Cell and Tissue Imaging by TOF-SIMS and MALDI-TOF: An Overview for Biological and Pharmaceutical Analysis.

The potential of mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) has been demonstrated in cell and tissue research since 1970. MSI can reveal the spatial distribution of a wide range of atomic and molecular ions detected from biological sample surfaces, it is a powerful and valuable technique used to monitor and detect diverse chemical and biological compounds, such as drugs, lipids, proteins, and DNA. MSI techniques, notably matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight (MALDI-TOF) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), witnessed a dramatic upsurge in studying and investigating biological samples especially, cells and tissue sections.

Sensor-Based Frailty Assessment in Survivors of Childhood Cancer: A Pilot Study.

Background: Survivors of childhood cancer (CCS) are at risk for early aging and frailty. Frailty in CCS has been assessed with established clinical criteria, a time-intensive approach requiring specialized training. There is an unmet need for cost-effective, rapid methods for assessing frailty in at-risk adolescent and young adult (AYA) CCS, which are scalable to large populations.

What is the fate of multi-lamellar liposomes of controlled size, charge and elasticity in artificial and animal skin?

Multi-lamellar liposomes (MLLs), prepared by shearing a lamellar phase composed of lipids (phosphatidylcholine) and surfactant (Tween 80®), were designed to control their size, charge and elasticity, the key parameters known to influence liposomes penetration through skin. Their size was tuned by the water content of the sheared lamellar phase, and by the surfactant-to-lipid ratio as was their elasticity. Their charge was varied by the incorporation of DPPG and DOTAP to confer a high negative or positive zeta potential, respectively.

Wearable Sensor-Based Digital Biomarker to Estimate Chest Expansion During Sit-to-Stand Transitions-A Practical Tool to Improve Sternal Precautions in Patients Undergoing Median Sternotomy.

Sternal precautions are a universal part of the discharge education for post-sternotomy patients to reduce the risk of sternal complications. However, they are always designed based on physical therapists' or surgeons' subjective judgment without any objective evidence. Thus, they could be overly restrictive to hinder the patients' recovery, physically and psychologically.

Topography Measurements Using High Mass Resolution Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry: Application to Banknotes.

An unconventional approach using the time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) technique to determine the height topography at the microscale is detailed in this work with an application to cotton paper banknotes. The study was conducted by determining the effect of all related factors and parameters on the height measurement by taking the simplest model made from two Post-it sheets. For each sample, the difference in the TOF of the same secondary ion coming from two different heights was successfully attributed to the step height of the studied areas' topography, which was measured using classic methods.

A Mineralogical Context for the Organic Matter in the Paris Meteorite Determined by A Multi-Technique Analysis.

This study is a multi-technique investigation of the Paris carbonaceous chondrite directly applied on two selected 500 × 500 µm² areas of a millimetric fragment, without any chemical extraction. By mapping the partial hydration of the amorphous silicate phase dominating the meteorite sample matrix, infrared spectroscopy gave an interesting glimpse into the way the fluid may have circulated into the sample and partially altered it. The TOF-SIMS in-situ analysis allowed the studying and mapping of the wide diversity of chemical moieties composing the meteorite organic content.

A click mediated route to a novel fluorescent pyridino-extended calix[4]pyrrole sensor: synthesis and binding studies.

A novel fluorescent aryl-extended phenoxycalix[4]pyrrole ditopic sensor with enhanced cation recognition properties was efficiently synthesized via click chemistry and characterized through both molecular fluorescence and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results demonstrate the selectivity of this fluorescent sensor for fluoride when taking into account its interaction with anions, while its cation binding properties showed selectivity for iron, and its sensing properties for several cations in dimethylsulfoxide. This work introduces a new ditopic receptor able to complex major environmentally relevant species and depicts the importance of click chemistry in the introduction of new tetra-chromophoric calix[4]pyrrole binding platforms with specific photophysical properties.

Kidney Lipidomics by Mass Spectrometry Imaging: A Focus on the Glomerulus.

Lipid disorders have been associated with glomerulopathies, a distinct type of renal pathologies, such as nephrotic syndrome. Global analyses targeting kidney lipids in this pathophysiologic context have been extensively performed, but most often regardless of the architectural and functional complexity of the kidney. The new developments in mass spectrometry imaging technologies have opened a promising field in localized lipidomic studies focused on this organ.

High mass and spatial resolution mass spectrometry imaging of Nicolas Poussin painting cross section by cluster TOF-SIMS.

The painting Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well, which hangs in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK, is possibly one of the last figure painting executed by Nicolas Poussin at the very end of his life and is usually dated to the early 1660s. In this perspective special feature, Philippe Walter, Alain Brunelle and colleagues give new insights on the artist's working methods by a careful stateof-the-art imaging ToF-SIMS study of one sample taken on the edge of the painting. This approach allowed for the identification of the pigments used in the painting, their nature and components and those of the ground and preparatory layers, with the identification of the binder(s) and possible other additions of organic materials such as glue.

High mass and spatial resolution mass spectrometry imaging of Nicolas Poussin painting cross section by cluster TOF-SIMS.

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) imaging using cluster primary ion beams is used for the identification of the pigments in the painting of Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well by Nicolas Poussin. The combination of the high mass resolution of the technique with a sub-micrometer spatial resolution offered by a delayed extraction of the secondary ions, together with the possibility to simultaneously identifying both minerals and organics, has proved to be the method of choice for the study of the stratigraphy of a paint cross section. The chemical compositions of small grains are shown with the help of a thorough processing of the data, with images of specific ions, mass spectra extracted from small regions of interest, and profiles drawn along the different painting layers.

Gestational choriocarcinoma at Ibn Rochd Hospital, Casablanca, 2004-2010.

The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the frequency, risk factors, management and prognosis of gestational choriocarcinoma at the gynaecology-obstetrics C department of the Ibn Rochd Hospital in Casablanca, Morocco over a 7-year period (2004-2010). There were 18 760 pregnancies in the study period, among which 8 cases of gestational choriocarcinoma were recorded, a frequency of 43/100 000 or 1 case of gestational choriocarcinoma in 2345 pregnancies. Maternal age ranged from 20 to 48 years.

PIXE as a complement to ICP-OES trace metal analysis in Sudanese medicinal plants.

This paper compares trace element concentrations (Ca, K, Sr, Fe, Mn, Zn, Ni, Cu, Co and Cr) in 27 Sudanese medical plants determined in parallel by PIXE and ICP-OES to get information on which technique is preferable at different matrices and element concentrations. PIXE correlates well to ICP-OES for Sr, Mn, Ca, K, Zn and Fe determinations. ICP-OES seems to be the superior technique over PIXE when measuring low concentrated elements (chromium, cobalt, nickel and copper) in the medicinal plants.

[Hyperthyroidism in molar pregnancy].

Introduction: Hyperthyroidism is a rare complication of molar pregnancy.

Case Report: We report a 39-year-old woman who presented a thyrotoxic syndrome accompanying a molar pregnancy. Serum thyroid hormones were elevated and returned to normal level after uterine evacuation of a molar pregnancy.

[Breast angiosarcoma: a case report].

The breast angiosarcoma is an endothelial malign tumor. Its prevalence is about 0.04% of all breast malignant tumors.

[Pregnancy in Gaucher disease].

Gaucher disease is a lysosomal storage disorder due to deficiency of glucocerebrosidase. The association with pregnancy exposes the worsening of the disease and complications of pregnancy and puerperium. We report a case of pregnancy in a woman of 35 years, suffering from Gaucher disease type 1.

[Partial hydatidiform mole in Morocco: an epidemiological and clinical study].

This retrospective study reviewed cases of partial hydatidiform mole (PHM) diagnosed at the University Hospital in Casablanca from 2000 to 2010 in order to examine the epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and progressive pathological factors associated with PHM. All PHM cases confirmed clinically and sonographically at pathological examination were included. We identified 24 cases of PHM among 60 748 births and 1704 abortions, giving a frequency of 0.

Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis: a report of twenty cases.

Introduction: Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis is a benign lesion of the mammary gland characterised by the presence of non-infectious inflammatory breast lesions limited to the lobules.

Objective: We report twenty cases of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) with a discussion of epidemiology, clinical and diagnostic features, treatment and progress of this pathological entity.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective study of twenty cases compiled from a ten-year period, from 952 pathological anatomy examinations carried out to investigate various breast pathologies.

[Pregnancy and extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumor: an exceptional association].

Extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumors (EGIST) are rare entities. The coexistence of a gastrointestinal stromal tumor and pregnancy is exceptional. We describe a case of this association, three years after the first diagnosis of EGIST made during exploratory laparotomy for abdominal-pelvic mass.

[Physical violence during pregnancy in Morocco].

Introduction: Physical abuse are a serious social problem and an issue of perinatal health.

Material And Methods: This article presents the results of a survey conducted at the CHU Ibn Rochd of Casablanca (Morocco), over a period of one year, in order to determine their frequency, risk factors, maternal diseases and obstetric complications.

Results: The results of our survey found that women who reported physical abuse have a frequency of 12.