Investigating the influence of perinatal fluoxetine exposure on murine gut microbial communities during pregnancy and lactation.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) therapy is common among perinatal populations for the treatment of mood disorders. Medications can affect diversity and composition of the gut microbiome, which plays a key role in modulating health. While previous studies have examined the effects of antidepressant exposure on the maternal gut microbiome, whether SSRI exposure affects the offspring gut microbiome is unknown.

In utero, lactational, or peripartal fluoxetine administration has differential implications on the murine maternal skeleton.

The peripartal period is marked by alterations in calcium metabolism to accommodate for embryonic skeletal mineralization and support bone development of offspring in early life, and serotonin plays a critical role in modulating peripartal bone remodeling. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are commonly used as first-line treatment for psychiatric illness during pregnancy and the postpartum period and considered safe for maternal use during this time frame. In order to evaluate the effect of peripartal alterations of the serotonergic system on maternal skeletal physiology, we treated dams with the SSRI fluoxetine during gestation only, lactation only, or during the entire peripartal period.

Hypofractionated radiotherapy recommendations for localized prostate cancer in Brasil.

Objective: Several prospective randomized trials have shown that hypofractionation has the same efficacy and safety as the conventional fractionation in the treatment of localized prostate cancer. There are many benefits of hypofractionation, including a more convenient schedule for the patients and better use of resources, which is especially important in low- and middle-income countries like Brasil. Based on these data, the Brazilian Society of Radiotherapy (Sociedade Brasileira de Radioterapia) organized this consensus to guide and support the use of hypofractionated radiotherapy for localized prostate cancer in Brasil.

Non-Hermitian CT-Symmetric Spectral Protection of Nonlinear Defect Modes.

We investigate, using a microwave platform consisting of a non-Hermitian Su-Schrieffer-Heeger array of coupled dielectric resonators, the interplay of a lossy nonlinearity and CT symmetry in the formation of defect modes. The measurements agree with the theory which predicts that, up to moderate pumping, the defect mode is an eigenstate of the CT-symmetric operator and retains its frequency at the center of the gap. At higher pumping values, the system undergoes a self-induced explicit CT-symmetry violation which removes the spectral topological protection and alters the shape of the defect mode.

Evaluation of acute skin toxicity during radiotherapy for breast cancer in elderly patients.

Background: For women with early stage breast cancer, the hypofractionation is the standard of care, whereas for women in other situations the standard dose is still recommended. Although the hypofractionation studies included elderly patients (>70 years), many studies excluded this population. The goals of this study are to demonstrate our results in terms of acute skin toxicity in elderly patients, and to show that they can receive the same treatment as young patients.