Applications to augment patient care for Internal Medicine specialists: a position paper from the EFIM working group on telemedicine, innovative technologies & digital health.

Telemedicine applications present virtually limitless prospects for innovating and enhancing established and new models of patient care in the field of Internal Medicine. Although there is a wide range of innovative technological solutions in Europe, there are overarching elements associated with such technologies when applied to the practices of Internal Medicine specialists. The European Federation of Internal Medicine (EFIM) strongly advocates for active leadership and influence from the Internal Medicine societies and specialist physicians across Europe in the development and application of telemedicine and digital technologies in healthcare.

Fibrin-targeting immunotherapy protects against neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration.

Activation of innate immunity and deposition of blood-derived fibrin in the central nervous system (CNS) occur in autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the mechanisms that link disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to neurodegeneration are poorly understood, and exploration of fibrin as a therapeutic target has been limited by its beneficial clotting functions. Here we report the generation of monoclonal antibody 5B8, targeted against the cryptic fibrin epitope γ, to selectively inhibit fibrin-induced inflammation and oxidative stress without interfering with clotting.

Maternal Perspectives of Well Siblings' Adjustment to Family Life With a Technology-Dependent Child.

Technology-dependent (TD) children require complex care and are dependent on medical technology. Approximately 75% of families, in the United States, who are caring for a TD child, also care for a well child. Well siblings are likely to be affected by the experience of living with a TD sibling as the process of family normalization is described as a family affair.

p75 Neurotrophin Receptor Regulates Energy Balance in Obesity.

Obesity and metabolic syndrome reflect the dysregulation of molecular pathways that control energy homeostasis. Here, we show that the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75(NTR)) controls energy expenditure in obese mice on a high-fat diet (HFD). Despite no changes in food intake, p75(NTR)-null mice were protected from HFD-induced obesity and remained lean as a result of increased energy expenditure without developing insulin resistance or liver steatosis.

Among-species variation in the energy budgets of reef-building corals: scaling from coral polyps to communities.

The symbiosis between corals and dinoflagellates promotes the rapid growth of corals in shallow tropical oceans, and the high overall productivity of coral reefs. The aim of this study was to quantify and understand variation in carbon acquisition and allocation among coral species. We measured multiple physiological traits (including symbiont density, calcification, photosynthesis and tissue composition) for the same coral fragments to facilitate direct comparisons between species (Stylophora pistillata, Pocillopora damicornis, Galaxea fascicularis, Turbinaria reniformis and Acropora sp.

Oral cancer screening in a high-risk underserved community--Vancouver Downtown Eastside.

The objective of this study was to evaluate a clinic-centered oral cancer screening initiative in one of the poorest communities in Canada, assessing the need for screening and the acceptance of screening and identifying hindrances to both screening and follow-up. The study group included 204 people in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside (DTES). This was shown to be a high-risk community based on risk factors, lack of access to care, and the high frequency of oral mucosal anomalies.

p75 neurotrophin receptor regulates tissue fibrosis through inhibition of plasminogen activation via a PDE4/cAMP/PKA pathway.

Clearance of fibrin through proteolytic degradation is a critical step of matrix remodeling that contributes to tissue repair in a variety of pathological conditions, such as stroke, atherosclerosis, and pulmonary disease. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate fibrin deposition are not known. Here, we report that the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75(NTR)), a TNF receptor superfamily member up-regulated after tissue injury, blocks fibrinolysis by down-regulating the serine protease, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), and up-regulating plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1).

Regulation of hepatic stellate cell differentiation by the neurotrophin receptor p75NTR.

Differentiation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) to extracellular matrix- and growth factor-producing cells supports liver regeneration through promotion of hepatocyte proliferation. We show that the neurotrophin receptor p75NTR, a tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member expressed in HSCs after fibrotic and cirrhotic liver injury in humans, is a regulator of liver repair. In mice, depletion of p75NTR exacerbated liver pathology and inhibited hepatocyte proliferation in vivo.

The fibrin-derived gamma377-395 peptide inhibits microglia activation and suppresses relapsing paralysis in central nervous system autoimmune disease.

Perivascular microglia activation is a hallmark of inflammatory demyelination in multiple sclerosis (MS), but the mechanisms underlying microglia activation and specific strategies to attenuate their activation remain elusive. Here, we identify fibrinogen as a novel regulator of microglia activation and show that targeting of the interaction of fibrinogen with the microglia integrin receptor Mac-1 (alpha(M)beta(2), CD11b/CD18) is sufficient to suppress experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in mice that retain full coagulation function. We show that fibrinogen, which is deposited perivascularly in MS plaques, signals through Mac-1 and induces the differentiation of microglia to phagocytes via activation of Akt and Rho.

A new method of standartization of health-promoting pomegranate fruit (Punica granatum) extract.

This study analyzes the major phenolic constituents of pomegranate fruit juice and pericarp feedstock, and dry extracts thereof, using high-performance liquid chromatography. Pomegranate pericarp was extracted with water (WE) and alcohol (AE) as solvents, and liquid extracts were subsequently freeze-dried. The results indicate that ellagitannins punicalagin A and punicalagin B are the major constituents in the primary pomegranate feedstock and in both types of extracts.

Epidemic of Q fever in Leszno district in Poland.

In 1988 an epidemic of Q fever was detected in Leszno district. During 1973-1985 all 28,066 cattle tested for C. burnetii antibodies were found to be negative.

The influence of furfural inhalation poisoning on calcium and phosphorus metabolism in rats.

The inhalation of furfural, 20 mg/m3 by adult rats during 3 months for 5 h daily, 6 times a week, did not change the calcium and phosphorus level in blood serum and in bones, but depressed the activity of alkaline phosphatase in blood serum. The exposure to furfural of immature rats (6-7 weeks old) during 4 weeks caused a depression of blood serum and intestine mucosa alkaline phosphatase activity, elevation of calcium and phosphorus levels in blood serum with concomitant fall in bones, and a decrease in calcium excretion with urine.

Hepatic clearance mechanism of Tc-99m-HIDA and its effect on quantitation of hepatobiliary function: Concise communication.

Parameters affecting the hepatobiliary clearance of Tc-99m N(2,6-dimethylphenyl carbamoylmethyl) iminodiacetic acid (Tc-HIDA) were evaluated in dogs. Competitive clearance studies, were performed with Tc-HIDA after infusion to plasma saturation levels of an anion, sodium sulfobromophthalein (BSP), and a cation, oxyphenonium. The results demonstrated that Tc-HIDA is transported through hepatocytes by a carrier-mediated organic-anion pathway.

Technetium-99m-labeled n-(2,6-dimethylphenylcarbamoylmethyl) iminodiacetic acid (tc-99m HIDA): a new radiopharmaceutical for hepatobiliary imaging studies.

An easily formulated, stable kit preparation of technetium-99m HIDA, suitable for use in humans, was developed and tested in mice and dogs. The tracer was cleared rapidly from the blood and excreted predominantly by the liver in both species. In dogs, the hepatobiliary clearance of Tc-99m HIDA was significantly greater than that of C-14 HIDA and Sn-113 HIDA.