Observation of high-energy neutrinos from the Galactic plane.

The origin of high-energy cosmic rays, atomic nuclei that continuously impact Earth's atmosphere, is unknown. Because of deflection by interstellar magnetic fields, cosmic rays produced within the Milky Way arrive at Earth from random directions. However, cosmic rays interact with matter near their sources and during propagation, which produces high-energy neutrinos.

Strong Constraints on Neutrino Nonstandard Interactions from TeV-Scale ν_{μ} Disappearance at IceCube.

We report a search for nonstandard neutrino interactions (NSI) using eight years of TeV-scale atmospheric muon neutrino data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. By reconstructing incident energies and zenith angles for atmospheric neutrino events, this analysis presents unified confidence intervals for the NSI parameter ε_{μτ}. The best-fit value is consistent with no NSI at a p value of 25.

Search for Relativistic Magnetic Monopoles with Eight Years of IceCube Data.

We present an all-sky 90% confidence level upper limit on the cosmic flux of relativistic magnetic monopoles using 2886 days of IceCube data. The analysis was optimized for monopole speeds between 0.750c and 0.

Performance Characteristics of DOAC-Remove for Neutralization of the Effects of Apixaban and Rivaroxaban in Lupus Anticoagulant Assays.

Objectives: This study established the performance characteristics of DOAC-Remove for neutralization of the effects of rivaroxaban and apixaban in lupus anticoagulant (LAC) testing.

Methods: Normal donor, LAC control, and patient samples were spiked with rivaroxaban or apixaban to simulate their effects on the dilute Russell's viper venom time (dRVVT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), and dilute prothrombin time (dPT). Anti-Xa activity was measured after spiking and after DOAC-Remove neutralization.

Head and Neck Reconstruction in Patients with Polycythemia Vera: Case Series and Literature Review.

 Polycythemia vera (PV) is a myeloproliferative disease with overproduction of erythrocytes, leukocytes, and platelets causing an increased risk of both thrombosis and hemorrhage. There are limited reports and no established guidelines for managing such patients undergoing reconstructive surgery.  We present four patients with PV and head and neck cancer who required reconstruction after resection and provide a review of the current literature.

The Effects of Indirect- and Direct-Acting Anticoagulants on Lupus Anticoagulant Assays: A Large, Retrospective Study at a Coagulation Reference Laboratory.

Objectives: To investigate the effects of indirect- and direct-acting anticoagulants on the interpretation of lupus anticoagulant (LAC) assays.

Methods: A retrospective database review was performed to identify all LAC panels from November 2012 to November 2015. The positivity rates for three LAC tests were compared among various anticoagulant medications.

Enhanced strategies for prevention and management of blood loss in special, unusual, and unexpected surgical situations.

Typically, surgical and anesthesia teams work together in the operating room to control blood loss by thoroughly evaluating bleeding risk preoperatively and by using their training in the treatment of intraoperative blood loss. As a result, most bleeding is usually well controlled. In many cases a hematologist is consulted for recommendations preoperatively or, in urgent situations, even while the patient is in the operating room.

Hereditary coagulopathies: practical diagnosis and management for the plastic surgeon.

Background: Venous thromboembolism is a devastating complication representing one of the major causes of postoperative death in plastic surgery. Within the scope of plastic surgery, body-contouring procedures are often considered to carry a higher risk of venous thromboembolism. Hereditary thrombophilias comprise a group of conditions defined by a genetic predisposition to thrombosis development.

The relationship of phthalocyanine 4 (pc 4) concentrations measured noninvasively to outcome of pc 4 photodynamic therapy in mice.

The ability to noninvasively measure photosensitizer concentration at target tissues will allow optimization of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and could improve outcome. In this study, we evaluated whether preirradiation tumor phthalocyanine 4 (Pc 4) concentrations, measured noninvasively by the optical pharmacokinetic system (OPS), correlated with tumor response to PDT. Mice bearing human breast cancer xenografts were treated with 2 mg kg(-1) Pc 4 iv only, laser irradiation (150 J cm(-2)) only, Pc 4 followed by fractionated irradiation or Pc 4 followed by continuous irradiation.

Apolipoprotein H promoter polymorphisms in relation to lupus and lupus-related phenotypes.

Objective: Sequence variation in gene promoters is often associated with disease risk. We tested the hypothesis that common promoter variation in the APOH gene (encoding for ss(2)-glycoprotein I) is associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) risk and SLE-related clinical phenotypes in a Caucasian cohort.

Methods: We used a case-control design and genotyped 345 women with SLE and 454 healthy control women for 8 APOH promoter single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP; -1284C>G, -1219G>A, -1190G>C, -759A>G, -700C>A, -643T>C, -38G>A, and -32C>A).

Genetic variation in C-reactive protein (CRP) gene may be associated with risk of systemic lupus erythematosus and CRP concentrations.

Objective: The gene coding for C-reactive protein (CRP) is located on chromosome 1q23.2, which falls within a linkage region thought to harbor a systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) susceptibility gene. Recently, 2 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in the CRP gene (+838, +2043) have been shown to be associated with CRP concentrations and/or SLE risk in a British family-based cohort.

Genetic variation in the paraoxonase-3 (PON3) gene is associated with serum PON1 activity.

Low serum paraoxonase1 (PON1) activity determined by paraoxon substrate is associated with coronary heart disease (CHD), diabetes and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) risk. In this investigation, we have examined the role of genetic variation in the PON3 gene in relation to PON1 activity and SLE risk in a biracial sample comprising 377 SLE patients and 482 controls from US whites and blacks. We genotyped six PON3 tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (tagSNPs) and examined their associations with PON1 activity, SLE risk, antiphopholipid autoantibodies (APA), lupus nephritis, carotid vascular disease, and inflammation.

Association study of Toll-like receptor 5 (TLR5) and Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) polymorphisms in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: Toll-like receptors (TLR) play an important role in both adaptive and innate immunity. Variations in TLR genes have been shown to be associated with various infectious and inflammatory diseases. We investigated the association of TLR5 (Arg392Stop, rs5744168) and TLR9 (-1237T-->C, rs5743836) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Caucasian American subjects.

JAK2 V617F mutation in patients with catastrophic intra-abdominal thromboses.

Catastrophic intra-abdominal thrombosis can result from a variety of prothrombotic states, including polycythemia vera and essential thrombocythemia, both of which are frequently associated with an acquired mutation (V617F) in the JAK2 gene. To assess the prevalence and clinical implications of this mutation in the setting of intra-abdominal thrombosis, JAK2 V617F genotyping was performed in 42 patients who had catastrophic intra-abdominal thromboses resulting in visceral transplants. The prevalence of V617F was compared with that of other prothrombotic states for which molecular testing is routinely performed.

Association of a common interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) variant with increased risk of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) belongs to a family of transcription factors that control the transactivation of type I interferon system-related genes, as well as the expression of several other genes involved in immune response, cell signalling, cell cycle control and apoptosis. Two recent studies reported a significant association between the IRF5/rs2004640 T allele and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The purpose of this study was to determine whether the reported rs2004640 T allele association could be replicated in our independent SLE case-control sample.

Relationship of serum paraoxonase 1 activity and paraoxonase 1 genotype to risk of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: Low serum paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity determined with paraoxon as substrate has been found to be associated with coronary artery disease. This study was undertaken to examine the relationship of PON1 activity and genotype to risk of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: The impact of 7 PON1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was analyzed in relation to PON1 activity, SLE risk, lupus nephritis, antiphospholipid antibody (aPL) positivity, and carotid vascular disease in 380 SLE patients (334 white, 46 black) and 497 controls (455 white, 42 black).

Role of an intronic polymorphism in the PDCD1 gene with the risk of sporadic systemic lupus erythematosus and the occurrence of antiphospholipid antibodies.

Recently, a polymorphism in intron 4 (G/A) of the programmed cell death 1 ( PDCD1) gene was shown to be associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) risk in familial and sporadic patients of European, European American, and Mexican origin. In this investigation, we examined the role of this polymorphism in 311 SLE patients (276 European Americans and 35 African Americans) and 390 age-matched healthy controls (359 European Americans and 31 African Americans). The frequency of the A allele was significantly higher in European American controls than in African American controls (0.

von Willebrand's disease and psychotic disorders: co-segregation and genetic associations.

Objectives: To evaluate co-segregation and genetic associations between von Willebrand's disease (vWD) and psychotic disorders.

Methods: The study was initiated following ascertainment of a nuclear family in which four members were diagnosed with vWD and psychotic/mood disorders. As co-segregation was uncertain in the extended pedigree, we also investigated population-based linkage and association using polymorphisms of vWF, the gene conferring susceptibility to vWD.

A positive in vitro assay is required to diagnose heparin-induced thrombocytopenia.

A 57-year-old woman is admitted for coronary artery bypass graft. She has had a recent coronary angiogram (with heparin exposure), which revealed high-grade stenoses of the left anterior descending coronary artery, right coronary artery, and left circumflex artery. The preoperative platelet count is 300,000/microL.

Genetic variation in lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor 1 (LOX1) gene and the risk of coronary artery disease.

Background: We examined the association of 3 polymorphisms in the lectin-like oxidized LDL receptor-1 (LOX1 or OLR1) gene with coronary artery disease in the Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) study population.

Methods And Results: The WISE sample comprised 589 white and 122 black women who underwent angiography for suspected ischemia. The sample was divided into 3 groups: <20% stenosis (38.