Neuronal circuitry for pain processing in the dorsal horn

Neurons in the spinal dorsal horn process sensory information, which is then transmitted to several brain regions, including those responsible for pain perception. The dorsal horn provides numerous potential targets for the development of novel analgesics and is thought to undergo changes that contribute to the exaggerated pain felt after nerve injury and inflammation. Despite its obvious importance, we still know little about the neuronal circuits that process sensory information, mainly because of the heterogeneity of the various neuronal components that make up these circuits. Recent studies have begun to shed light on the neuronal organization and circuitry of this complex region

Infantile acute megakaryoblastic leukaemia with T(1:22) in a non-down syndrome child.

Megakaryoblastic leukaemia is the commonest form of leukaemia occuring in Down syndrome infants. However, it’s subtype with translocation t(1;22)(p13;q13)is uncommon comprising <1% of all cases and reported to exclusively occur in infant without Down syndrome. It has a female predominance and carries apoor prognosis. We described this rare form of leukaemia in a 9-month-old girl who presented with bruises, massive hepatosplenomegaly and multiple cervical and inguinal lymphadenopathy. The blood film showed severe anaemia with ovalostomatocytosis, thrombocytopenia and mild leucocytosis. The bone marrow aspirate showed numerous blasts showing high nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio and agranular cytoplasm with cytoplasmic blebs. Peroxidase staining was negative. The immunophenotyping of the blasts showed positive expression of CD117, CD13, CD33 and CD61 which confirmed the diagnosis of acute megakaryoblastic leukaemia. Interestingly, the cytogenetic finding of translocation t(1;22) which is most common in acute megaloblastic leukaemia in infants without Down syndrome was found in this case. She received the AML trial 15 ADE protocol chemotherapy regime and developed severe neutropenic sepsis and respiratory distress requiring ventilatory support and granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF). She recovered wellmafter the first course of chemotherapy and was discharged. Unfortunately, she was not brought in for follow-up chemotherapy and presented a few months later with relapsed AML. She was re-started on ADE protocol and currently is on oral thioguanine for maintenance therapy

Overlapping Cervical Nuclei Separation using Watershed Transformation and Elliptical Approach in Pap Smear Images

In this study, a robust method is proposed for accurately separating overlapping cell nuclei in cervical microscopic images. This method is based on watershed transformation and an elliptical approach. Since the watershed transformation process of taking the initial seed is done manually, the method was developed to obtain the initial seed automatically. Total initial seeds at this stage represents the number of nuclei that exist in the image of a pap smear, either overlapping or not. Furthermore, a method was developed based on an elliptical approach to obtain the area of each of the nuclei automatically. This method can successfully separate several (more than two) clustered cell nuclei. In addition, the proposed method was evaluated by experts and was proven to have better results than methods from previous studies in terms of accuracy and execution time. The proposed method can determine overlapping and non-overlapping boundaries of nuclei fast and accurately. The proposed method provides better decision-making on areas with overlapping nuclei and can help to improve the accuracy of image analysis and avoid information loss during the process of image segmentation

Somatosensory tinnitus: current evidence and future perspectives

In some individuals, tinnitus can be modulated by specific maneuvers of the temporomandibular joint, head and neck, eyes, and limbs. Neuroplasticity seems to play a central role in this capacity for modulation, suggesting that abnormal interactions between the sensory modalities, sensorimotor systems, and neurocognitive and neuroemotional networks may contribute to the development of somatosensory tinnitus. Current evidence supports a link between somatic disorders and higher modulation of tinnitus, especially in patients with a normal hearing threshold. Patients with tinnitus who have somatic disorders seems to have a higher chance of modulating their tinnitus with somatic maneuvers; consistent improvements in tinnitus symptoms have been observed in patients with temporomandibular joint disease following targeted therapy for temporomandibular disorders. Somatosensory tinnitus is often overlooked by otolaryngologists and not fully investigated during the diagnostic process. Somatic disorders, when identified and treated, can be a valid therapeutic target for tinnitus; however, somatic screening of subjects for somatosensory tinnitus is imperative for correct selection of patients who would benefit from a multidisciplinary somatic approach

A higher Angiogenin expression is associated with a non-nuclear Maspin location in laryngeal carcinoma

Objectives. In numerous malignancies, angiogenin (ANG) and Maspin are important proangiogenic and antiangiogenic regulators, respectively. The aim of this study was to identify potential relationships between the biological roles of these two proteins in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). Methods. Immunohistochemical staining for ANG and Maspin was performed on specimens from 76 consecutive LSCC patients treated with surgery alone, considering the subcellular pattern of Maspin expression. Univariate and multivariate statistical models were used for prognostic purposes. Results. On univariate analysis, a different level of ANG expression was seen for patients stratified by subcellular Maspin expression pattern: the mean ANG expression was higher in cases with a nonnuclear MASPIN expression than in those with a nuclear pattern (P=0.002). Disease-free survival (DFS; in months) differed significantly when patients were stratified by N stage (P=0.01). Patients whose Maspin expression was nonnuclear (i.e., it was cytoplasmic or there was none) had a significantly higher recurrence rate (P<0.001), and shorter DFS (P=0.01) than those with a nuclear Maspin pattern. The mean ANG expression was significantly higher in cases with loco-regional recurrent disease (P=0.007); and patients with an ANG expression 655.0% had a significantly shorter DFS than those with an ANG expression <5.0% (P=0.007). On multivariate analysis, ANG expression 655.0% was a significant, independent, negative prognostic factor in terms of DFS (P=0.041). Conclusion. Our results support the hypothesis that a higher ANG expression is associated with a nonnuclear Maspin expression pattern in patients with LSCC. Further studies are needed to clarify the relationship between the ANG and Maspin pathways, and their potential diagnostic and therapeutic role in LSCC

Colon adenocarcinoma diagnosis in human samples by multicontrast nonlinear optical microscopy of hematoxylin and eosin stained histological sections

Combined multimodal nonlinear optical (NLO) microscopies were used to detect and quantify morphological changes associated with stroma and epithelial transformation in colon cancer. Our findings provide complementary information about tissue microstructure, displaying distinctive patterns between normal and malignant human colon. Additionally, we have demonstrated the usefulness of using fixed tissues for the disease diagnostic and prognostic. The present work provides a framework for using NLO techniques as a clinical diagnostic tool for human colon cancer. NLO metrics could be applied to other disorders, which are characterized by abnormal cell proliferation and collagen assembly.Fil: Adur, Javier Fernando. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina. National Institute of Science and Technology on Photonics Applied to Cell Biology; Brasil. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Entre Ríos. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Entre Ríos; ArgentinaFil: Bianchi, Mariana. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Pelegati, Vitor B.. National Institute of Science and Technology on Photonics Applied to Cell Biology; BrasilFil: Viale, Silvia. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Facultad de Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Izaguirre, María Fernanda. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Facultad de Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Carvalho, Hernandes Faustino. Universidade Estadual de Campinas; BrasilFil: Cesar, Carlos L.. Universidade Estadual de Campinas; BrasilFil: Casco, Victor Hugo. Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentin

Deep Learning Techniques for Cervical Cancer Diagnosis based on Pathology and Colposcopy Images

Cervical cancer is a prevalent disease affecting millions of women worldwide every year. It requires significant attention, as early detection during the precancerous stage provides an opportunity for a cure. The screening and diagnosis of cervical cancer rely on cytology and colposcopy methods. Deep learning, a promising technology in computer vision, has emerged as a potential solution to improve the accuracy and efficiency of cervical cancer screening compared to traditional clinical inspection methods that are prone to human error. This review article discusses cervical cancer and its screening processes, followed by the Deep Learning training process and the classification, segmentation, and detection tasks for cervical cancer diagnosis. Additionally, we explored the most common public datasets used in both cytology and colposcopy and highlighted the popular and most utilized architectures that researchers have applied to both cytology and colposcopy. We reviewed 24 selected practical papers in this study and summarized them. This article highlights the remarkable efficiency in enhancing the precision and speed of cervical cancer analysis by Deep Learning, bringing us closer to early diagnosis and saving lives