Childhood cancer and hematological disorders negatively affect spermatogonial quantity at diagnosis: a retrospective study of a male fertility preservation cohort.

Study Question: What is the impact of cancer or hematological disorders on germ cells in pediatric male patients?

Summary Answer: Spermatogonial quantity is reduced in testes of prepubertal boys diagnosed with cancer or severe hematological disorder compared to healthy controls and this reduction is disease and age dependent: patients with central nervous system cancer (CNS tumors) and hematological disorders, as well as boys <7 years are the most affected.

What Is Known Already: Fertility preservation in pediatric male patients is considered based on the gonadotoxicity of selected treatments. Although treatment effects on germ cells have been extensively investigated, limited data are available on the effect of the disease on the prepubertal male gonad.

Fertility preservation for male patients with childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer: recommendations from the PanCareLIFE Consortium and the International Late Effects of Childhood Cancer Guideline Harmonization Group.

Male patients with childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer are at an increased risk for infertility if their treatment adversely affects reproductive organ function. Future fertility is a primary concern of patients and their families. Variations in clinical practice are barriers to the timely implementation of interventions that preserve fertility.

The European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases.

While rare diseases (RDs) are by definition of low prevalence, the total number of patients suffering from an RD is high, and the majority of them have neurologic manifestations, involving central, peripheral nerve, and muscle. In 2017, 24 European Reference Networks (ERNs), each focusing on a specific group of rare or low-prevalence complex diseases, were formed to improve the care for patients with an RD. One major aim is to have "the knowledge travel instead of the patient," which has been put into practice by the implementation of the Clinical Patient Management System (CPMS) that enables clinicians to perform pan-European virtual consultations.

Orchidopexy for bilateral undescended testes: A multicentre study on its effects on fertility and comparison of two fixation techniques.

To evaluate fertility potential after orchidopexy for bilateral undescended testis and compare two surgical fixation techniques for effect on fertility. Men older than 22 years who had either tunica albuginea orchidopexy (TAO) or "no-touch" technique (NTO) in childhood for bilateral undescended testis (BUDT) were selected. Participants filled out a questionnaire followed by physical examination, had testicular ultrasound, blood sample and semen analysis.

Development of the testis in pre-pubertal boys with cancer after biopsy for fertility preservation.

Study Question: Is testicular growth affected by a testicular biopsy intended for fertility preservation in pre-pubertal boys with cancer?

Summary Answer: Testicular growth of the biopsied testis is not impeded in comparison to the non-biopsied contralateral testis up until 1 year after surgery.

What Is Known Already: Fertility preservation in pre-pubertal boys by means of testicular biopsy has been conducted for more than 15 years. Although immediate adverse effects of testicular biopsy are rare (1%), no data exist on the effect of biopsy on testicular growth.

The role of evidence in humanitarian assessment: the Seed System Security Assessment and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis.

This paper reviews advances in the development and use of two evidence-based assessment toolkits: the Seed System Security Assessment (SSSA) and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis (EMMA). Both were created in the past five years and have been employed in a range of acute and chronic stress contexts across Africa, Asia, and parts of the Americas, in periods of civil strife, displacement, and drought, as well as following earthquakes, flooding, and political instability. The aims of this paper are threefold: to review advances with regard to each tool; to compare how each toolkit gathers and uses evidence, while considering possibilities for greater complementarity; and to reflect on the nature of 'evidence' used to guide humanitarian response in sudden-onset and chronic crisis situations.

Identification of the peroxisomal beta-oxidation enzymes involved in the degradation of leukotrienes.

Leukotrienes (LTs) are metabolically inactivated via omega-oxidation and subsequent beta-oxidation from the omega-end. This beta-oxidation process takes place in peroxisomes. In this study we investigated the role of different enzymes involved in peroxisomal beta-oxidation in the degradation of LTs.