Liver Resection after Downstaging Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Sorafenib

Background. Sorafenib is a molecular-targeted therapy used in palliative treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma in Child A patients. Aims. To address the question of sorafenib as neoadjuvant treatment. Methods. We describe the cases of 2 patients who had surgery after sorafenib. Results. The patients had a large hepatocellular carcinoma in the right liver with venous neoplastic thrombi (1 in the right portal branch, 1 in the right hepatic vein). After 9 months of sorafenib, reassessment showed that tumours had decreased in size with a necrotic component. A right hepatectomy with thrombectomy was performed, and histopathology showed 35% to 60% necrosis. One patient had a recurrence after 6 months and had another liver resection; they are both recurrence-free since then. Conclusion. Sorafenib can downstage hepatocellular carcinoma and thus could represent a bridge to surgery. It may be possible to select patients in good general condition with partial regression of the tumour with sorafenib for a treatment in a curative intent

Effect of Shot Peening on Oxidation and Precipitation in Inconel 718

In this study, the effect of the surface state on the behaviour of Inconel 718 alloy exposed to 640 ∘ C and 700 ∘ C environments for times varying between one and one hundred hours was investigated. In particular, the focus was set on the evolution of oxidation and precipitation phenomena during thermal exposure. Three surface states were considered: two generated through shot peening treatments featuring different coverage levels, while the third condition is a non-peened one. Shot peening treatments modify the surface condition and introduce higher residual stresses and microhardness values than in the non-treated condition. The morphology of the oxides appears to be different depending on the condition observed. Regarding the kinetics, over time the oxidation process follows a parabolic trend and appears to be influenced by the surface state; in particular, severe shot peening treatment is characterized by the highest intensity of the phenomenon. However, the order of magnitude of the weight gains measured suggests that the observed variations can be neglected, and that the positive effect of shot peening can be exploited without introducing oxidation problems. From the point of view of the microstructural evolution, an increase in the coarsening kinetics of γ ” phase was observed in the shot peened layer

Cardiovascular and Gastrointestinal Safety of NSAIDs: a Systematic Review of Meta-Analyses of Randomized Clinical Trials.

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Apoptosis Is a Demanding Selective Tool During the Development of Fetal Male Germ Cells

Apoptosis is widely known to play a major role on diseases related to male infertility. Diseases of the male genital tract as defective spermatogenesis, decreased sperm motility, sperm DNA fragmentation, testicular torsion, varicocele and immunological infertility are strongly related to apoptotic cell death. Apoptosis must not be considered only as a fail on germ cell physiology or a secondary effect of certain pathologies and exogenous hazardous agents. Apoptosis orchestrates correct function and development of the male germ cell from the early embryonic stages of gonadal differentiation to the fertilization. In this review we have tried to address a reading frame of the main knowledge about apoptosis in male germ cell development. Focussing on mechanisms concerning cellular apoptosis, which are independent of exogenous stimuli, we aimed to highlight that apoptosis is a selective instrument that guarantees the delivery of genetic message to offspring

The correlation between urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid and sperm quality in infertile men and rotating shift workers

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that modulates a wide range of neuroendocrine functions. However, excessive circulating serotonin levels may induce harmful effects in the male reproductive system. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the levels of urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIIA), a major serotonin metabolite, correlate with different classical seminal parameters.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Human ejaculates were obtained from 40 men attending infertility counselling and rotating shift workers by masturbation after 4-5 days of abstinence. Urinary 5- HIIA concentration was quantified by using a commercial ELISA kit. Forward motility was assessed by a computer-aided semen analysis (CASA) system. Sperm concentration was determined using the haemocytometer method. Sperm morphology was evaluated after Diff-Quik staining, while sperm vitality was estimated after Eosin-Nigrosin vital staining.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results show that urinary 5-HIIA levels obtained from a set of 20 volunteers negatively correlated with sperm concentration, forward motility, morphology normal range and sperm vitality. On the other hand, we checked the relationship between male infertility and urinary 5-HIIA levels in 20 night shift workers. Thus, urinary 5-HIIA levels obtained from 10 recently-proven fathers were significantly lower than those found in 10 infertile males. Additionally, samples from recent fathers exhibited higher sperm concentration, as well as better forward motility and normal morphology rate.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In the light of our findings, we concluded that high serotonin levels, indirectly measured as urinary 5-HIIA levels, appear to play a role as an infertility determinant in male subjects.</p

Patología del lenguaje (II)

[Resumen] La presente comunicación trata de relacionar las dificultades del lenguaje con los Trastornos Generalizados de la Personalidad (TGP), especialmente con el autismo. Consta de un marco legal que refleja la evolución histórica de los trastornos del lenguaje a partir de la década de los 70; de la patología del lenguaje del niño autista en sus subapartados: habilidades prelingüísticas, ecolalia, inversión pronominal, semántica, lenguaje y memoria, pragmática, fonética, sintaxis, prosodia, comunicación no verbal y trastonos varios. Partimos de una muestra de 70 sujetos autistas de 4 centros de atención específica, ASPANAES, de la provincia de La Coruña, en edades comprendidas entre 2 y 26 años. Nuestro objetivo es determinar la frecuencia y como se distribuyen los trastornos del lenguaje en esta patología

ANTICUERPOS CONTRA EL VIRUS CAUSANTE DE LA RINOTRAQUEITIS INFECCIOSA EN VACUNOSDE LA PROVINCIA DE MELGAR, PUNO

El presente estudio tuvo por objetivo determinar la prevalencia del virus herpes bovino tipo 1 (VHB-1), agente causal de la rinotraqueitis infecciosa bovina, en animales de la provincia deMelgar, Puno. Se recolectaron muestras de sangre de bovinos mayores a 6 meses de edad (n = 382) provenientes de nueve distritos de la provincia de Melgar, para la detección de anticuerpos contra el VHB-1 mediante la prueba de neutralización viral. La prevalencia del VHB-1 fue de 29.0 ± 0.1%(110/382), sin que hubiese diferencias entre animales jóvenes (&lt;2 años) y adultos (³2 años). Los títulos de anticuerpos variaron entre 2 a 128. Los resultados indican que el VHB-1 está difundido en los bovinos de la provincia de Melgar y, posiblemente, esté contribuyendo en la presentación de problemas respiratorios en animales jóvenes.The prevalence of bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1) was determined in 382 bovine older than 6months of age in herds of the province ofMelgar, Puno, Peru. Serum samples were tested for antibodies against BHV-1 using the viral neutralization test. The 29.0 ± 0.1%(110/382) of the samples had antibodies against BHV-1, without differences between young (2 years old) and mature (³2 years old) animals.Antibody titers varied between 2 to 128. The results indicated that BHV-1 infection is widespread in cattle population of the province ofMelgar, Puno, and it is possibly contributing to cause respiratory disease problems in young animals

GTM-3, an extra-large pore enantioselective chiral zeolitic catalyst

The development of chiral zeolitic catalysts possessing extra-large pores and endowed with the capability of enantioselectively processing bulky products represents one of the greatest challenges in chemistry. Here, we report the discovery of GTM-3, an enantio-enriched extra-large pore chiral zeolite material with -ITV framework structure, obtained using a simple enantiopure organic cation derived from the chiral pool, N,N-ethyl-methyl-pseudoephedrinium, as the chiral-inductor agent. We demonstrate the enantio-enrichment of GTM-3 in one of the two enantiomorphic polymorphs using the two enantiomers of the organic cation. Interestingly, we prove the ability of this zeolitic material to perform enantioselective catalytic operations with very large substrates, here exemplified by the catalytic epoxide aperture of the bulky trans-stilbene oxide with alcohols, yielding unprecedented product enantiomeric excesses up to 30%. Our discovery opens the way for the use of accessible chiral zeolitic materials for the catalytic asymmetric synthesis of chiral pharmaceutical compounds