Can digital health researchers make a difference during the pandemic? Results of the single-arm, chatbot-led Elena+: Care for COVID-19 interventional study.

Background: The current paper details findings from Elena+: Care for COVID-19, an app developed to tackle the collateral damage of lockdowns and social distancing, by offering pandemic lifestyle coaching across seven health areas: anxiety, loneliness, mental resources, sleep, diet and nutrition, physical activity, and COVID-19 information.

Methods: The Elena+ app functions as a single-arm interventional study, with participants recruited predominantly via social media. We used paired samples -tests and within subjects ANOVA to examine changes in health outcome assessments and user experience evaluations over time.

Two Ways of Targeting a CD19 Positive Relapse of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia after Anti-CD19 CAR-T Cells.

Background: Therapeutic options for CD19 relapses after anti-CD19 CAR-T cells are still debated; second infusion of anti-CD19 CAR-T cells, therapeutic antibodies, or targeted therapies can be discussed. Here, we explore the immunophenotyping and lysis sensitivity of CD19 ALL relapse after anti-CD19 CAR-T cells and propose different therapeutic options for such a high-risk disease.

Methods: Cells from successive B-ALL relapses from one patient were collected.

Strong SARS-CoV-2 T-Cell Responses after One or Two COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Recipients.

A full exploration of immune responses is deserved after anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and boosters, especially in the context of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Although several reports indicate successful humoral responses in such patients, the literature is scarce on cellular specific immunity. Here, both B- (antibodies) and T-cell responses were explored after one (V3 = 40) or two (V4 = 12) BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine boosters in 52 allo-HSCT recipients at a median of 755 days post-transplant (<1 year = 9).

SARS-CoV-2 T-Cell Responses in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Recipients following Two Doses of BNT162b2 mRNA Vaccine.

Background: At variance to humoral responses, cellular immunity after anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines has been poorly explored in recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (Allo-HSCT), especially within the first post-transplant years where immunosuppression is more profound and harmful.

Methods: SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein-specific T-cell responses were explored after two doses of BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine in 45 Allo-HSCT recipients with a median time from transplant of less than 2 years by using INF-γ ELISPOT assay and flow-cytometry enumeration of CD4 and CD8 T lymphocytes with intracellular cytokine production of IFN-γ and TNF-α.

Results: A strong TNF-α response from SARS-CoV-2-specific CD4 T-cells was detected in a majority of humoral responders (89%) as well as in a consistent population of non-humoral responders (40%).

Anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in recipient and/or donor before allotransplant.

The impact of pre-transplant anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine in 20 recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (Allo-HSCT) and/or their donors is reported here, showing that the persistence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies can be detected in almost all patients, whatever the type of vaccine used, and up to 9 months post transplant. Also, an anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein CD3+ T-cell response could be detected in six (35%) of 17 evaluable patients. This study provides a rationale to consider anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccination of both recipients and donors before Allo-HSCT.

Scale-up of Digital Innovations in Health Care: Expert Commentary on Enablers and Barriers.

Health care delivery is undergoing a rapid change from traditional processes toward the use of digital health interventions and personalized medicine. This movement has been accelerated by the COVID-19 crisis as a response to the need to guarantee access to health care services while reducing the risk of contagion. Digital health scale-up is now also vital to achieve population-wide impact: it will only accomplish sustainable effects if and when deployed into regular health care delivery services.

The Terms of "You(s)": How the Term of Address Used by Conversational Agents Influences User Evaluations in French and German Linguaculture.

Conversational agents (CAs) are a novel approach to delivering digital health interventions. In human interactions, terms of address often change depending on the context or relationship between interlocutors. In many languages, this encompasses -formal and informal forms of the second-person pronoun "You"-that conveys different levels of familiarity.

Corrigendum: Elena+ Care for COVID-19, a Pandemic Lifestyle Care Intervention: Intervention Design and Study Protocol.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.

Elena+ Care for COVID-19, a Pandemic Lifestyle Care Intervention: Intervention Design and Study Protocol.

The current COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic is an emergency on a global scale, with huge swathes of the population required to remain indoors for prolonged periods to tackle the virus. In this new context, individuals' health-promoting routines are under greater strain, contributing to poorer mental and physical health. Additionally, individuals are required to keep up to date with latest health guidelines about the virus, which may be confusing in an age of social-media disinformation and shifting guidelines.

Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin tolerance in haemodialysis patients during COVID-19 infection.

Background: Haemodialysis patients are at risk of developing severe forms of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection: coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In March 2020, hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and azithromycin (AZI) were proposed as potential treatments of COVID-19, but with warnings concerning their possible toxicity. No data are available regarding the toxicity of this treatment in haemodialysis patients.

Merkel cell carcinoma and cellular cytotoxicity: sensitivity to cellular lysis and screening for potential target antigens suitable for antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity.

The recent success of checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) confirms that MCC tumors can be immunogenic. However, no treatment directly targeting the tumor is available for use in combination with these checkpoint inhibitors to enhance their efficacity. This study was carried out to characterize MCC line sensitivity to cellular lysis and to identify cell surface antigens that could be used for direct targeting of this tumor.

Transfection of FcγRIIIa (CD16) Alone Can Be Sufficient To Enable Human αβTCR T Lymphocytes To Mediate Antibody-Dependent Cellular Cytotoxicity.

To combine the immune potential of T cells and Ab therapy, we and others have previously shown that T cells transduction with a fusion receptor that binds the Fc portion of human Ig enable them to mediate Ab-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). The fusion receptors previously described included the FcγRIIIa (CD16) receptor coupled to different chains intended to translate the signal. In this work, we questioned whether the transfection of CD16 alone into T human lymphocytes and NK cells could be sufficient for CD16 expression and function, or whether the cotransfection of a transducing chain was mandatory.

Targeting the Wnt Pathway and Cancer Stem Cells with Anti-progastrin Humanized Antibodies as a Potential Treatment for K-RAS-Mutated Colorectal Cancer.

Patients with metastatic colorectal cancer suffer from disease relapse mainly due to cancer stem cells (CSC). Interestingly, they have an increased level of blood progastrin, a tumor-promoting peptide essential for the self-renewal of colon CSCs, which is also a direct β-catenin/TCF4 target gene. In this study, we aimed to develop a novel targeted therapy to neutralize secreted progastrin to inhibit Wnt signaling, CSCs, and reduce relapses.

Measuring and correcting wobble in large-scale transmission radiography.

Background: Large-scale transmission radiography scanners are used to image vehicles and cargo containers. Acquired images are inspected for threats by a human operator or a computer algorithm. To make accurate detections, it is important that image values are precise.

Haemodialysis patients with diabetes eat less than those without: A plea for a permissive diet.

Aim: The main cause of malnutrition in haemodialysis patients is a spontaneous decline in energy and protein intakes. This study aims to report the dietary energy intake (DEI), dietary protein intake (DPI), and dietary micronutrient intake in a French HD population, to report factors associated with a low DPI and DEI, and to analyze if nutritional intake was correlated with nutritional status.

Methods: We conducted an observational cross-sectional study in a haemodialysis population of 87 adult patients in July 2014.

Autocrine Secretion of Progastrin Promotes the Survival and Self-Renewal of Colon Cancer Stem-like Cells.

Subpopulations of cancer stem-like cells (CSC) are thought to drive tumor progression and posttreatment recurrence in multiple solid tumors. However, the mechanisms that maintain stable proportions of self-renewing CSC within heterogeneous tumors under homeostatic conditions remain poorly understood. Progastrin is a secreted peptide that exhibits tumor-forming potential in colorectal cancer, where it regulates pathways known to modulate colon CSC behaviors.

The "Dose-Effect" Relationship Between 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Muscle Strength in Hemodialysis Patients Favors a Normal Threshold of 30 ng/mL for Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D.

Objective: Muscle strength is weakened in maintenance hemodialysis patients. Strength is both a measure of a functional parameter and of frailty as it is independently associated with mortality. In the general population, observational studies show that plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) is positively correlated with muscle strength and function.

TRM6/61 connects PKCα with translational control through tRNAi(Met) stabilization: impact on tumorigenesis.

Accumulating evidence suggests that changes of the protein synthesis machinery alter translation of specific mRNAs and participate in malignant transformation. Here we show that protein kinase C α (PKCα) interacts with TRM61, the catalytic subunit of the TRM6/61 tRNA methyltransferase. The TRM6/61 complex is known to methylate the adenosine 58 of the initiator methionine tRNA (tRNAi(Met)), a nuclear post-transcriptional modification associated with the stabilization of this crucial component of the translation-initiation process.

Fluorouracil-based adjuvant chemotherapy after preoperative chemoradiotherapy in rectal cancer: long-term results of the EORTC 22921 randomised study.

Background: EORTC trial 22921 examined the addition of preoperative or postoperative chemotherapy to preoperative radiotherapy in patients with rectal cancer. After a median follow-up of 5 years, chemotherapy-irrespective of timing-significantly improved local control. Adjuvant chemotherapy did not improve survival, but the Kaplan-Meier curves diverged, suggesting possible delayed benefit.

Terminal ileum neuroendocrine incidentaloma in a patient with sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma: findings from 18F-FDOPA PET/CT investigation.

An incidentaloma is a mass lesion incidentally found, of uncertain significance, and clinically inert. Although incidentaloma is commonly referred to designate an adrenal lesion, it can denote any incidental lesion of other organs. We describe the unexpected finding of an ileum neuroendocrine incidentaloma detected by 6-L-(18F)-fluorodihydroxyphenylalanine (FDOPA) PET/CT performed in an asymptomatic patient with history of sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma and biochemical suspicion of recurrent disease.

Origin and quantification of circulating DNA in mice with human colorectal cancer xenografts.

Although circulating DNA (ctDNA) could be an attractive tool for early cancer detection, diagnosis, prognosis, monitoring or prediction of response to therapies, knowledge on its origin, form and rate of release is poor and often contradictory. Here, we describe an experimental system to systematically examine these aspects. Nude mice were xenografted with human HT29 or SW620 colorectal carcinoma (CRC) cells and ctDNA was analyzed by Q-PCR with highly specific and sensitive primer sets at different times post-graft.

Chemotherapy with preoperative radiotherapy in rectal cancer.

Background: Preoperative radiotherapy is recommended for selected patients with rectal cancer. We evaluated the addition of chemotherapy to preoperative radiotherapy and the use of postoperative chemotherapy in the treatment of rectal cancer.

Methods: We randomly assigned patients with clinical stage T3 or T4 resectable rectal cancer to receive preoperative radiotherapy, preoperative chemoradiotherapy, preoperative radiotherapy and postoperative chemotherapy, or preoperative chemoradiotherapy and postoperative chemotherapy.