Regulatory role of CD39 and CD73 in tumor immunity.

CD39 is the rate-limiting enzyme for the molecular signal cascade leading to the generation of ADP and adenosine monophosphate (AMP). In conjunction with CD73, CD39 converts adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to ADP and AMP, which leads to the accumulation of immunosuppressive adenosine in the tumor microenvironment. This review focuses on the role of CD39 and CD73 in immune response and malignant progression, including the expression of CD39 within the tumor microenvironment and its relationship to immune effector cells, and its role in antigen presentation.

Outcomes of shared institutional review board compared with multiple individual site institutional review board models in a multisite clinical trial.

Background: Institutional review boards play a crucial role in initiating clinical trials. Although many multicenter clinical trials use an individual institutional review board model, where each institution uses their local institutional review board, it is unknown if a shared (single institutional review board) model would reduce the time required to approve a standard institutional review board protocol.

Objective: This study aimed to compare processing times and other processing characteristics between sites using a single institutional review board model and those using their individual site institutional review board model in a multicenter clinical trial.

Leaving no one behind: targeting mobile and migrant populations with health interventions for disease elimination-a descriptive systematic review.

Background: Mobile and migrant populations (MMPs) pose a unique challenge to disease elimination campaigns as they are often hard to survey and reach with treatment. While some elimination efforts have had success reaching MMPs, other campaigns are struggling to do so, which may be affecting progress towards disease control and elimination. Therefore, this paper reviews the literature on elimination campaigns targeting MMPs across a selection of elimination diseases-neglected tropical diseases, malaria, trypanosomiasis, polio, smallpox, and rinderpest.

Community-level trachoma ecological associations and the use of geospatial analysis methods: A systematic review.

Background: Trachoma is targeted for global elimination as a public health problem by 2030. Understanding individual, household, or community-associated factors that may lead to continued transmission or risk of recrudescence in areas where elimination has previously been achieved, is essential in reaching and maintaining trachoma elimination. We aimed to identify climatic, demographic, environmental, infrastructural, and socioeconomic factors associated in the literature with trachoma at community-level and assess the strength of their association with trachoma.

Evaluation and pharmacologic approach to patients with resistant hypertension.

Patients are diagnosed as having resistant hypertension when they have blood pressure readings that remain above goal despite the concomitant use of 3 optimally dosed antihypertensive agents from different classes, with 1 of the agents being a diuretic. Prior to diagnosing a patient as having resistant hypertension, it is important to document adherence and exclude white-coat hypertension, inaccurate measurement of blood pressure, and secondary causes of hypertension (eg, aldosterone excess). After determining resistance, optimization of the medication regimen is essential.

Pseudo-Parkinson disease secondary to ritonavir-buspirone interaction.

Objective: To report a case of Parkinson-like symptoms appearing in a patient after introduction of ritonavir to buspirone therapy.

Case Summary: A 54-year-old HIV-positive white man presented to the clinic with a 2-week history of ataxia, shuffling gait, cogwheel rigidity, resting tremor, and sad affect with masked features. This patient had been receiving high-dose buspirone (40 mg every morning and 30 mg every evening) for 2 years prior to the introduction of ritonavir/indinavir combination therapy (400 mg/400 mg twice daily) 6 weeks prior to initiation of the above symptoms.