Fetal inflammatory response and risk for psychiatric disorders.

Inflammation contributes to numerous neuropsychiatric disorders, especially those that first appear in childhood. Maternal intrauterine environment, including the placenta, has a role in brain development and risk for neuropsychiatric disorders. This study examines the link between fetal inflammatory syndrome (FIRS), which is placental inflammation in the peri-partem period, and neuropsychiatric disorders during childhood.

Parent-in-training: Resident and fellow experiences from pregnancy to parenthood.

Background: Residents and fellows with children face distinct challenges; however, knowledge of factors associated with increased parental stress is limited.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate experiences and concerns of physician trainees and identify factors associated with higher parental stress.

Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed to all resident and fellow trainees in June 2021 to assess experiences regarding parental leave, breastfeeding, and childcare.

Communicating Certainty in Pathology Reports.

Context.—: Pathology reports are the main modality in which results are communicated to other physicians. For various reasons, the diagnosis may be qualified on a spectrum of uncertainty.

EGFR-targeted prodrug activation using bioorthogonal alkene-azide click-and-release chemistry.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is overexpressed in many cancers and therefore serves as an excellent target for prodrug activation. Functionalised trans-cyclooctenes (TCO) were conjugated to an EGFR antibody (cetuximab), providing a reagent for pre-targeting and localisation of the bioorthogonal reagent. The TCOs react with a 4-azidobenzyl carbamate doxorubicin prodrug via a [3 + 2]-cycloaddition and subsequent self-immolation leads to release of doxorubicin (click-and-release).

Patients Who Take Home Their Surgical Pathology Specimens: A Preliminary Study.

Patients regularly request to take possession of their human tissues after they have become surgical pathology specimens. To date, few formal research studies have examined the prevalence of this practice or the reasoning patients' request that their specimens to be returned to them. This study interviews patients from 2015 to 2017 at one US academic medical center who requested their surgical pathology specimens.

Microcontainers for protection of oral vaccines, in vitro and in vivo evaluation.

Oral vaccines are highly desirable due to simple logistics, mass vaccination potential and for mucosal immunity. Subunit vaccines are preferred due to high safety, but are inherently difficult to deliver orally, thus providing motivation for the use of advanced oral delivery systems. Polymeric devices in micrometer size (microcontainers) were tested here for this purpose.

Spray dried cubosomes with ovalbumin and Quil-A as a nanoparticulate dry powder vaccine formulation.

Subunit vaccine formulations are often produced as liquid dispersions through complicated processes. It is desirable, however, to have simple, cheap and up-scalable methods to produce nanoparticulate subunit vaccines in powder form. Here, a simple single-step spray drying process for production of powder cubosome precursors with the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) and the adjuvant Quil-A is presented.

A "Pathology Explanation Clinic (PEC)" for Patient-Centered Laboratory Medicine Test Results.

This concept paper addresses communication issues arising between physicians and their patients. To facilitate the communication of essential diagnostic pathology information to patients, and address their questions and concerns, we propose that "Pathology Explanation Clinics" be created. The Pathology Explanation Clinics would provide a channel for direct communications between pathologists and patients.

Poloxamer 407-chitosan grafted thermoresponsive hydrogels achieve synchronous and sustained release of antigen and adjuvant from single-shot vaccines.

Sustained-release vaccine delivery systems may enhance the immunogenicity of subunit vaccines and reduce the need for multiple vaccinations. The aim of this study was to develop a thermoresponsive hydrogel using poloxamer 407-chitosan (CP) grafted copolymer as a delivery system for single-shot sustained-release vaccines. The CP copolymer was synthesized using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-carbodiimide and N-hydroxysuccinimide chemistry.

Communicating Uncertainty in Surgical Pathology Reports: A Survey of Staff Physicians and Residents at an Academic Medical Center.

In order to document perceptions of text comments appearing in surgical pathology reports, questionnaires were distributed to 4 groups of caregivers: university staff pathologists, resident pathologists, faculty clinicians (other than pathologists), and resident clinicians at a teaching hospital. Results of this pilot study showed a wide degree of variability existed within each group of surgical pathology report users, with respect to percent confidence assigned to various phrases, commonly used to express diagnostic uncertainty, appearing often as free-text comments in surgical pathology reports. The unavailability of immunohistochemistry tests, or ambiguous immunohistochemistry test results, was especially problematic.

Bioactivity and prostate tissue distribution of metformin in a preprostatectomy prostate cancer cohort.

Metformin has recently been shown to have potential to reduce prostate cancer risk. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to determine the modulating effects of metformin on tissue and systemic biomarkers of drug activity and its distribution into the prostate tissue. Twenty patients with prostate cancer scheduled to undergo prostatectomy were randomly assigned to receive either extended-release metformin or placebo for a median of 34 days before surgery.

Defining Molecular Details of the Chemistry of Biofilm Formation by Raman Microspectroscopy.

Two protocols that allow for the comparison of Raman spectra of planktonic cells and biofilm formed from these cells in their growth phase have been developed. Planktonic cells are washed and flash-frozen in <1 min to reduce the time for metabolic changes during processing, prior to freeze-drying. Biofilm is formed by standing cells in 50 μL indentations in aluminum foil in an atmosphere of saturated water vapor for 24-48 h.

Preliminary evaluation of a thermosensitive chitosan hydrogel for Echinococcus granulosus vaccine delivery.

The EG95 vaccine is effective in protecting grazing animals from infection with Echinococcus granulosus. Six male lambs were used in the study, two were each vaccinated subcutaneously with 50μg EG95/1mg Quil-A, two animals were each vaccinated with 50μg EG95/1mg Quil-A in 1% chitosan thermolabile gel subcutaneously, and two animals served as non-vaccinated controls. Two vaccinations were given at a 7 week interval.

Twin-screw extruded lipid implants containing TRP2 peptide for tumour therapy.

Much effort has been put in the development of specific anti-tumour immunotherapies over the last few years, and several studies report on the use of liposomal carriers for tumour-associated antigens. In this work, the use of lipid implants, prepared using two different extruders, was investigated for sustained delivery in tumour therapy. The implants consisted of cholesterol, soybean lecithin, Dynasan 114, trehalose, ovalbumin (OVA) or a TRP2 peptide, and Quil-A.

Clinical Study of Ursodeoxycholic Acid in Barrett's Esophagus Patients.

Prior research strongly implicates gastric acid and bile acids, two major components of the gastroesophageal refluxate, in the development of Barrett's esophagus and its pathogenesis. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), a hydrophilic bile acid, has been shown to protect esophageal cells against oxidative stress induced by cytotoxic bile acids. We conducted a pilot clinical study to evaluate the clinical activity of UDCA in patients with Barrett's esophagus.

Segmental arterial mediolysis and fibromuscular dysplasia: what comes first, the chicken or the egg?

Segmental arterial mediolysis (SAM) is a rare vasculopathy characterized by lysis of the outer media in splanchnic arteries and formation of dissecting pseudoaneurysms that may spontaneously rupture, leading to massive and often fatal intraabdominal hemorrhage. The pathogenesis of SAM is poorly understood. Healed SAM lesions closely resemble fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD), leading some authors to postulate that SAM represents a precursor to FMD despite distinct clinical differences between these two disorders.

Assessment of stroke risk in southern Arizona, the pairing of acculturation and stroke risk factor development.

Stroke is a leading cause of mortality in the United States. Hispanics have the same incidence of stroke, but are more likely to have subsequent strokes than non-Hispanic whites. This difference in outcome may be attributable to differences in stroke risk factor awareness.