A novel liquid biopsy assay for detection of (HER2) amplification in circulating tumor cells (CTCs).

Purpose: Circulating tumor cell (CTC)-based (HER2) assay is a laboratory test developed by Epic Sciences using single-cell genomics to detect (HER2) amplification in CTCs found in the peripheral blood of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients.

Patients And Methods: Peripheral blood was collected in Streck tubes and centrifugation was used to remove plasma and red blood cells. The remaining nucleated cells were deposited on glass slides, immunofluorescent-stained with proprietary antibodies, scanned by a high-definition digital scanner, and analyzed by a proprietary algorithm.

Real-life effectiveness and safety of baricitinib in patients with severe alopecia areata: A 24-week Italian study.

Background: Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition characterized by rapid hair loss in the scalp, eyebrows and eyelashes, for which treatments are limited. Baricitinib, an oral inhibitor of Janus kinases 1 and 2, has been recently approved to treat alopecia areata.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a retrospective study involving 23 medical centres across Italy, enrolling patients affected by severe alopecia areata (SALT >50), for more than 6 months.

A New Method for the Follow-Up of Patients with Alopecia Areata.

Teledermatology is the application of information and telecommunication technologies in the field of dermatology to provide remote care services based on the exchange of clinical information within a network of professionals or between professionals and patients. Tele-trichoscopy is a non-invasive, inexpensive, and easy-to-use method that applies the principle of surface microscopy at different magnifications. Alopecia areata is a non-scarring alopecia with a chronic evolution, which often needs a close follow-up.

Italian National Registry of Alopecia Areata: an epidemiological study of 699 Italian patients.

Background: Alopecia areata (AA) is an organ-specific autoimmune disease that affects the hair follicles of the scalp and the rest of the body causing hair loss. Due to the unpredictable course of AA and the different degrees of severity of hair loss, only a few well-designed clinical studies with a low number of patients are available. Also, there is no specific cure, but topical and systemic anti-inflammatory and immune system suppressant drugs are used for treatment.

Assessing the drivers of grassland ground-dwelling arthropod community composition: Integrating landscape-scale farming intensity and local environmental conditions.

Grasslands are essential habitats for preserving arthropod communities in agricultural landscapes. The environmental state of grassland, their farming practices, and land cover heterogeneity in landscape around grassland are three factors that influence ground-dwelling grassland arthropod communities. However, the impact of the intensity of farming practices at the landscape scale has not yet been fully explored.