Circulating miRNAs as potential biomarkers of therapy effectiveness in rheumatoid arthritis patients treated with anti-TNFα.

Introduction: The advent of anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha (anti-TNFα) drugs has considerably improved medical management in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, although it has been reported to be ineffective in a fraction of them. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, non-coding RNAs that act as fine-tuning regulators of gene expression. Targeting miRNAs by gain or loss of function approaches have brought therapeutic effects in various disease models.

Sources of variability of the van Herick technique for anterior angle estimation.

Background: The purpose of the present study was to investigate two potential sources of variability of the traditional van Herick technique for temporal anterior chamber angle estimation, namely the need to compare the depth of the peripheral anterior chamber (PACD) with the thickness of the peripheral cornea (PCT), and the possible loss of information resulting from restricting the assessment of the anterior chamber angle (ACA) to the temporal limbus.

Methods: Both image analysis and Scheimpflug photography were employed to measure PCT and PACD in a group of 82 eyes (mean ± SD age of 32.8 ± 4.