[Characteristics of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and febrile neutropenia in children and adolescents cared for in a hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador].

With the objective of performing a clinical characterization of children and adolescents with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and febrile neutropenia in a hospital in Ecuador, a case series study was carried out, which involved reviewing the clinical records of patients receiving care at "Hospital de la Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cancer" in Guayaquil between January 2014 and April 2016. Out of the 101 patients, 51.5% were female; mean age was 5.

How Female Mice Attract Males: A Urinary Volatile Amine Activates a Trace Amine-Associated Receptor That Induces Male Sexual Interest.

Individuals of many species rely on odors to communicate, find breeding partners, locate resources and sense dangers. In vertebrates, odorants are detected by chemosensory receptors of the olfactory system. One class of these receptors, the trace amine-associated receptors (TAARs), was recently suggested to mediate male sexual interest and mate choice.

Molecular autopsy in a cohort of infants died suddenly at rest.

Sudden infant death syndrome is the leading cause of death during the first year of life. A large part of cases remains without a conclusive cause of death after complete autopsy. In these situations, cardiac arrhythmia of genetic origin is suspected as the most plausible cause of death.

Agathis trees of Patagonia's Cretaceous-Paleogene death landscapes and their evolutionary significance.

Premise Of The Study: The fossil record of Agathis historically has been restricted to Australasia. Recently described fossils from the Eocene of Patagonian Argentina showed a broader distribution than found previously, which is reinforced here with a new early Paleocene Agathis species from Patagonia. No previous phylogenetic analyses have included fossil Agathis species.

Mutations in TOP3A Cause a Bloom Syndrome-like Disorder.

Bloom syndrome, caused by biallelic mutations in BLM, is characterized by prenatal-onset growth deficiency, short stature, an erythematous photosensitive malar rash, and increased cancer predisposition. Diagnostically, a hallmark feature is the presence of increased sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) on cytogenetic testing. Here, we describe biallelic mutations in TOP3A in ten individuals with prenatal-onset growth restriction and microcephaly.

A fluorometric method for the assay of protein kinase activity.

Protein kinases constitute one of the largest protein families in nature. Current methods to assay their activity involve the use of radioactive ATP or very expensive reagents. In this work, we developed a highly sensitive, cost-effective and straightforward protocol to measure protein kinase activity using a microplate layout.

Integration of "Omics" Strategies for Biomarkers Discovery and for the Elucidation of Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Brugada Syndrome.

Purpose: The Brugada syndrome (BrS) is a severe inherited cardiac disorder. Given the high genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity of this disease, three different "omics" approaches are integrated in a synergic way to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of BrS as well as for identifying reliable diagnostic/prognostic markers.

Experimental Design: The profiling of plasma Proteome and MiRNome is perfomed in a cohort of Brugada patients that were preliminary subjected to genomic analysis to assess a peculiar gene mutation profile.

First Infusion Reactions are Mediated by FcγRIIIb and Neutrophils.

Purpose: Administration of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) is frequently accompanied by severe first infusion reactions (FIR). The mechanism driving FIR is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms causing FIR in humanized mouse models and their potential for evaluating FIR risk in patients.

Regulatory Properties of the ADP-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase from the Clostridial Firmicutes Member Ruminococcus albus.

ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase from is encoded by two genes ( and ) leading to a heterotetrameric protein structure, unlike those in other bacterial phyla. The enzymes from two groups of , and , present dissimilar kinetic and regulatory properties. Nevertheless, no ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase from , the third group in , has been characterized.

Bone marrow characterization in COPD: a multi-level network analysis.

Background: Bone marrow (BM) produces hematopoietic and progenitor cells that contribute to distant organ inflammation and repair. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by defective lung repair. Yet, BM composition has not been previously characterized in COPD patients.

Fossil moonseeds from the Paleogene of West Gondwana (Patagonia, Argentina).

Premise Of The Study: The fossil record is critical for testing biogeographic hypotheses. Menispermaceae (moonseeds) are a widespread family with a rich fossil record and alternative hypotheses related to their origin and diversification. The family is well-represented in Cenozoic deposits of the northern hemisphere, but the record in the southern hemisphere is sparse.

Hemodynamic evaluation of elderly patients during laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Objective: to demonstrate hemodynamic changes during laparoscopic cholecystectomy in elderly patients with trans-esophageal echocardiography.

Methods: we studied 31 elderly patients (aged 60 years or older), ASA I or II, who underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general, standardized anesthesia, with cardiovascular parameters measured using transesophageal echocardiography at three different times: before the pneumoperitoneum (T1), after CO2 insufflation (T2) and at deflation (T3). We statistically evaluated changes in systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure, heart rate, cardiac output and index, and ejection fraction.

Fast mapping word meanings across trials: Young children forget all but their first guess.

Do children learn a new word by tracking co-occurrences between words and referents across multiple instances ("cross-situational learning" models), or is word-learning a "one-track" process, where learners maintain a single hypothesis about the possible referent, which may be verified or falsified in future occurrences ("propose-but-verify" models)? Using a novel word-learning task, we ask which learning procedure is utilized by preschool-aged children. We report on findings from three studies comparing the word-learning strategies across different populations of child learners: monolingual English learners, Spanish - English dual language learners, and learners at risk for language-delay. In all three studies, we ask what, if anything, is retained from prior exposures and whether the amount of information retained changes as children get older.

Restoration of Peripheral Intermediate and Classical Monocytes Expressing HLA-DR in Patients With Lung Adenocarcinoma After Platinum-Based Chemotherapy.

Lung adenocarcinoma represents one of the lung cancer subtypes with major prevalence. Accumulating evidence indicates that the immune system plays an important role in the evolution of the neoplastic process; additionally, several reports suggest that chemotherapy has an immunomodulatory effect. In order to identify the peripheral subpopulations of leukocytes that may change after chemotherapy, we evaluated several peripheral immune subpopulations of monocytes and lymphocytes by multicolor flow cytometry.

Comparative study of systemic early postoperative inflammatory response among elderly and non-elderly patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Objective: to evaluate and compare the early postoperative period systemic inflammatory response between elderly and non-elderly patients submitted to laparoscopic cholecystectomy, mainly performing a quantitative analysis of interleukin-6 (IL-6), a marker of inflammatory activity systemic.

Methods: we compared a series of cases over a period of six months at the Gaffrée and Guinle University Hospital of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, involving 60 patients submitted to elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy. We used non-probabilistic sampling for convenience, selecting, from the inclusion criteria, the first 30 patients aged 18-60 years, who comprised group I, and 30 patients with age equal to or greater than 60 years, who formed group II.

Computerized tests to evaluate recovery of cognitive function after deep sedation with propofol and remifentanil for colonoscopy.

The use of sedation for diagnostic procedures including gastrointestinal endoscopy is rapidly growing. Recovery of cognitive function after sedation is important because it would be important for most patients to resume safe, normal life soon after the procedure. Computerized tests have shown being accurate descriptors of cognitive function.

Mixed Th2 and non-Th2 inflammatory pattern in the asthma-COPD overlap: a network approach.

Introduction: The asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap (ACO) is a clinical condition that combines features of those two diseases, and that is difficult to define due to the lack of understanding of the underlying mechanisms. Determining systemic mediators may help clarify the nature of inflammation in patients with ACO.

Objectives: We aimed at investigating the role and interaction of common markers of systemic inflammation (IL-6, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α), Th2-related markers (periostin, IL-5, and IL-13), and IL-17 in asthma, COPD, and ACO.

Nonclinical evaluation of immunological safety in Göttingen Minipigs: The CONFIRM initiative.

There is a growing need to consider non-rodent species for the immunological safety evaluation of drug candidates. The EU Framework-6 RETHINK Project demonstrated that the Göttingen Minipig is a relevant animal model for regulatory toxicology studies. Extensive knowledge on the immune system of domestic pigs is available and fewer differences from humans have been identified as compared to other species, such as mice or non-human primates.

Fossil flowers from the early Palaeocene of Patagonia, Argentina, with affinity to Schizomerieae (Cunoniaceae).

Background And Aims: Early Palaeocene (Danian) plant fossils from Patagonia provide information on the recovery from the end-Cretaceous extinction and Cenozoic floristic change in South America. Actinomorphic flowers with eight to ten perianth parts are described and evaluated in a phylogenetic framework. The goal of this study is to determine the identity of these fossil flowers and to discuss their evolutionary, palaeoecological and biogeographical significance.