The Prognostic Value of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Patients with Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Background: Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) is an aggressive cancer characterised by an increased recurrence rate and an inadequate response to treatment. This study aimed to investigate the importance of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) as a prognostic marker for long-term survival in patients with mRCC.

Methods: We retrospectively analysed data from 74 patients with mRCC treated at our medical centre with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

The Impact of Long-Term Antibiotic Therapy of Cutaneous Adverse Reactions to EGFR Inhibitors in Colorectal Cancer Patients.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is an important public health issue, in terms of incidence and mortality, with approximately 1.8 million new cases reported worldwide in 2018. Advancements in understanding pathophysiological key steps in CRC tumorigenesis have led to the development of new targeted therapies such as those based on epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors (EGFR inhibitors).

Vedolizumab as first-line biological therapy in elderly patients and those with contraindications for anti-TNF therapy: a real-world, nationwide cohort of patients with inflammatory bowel diseases.

Background: Data from real-life populations about vedolizumab as first-line biological therapy for ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) are emerging.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of vedolizumab in bio-naïve patients with UC and CD.

Methods: A Danish nationwide cohort study was conducted between November 2014 and November 2019.

Spatial variation of organochlorine pesticides and dissolved organic matter in urban closed lakes.

Closed lakes located in urban parks act as sinks of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), which have been used, for decades, as insecticides, herbicides and fungicides. The closed lakes from Bucharest, Romania, are periodically managed to prevent eutrophication and accumulation of pollutants. However, it is not known if these practices reduce or enhance the legacy pollution with OCPs.

Catechin loaded PLGA submicron-sized fibers reduce levels of reactive oxygen species induced by MWCNT in vitro.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are common products of normal aerobic cellular metabolism, but high levels of ROS lead to oxidative stress and cellular damage. Therefore, effective antioxidant therapies are needed to prevent ROS overproduction. This study reports the development of poly(l-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) bicomponent fibers loaded with selected amounts of the natural polyphenolic antioxidant catechin.

Encapsulation of polyphenols into pHEMA e-spun fibers and determination of their antioxidant activities.

This study reports on the development of electrospun poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA) fibers loaded with synthetic and natural antioxidants in the form of selected types of polyphenols such as vanillic, gallic, syringic acids, catechin or natural spruce bark extract to investigate their release behavior in terms of antioxidant activities. Homogenous fiber morphologies were obtained at specified concentration ranges of pHEMA within the spinning solutions, exhibiting fiber diameters in the range from 0.5±0.

Simultaneous electrospinning and electrospraying: a straightforward approach for fabricating hierarchically structured composite membranes.

We present here for the first time a simple method for micropatterning nonwoven composite membranes. The approach is based on the simultaneous electrospraying of microparticles and electrospinning of nanofibers from different polymer solution feeds (polyethylene glycol and poly(D,L-lactide)) on a common support. The mechanism of self-organization between fibers and particles into hierarchical honeycomb-like structures, as well as the evolution of the later as a function of the thickness of the composite, is investigated.

Colloid-electrospinning: fabrication of multicompartment nanofibers by the electrospinning of organic or/and inorganic dispersions and emulsions.

Solution-, melt-, and co-axial electrospinning are well-known methods for producing nano- and microfibers. The electrospinning of colloids (or colloid-electrospinning) is a new field that offers the possibility to elaborate multicompartment nanomaterials. However, the presence of colloids in the electrospinning feed further complicates theoretical predictions in a system that is dependent on chemical, physical, and process parameters.

Fabrication of nanopore arrays and ultrathin silicon nitride membranes by block-copolymer-assisted lithography.

Here we show a method for patterning a thin metal film using self-assembled block-copolymer micelles monolayers as a template. The obtained metallic mask is transferred by reactive ion etching in silicon oxide, silicon and silicon nitride substrates, thus fabricating arrays of hexagonally packed nanopores with tunable diameters, interspacing and aspect ratios. This technology is compatible with integration into a standard microtechnology sequence for wafer-scale fabrication of ultrathin silicon nitride nanoporous membranes with 80 nm mean pore diameter.