Evidence for Multiple Independent Expansions of Fox Gene Families Within Flatworms.

Expansion and losses of gene families are important drivers of molecular evolution. A recent survey of Fox genes in flatworms revealed that this superfamily of multifunctional transcription factors, present in all animals, underwent extensive losses and expansions during platyhelminth evolution. In this paper, I analyzed Fox gene complement in four additional species of platyhelminths, that represent early-branching lineages in the flatworm phylogeny: catenulids (Stenostomum brevipharyngium and Stenostomum leucops) and macrostomorphs (Macrostomum hystrix and Macrostomum cliftonense).

Regeneration in the absence of canonical neoblasts in an early branching flatworm.

The remarkable regenerative abilities of flatworms are closely linked to neoblasts - adult pluripotent stem cells that are the only division-competent cell type outside of the reproductive system. Although the presence of neoblast-like cells and whole-body regeneration in other animals has led to the idea that these features may represent the ancestral metazoan state, the evolutionary origin of both remains unclear. Here we show that the catenulid , a member of the earliest-branching flatworm lineage, lacks conventional neoblasts despite being capable of whole-body regeneration and asexual reproduction.

Convergent evolution of the sensory pits in and within flatworms.

Background: Unlike most free-living platyhelminths, catenulids, the sister group to all remaining flatworms, do not have eyes. Instead, the most prominent sensory structures in their heads are statocysts or sensory pits. The latter, found in the family Stenostomidae, are concave depressions located laterally on the head that represent one of the taxonomically important traits of the family.

Phoronida-A small clade with a big role in understanding the evolution of lophophorates.

Phoronids, together with brachiopods and bryozoans, form the animal clade Lophophorata. Modern lophophorates are quite diverse-some can biomineralize while others are soft-bodied, they could be either solitary or colonial, and they develop through various eccentric larval stages that undergo different types of metamorphoses. The diversity of this clade is further enriched by numerous extinct fossil lineages with their own distinct body plans and life histories.

Artificial-Intelligence-Based Imaging Analysis of Stem Cells: A Systematic Scoping Review.

This systematic scoping review aims to map and identify the available artificial-intelligence-based techniques for imaging analysis, the characterization of stem cell differentiation, and trans-differentiation pathways. On the ninth of March 2022, data were collected from five electronic databases (PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Scopus) and manual citation searching; all data were gathered in Zotero 5.0.

Brachiopod and mollusc biomineralisation is a conserved process that was lost in the phoronid-bryozoan stem lineage.

Background: Brachiopods and molluscs are lophotrochozoans with hard external shells which are often believed to have evolved convergently. While palaeontological data indicate that both groups are descended from biomineralising Cambrian ancestors, the closest relatives of brachiopods, phoronids and bryozoans, are mineralised to a much lower extent and are comparatively poorly represented in the Palaeozoic fossil record. Although brachiopod and mollusc shells are structurally analogous, genomic and proteomic evidence indicates that their formation involves a complement of conserved, orthologous genes.

Does needle-type increase the diagnostic yield of malignancies in endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA)?-a prospective comparative study.

Background: Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is a commonly performed minimally invasive technique for diagnosing mediastinal pathologies. Currently, many needle types are being developed to improve the accuracy of the final diagnosis. Our study aimed to assess the possible advantages and disadvantages between the 22-gauge ProCore needle and the standard 22-gauge needles.

Brain structure and stroke risk score in subjects without a history of atrial fibrillation.

CHADS-VASc score system aids in clinical decision-making in subjects with atrial fibrillation (AF). Little is known on the association between CHADS-VASc scores and brain structure in patients without cardiac arrhythmia. Detailed brain architecture analysis was performed.

COVID-19 pandemic in flu season. Chest computed tomography - what we know so far.

Chest computed tomography (CT) is proven to have high sensitivity in COVID-19 diagnosis. It is available in most emergency wards, and in contrast to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) it can be obtained in several minutes. However, its imaging features change during the course of the disease and overlap with other viral pneumonias, including influenza pneumonia.

Molecular and morphological analysis of the developing nemertean brain indicates convergent evolution of complex brains in Spiralia.

Background: The brain anatomy in the clade Spiralia can vary from simple, commissural brains (e.g., gastrotrichs, rotifers) to rather complex, partitioned structures (e.

Molecular evidence for a single origin of ultrafiltration-based excretory organs.

Excretion is an essential physiological process, carried out by all living organisms, regardless of their size or complexity. Both protostomes (e.g.

Hox gene expression during development of the phoronid .

Background: Phoronida is a small group of marine worm-like suspension feeders, which together with brachiopods and bryozoans form the clade Lophophorata. Although their development is well studied on the morphological level, data regarding gene expression during this process are scarce and restricted to the analysis of relatively few transcription factors. Here, we present a description of the expression patterns of Hox genes during the embryonic and larval development of the phoronid .

Morphology of the nervous system of monogonont rotifer with a focus on sexual dimorphism between feeding females and dwarf males.

Background: Monogononta is a large clade of rotifers comprised of diverse morphological forms found in a wide range of ecological habitats. Most monogonont species display cyclical parthenogenesis, where generations of asexually reproducing females are interspaced by mixis events when sexual reproduction occurs between mictic females and dwarf, haploid males. The morphology of monogonont feeding females is relatively well described, however data on male anatomy are very limited.

Impact of smoking history on postoperative complications after lung cancer surgery - a study based on 286 cases.

Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of smoking cessation and its timing in the preoperative period on postoperative morbidity in patients undergoing surgery for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Material And Methods: Two hundred and eighty-six patients surgically treated for NSCLC were prospectively analyzed in terms of duration and intensity of smoking, time period from smoking cessation to surgery, and postoperative morbidity. The patients were divided into five groups: I - current smokers and past smokers who quit smoking less than 2 weeks before surgery ( = 67), II - past smokers who quit 2 weeks to 3 months ( = 106), III - past smokers who quit 3 months to 1 year ( = 30), IV - past smokers who quit more than 1 year ( = 71), V - never smokers ( = 12).

gene expression in postmetamorphic juveniles of the brachiopod .

Background: genes encode a family of homeodomain containing transcription factors that are clustered together on chromosomes of many Bilateria. Some bilaterian lineages express these genes during embryogenesis in spatial and/or temporal order according to their arrangement in the cluster, a phenomenon referred to as collinearity. Expression of genes is well studied during embryonic and larval development of numerous species; however, relatively few studies focus on the comparison of pre- and postmetamorphic expression of genes in animals with biphasic life cycle.

"Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation for Greater Poland" Program: How to Save Lives and Develop Organ Donation?

The "ECMO for Greater Poland" program takes full advantage of the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) perfusion therapy opportunities to promote the health of the 3.5 million inhabitants in the region. The main implementation areas are treatment of patients with hypothermia; severe reversible respiratory failure (RRF); critical states resulting in heart failure, that is, cardiac arrest, cardiogenic shock, or acute intoxication; and promotion of the donor after circulatory death (DCD) strategy in selected organ donor cases, after unsuccessful life-saving treatment, to achieve organ recovery.

Video-assisted-thoracoscopic surgery in left-to-right Nuss procedure for pectus excavatum for prevention of serious complications - technical aspects based on 1006 patients.

Introduction: Additional use of the video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) technique in the Nuss procedure has been globally accepted for the improvement of safety of surgical treatment as well as for decreased frequency of serious intraoperative and postoperative complications.

Aim: To evaluate VATS in surgical treatment of patients with pectus excavatum by the left-to-right Nuss procedure for prevention of serious intra- and postoperative complications.

Material And Methods: From 2002 to 2016, 1006 patients with pectus excavatum aged 7 to 62 years (mean: 18.

The role of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in patients after irreversible cardiac arrest as potential organ donors.

The number of people waiting for a kidney or liver transplant is growing systematically. Due to the latest advances in transplantation, persons after irreversible cardiac arrest and confirmation of death have become potential organ donors. It is estimated that they may increase the number of donations by more than 40%.

Analyzing Effectiveness of Routine Pleural Drainage After Nuss Procedure: A Randomized Study.

Background: The routine use of postoperative pleural cavity drainage after the Nuss procedure is not widely accepted, and its limited use depends on experience. This study analyzed the influence of pleural drainage in the surgical treatment of patients with pectus excavatum on the prevention of pneumothorax and the efficacy of using drainage after a corrective operation.

Methods: From November 2013 to May 2015, 103 consecutive patients with pectus excavatum, aged 11 to 39 years, underwent surgical treatment by the Nuss procedure.

In-vivo isolation of circulating tumor cells in non-small cell lung cancer patients by CellCollector.

In non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) circulating tumor cells (CTCs) can provide information on patient prognosis and treatment efficacy. Currently CTCs are mostly isolated in vitro from small volumes of patient blood samples. The aim of the study was to assess a medical device for in vivo isolation of CTCs directly from the blood of NSCLC patients.

Complex corrective procedure in surgical treatment of asymmetrical pectus excavatum.

Aim: In this study we analysed the early and late results of surgical treatment of asymmetrical pectus excavatum using complex surgery combining the Ravitch procedure and the Nuss procedure in the same general anaesthesia.

Material And Methods: Eighty out of 938 patients with pectus excavatum operated on between 2002 and 2013, 67 males and 13 females aged 11 to 49 years (mean: 19.2), underwent a complex surgical procedure.

The role of simulation to support donation after circulatory death with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (DCD-ECMO).

Maintaining the viability of organs from donors after circulatory death (DCD) for transplantation is a complicated procedure, from a time perspective in the absence of appropriate organizational capabilities, that makes such transplantation cases difficult and not yet widespread in Poland. We present the procedural preparation for Poland's first case of organ (kidney) transplantation from a DCD donor in which perfusion was supported by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Because this organizational model is complex and expensive, we used advanced high-fidelity medical simulation to prepare for the real-life implementation.

Early and Late Results of the Nuss Procedure in Surgical Treatment of Pectus Excavatum in Different Age Groups.

Background: The aim of this study was a comparison of early and late results in surgical treatment of funnel chest using the Nuss method in patients in various age groups to find the optimal age to perform the corrective procedure.

Methods: Six hundred eighty patients operated on from June 2002 to October 2012 were included in the retrospective analysis. Patients were divided into 3 different age groups: group A = 156 patients from 7 to 14 years, group B = 328 patients aged 15 to 20 years, and group C = 196 patients older than 20 years of age.

[Medical simulation as a professional tool which affect the safety of the patient used in the learning process].

Simulation is the methodology of teaching, learning process using educational equipment from simple simulators, designed to study individual tasks, through advanced mannequins called human patient stimulators faithfully mimic the human and its parameters. The medical simulation's main task is education and improvement patients' safety. Advanced human simulators can realistically cough, vomit with artificial chyme and bleed with artificial blood causing a real stress of medical personnel and the need for immediate action.