A practical laboratory method to determine ceftazidime-avibactam-aztreonam synergy in patients with New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM)-producing Enterobacterales infection.

Objectives: In response to infection with New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM)-producing Enterobacterales, combination antimicrobial therapy with ceftazidime/avibactam (CAZ/AVI) plus aztreonam (ATM) has been explored. This study evaluated a practical laboratory method of testing for clinically significant synergy between CAZ/AVI+ATM in NDM-producing Enterobacterales.

Methods: Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of clinical NDM-producing isolates were determined for ATM alone and CAZ/AVI+ATM using broth dilution.

Effect of Endobronchial Coils vs Usual Care on Exercise Tolerance in Patients With Severe Emphysema: The RENEW Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Preliminary clinical trials have demonstrated that endobronchial coils compress emphysematous lung tissue and may improve lung function, exercise tolerance, and symptoms in patients with emphysema and severe lung hyperinflation.

Objective: To determine the effectiveness and safety of endobronchial coil treatment.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Randomized clinical trial conducted among 315 patients with emphysema and severe air trapping recruited from 21 North American and 5 European sites from December 2012 through November 2015.

From the primordial soup to self-driving cars: standards and their role in natural and technological innovation.

Standards are specifications to which the elements of a technology must conform. Here, we apply this notion to the biochemical 'technologies' of nature, where objects like DNA and proteins, as well as processes like the regulation of gene activity are highly standardized. We introduce the concept of standards with multiple examples, ranging from the ancient genetic material RNA, to Palaeolithic stone axes, and digital electronics, and we discuss common ways in which standards emerge in nature and technology.

Molecular testing guidelines for lung adenocarcinoma: Utility of cell blocks and concordance between fine-needle aspiration cytology and histology samples.

Background: Lung cancer is a leading cause of mortality, and patients often present at a late stage. More recently, advances in screening, diagnosing, and treating lung cancer have been made. For instance, greater numbers of minimally invasive procedures are being performed, and identification of lung adenocarcinoma driver mutations has led to the implementation of targeted therapies.

The efficacy of EBUS-guided transbronchial needle aspiration for molecular testing in lung adenocarcinoma.

Background: The purpose of the study was to assess the efficacy of obtaining adequate cytologic specimens by endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) for molecular testing of lung adenocarcinomas.

Methods: This was an institutional review board-approved study of all patients who had undergone EBUS-TBNA from April 2010 through March 2012 for the diagnosis, staging, or both of lung cancer. Patients with a diagnosis of adenocarcinoma were reflexively tested for molecular markers by polymerase chain reaction, sequencing, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH).