Publications by authors named "Mortimer P"

Article Synopsis
  • - Bats are a major group of mammals with a unique immune system and play a role in spreading diseases (zoonoses) and fungi, affecting plants, animals, and humans.
  • - In Yunnan Province, China, researchers identified 75 fungal species from bats, with 36 being known pathogens and 39 non-pathogenic; the majority (77%) belonged to the Ascomycota group.
  • - Although there have been studies on fungi associated with bats, there's a significant gap in research regarding their role as carriers of fungi, emphasizing the need to understand their ecological impact.
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  • The study aimed to describe a technique called DCMRL to identify central lymphatic abnormalities in patients with primary lymphatic issues and discuss the usefulness of the findings.
  • Twenty-eight patients underwent dynamic MRI after gadolinium was injected into their inguinal lymph nodes, with a technical success rate of 82.1%.
  • The results revealed various lymphatic pathologies, such as obstructions and leaks, and led to protocol improvements for better imaging; two patients benefited from embolization, demonstrating DCMRL's safety and effectiveness.
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Fungi are among the most diverse and ecologically important kingdoms in life. However, the distributional ranges of fungi remain largely unknown as do the ecological mechanisms that shape their distributions. To provide an integrated view of the spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi, we implemented a globally distributed standardized aerial sampling of fungal spores.

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Novel methods for sampling and characterizing biodiversity hold great promise for re-evaluating patterns of life across the planet. The sampling of airborne spores with a cyclone sampler, and the sequencing of their DNA, have been suggested as an efficient and well-calibrated tool for surveying fungal diversity across various environments. Here we present data originating from the Global Spore Sampling Project, comprising 2,768 samples collected during two years at 47 outdoor locations across the world.

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This article presents the results of an ongoing inventory of Ascomycota in Yunnan, China, carried out as part of the research project series "Exploring ascomycete diversity in Yunnan". From over 100 samples collected from diverse host substrates, microfungi have been isolated, identified and are currently being documented. The primary objective of this research is to promote the discovery of novel taxa and explore the ascomycete diversity in the region, utilising a morphology-phylogeny approach.

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Background: Despite an increased interest in visualizing the lymphatic vessels with magnetic resonance lymphangiography (MRL), little literature is available describing their appearance in nonlymphedematous individuals. To determine lymphatic abnormalities, an understanding of how healthy lymphatic vessels appear and behave needs to be established. Therefore, in this study, MRL of individuals without a history of lymphatic disease was performed.

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Lymphedema and lipedema are debilitating conditions with no proven drug or surgical therapy. Effective treatment requires self-management through movement and compression to reduce limb volume and the incidence of cellulitis. The addition of personalized everyday physical activity (PA) could be transformative, increasing the therapy window to include all waking hours per week and enabling an increased dose of PA.

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Whilst conducting surveys of lignicolous microfungi in Yunnan Province, we collected a large number of taxa that resemble (Didymosphaeriaceae, Pleosporales). Our phylogenetic study on involved analysing sequence data from ribosomal RNA genes (nc18S, nc28S, ITS) and protein-coding genes (2, 1-α). We present a biphasic approach (morphological and molecular phylogenetic evidence) that supports the recognition of four new species in .

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Purpose: AcSé-ESMART Arm C aimed to define the recommended dose and activity of the WEE1 inhibitor adavosertib in combination with carboplatin in children and young adults with molecularly enriched recurrent/refractory malignancies.

Patients And Methods: Adavosertib was administered orally, twice every day on Days 1 to 3 and carboplatin intravenously on Day 1 of a 21-day cycle, starting at 100 mg/m2/dose and AUC 5, respectively. Patients were enriched for molecular alterations in cell cycle and/or homologous recombination (HR).

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Introduction: The lymphatic system has a pivotal role in immune homeostasis. To better understand this, we investigated the impact of Primary Lymphatic Anomalies (PLA) on lymphocyte numbers and phenotype.

Methods: The study comprised (i) a retrospective cohort: 177 PLA subjects from the National Primary Lymphatic Anomaly Register with clinical and laboratory data, and (ii) a prospective cohort: 28 patients with PLA and 20 healthy controls.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study analyzes soil fungal diversity globally by examining over 4,000 topsoil samples from various ecosystems, revealing how different environmental factors influence fungal communities.
  • It demonstrates the effects of temperature and precipitation on local species richness (alpha diversity) and how these factors contribute to variations in fungal composition and evolutionary relationships (beta and phylogenetic diversity).
  • The research integrates fungal diversity into global biodiversity frameworks, providing maps and insights that can aid in conservation efforts and ecological studies worldwide.
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  • - The study assessed the effectiveness of the DDR-targeting drug olaparib, both alone and with the ATR inhibitor ceralasertib, in patients with relapsed small cell lung cancer (SCLC) who previously did not respond to standard treatments.
  • - Results showed a low objective response rate for olaparib monotherapy at 6.7%, with better disease control rates noted in the combination therapy group (42.3%) despite both arms showing limited effectiveness.
  • - The findings suggest that while the treatments didn't meet target efficacy goals, the combination therapy showed potential for greater disease stabilization, indicating a need for more research on different combinations and patient selection for optimal outcomes.
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Superficial erythematous cutaneous vascular malformations are assumed to be blood vascular in origin, but cutaneous lymphatic malformations can contain blood and appear red. Management may be different and so an accurate diagnosis is important. Cutaneous malformations were investigated through 2D histology and 3D whole-mount histology.

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Chronic Granulomatous Disease (CGD) is an inborn error of immunity characterised by opportunistic infection and sterile granulomatous inflammation. CGD is caused by a failure of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by the phagocyte NADPH oxidase. Mutations in the genes encoding phagocyte NADPH oxidase subunits cause CGD.

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  • Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a neglected tropical disease that primarily causes swelling (lymphoedema) and lacks effective treatments, but integrative medicine (IM) combining Ayurveda, yoga, and other therapies shows promise.
  • The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of IM on managing lower-limb lymphoedema and its alignment with WHO goals for LF management, using data from 1698 patients over nine years.
  • Results indicated a significant reduction in limb volume (24.5% decrease), improvement in bacterial entry points, and overall health-related quality of life, suggesting IM's positive impact on LF treatment outcomes.
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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) immune responses and infection outcomes were evaluated in 2,686 patients with varying immune-suppressive disease states after administration of two Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines. Overall, 255 of 2,204 (12%) patients failed to develop anti-spike antibodies, with an additional 600 of 2,204 (27%) patients generating low levels (<380 AU ml). Vaccine failure rates were highest in ANCA-associated vasculitis on rituximab (21/29, 72%), hemodialysis on immunosuppressive therapy (6/30, 20%) and solid organ transplant recipients (20/81, 25% and 141/458, 31%).

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Fungi are considered among the most efficient microbial degraders of plastics, as they produce salient enzymes and can survive on recalcitrant compounds with limited nutrients. In recent years, studies have reported numerous species of fungi that can degrade different types of plastics, yet there remain many gaps in our understanding of the processes involved in biodegradation. In addition, many unknowns need to be resolved regarding the fungal enzymes responsible for plastic fragmentation and the regulatory mechanisms which fungi use to hydrolyse, assimilate and mineralize synthetic plastics.

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Fungal pathogens have become an increasingly important topic in recent decades. Yet whilst various cankers and blights have gained attention in temperate woodlands and crops, the scope for fungal pathogens of animals and their potential threat has received far less attention. With a shifting climate, the threat from fungal pathogens is predicted to increase in the future, thus understanding the spread of fungi over landscapes as well as taxa that may be at risk is of particular importance.

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Background: Loss of PTEN function leads to increased PI3Kβ signaling. AZD8186, a selective PI3Kβ/δ inhibitor, has shown anti-tumor activity in PTEN-deficient preclinical models. Although the combination of AZD8186 and paclitaxel was well tolerated, limited clinical efficacy was observed in advanced gastric cancer with PTEN loss.

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Patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) are at high risk of severe COVID-19. Here, we perform longitudinal blood sampling of ESKD haemodialysis patients with COVID-19, collecting samples pre-infection, serially during infection, and after clinical recovery. Using plasma proteomics, and RNA-sequencing and flow cytometry of immune cells, we identify transcriptomic and proteomic signatures of COVID-19 severity, and find distinct temporal molecular profiles in patients with severe disease.

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Dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance lymphangiography (DCE-MRL) is regularly reported as unable to depict lymphatic vessels in healthy limbs. In this study, we aim to improve lymph vessel conspicuity with appropriate registration and subtraction of a reference baseline image. Five unaffected individuals and a single unilateral primary lymphoedema patient were recruited to undergo fat suppressed 3D weighted spoiled gradient echo imaging of the lower limbs at 3.

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Background: Fluorescence imaging with indocyanine green is increasingly used during lymphedema patient management. However, to date, no guidelines exist on when it should and should not be used or how it should be performed. Our objective was to have an international panel of experts identify areas of consensus and nonconsensus in current attitudes and practices in fluorescence imaging with indocyanine green use during lymphedema surgery patient management.

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EROS (essential for reactive oxygen species) protein is indispensable for expression of gp91, the catalytic core of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase. EROS deficiency in humans is a novel cause of the severe immunodeficiency, chronic granulomatous disease, but its mechanism of action was unknown until now. We elucidate the role of EROS, showing it acts at the earliest stages of gp91 maturation.

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The RASopathies are a group of genetic conditions resulting from mutations within the RAS/mitogen-activated protein kinase (RAS-MAPK) pathway. Lymphatic abnormalities are commonly associated with these conditions, however central conducting lymphatic abnormalities (CCLA) have only recently been described. CCLAs may be progressive and can result in devastating systemic sequelae, such as recurrent chylothoraces, chylopericardium and chylous ascites which can cause significant morbidity and even mortality.

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Lipoedema is a chronic adipose tissue disorder mainly affecting women, causing excess subcutaneous fat deposition on the lower limbs with pain and tenderness. There is often a family history of lipoedema, suggesting a genetic origin, but the contribution of genetics is currently unclear. A tightly phenotyped cohort of 200 lipoedema patients was recruited from two UK specialist clinics.

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