029-022-00863-7

Paediatr Drugs. 2022 Oct 15. doi: 10.1007/s40272-022-00538-7. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Many of the afflictions of children are rare diseases. This creates numerous drug development challenges related to small populations, including limited information about the disease state, enrollment challenges, and diminished incentives for pediatric development of novel therapies by pharmaceutical and biotechnology sponsors. We review selected innovations in clinical development that may partially mitigate some of these difficulties, starting with the concept of development efficiency for individual clinical trials, clinical programs (involving multiple trials for a single drug), and clinical portfolios of multiple drugs, and decision analysis as a tool to optimize efficiency. Development efficiency is defined as the ability to reach equally rigorous or more rigorous conclusions in less time, with fewer trial participants, or with fewer resources. We go on to discuss efficient methods for matching targeted therapies to biomarker-defined subgroups, methods for eliminating or reducing the need for natural history data to guide rare disease development, the use of basket trials to enhance efficiency by grouping multiple similar disease applications in a single clinical trial, and the use of alternative data sources including historical controls to augment or replace concurrent controls in clinical studies. Greater understanding and broader application of these methods could lead to improved therapies and/or more widespread and rapid access to novel therapies for rare diseases in both children and adults.

PMID:36241954 | DOI:10.1007/s40272-022-00538-7

Mol Biol Rep. 2022 Oct 15. doi: 10.1007/s11033-022-07961-6. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The proliferation and differentiation of stem cells into Germ-Like Cells (GLCs) is mediated by several growth factors and specific genes, of which some are related to long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). We have developed a modified differentiation process and identified a panel of GermlncRNAs related to GLCs.

METHODS: Human Wharton Jelly Mesenchymal Stem Cells were treated with 25 ng/ml Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP)-4 and 10^{– 5 M} all-trans retinoic acid to differentiate them into germ-like cells. To confirm the differentiation, changes in the expression of Oct-4, C-kit, Stella, and Vasa genes were assessed using quantitative Real-Time PCR (qPCR) and immunocytochemistry. QPCR was also used before and after differentiation to evaluate the changes in a lncRNA panel, using a 96-well array. Statistical analysis of the data was performed by SPSS 21.

RESULTS: After 21 days of induction, the HWJ-MSCs derived germ-like cells were formed. Also, qPCR and immunocytochemistry showed that the pluripotent Oct4 marker was expressed in the undifferentiated HWJ-MSCs, but its expression gradually decreased in the differentiated cells. C-kit was expressed on days 7, 14, and 21 of differentiation. Both GLC markers of Stella and Vasa genes/proteins were present only in differentiated cells. Of the 44 lncRNA genes array, 36 of them showed an increase and eight genes showed a decrease.

CONCLUSION: Our study showed that BMP4 and RA are effective in inducing HWJ-MSCs differentiation into GLCs. In addition, our study for the first time showed changes in the lncRNAs expression during the differentiation of HWJ-MSCs into GLCs by using BMP4 and RA.

PMID:36241921 | DOI:10.1007/s11033-022-07961-6

Clin Res Cardiol. 2022 Oct 14. doi: 10.1007/s00392-022-02114-y. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Improved imaging modalities contributed to increasing awareness of cardiac amyloidosis. Contemporary data on frequency trends in Germany are lacking.

METHODS: In a retrospective study using health claims data of a German statutory health insurance, patients with diagnostic codes of amyloidosis and concomitant heart failure between 2009 and 2018 were identified.

RESULTS: Prevalence increased from 15.5 to 47.6 per 100,000 person-years, and incidence increased from 4.8 to 11.6 per 100,000 person-years, with a continuous steepening in the slope of incidence trend. In patients with amyloidosis and heart failure age and proportion of men significantly increased, whereas the frequency of myeloma and nephrotic syndrome significantly decreased over time. Median (IQR) survival time after first diagnosis was 2.5 years (0.5-6 years), with a 9% (95% CI 2-15%, p = 0.008) reduced risk of death in the second compared to the first 5 years of observation. In the 2 years prior and 1 year after diagnosis, mean total health care costs were 6568 €, 11,872 € and 21,955 € per person and year.

CONCLUSION: The rise in cardiac amyloidosis has continuously accelerated in the last decade. Considering the adverse outcome and high health care burden, further effort should be put on early detection of the disease to implement available treatment.

PMID:36241897 | DOI:10.1007/s00392-022-02114-y

JCO Oncol Pract. 2022 Oct 14:OP2200280. doi: 10.1200/OP.22.00280. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Comprehensive health care centers are increasingly popular as they offer inclusive health care services under one roof. Often, these centers are formed by merging previously separate clinics. However, there is a lack of systematic guidance on the interprofessional, and interteam and intrateam dynamics that may develop during such an organizational change process. Using team process literature, we identify a possible model to explain how merging into a comprehensive cancer center (CCC) might influence health care teams and their subsequent outcomes, including patient experience.

METHODS: We used a mixed-method research design. Qualitative data were collected via semistructured interviews from 20 health care professionals employed at a recently merged CCC. During the time frame the interviews were collected, quantitative data were collected from 50 patients receiving treatment at the cancer center through anonymous paper-pencil surveys. Qualitative interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis, on the basis of the input-process-output team dynamics framework. Descriptive statistics were calculated for patient experience data. Trends between data collections were identified.

RESULTS: On the basis of our qualitative analysis, we provide an input-process-output framework that documents positive and negative aspects of interteam and intrateam dynamics associated with the merger process. Additionally, a number of connections were found between health care professional perceptions and quality patient experiences (eg, merger impacts on interteam and patient communication).

CONCLUSION: Our findings and model may assist in future merging efforts. Future CCCs may use the proposed framework to better understand and visualize their postmerger progress, in particular from the aspects of interprofessional, and interteam and intrateam dynamics.

PMID:36240476 | DOI:10.1200/OP.22.00280

Br J Radiol. 2022 Oct 14:20220367. doi: 10.1259/bjr.20220367. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the efficacy of pretreatment ADC and Ki-67 index in the prediction of the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) in advanced olfactory neuroblastoma (ONB) patients.

METHODS: A total of 21 advanced ONB patients (mean 43.48 years ± 14.26; range 25-69 years; 13 men and 8 women) with diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) before NACT between June 2015 and October 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were categorized into responders and non-responders according to RECIST 1.1 after two cycles of NACT. The clinical data, ADC_mean value and Ki-67 index were analyzed.

RESULTS: Kadish stage, ADC_mean value and Ki-67 index showed statistical significance between responders and non-responders. Patients with Kadish C stage were more likely to respond to platinum-based NACT (p = 0.035). Patients with the lower ADC_mean value showed response to NACT (p = 0.002) and the cutoff point was 1.04 × 10^-3 mm²/s. Patients with the higher Ki-67 index showed response to NACT (p = 0.003) and the cutoff point was 17.5%. Predictive performance of Ki-67 index and ADC_mean value showed no significance between responders and non-responders (p = 0.865). A significant negative correlation was found between ADC_mean value and Ki-67 index (r = -0.539, p = 0.038).

CONCLUSIONS: The pretreatment ADC_mean value, Ki-67 index and Kadish stage have the potential to predict the response to NACT in advanced ONB patients.

ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: This is the first study that investigated the feasibility of DWI in predicting the response to NACT in ONB patients, and showed that Kadish stage, pretreatment ADC_mean and Ki-67 index may play an important role in the prediction.

PMID:36240450 | DOI:10.1259/bjr.20220367

Infect Dis (Lond). 2022 Oct 14:1-8. doi: 10.1080/23744235.2022.2131901. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The epidemiology of enterococcal bacteraemia has changed worldwide and vancomycin-resistant enterococci increasingly cause healthcare-associated infections) with limited treatment options. Studies show heterogeneity among countries, regions and individual hospitals.

METHODS: We retrospectively analysed enterococcal bacteraemia with Enterococcus faecalis and E. faecium at the largest hospital in Croatia, University Hospital Centre Zagreb from January 2017 to December 2021.

RESULTS: A total of 432 cases of enterococcal bacteraemia were identified with 256 (59.3%) due to E. faecalis and 176 (40.7%) to E. faecium. Enterococcal bacteraemia occurred more frequently in men (n = 270; 62.5%) and the median age of all patients was 62 years (IQR: 0-92). We found statistically significant increase in the incidence trend of bacteraemic episodes with an annual percent change of 20.9% (95% confidence interval 14.3 to 27.8; p = .002) predominantly due to an increase of E. faecalis bacteraemia. The majority of patients (362/432; 83.8%) had healthcare-associated infections and 38.0% (165/432) of patients were in the intensive care unit. The proportion of vancomycin-resistant enterococcal bacteraemia increased from 12.7% (n = 8/63) in 2017 to 25.7% (n = 29/113) in 2021, statistically significant increasing trend (p = .0455), mainly due to an increased proportion of vancomycin-resistant E. faecium (p = .0169).

CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study describing the trends in enterococcal bacteraemia and vancomycin-resistance in enterococci in Croatia. We found a rising trend in enterococcal bacteraemia and in the proportion of vancomycin resistance and identified the most vulnerable patient groups, notably intensive care unit patients.

PMID:36240424 | DOI:10.1080/23744235.2022.2131901

Phys Rev Lett. 2022 Sep 30;129(14):146801. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.146801.

ABSTRACT

Chiral gapless boundary modes are characteristic of quantum Hall (QH) states. For hole-conjugate fractional QH phases counterpropagating edge modes (upstream and downstream) are expected. In the presence of electrostatic interactions and disorder these modes may renormalize into charge and upstream neutral modes. Orthodox models of Laughlin phases anticipate only a downstream charge mode. Here we show that in the latter case, in the presence of a smooth confining potential, edge reconstruction leads to the emergence of pairs of counterpropagating modes, which, by way of mode renormalization, may give rise to nontopological upstream neutral modes, possessing nontrivial statistics. This may explain the experimental observation of ubiquitous neutral modes, and the overwhelming suppression of anyonic interference in Mach-Zehnder interferometry platforms. We also point out other signatures of such edge reconstruction.

PMID:36240414 | DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.146801

Water Sci Technol. 2022 Oct;86(7):1790-1809. doi: 10.2166/wst.2022.300.

ABSTRACT

The present research aimed to analyse the impact of economical Fe impregnated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) char (PETC-Fe) for adsorption of As (III) through series of column experiments. For an inlet arsenite concentration of 1,000 μg/L, PETC-Fe exhibits excellent uptake capacity of 1,892 μg/g. Central composite design (CCD) in response surface methodology (RSM) was used to evaluate the influence of various process variables on the response function (breakthrough time) for optimization and assessment of interaction effects. The breakthrough time is more responsive to influent As (III) concentration and bed height than inlet flow rate, according to the perturbation plot. Adams-Bohart, Bed Depth Service Time (BDST) model, and Thomas models were used to model the dynamics of the adsorption system. The BDST model suited the experimental data well in the early part of the breakthrough curve, but there were minor variations over the breakpoints. Despite the fact that the experimental values and the data sets estimated using the Adams-Bohart model followed a similar pattern, they differed slightly. The PETC-Fe was found to be a sustainable and highly economical adsorbent, with a desorption performance of more than 97%, indicating the adsorbent’s reusability. This adsorbent’s excellent As (III) uptake capacity and regeneration performance imply that it might be used in industrial/domestic applications, and the information obtained could aid in future scaling up of the adsorption system.

PMID:36240312 | DOI:10.2166/wst.2022.300

PLoS One. 2022 Oct 14;17(10):e0276235. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0276235. eCollection 2022.

ABSTRACT

Urbanization is a comprehensive process of mutual influence among the population, economy, society and living environment, and it depends on the synergy of a series of factors. This paper uses the statistical data of 76 counties in Xinjiang from 1996 to 2018 to construct a comprehensive urbanization evaluation system. Based on the entropy method, comprehensive evaluation model and coupling coordination model, from the scales of time and space, this paper discusses the current situation of the coordinated development of population, economy, society and living environment factors in counties in Xinjiang in the process of urbanization. Local spatial autocorrelation analysis is used to further study the spatial agglomeration effect of the coupling and coordination of urbanization development in the counties. The results show the following: (1) The comprehensive urbanization level of 76 counties in Xinjiang has the characteristics of “center-periphery” development, and high-level counties are clustered on the northern slopes of the Tian Mountains. (2) Most counties are in a serious state of imbalance; notably, the degree of population-economy-society-living environment coupling and coordination in the border counties and towns is in an unsatisfactory state. (3) The county-level cities in Northern Xinjiang belong to the diffusion and spillover areas, the county-level cities in southern Xinjiang belong to the polarization benefit areas, and most other counties are in the state of no spillover effect.

PMID:36240244 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0276235