Enhancing immunotherapy through PD-L1 upregulation: the promising combination of anti-PD-L1 plus mTOR inhibitors.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway have transformed urothelial cancer (UC) therapy. The correlation between PD-L1 expression and ICI effectiveness is uncertain, leaving the role of PD-L1 as a predictive marker for ICI efficacy unclear. Among several ways to enhance the efficacy of ICI, trials are exploring combining ICIs with serine/threonine-protein kinase mTOR (mTOR) inhibitors in different tumor types.

Novel Oral mTORC1/2 Inhibitor TAK-228 Has Synergistic Antitumor Effects When Combined with Paclitaxel or PI3Kα Inhibitor TAK-117 in Preclinical Bladder Cancer Models.

Advanced bladder cancer is associated with a poor prognosis and limited treatment options. The PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway is frequently activated in this disease and can be a potential therapeutic target for treatment intervention. We studied the antitumor efficacy of a new targeted therapy, TAK-228 (oral mTORC1/2 inhibitor), in preclinical models of bladder cancer.

The effect of smoking on prostate cancer survival: a cohort analysis in Barcelona.

The aim of this study was to analyse the effect of smoking on prostate cancer-specific mortality and all-cause mortality. A retrospective cohort study was conducted with 1109 patients with prostate cancer diagnosed from 1992 to 2008, identified through the Hospital del Mar Cancer Registry (Barcelona, Spain). Information on smoking habits was retrieved from clinical records and patients were classified into three categories: never smoker, exsmoker and current smoker.

Cell and tissue interactions of Treponema pallidum in primary and secondary syphilitic skin lesions: an ultrastructural study of serial sections.

There are limited reports on the ultrastructure of syphilis skin lesions. The aim of this study has been to perform an electron microscopic investigation of the morphology and the tissue distribution of treponemes in primary and secondary cutaneous lesions. Three cases of primary syphilitic chancre and one case of secondary syphilis were included.

Treponema pallidum distribution patterns in mucocutaneous lesions of primary and secondary syphilis: an immunohistochemical and ultrastructural study.

To study the different patterns of Treponema pallidum distribution in primary and secondary syphilis, 34 biopsy specimens of 8 patients with primary and 26 with secondary syphilis were assessed. Histopathological features, silver stain, and immunohistochemical T pallidum polyclonal antibody expression were investigated. The number and distribution of spirochetes were evaluated, and ultrastructural studies were performed.

[Acquired male urethra diverticula. Report of seven cases. Bibliographic review].

Objectives: To report our personal experience in a rare urethral pathology in relation with iatrogenic sequelae from surgical treatment of lower urinary tract pathologies.

Methods: We analyze the causes, type of presentation, and surgical treatment of seven cases of urethral diverticula, which account for 2.18% of the urethral procedures performed in our department, this latter representing 2.