8 research outputs found

    A Double-Blinded Placebo-Controlled Evaluation of Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Treatment of Canine Atopic Dermatitis

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    Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as a new therapy for various immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. In this study we perform the first double-blinded, placebo-controlled evaluation of the efficacy of adipose-derived allogenic canine MSCs for the treatment of canine atopic dermatitis (cAD). Enrolled canine patients were randomly divided into placebo (PBS saline), low-dose (5 × 105 cells/kg), and high-dose (5 × 106 cells/kg) treatment groups. Each patient received three subcutaneous MSCs treatments or PBS saline at four-week intervals with injections at five sites. Patients were monitored by physical exams, pruritus visual analog scales (PVAS) signed by the primary caretaker, canine atopic dermatitis extent and severity index-4 (CADESI-4) scores by two veterinarians, and complete blood count and serum chemistry analysis along with laboratory analysis for potential biomarkers. Patients were kept off any immune-modulating drugs during the study period, and oral antibiotics and topicals were used for managing pruritus and secondary infections. The PVAS scores and the serum miR-483 levels were significantly lower in the high dose group compared to the placebo group at day90 post first-treatment. The CADESI-4 scores of the high dose group also showed downward trends. No severe adverse effects were observed in any patient in this study. The high dose MSC treatment is efficacious in alleviating the clinical signs of cAD until 30 days after the last subcutaneous administration of MSCs, and miRNA-483 may be a reliable prognostic biomarker for cAD. The MSCs efficacy and potential biomarkers should be further explored by a larger scale clinical trial

    Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and nicotine in COVID-19 patients: trying to calm the storm

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    SARS-CoV-2 is a new coronavirus that has caused a worldwide pandemic. It causes a severe acute respiratory syndrome (COVID-19), fatal in many cases, characterized by a cytokine release syndrome (CRS). Great efforts are currently being made to block the signal transduction pathway of pro-inflammatory cytokines in order to control this “cytokine storm” and rescue severe patients. Consequently, possible treatments for cytokine-mediated hyperinflammation, preferably within approved safe therapies, are urgently being searched to reduce rising mortality. One approach to inhibit proinflammatory cytokine release is to activate the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway through nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (α7nAchR). Nicotine, an exogenous α7nAchR agonist, is clinically used in ulcerative colitis to counteract inflammation. We have found epidemiological evidence, based on recent clinical SARS-CoV-2 studies in China, that suggest that smokers are statistically less likely to be hospitalized. In conclusion, we hypothesize that nicotine could constitute a novel potential CRS therapy in severe SARS-CoV-2 patients

    Memoria del primer foro sobre logros, problemas y propuestas de los cuerpos académicos de educación y humanidades de la Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México

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    Motivados por el interĂ©s de dialogar nuestras preocupaciones cotidianas en torno al quehacer acadĂ©mico en la Universidad, e impulsados por la inquietud de compartir puntos de vista y apreciaciones acerca de la forma en que organizamos colectivamente el trabajo acadĂ©mico (en especial, de investigaciĂłn) en los diferentes espacios de especializaciĂłn disciplinaria e interdisciplinaria en los campos de las Ciencias de la EducaciĂłn y las Humanidades, asistimos a la convocatoria para reflexionar quĂ© tanto hemos avanzado como verdaderos equipos de trabajo (sobre todo en lo relativo a la investigaciĂłn) y cuĂĄnto aĂșn nos queda por hacer, a fin de coordinar esfuerzos individuales y sumar capacidades en proyectos y actividades comunes a cada cuerpo acadĂ©mico

    The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data

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    Abstract The FLUXNET2015 dataset provides ecosystem-scale data on CO2, water, and energy exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and other meteorological and biological measurements, from 212 sites around the globe (over 1500 site-years, up to and including year 2014). These sites, independently managed and operated, voluntarily contributed their data to create global datasets. Data were quality controlled and processed using uniform methods, to improve consistency and intercomparability across sites. The dataset is already being used in a number of applications, including ecophysiology studies, remote sensing studies, and development of ecosystem and Earth system models. FLUXNET2015 includes derived-data products, such as gap-filled time series, ecosystem respiration and photosynthetic uptake estimates, estimation of uncertainties, and metadata about the measurements, presented for the first time in this paper. In addition, 206 of these sites are for the first time distributed under a Creative Commons (CC-BY 4.0) license. This paper details this enhanced dataset and the processing methods, now made available as open-source codes, making the dataset more accessible, transparent, and reproducible
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