Publications by authors named "Brian Carey"
Chest ports are typically inserted via the right internal jugular vein with the left side being utilized in certain patient populations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dynamic position of the chest port and catheter tip, comparing a demographically matched cohort of female breast cancer patients with right- or left-sided chest ports. 142 female patients with breast cancer requiring chest port insertion for chemotherapy and imaging confirming catheter tip position initially with supine fluoroscopy and follow-up with erect chest radiography over a 5-year period were identified.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- - Lassa virus (LASV) leads to hundreds of thousands of infections in Western Africa annually, with about 20% progressing to Lassa fever, a serious disease that has a high fatality rate.
- - Currently, there are no approved vaccines or treatments for Lassa fever, but researchers have been working on recombinant LASVs (rLASVs) that show promising results as vaccines in animal models.
- - The new vaccine candidate, rLASV/IGR-CD, demonstrated high safety and effectiveness in guinea pigs, offering complete protection against lethal LASV exposure and advancing the development of a live-attenuated vaccine for Lassa fever.
Article Synopsis
- The study examines the role of the MAVS protein in the immune response to Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) in mice, highlighting its involvement in type I interferon and proinflammatory responses.
- MAVS-deficient mice were resistant to CCHFV infection when IFN-I signaling was active, but they experienced significant weight loss when IFN-I was blocked, indicating that MAVS plays a crucial role in mediating immune defense.
- The findings suggest that targeting MAVS activation and cytokine production, particularly TNF-α signaling, could lead to new treatments for CCHFV infection, as MAVS-deficient mice showed limited liver injury and protection from
Making computed tomography safer for patients with Crohn's disease.
Scand J Gastroenterol
February 2022
Computed tomography (CT), often more accessible than magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), remains widely used though radiation exposure is an obvious disadvantage. We previously showed that modern CT technology can achieve over 70% reduction in radiation-dose without loss of accuracy. Here, we compare low- versus conventional-dose CT in patients with known Crohn's disease to assess clinical confidence and accuracy of the low-dose procedure in the semi-acute setting.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Syrian hamsters can develop a deadly illness similar to human hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) when infected with Andes virus (ANDV), while Hantaan virus (HTNV) leads to an asymptomatic infection.
- Researchers used NanoString technology to study 770 genes in the blood of these hamsters, revealing significant differences in immune response genes related to type I interferon, complement activation, and apoptosis pathways between the two virus infections.
- The study found that ANDV delays the immune response, which may help the virus evade the host's defenses and worsen the disease; this research is the first of its kind and could lead to new treatment options for hantavirus infections.
Thoracic computed tomography (CT) is the imaging reference method in the diagnosis, assessment and management of lung disease. In the setting of cystic fibrosis (CF), CT demonstrates increased sensitivity compared with pulmonary function tests and chest radiography, and findings correlate with clinical outcomes. Better understanding of the aetiology of CF lung disease indicates that even asymptomatic infants with CF can have irreversible pulmonary pathology.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has prompted the need for small animal models that accurately represent the disease in humans to help develop medical countermeasures.
- Researchers evaluated male and female mice genetically modified to express human ACE2 and found that they developed severe disease after exposure to SARS-CoV-2, showing symptoms like weight loss and lung injury.
- The study revealed that female mice had better survival rates than males after infection, with significant differences in inflammatory responses, establishing this model as crucial for understanding SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis and testing treatments.
Objectives: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of fast acquisition MRI in suspected cases of paediatric appendicitis presenting to a tertiary referral hospital.
Materials And Methods: A prospective study was undertaken between May and October 2017 of 52 children who presented with suspected appendicitis and were referred for an abdominal ultrasound. All patients included in this study received both an abdominal ultrasound and five-sequence MRI consisting of axial and coronal gradient echo T2 scans, fat-saturated SSFSE and a diffusion-weighted scan.
Article Synopsis
- Protein phosphorylation is crucial for the Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV), specifically regarding its capsid protein which has four phosphorylation sites.
- Research indicates that Protein Kinase C (PKC) is responsible for this phosphorylation, with evidence that knocking down PKCδ reduces both capsid phosphorylation and viral replication.
- A mutated version of the virus that cannot be phosphorylated showed improved assembly and infectivity, and also resulted in better survival rates in mice compared to the original virus, highlighting the importance of capsid phosphorylation in viral pathogenesis.
Nanotrap® (NT) particles are hydrogel microspheres developed for target analyte separation and discovery applications. NT particles consist of cross-linked N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAm) copolymers that are functionalized with a variety of chemical affinity baits to enable broad-spectrum collection and retention of target proteins, nucleic acids, and pathogens. NT particles have been previously shown to capture and enrich arboviruses including Rift Valley fever and Venezuelan equine encephalitis viruses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) infects human primary astrocytes, leading to significant disease and cell death.
- The virus triggers an increase in early growth response 1 (EGR1) gene expression, which is influenced by specific signaling pathways (ERK1/2 and PERK), but not others like p38 MAPK or PI3K.
- Reducing EGR1 levels lessens apoptosis and viral replication, while inhibiting ERK1/2 or PERK boosts cell survival and reduces viral effects, showing the critical role these pathways play in VEEV infection.
Article Synopsis
- New World alphaviruses, including Venezuelan, eastern, and western equine encephalitis viruses, pose significant health risks due to their potential to cause severe illness and death in humans, and there are concerns about their use as bioweapons.
- *Currently, there are no FDA-approved antiviral treatments specifically for these viruses, highlighting the urgent need for research in this area.
- *This review focuses on the functions of various viral proteins and discusses possible therapeutic targets, noting an increasing interest in non-structural protein 3, capsid, and E2 proteins, while emphasizing the need for further investigation into host protein interactions with other viral proteins.
Article Synopsis
- Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a single-stranded RNA virus that causes febrile illness in humans and severe outcomes in horses, with no approved treatments or vaccines available.
- The virus disrupts normal cell cycling and induces apoptosis in infected cells, primarily through mechanisms related to its capsid protein, which hampers host cellular functions.
- Research shows that mutations in the capsid protein can partially restore cell cycle regulation and that multiple key cell cycle regulators are downregulated during VEEV infection, highlighting the virus's ability to manipulate host cellular processes.
The role of radiologic imaging in the investigation of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) remains a subject of debate and there is some evidence, from recent studies of utilization of imaging in IBS, which focused on associated costs and radiation exposure, that imaging is being used relatively widely in these patients. This review aims to assess current best evidence to accurately define the role of radiologic imaging in IBS patients. Primary and secondary literature searches were performed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the mainstay method for the radiological imaging of the small bowel in patients with inflammatory bowel disease without the use of ionizing radiation. There are circumstances where imaging using ionizing radiation is required, particularly in the acute setting. This usually takes the form of computed tomography (CT).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The size-specific dose estimate (SSDE) is a dose-related metrics that incorporates patient size into its calculation. It is usually derived from the volume computed tomography dose index (CTDI) by applying a conversion factor determined from manually measured anteroposterior and lateral skin-to-skin patient diameters at the midslice level on computed tomography (CT) localiser images, an awkward, time-consuming, and not highly reproducible technique. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential for the use of body mass index (BMI) as a size-related metrics alternative to the midslice effective diameter (D) to obtain a size-specific dose (SSDE) in abdominal CT.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a relatively common disorder with significant associated morbidity. Sarcopenia and myosteatosis are associated with adverse postoperative outcomes. This study investigated outcomes in IBD patients undergoing surgical resection relative to the presence of sarcopenia and myosteatosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Performance of a modified abdominopelvic CT protocol reconstructed using full iterative reconstruction (IR) was assessed for imaging patients presenting with acute abdominal symptoms.
Materials And Methods: Fifty-seven patients (17 male, 40 female; mean age of 56.5 ± 8 years) were prospectively studied.
Purpose: Surgical resection for gastric adenocarcinoma is associated with significant post-operative morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic significance of sarcopenia in patients undergoing resection for gastric adenocarcinoma with respect to post-operative morbidity and survival.
Materials And Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on a cohort of consecutive patients who underwent surgical resection for gastric adenocarcinoma between 2008 and 2014.
Article Synopsis
- The New World alphaviruses (VEEV, EEEV, and WEEV) cause serious febrile diseases in equines and children, often resulting in severe neurological issues and lack FDA-approved treatments.
- To find potential antiviral drugs, researchers used a high-throughput assay with a luciferase reporter virus to screen FDA-approved drugs, identifying sorafenib as an effective inhibitor of VEEV, EEEV, and other viruses without causing toxicity.
- Sorafenib works by disrupting viral translation through the dephosphorylation of key proteins, which reduces viral protein production and overall replication.
Article Synopsis
- Protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) plays a crucial role in regulating various viruses, including VEEV, and is targeted by the small molecule 1E7-03 to inhibit viral replication.
- The study showed that treating VEEV-infected cells with 1E7-03 significantly reduced viral replication and that PP1α interacts with the VEEV capsid, influencing its phosphorylation and viral replication.
- Given the lack of FDA-approved treatments for VEEV, targeting the PP1α RVxF binding pocket presents a potential therapeutic strategy for managing this virus and possibly others.
Article Synopsis
- * Researchers found that inhibiting p70 S6K with rapamycin effectively prevented Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) pathogenesis in mice, while other inhibitors had limited effects on viral replication when used alone.
- * The combination of different kinase inhibitors, particularly using PF-4708671 with BI-D1870, showed a strong potential to significantly reduce RVFV replication, suggesting a promising approach for treatment strategies against this virus.
Background: The ATTUNE Knee by DePuy Synthes was introduced in 2013. It is designed to provide better range of motion and address patient-reported instability. The PFC Sigma Knee, an earlier prosthesis by DePuy Synthes, is a common knee replacement with a strong clinical track record.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Epistaxis is the most prevalent ENT emergency and a significant burden on ENT services. Our objective was to study the incidence and outcomes of patients presenting with epistaxis at a major teaching hospital.
Methods: A retrospective descriptive study of 721 patients, who presented with epistaxis over a 1-year period, was carried out.