Effects of Exposure to New Car Interiors in Patients With Asthma and Allergic Rhinitis.

Rationale: Vehicle interiors are an important microenvironment for atopic subjects. This study evaluated the subjective and objective physiologic and clinical effects of exposing subjects with asthma and allergic rhinitis to new 2017 Mercedes vehicles during 90-minute rides.

Methods: Ten adult asthmatics with allergic rhinitis were assessed before and 45 and 90 minutes into rides in a 2017 Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan and GLE-Class SUV on 2 separate days.

Economic considerations in the treatment of systemic allergic reactions.

Epinephrine is a life-saving medication used to treat systemic allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. Epinephrine autoinjectors (EAIs) are expensive and worldwide availability is limited. Epinephrine prefilled syringes and epinephrine kits are potentially lower-cost alternatives to EAIs.

Biological therapies for eosinophilic asthma.

Introduction: Severe uncontrolled asthma is by definition refractory to traditional therapies or can be controlled only with therapies that have intolerable side effects. Monoclonal antibodies that target interleukin (IL)-5/IL-5Rα, IgE, and IL-4Rα have shown favorable results in clinical trials, including reductions in asthma exacerbations and other important clinical outcomes. These biological agents offer treatment alternatives to patients with uncontrolled severe eosinophilic asthma.

Osteopontin plays a pivotal role in increasing severity of respiratory syncytial virus infection.

The molecular mechanisms underlying susceptibility to severe respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection remain poorly understood. Herein, we report on the role of osteopontin (OPN) in regulation of RSV infection in human epithelial cells and how interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), a cytokine secreted soon after RSV infection, when persistently expressed can induce OPN expression leading to increased viral infection. We first compared OPN expression in two human epithelial cell lines: HEK-293 and HEp-2.

Nasal and ocular challenges.

Nasal and ocular challenges facilitate the evaluation of subjective and objective responses to defined allergen or irritant exposure. Nasal and ocular allergen challenges are the gold standard to diagnose allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis, respectively, and aid in the evaluation of novel therapies in clinical trials. Additionally, nasal and ocular allergen challenges might help identify medically relevant allergens in clinical practice.

Unilateral Apraxic Agraphia without Ideomotor Apraxia from a callosal lesion in a patient with Marchiafava-Bignami disease.

Apraxic agraphia can be caused by left hemispheric cerebral lesions in the area that contains the spatial representations of the movements required to write, from a lesion in, or connections to, the frontal premotor cortex that converts these spatial representations to motor programs (Exner's area).  A right-handed woman with Marchiafava Bignami disease and lesions of the genu and splenium of her corpus callosum had apraxic agraphia without ideomotor apraxia of her left. A disconnection of Exner's area in the left hemisphere from the right hemisphere's premotor and motor areas may have led to her inability to write with her left hand.

Colonic stasis and chronic constipation: Demystifying proposed risk factors for colon polyp formation in a spinal cord injury veteran population.

Background And Aims: Patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) suffer significant morbidity from neurogenic bowel. Chronic constipation has long-been a proposed risk factor for polyp development. We performed a retrospective cohort study in veterans with SCI to assess polyp presence in the setting of colonic stasis.

Biologic Therapy and Novel Molecular Targets of Severe Asthma.

Treatment options for severe or uncontrolled asthma are increasing, especially pertaining to novel biologic therapies. The 2 primary asthma endotypes, T2 high and T2 low, are defined by the level of type 2 T helper and innate lymphoid cell activity and mediators. Most therapies for severe asthma target T2 high asthma, including the 3 biologics approved for use in the United States and Europe: omalizumb, mepolizumb, and reslizumab.

The High Cost of Epinephrine Autoinjectors and Possible Alternatives.

Epinephrine autoinjectors provide potentially life-saving therapy for pediatric and adult subjects with systemic allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. However, the cost of these devices, specifically the EpiPen (Mylan, Canonsburg, Pa), is increasing exponentially. Epinephrine autoinjectors are commonly prescribed in the United States but are not readily available worldwide.

Intraocular inflammatory mass associated with lens-induced uveitis.

Intraocular inflammatory tumefactions large enough to simulate neoplasms are uncommon. We report a patient with a large intraocular inflammatory mass composed of cells with features of histiocytes and myofibroblasts that was associated with lens-induced uveitis. The spindle cell mass appears to have arisen as an exaggerated response to exposed lens fibers.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus-Infected Mesenchymal Stem Cells Regulate Immunity via Interferon Beta and Indoleamine-2,3-Dioxygenase.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been reported to infect human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) but the consequences are poorly understood. MSCs are present in nearly every organ including the nasal mucosa and the lung and play a role in regulating immune responses and mediating tissue repair. We sought to determine whether RSV infection of MSCs enhances their immune regulatory functions and contributes to RSV-associated lung disease.

Symptomatic Primary Selective Immunoglobulin M Deficiency with Nonprotective Pneumococcal Titers Responsive to Subcutaneous Immunoglobulin Treatment.

Selective immunoglobulin M deficiency (SIgMD) is a rare disorder with varying clinical features. The prevalence of SIgMD is 0.03-3%.

Sublingual Immunotherapy for the Polyallergic Patient.

Allergen immunotherapy is the only disease-modifying treatment for allergic diseases. Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) in liquid and tablet form has been used by clinicians in Europe for years, but has only recently gained popularity and approval in the United States. In 2014, the US Food and Drug Administration approved 3 SLIT tablets for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, with or without allergic conjunctivitis.

Assessing health disparities in children using a modified housing-related socioeconomic status measure: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: Socioeconomic status (SES) is a well-established risk factor for many health outcomes. Recently, we developed an SES measure based on 4 housing-related characteristics (termed HOUSES) and demonstrated its ability to assess health disparities. In this study, we aimed to evaluate whether fewer housing-related characteristics could be used to provide a similar representation of SES.

Budget Impact Analysis of Veterans Affairs Medical Foster Homes versus Community Living Centers.

The objectives were to determine whether and by what amounts the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) use of Medical Foster Homes (MFH) rather than Community Living Centers (CLC) reduced budget impacts to the VA. This was a retrospective, matched, case-control study of veterans residing in MFH or CLC in the VA health care system from 2008 to 2012. Administrative data sets, nearest neighbor matching, generalized linear models, and a secondary analysis were used to capture and analyze budget impacts by veterans who used MFH or CLC exclusively in 2008-2012.

Evaluation of the psychometric properties of the PROMIS Cancer Fatigue Short Form with cancer patients.

Objective: Fatigue is common among cancer patients and adversely impacts quality of life. As such, it is important to measure fatigue accurately in a way that is not burdensome to patients. The 7-item Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Cancer Fatigue Short Form scale was recently developed using item response theory (IRT).

Nutraceutical intervention reverses the negative effects of blood from aged rats on stem cells.

Aging is associated with a decline in function in many of the stem cell niches of the body. An emerging body of literature suggests that one of the reasons for this decline in function is due to cell non-autonomous influences on the niche from the body. For example, studies using the technique of parabiosis have demonstrated a negative influence of blood from aged mice on muscle satellite cells and neurogenesis in young mice.

Safety of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy With Conscious Sedation in Patients With and Without Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Background And Study Aims: Patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) undergoing endoscopy with sedation are considered by practitioners to be at a higher risk for cardiopulmonary complications. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the safety of conscious sedation in patients with OSA undergoing gastrointestinal endoscopy.

Patients And Methods: This is an IRB-approved prospective cohort study performed at the James A.

Anti-human α-synuclein N-terminal peptide antibody protects against dopaminergic cell death and ameliorates behavioral deficits in an AAV-α-synuclein rat model of Parkinson's disease.

The protein α-synuclein (α-Syn) has a central role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) and immunotherapeutic approaches targeting this molecule have shown promising results. In this study, novel antibodies were generated against specific peptides from full length human α-Syn and evaluated for effectiveness in ameliorating α-Syn-induced cell death and behavioral deficits in an AAV-α-Syn expressing rat model of PD. Fisher 344 rats were injected with rAAV vector into the right substantia nigra (SN), while control rats received an AAV vector expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP).

Lipidomic analyses identify injury-specific phospholipid changes 3 mo after traumatic brain injury.

Phospholipid (PL) abnormalities are observed in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), suggesting their role in TBI pathology. Therefore, PL levels were examined in a TBI mouse model that received 1.8 mm deep controlled cortical impact injury or craniectomy only (control).

Fractalkine over expression suppresses α-synuclein-mediated neurodegeneration.

In Parkinson's disease, α-synuclein is known to activate microglia and this activation has been proposed as one of the mechanisms of neurodegeneration. There are several signals produced by neurons that have an anti-inflammatory action on microglia, including CX3CL1 (fractalkine). We have shown that a soluble form of CX3CL1 is required to reduce neuron loss in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated mice and that fractalkine agonism can reduce neuron loss in a 6-hydroxydopamine lesion model.