Publications by authors named "Rimvydas Norvilas"

Fluorescent protein-based Genetically Encoded Voltage Indicators (GEVI) offer a remarkable system for high-throughput screening of membrane potential phenotypes. The GEVI MARINA is a derivative from ArcLight, which conversely to ArcLight increases its fluorescence intensity alongside depolarization. Here we created knock-in reporter human iPS cell lines carrying the MARINA reporter using SpCas9 programmable nuclease and characterize a heterozygous clone.

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Metaplastic thymoma is a rare biphasic thymic tumor with indolent behavior and recurrent gene rearrangement. Although the diagnosis of this tumor is usually straightforward based on hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) findings alone, cases with scant spindle-cell ("pseudosarcomatous stroma") components can be easily confused with more commonly occurring type A thymoma. We present a case of metaplastic thymoma with a sparse stroma-like spindle-cell component, discussing its histological and immunohistochemical hints and drawing attention to the visual similarity to type A thymoma.

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Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) with recurrent genetic lesions, affecting a series of kinase genes, is associated with unfavorable prognosis, however, it could benefit from treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI). :: fusion is detected in 6% of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), and is very rare in B-ALL. We present a case of adolescent with B-ALL and a cryptic :: fusion which was initially missed during diagnostic screening and was detected by additional RNA sequencing.

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Background: T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is a genetically diverse disease characterized by a heterogeneous profile of genetic lesions. Recent transcriptome studies identified a number of new T-ALL-related gene fusions. Novel gene fusions could be employed as disease-specific molecular markers and provide a better understanding of T-ALL biology, proving the need for further omics sequencing studies.

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Article Synopsis
  • Distinct SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.620 was identified in Lithuania, featuring multiple mutations in the spike protein commonly found in concerning variants like E484K and S477N.
  • The study highlights the lineage's potential resistance to neutralizing antibodies and documents local instances of transmission in Europe, particularly in Lithuania.
  • Evidence suggests that B.1.620 likely originated in Central Africa, supported by advanced phylogeographic methods and travel history data from infected individuals.
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Hepatoid adenocarcinoma is an extremely aggressive special subtype of gastric tumors. It can be lethal as no standard treatment options for this type of gastric cancer exist. Here, we describe a very rare case of a young female on her 21 week of pregnancy who was diagnosed with stage IV hepatoid adenocarcinoma of the stomach with elevated α fetoprotein (AFP) level.

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Summary Background: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is a heritable cardiomyopathy, characterized by fibrofatty replacement of myocytes in the right ventricular, left ventricular or both ventricles. It is caused by pathogenic variants of genes encoding desmosomal (, , , , and non-desmosomal proteins, and is one of the most common causes of sudden cardiac death in young athletes. Therefore, early identification, correct prevention and treatment can prevent adverse outcomes.

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Background: ABL-class and JAK-STAT signaling pathway activating alterations have been associated with both a poor post-induction minimal residual disease (MRD) response and an inferior outcome in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). However, in most of the studies patients received non-uniform treatment.

Methods: We performed a population-based analysis of 160 (122 pediatric and 38 adult) Lithuanian BCR-ABL1-negative B-ALL patients who had been uniformly treated according to MRD-directed NOPHO ALL-2008 protocol.

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Objectives And Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis to evaluate the outcomes of 28 heavily pretreated (median 3 (2-6) treatment lines, sixteen (57%) allotransplanted) relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia patients who had failed salvage venetoclax-based therapies.

Results: The median age was 59 years (20-80), 20 patients (71%) had ECOG 2-4 status, and 18 patients (64%) were stratified to European Leukemia Network 2017 adverse risk group. The most common mutations were ASXL1 (21%), RUNX1 (18%), FLT3 ITD/TKD (18%), PTPN11 (15%), NRAS/KRAS (15%), and WT1 (15%).

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Germline protein truncating variants (PTVs) in the gene have been associated with a 2-4-fold increased breast cancer risk in case-control studies conducted in different European populations. However, the distribution and the frequency of PTVs in Europe have never been investigated. In the present study, we collected the data of 114 European female breast cancer cases with PTVs ascertained in 20 centers from 13 European countries.

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Introduction: Autosomal recessive hypercholesterolemia (ARH; OMIM #603813) is a very rare monogenic disorder affecting less than 1 in 1000,000 people and is characterized by very high levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), leading to aggressive and premature atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease if left untreated. Lowering of LDL-C is the main target of the treatment. We report on a 29-year-old male patient born in nonconsanguineous Lithuanian family homo(hemi-)zygous for LDLRAP1 gene variant causing ARH.

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