Post-operative oncological and psychological evaluation of patients with colostomy for colorectal cancer.

Background: The therapeutic arsenal for colorectal cancer is largely made up of surgery. In digestive tumors, ostomy devices induce loss of function and control. This medical device generates changes that affect all aspects of patients' lives.

Role of narrow band imaging (NBI), in the treatment of non-polypoid colorectal lesions, with endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR). A single-center experience.

Background: In this study, the authors evaluated the role of narrow band imaging endoscopy in the early detection of infiltration of the colon wall by flat and depressed lesions, highlighted during colonoscopy, to confirm the possibility of removal with Endoscopic Mucosal Resection (EMR).

Methods: 67 patients (37 males and 30 females) with non-polypoid colorectal lesions were included in this study. The location of the lesions, the size and possible infiltration of the colon wall were performed with a colonoscopy with NBI.

Selective cranial multineuritis in severe COVID-19 pneumonia: two cases and literature review.

Objective: To report two cases of cranial multineuritis after severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by coronavirus-2.

Methods: Patients' data were obtained from medical records of the clinical chart of dell'Angelo Hospital, Venice, Italy.

Results: The first patient is a 42-year-old male patient who developed, 10 days after the resolution of coronavirus-2 pneumonia and intensive care unit hospitalization with hyperactive delirium, a cranial multineuritis with asymmetric distribution (bilateral hypoglossus involvement and right Claude Bernard Horner syndrome).

A Cell-Autonomous Signature of Dysregulated Protein Phosphorylation Underlies Muscle Insulin Resistance in Type 2 Diabetes.

Skeletal muscle insulin resistance is the earliest defect in type 2 diabetes (T2D), preceding and predicting disease development. To what extent this reflects a primary defect or is secondary to tissue cross talk due to changes in hormones or circulating metabolites is unknown. To address this question, we have developed an in vitro disease-in-a-dish model using iPS cells from T2D patients differentiated into myoblasts (iMyos).

Effect of a passive exhalation port on tracheostomy ventilation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients often require long-term tracheostomy ventilation (LT-TV) because of progressive ventilatory failure. Although widely used for non-invasive ventilation (NIV), passive exhalation port systems have not been gaining popularity for TV because of the possibility of carbon dioxide (CO) rebreathing. The current study set out to investigate the effect of a Whisper Swivel connector in comparison to an active exhalation valve on gas exchange and symptoms in ALS patients requiring LT-TV.

Spontaneous pneumomediastinum complicating severe acute asthma exacerbation in adult patients.

: The real incidence of pneumomediastinum (PNM) in adult patients with severe acute asthma exacerbation continues to be unknown. The current study aims to investigate the occurrence of PNM in an adult population of patients presenting a severe asthma attack and to evaluate the risk factors associated to its development. : The 45 consecutive subjects who were admitted to our Division between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2016 for severe acute asthma exacerbation underwent a diagnostic protocol including a standard chest X-ray and continuous monitoring of arterial oxygen saturation (SaO) during the first 24 hours following admission.

Successful management of acute respiratory failure in an Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis patient using an extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal system.

Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) requiring Invasive Mechanical Ventilation (IMV) following unsuccessful treatment with Non-Invasive Ventilation (NIV) have a high mortality rate. IMV is, moreover, an independent predictor of poor outcome during the post-transplantation period in patients on waiting lists for Lung Transplantation (LT). Here we describe the successful management of an IPF patient with acute respiratory failure (ARF) using a pump-assisted veno-venous system for extracorporeal CO2 removal (ECCO2R) (ProLUNG® system) as an alternative to endotracheal intubation (ETI) following NIV failure.

Insulin Resistance in Human iPS Cells Reduces Mitochondrial Size and Function.

Insulin resistance, a critical component of type 2 diabetes (T2D), precedes and predicts T2D onset. T2D is also associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. To define the cause-effect relationship between insulin resistance and mitochondrial dysfunction, we compared mitochondrial metabolism in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from 5 healthy individuals and 4 patients with genetic insulin resistance due to insulin receptor mutations.

Myotubes derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells mirror in vivo insulin resistance.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) represent a unique tool for the study of the pathophysiology of human disease, because these cells can be differentiated into multiple cell types in vitro and used to generate patient- and tissue-specific disease models. Given the critical role for skeletal muscle insulin resistance in whole-body glucose metabolism and type 2 diabetes, we have created a novel cellular model of human muscle insulin resistance by differentiating iPS cells from individuals with mutations in the insulin receptor (IR-Mut) into functional myotubes and characterizing their response to insulin in comparison with controls. Morphologically, IR-Mut cells differentiated normally, but had delayed expression of some muscle differentiation-related genes.

Age related skeletal muscle atrophy and upregulation of autophagy in dogs.

Sarcopenia, the age related loss of muscle mass and strength, is a multifactorial condition that occurs in a variety of species and represents a major healthcare concern for older adults in human medicine. In veterinary medicine, skeletal muscle atrophy is often observed in dogs as they reach old age, but the process is not well understood. Autophagy is a mechanism for degradation and recycling of cellular constituents and is potentially involved in sarcopenia.

Genetic insulin resistance is a potent regulator of gene expression and proliferation in human iPS cells.

Insulin resistance is central to diabetes and metabolic syndrome. To define the consequences of genetic insulin resistance distinct from those secondary to cellular differentiation or in vivo regulation, we generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from individuals with insulin receptor mutations and age-appropriate control subjects and studied insulin signaling and gene expression compared with the fibroblasts from which they were derived. iPSCs from patients with genetic insulin resistance exhibited altered insulin signaling, paralleling that seen in the original fibroblasts.

A zebrafish embryo culture system defines factors that promote vertebrate myogenesis across species.

Ex vivo expansion of satellite cells and directed differentiation of pluripotent cells to mature skeletal muscle have proved difficult challenges for regenerative biology. Using a zebrafish embryo culture system with reporters of early and late skeletal muscle differentiation, we examined the influence of 2,400 chemicals on myogenesis and identified six that expanded muscle progenitors, including three GSK3β inhibitors, two calpain inhibitors, and one adenylyl cyclase activator, forskolin. Forskolin also enhanced proliferation of mouse satellite cells in culture and maintained their ability to engraft muscle in vivo.

PED/PEA-15 induces autophagy and mediates TGF-beta1 effect on muscle cell differentiation.

TGF-beta1 has been shown to induce autophagy in certain cells but whether and how this action is exerted in muscle and whether this activity relates to TGF-beta1 control of muscle cell differentiation remains unknown. Here, we show that expression of the autophagy-promoting protein phosphoprotein enriched in diabetes/phosphoprotein enriched in astrocytes (PED/PEA-15) progressively declines during L6 and C2C12 skeletal muscle cell differentiation. PED/PEA-15 underwent rapid induction upon TGF-beta1 exposure of L6 and C2C12 myoblasts, accompanied by impaired differentiation into mature myotubes.

NVC-422 topical gel for the treatment of impetigo.

Impetigo is a highly contagious bacterial skin infection affecting children worldwide that is caused by the Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, or both. Staphylococcus species can quickly develop drug resistance rendering mupirocin, fusidic acid, and erythromycin ineffective. Preclinical and clinical studies demonstrated that NVC-422 (N, N-dichloro-2, 2-dimethyltaurine) rapidly kills pathogens without the development of drug resistance.

Prep1 controls insulin glucoregulatory function in liver by transcriptional targeting of SHP1 tyrosine phosphatase.

Objective: We investigated the function of the Prep1 gene in insulin-dependent glucose homeostasis in liver.

Research Design And Methods: Prep1 action on insulin glucoregulatory function has been analyzed in liver of Prep1-hypomorphic mice (Prep1(i/i)), which express 2-3% of Prep1 mRNA.

Results: Based on euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp studies and measurement of glycogen content, livers from Prep1(i/i) mice feature increased sensitivity to insulin.

Overproduction of phosphoprotein enriched in diabetes (PED) induces mesangial expansion and upregulates protein kinase C-beta activity and TGF-beta1 expression.

Aims/hypothesis: Overproduction of phosphoprotein enriched in diabetes (PED, also known as phosphoprotein enriched in astrocytes-15 [PEA-15]) is a common feature of type 2 diabetes and impairs insulin action in cultured cells and in mice. Nevertheless, the potential role of PED in diabetic complications is still unknown.

Methods: We studied the effect of PED overproduction and depletion on kidney function in animal and cellular models.

Prep1 deficiency induces protection from diabetes and increased insulin sensitivity through a p160-mediated mechanism.

We have examined glucose homeostasis in mice hypomorphic for the homeotic transcription factor gene Prep1. Prep1-hypomorphic (Prep1(i/i)) mice exhibit an absolute reduction in circulating insulin levels but normal glucose tolerance. In addition, these mice exhibit protection from streptozotocin-induced diabetes and enhanced insulin sensitivity with improved glucose uptake and insulin-dependent glucose disposal by skeletal muscle.

Phorbol esters induce intracellular accumulation of the anti-apoptotic protein PED/PEA-15 by preventing ubiquitinylation and proteasomal degradation.

Phosphoprotein enriched in diabetes/phosphoprotein enriched in astrocytes (PED/PEA)-15 is an anti-apoptotic protein whose expression is increased in several cancer cells and following experimental skin carcinogenesis. Exposure of untransfected C5N keratinocytes and transfected HEK293 cells to phorbol esters (12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)) increased PED/PEA-15 cellular content and enhanced its phosphorylation at serine 116 in a time-dependent fashion. Ser-116 --> Gly (PED(S116G)) but not Ser-104 --> Gly (PED(S104G)) substitution almost completely abolished TPA regulation of PED/PEA-15 expression.