The value of metabolic parameters and textural analysis in predicting prognosis in locally advanced cervical cancer treated with chemoradiotherapy.

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the impact of clinical and metabolic parameters derived from F-FDG PET/CT (positron emission tomography-computed tomography) in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) on prognosis.

Methods: Patients with LACC of stage IB2-IVA treated by primary radiochemotherapy followed by brachytherapy were enrolled in this retrospective study. Indexes derived from standardized uptake value (SUV), metabolic tumor volume (MTV), total lesion glycolysis (TLG), and textural features of the primary tumor were measured for each patient.

Mitochondrial DNA Footprints from Western Eurasia in Modern Mongolia.

Mongolia is located in a strategic position at the eastern edge of the Eurasian Steppe. Nomadic populations moved across this wide area for millennia before developing more sedentary communities, extended empires, and complex trading networks, which connected western Eurasia and eastern Asia until the late Medieval period. We provided a fine-grained portrait of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation observed in present-day Mongolians and capable of revealing gene flows and other demographic processes that took place in Inner Asia, as well as in western Eurasia.

Machine Learning for Clinical Decision-Making: Challenges and Opportunities in Cardiovascular Imaging.

The use of machine learning (ML) approaches to target clinical problems is called to revolutionize clinical decision-making in cardiology. The success of these tools is dependent on the understanding of the intrinsic processes being used during the conventional pathway by which clinicians make decisions. In a parallelism with this pathway, ML can have an impact at four levels: for data acquisition, predominantly by extracting standardized, high-quality information with the smallest possible learning curve; for feature extraction, by discharging healthcare practitioners from performing tedious measurements on raw data; for interpretation, by digesting complex, heterogeneous data in order to augment the understanding of the patient status; and for decision support, by leveraging the previous steps to predict clinical outcomes, response to treatment or to recommend a specific intervention.

Feasibility of Adsorption Kinetic Models to Study Carrier-Mediated Transport of Heavy Metal Ions in Emulsion Liquid Membranes.

Emulsion liquid membranes have been successfully used for the removal of different types of organic and inorganic pollutants by means of carrier-mediated transport mechanisms. However, the models that describe the kinetics and transport of such mechanisms are very complex due to the high number of model parameters. Starting from an analysis of the similarity between the elemental mechanisms of carrier-mediated transport in liquid membranes and of transport in adsorption processes, this paper presents an experimental analysis of the possibility of applying kinetic and mechanistic models developed for adsorption to carrier-mediated transport in emulsion liquid membranes.

An insight into microscopy and analytical techniques for morphological, structural, chemical, and thermal characterization of cellulose.

Cellulose obtained from plants is a bio-polysaccharide and the most abundant organic polymer on earth that has immense household and industrial applications. Hence, the characterization of cellulose is important for determining its appropriate applications. In this article, we review the characterization of cellulose morphology, surface topography using microscopic techniques including optical microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy.

Interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features: Evaluation of connective tissue disease incidence during follow-up.

Objectives: Among interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features (IPAF) patients, identifying those at risk to develop a connective tissue disease (CTD) during the disease course is a key issue. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of definite CTD diagnosis in IPAF patients during follow-up.

Methods: We performed a multicentric cohort study of interstitial lung disease (ILD) from 2010 to 2017 in pneumology and immunology departments of tertiary care centers.

Aging in the Digital Age: Using Technology to Increase the Reach of the Clinician Expert and Close the Gap Between Health Span and Life Span.

Age-related cognitive impairment (ARCI) has a profound impact on individuals, families, health care systems, and societies at large. Evidence suggests that ARCI is the consequence of underlying brain pathology. Therefore, efforts to minimize the impact of ARCI and thus closing the gap between health span and life span, which has widened in recent years, requires early detection and timely deployment of targeted, personalized interventions.

Oral Immunization With Plant-Based Vaccine Induces a Protective Response Against Infectious Bursal Disease.

Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) is the etiological agent of an immunosuppressive and highly contagious disease that affects young birds causing important economic losses in the poultry industry worldwide. We have previously developed a plant-based vaccine candidate for infectious bursal disease (IBD) that is able to protect against infection with IBDV when administered through intramuscular (im) route. Given that oral vaccination is non-invasive and stimulates the immunity of the mucosal gastrointestinal surface, the initial site of contact and entry of IBDV, the aim of this work was to study if our immunogen was also able to elicit a protective immune response when orally administered.

The relationship between glycosylated hemoglobin, time-in-range and glycemic variability in type 1 diabetes patients under flash glucose monitoring.

Objectives: Flash glucose monitoring in patients with type 1 diabetes provides new glucometric data that allow for the assessment of glycemic control beyond HbA. The objective of the study was to evaluate the relationship between HbA, time-in-range (TIR) and glycemic variability in a cohort of paediatric and adult patients with type 1 diabetes and treatment with flash glucose monitoring.

Material And Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in 195 patients with type 1 diabetes (42.

Cholesteryl ester transfer protein rs5833 genetic variant affect HDL-cholesterol levels and ratio total cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol in postmenopausal obese female patient.

Objective: One SNP in exon 9 (r5883) has been involved with high risk of cardiovascular disease in hypertensive subjects. The goal of the present study was to test the role of this genetic variant on lipid levels and Metabolic Syndrome (MS) in menopausal obese females.

Patients And Methods: The study enrolled a sample of 112 menopausal obese females.

Long-term exposure to environmental diclofenac concentrations impairs growth and induces molecular changes in Lymnaea stagnalis freshwater snails.

As pharmaceutical substances are highly used in human and veterinary medicine and subsequently released in the environment, they represent emerging contaminants in the aquatic compartment. Diclofenac (DCF) is one of the most commonly detected pharmaceuticals in water and little research has been focused on its long-term effects on freshwater invertebrates. In this study, we assessed the chronic impacts of DCF on the freshwater gastropod Lymnaea stagnalis using life history, behavioral and molecular approaches.

Unravelling data for rapid evidence-based response to COVID-19: a summary of the unCoVer protocol.

Introduction: unCoVer-Unravelling data for rapid evidence-based response to COVID-19-is a Horizon 2020-funded network of 29 partners from 18 countries capable of collecting and using real-world data (RWD) derived from the response and provision of care to patients with COVID-19 by health systems across Europe and elsewhere. unCoVer aims to exploit the full potential of this information to rapidly address clinical and epidemiological research questions arising from the evolving pandemic.

Methods And Analysis: From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, partners are gathering RWD from electronic health records currently including information from over 22 000 hospitalised patients with COVID-19, and national surveillance and screening data, and registries with over 1 900 000 COVID-19 cases across Europe, with continuous updates.

Tuning of the elastic modulus of a soft polythiophene through molecular doping.

Molecular doping of a polythiophene with oligoethylene glycol side chains is found to strongly modulate not only the electrical but also the mechanical properties of the polymer. An oxidation level of up to 18% results in an electrical conductivity of more than 52 S cm and at the same time significantly enhances the elastic modulus from 8 to more than 200 MPa and toughness from 0.5 to 5.

Design of interactive augmented reality functions for robotic surgery and evaluation in dry-lab lymphadenectomy.

Background: Augmented reality (AR) has been widely researched for use in healthcare. Prior AR for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery has mainly focussed on superimposing preoperative three-dimensional (3D) images onto patient anatomy. This article presents alternative interactive AR tools for robotic surgery.

Practice patterns and outcomes associated with intravenous albumin in patients with cirrhosis and acute kidney injury.

Background & Aims: Guidelines recommend albumin as the plasma-expander of choice for acute kidney injury (AKI) in cirrhosis. However, the impact of these recommendations on patient outcomes remains unclear. We aimed to determine the practice-patterns and outcomes associated with albumin use in a large, nationwide-US cohort of hospitalized cirrhotics with AKI.

Thermal Analysis of Binary Mixtures of Imidazolium, Pyridinium, Pyrrolidinium, and Piperidinium Ionic Liquids.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are being widely studied due to their unique properties, which make them potential candidates for conventional solvents. To study whether binary mixtures of pure ionic liquids provide a viable alternative to pure ionic liquids for different applications, in this work, the thermal analysis and molar heat capacities of five equimolar binary mixtures of ionic liquids based on imidazolium, pyridinium, pyrrolidinium, and piperidinium cations with dicyanamide, trifluoromethanesulfonate, and bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide anions have been performed. Furthermore, two pure ionic liquids based on piperidinium cation have been thermally characterized and the heat capacity of one of them has been measured.

Thioether-Based Polymeric Micelles with Fine-Tuned Oxidation Sensitivities for Chemotherapeutic Drug Delivery.

Oxidation-sensitive drug delivery systems (DDSs) have attracted attention due to the potential to improve efficacy and safety of chemotherapeutics. These systems are designed to release the payload in response to oxidative stress conditions, which are associated with many types of cancer. Despite extensive research on the development of oxidation-sensitive DDS, the lack of selectivity toward cancer cells over healthy cells remains a challenge.

An integrated multi-omic analysis of iPSC-derived motor neurons from C9ORF72 ALS patients.

Neurodegenerative diseases are challenging for systems biology because of the lack of reliable animal models or patient samples at early disease stages. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) could address these challenges. We investigated DNA, RNA, epigenetics, and proteins in iPSC-derived motor neurons from patients with ALS carrying hexanucleotide expansions in .

CT of acute abdominopelvic hemorrhage: protocols, pearls, and pitfalls.

Abdominal and pelvic hemorrhage may be secondary to a number of causes and is often a medical emergency. Patient presentation ranges from obvious trauma with evidence of hemodynamic instability to vague symptoms. CT has become the imaging modality of choice for identifying abdominopelvic hemorrhage.