Bone adaptation of a biologically reconstructed femur after Ewing sarcoma: Long-term morphological and densitometric evolution.

Combining bone allografts and vascularized fibular autografts in intercalary reconstructions after resection of bone sarcomas is of particular interest in young patients as it facilitates bone healing and union and helps reduce fractures. However, adverse events related to bone adaptation still occur. Bone adaptation is driven by mechanical loading, but no quantitative biomechanical studies exist that would help surgical planning and rehabilitation.

Simulation-guided navigation for vector control in pediatric mandibular distraction osteogenesis.

Aim: Navigation technology has given surgeons the capacity to know precisely where their instruments are during surgery, and simulation-guided navigation is a surgical method which is based on the use of navigation technology linked to 3D virtual surgery simulation. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the absolute accuracy of simulation-guided navigation as an aid to reproduce the planned position of the distraction device vector in pediatric mandibular distraction osteogenesis.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively evaluated seven patients affected by unilateral (3 pts.

Navigation in Orthognathic Surgery: 3D Accuracy.

This article aims to determine the absolute accuracy of maxillary repositioning during orthognathic surgery according to simulation-guided navigation, that is, the combination of navigation and three-dimensional (3D) virtual surgery. We retrospectively studied 15 patients treated for asymmetric dentofacial deformities at the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit of the S.Orsola-Malpighi University Hospital in Bologna, Italy, from January 2010 to January 2012.

Microbiological assay for the determination of azithromycin in ophthalmic solutions.

The validation of a simple, sensitive and specific agar diffusion bioassay, applying cylinder-plate method, for the determination of the antibiotic azithromycin in ophthalmic solutions is described. Using a strain of Bacillus subtilis ATCC 9372 as the test organism, azithromycin at concentrations ranging from 50.0 to 200.

Expression of the inhibitory receptor ILT3 on dendritic cells is dispensable for induction of CD4+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3.

1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1,25(OH)(2)D(3)) is a secosteroid hormone that renders dendritic cells (DCs) tolerogenic, favoring the induction of regulatory T cells. Induction of DCs with tolerogenic properties by 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) is associated with increased selective expression of immunoglobulin-like transcript 3 (ILT3), suggesting its involvement in the immunoregulatory properties of this hormone. Here we show an in vivo correlate of the increased ILT3 expression on DCs in healing psoriatic lesions following topical treatment with the 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) analog calcipotriol.

Dendritic cells as key targets for immunomodulation by Vitamin D receptor ligands.

Vitamin D receptor (VDR) ligands, in addition to controlling calcium metabolism, exert important effects on the growth and differentiation of many cell types and possess pronounced pro-tolerogenic immunoregulatory activities. VDR ligands can act directly on T cells, but antigen-presenting cells (APCs), and in particular dendritic cells (DCs), appear to be primary targets for their tolerogenic properties. The capacity of VDR ligands to target APCs and T cells is mediated by VDR expression in both cell types and by the presence of common targets in their signal transduction pathways, such as the nuclear factor NF-kB that is down-regulated in APCs and in T cells.

Cutting edge: differential chemokine production by myeloid and plasmacytoid dendritic cells.

To examine the different roles of myeloid dendritic cells (M-DCs) and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (P-DCs) in the induction and regulation of immune response, we have studied chemokine secretion by freshly isolated DC subsets in response to bacterial, viral, and T cell-derived stimuli. M-DCs selectively produced very high levels of the homeostatic chemokines CC chemokine ligand (CCL)17 and CCL22, while P-DCs produced very little if any. In contrast, the proinflammatory chemokine CCL3 was secreted mostly by P-DCs, whereas CCL4 and CXC chemokine ligand 8 were produced by both subsets.

Occurrence of bisphenol-F-diglycidyl ether (BFDGE) in fish canned in oil.

The levels of bisphenol-F-diglycidyl ether (BFDGE) were quantified as part of a European survey on the migration of residues of epoxy resins into oil from canned fish. The contents of BFDGE in cans, lids and fish collected from all 15 Member States of the European Union and Switzerland were analysed in 382 samples. Cans and lids were separately extracted with acetonitrile.

Monitoring of bisphenol-A-diglycidyl-ether (BADGE) in canned fish in oil.

A survey at the European levels was initiated on the quantification of bisphenol-A-diglycidyl-ether (BADGE) in canned fish in oil in order to assess the exposure of BADGE. A total of 382 canned fish sample were collected from all 15 Member States and Switzerland and analysed for BADGE in fish. The fish was extracted first with hexane and reextracted with acetonitrile, followed by a membrane filtration and reverse phase HPLC analysis with fluorescence detection.

Oxidative damage and transforming growth factor beta 1 expression in pretumoral and tumoral lesions of human intestine.

The aim of this study was to evaluate a possible relationship between oxidative stress and transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF beta 1) expression in human colon adenocarcinoma. Crohn's disease, an inflammatory pathology of the intestine often regarded to as precancerous, was also examined. Indices of impaired redox balance were monitored in blood and in bioptic samples from 10 adult patients with adenocarcinoma of the colon and from five patients with Crohn's disease.

Transient increase in total serum alkaline phosphatase predicts radiological response to systemic therapy in breast cancer patients with osteolytic and mixed bone metastases.

Assessment of the response of bone metastases to endocrine or chemotherapy is difficult, and true response rate is probably underestimated by UICC criteria. Biochemical markers of osteoblast activity, which is linked with bone healing, could be useful for early detection of treatment response. We studied changes in osteoblast function, assessed by serial serum total alkaline phosphatase (tALP) at 0, 1, 2, 3 months from the start of systemic therapy, in 31 patients bearing bone metastases from advanced breast cancer.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy with adriamycin, cisplatin, vincristine and cyclophosphamide (ADOC) in invasive thymomas: results in six patients.

Background: Locally advanced malignant thymomas are usually radically resectable in about 60% of stage III but hardly ever in stage IVA. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery could improve both resection rate and curability. Cisplatin containing regimens have repeatedly been found to be highly active in advanced disease, with overall response rates ranging from 80%-90%.

Influence of anatomic site and age on the replication and differentiation of rat adipocyte precursors in culture.

Using a propagating cell culture system of adipocyte precursors from 70-400-g rats, we explored the possibility that regional variations in properties of adipose tissue may reflect site-specific characteristics intrinsic to the cells, rather than extracellular influences. Initially, studies were made of the nature of the fibroblastlike cells from perirenal adipose tissue stroma. Using colony-forming techniques, it was shown that these cells were adipocyte precursors; each confluent colony that was derived from a single cell displayed differentiated adipocytes.