Search for Pair Production of Scalar Leptoquarks

This article describes the search for pair production of scalar leptoquarks performed by the CMS collaboration using the data from the 2010 proton-proton run of the Large Hadron Collider at a center of mass energy of 7 TeV. The following final state signatures from the decay of a pair of scalar leptoquarks are described in here: the di-lepton plus jets final state (where the leptons are either both electrons or both muons) and the lepton plus jets and transverse missing energy final state (where the lepton is an electron).Comment: 8 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables, presented at the DPF conference (August 9-13, 2011

Case Report: A Peculiar Case of Inflammatory Colitis After SARS-CoV-2 Infection

open14noWe report a case of inflammatory colitis after SARS-CoV-2 infection in a patient with no additional co-morbidity who died within three weeks of hospitalization. As it is becoming increasingly clear that SARS-CoV-2 infection can cause immunological alterations, we investigated the expression of the inhibitory checkpoint PD-1 and its ligand PD-L1 to explore the potential role of this axis in the break of self-tolerance. The presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in colon tissue was demonstrated by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemical localization of the nucleocapsid protein. Expression of lymphocyte markers, PD-1, and PD-L1 in colon tissue was investigated by IHC. SARSCoV- 2-immunoreactive cells were detected both in the ulcerated and non-ulcerated mucosal areas. Compared to healthy tissue, where PD-1 is weakly expressed and PD-L1 is absent, PD-1 and PD-L1 expression appears in the inflamed mucosal tissue, as expected, but was mainly confined to non-ulcerative areas. At the same time, these markers were virtually undetectable in areas of mucosal ulceration. Our data show an alteration of the PD-1/PD-L1 axis and suggest a link between SARS-CoV-2 infection and an aberrant autoinflammatory response due to concomitant breakdown of the PD-1/ PD-L1 interaction leading to early death of the patient.openRutigliani, Mariangela; Bozzo, Matteo; Barberis, Andrea; Greppi, Marco; Anelli, Emanuela; Castellaro, Luca; Bonsignore, Alessandro; Azzinnaro, Antonio; Pesce, Silvia; Filauro, Marco; Rollandi, Gian Andrea; Castagnola, Patrizio; Candiani, Simona; Marcenaro, EmanuelaRutigliani, Mariangela; Bozzo, Matteo; Barberis, Andrea; Greppi, Marco; Anelli, Emanuela; Castellaro, Luca; Bonsignore, Alessandro; Azzinnaro, Antonio; Pesce, Silvia; Filauro, Marco; Rollandi, Gian Andrea; Castagnola, Patrizio; Candiani, Simona; Marcenaro, Emanuel

Effects of oncological treatments on semen quality in patients with testicular neoplasia or lymphoproliferative disorders.

Pretherapy sperm cryopreservation in young men is currently included in good clinical practice guidelines for cancer patients. The aim of this paper is to outline the effects of different oncological treatments on semen quality in patients with testicular neoplasia or lymphoproliferative disorders, based on an 8-year experience of the Cryopreservation Centre of a large public hospital. Two hundred and sixty-one patients with testicular neoplasia and 219 patients with lymphoproliferative disorders who underwent chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy and pretherapy semen cryopreservation were evaluated. Sperm and hormonal parameters (follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone, inhibin B levels) were assessed prior to and 6, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months after the end of cancer treatment. At the time of sperm collection, baseline FSH level and sperm concentration were impaired to a greater extent in patients with malignant testicular neoplasias than in patients with lymphoproliferative disorders. Toxic effects on spermatogenesis were still evident at 6 and 12 months after the end of cancer therapies, while an improvement of seminal parameters was observed after 18 months. In conclusion, an overall increase in sperm concentration was recorded about 18 months after the end of cancer treatments in the majority of patients, even if it was not possible to predict the evolution of each single case ‘a priori'. For this reason, pretherapy semen cryopreservation should be considered in all young cancer patients

SUMOylation Protects FASN Against Proteasomal Degradation in Breast Cancer Cells Treated with Grape Leaf Extract

Existing therapeutic strategies for breast cancer are limited by tumor recurrence and drug-resistance. Antioxidant plant-derived compounds such as flavonoids reduce adverse outcomes and have been identified as a potential source of antineoplastic agent with less undesirable side effects. Here, we describe the novel regulation of fatty-acid synthase (FASN), the key enzyme in de novo fatty-acid synthesis, whereby Vitis vinifera L. cv Vermentino leaf hydroalcoholic extract lowers its protein stability that is regulated by small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO)ylation. The phenolic compounds characterization was performed by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS), whereas mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS), Western blotting/co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) and RT-PCR, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), clonogenicity assays, and FACS analysis were used to measure the expression of targets and tumorigenicity. Vermentino extract exhibits antitumorigenic effects, and we went on to determine that FASN and ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme 9 (UBC9), the sole E2 enzyme required for SUMOylation, were significantly reduced. Moreover, FASN was found SUMOylated in human breast cancer tissues and cell lines, and lack of SUMOylation caused by SUMO2 silencing reduced FASN protein stability. These results suggest that SUMOylation protects FASN against proteasomal degradation and may exert oncogenic activity through alteration of lipid metabolism, whereas Vermentino extract inhibits these effects which supports the additional validation of the therapeutic value of this compound in breast cancer.This research was supported by a grant from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, ACB&P Division

Correlation among different KRAS alterations, genetic co-mutations and PD-L1 expression in patients treated with immunotherapy in metastatic NSCLC

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Predicting needlestick and sharps injuries in nursing students: Development of the SNNIP scale

© 2020 The Authors. Nursing Open published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Aim: To develop an instrument to investigate knowledge and predictive factors of needlestick and sharps injuries (NSIs) in nursing students during clinical placements. Design: Instrument development and cross-sectional study for psychometric testing. Methods: A self-administered instrument including demographic data, injury epidemiology and predictive factors of NSIs was developed between October 2018–January 2019. Content validity was assessed by a panel of experts. The instrument's factor structure and discriminant validity were explored using principal components analysis. The STROBE guidelines were followed. Results: Evidence of content validity was found (S-CVI 0.75; I-CVI 0.50–1.00). A three-factor structure was shown by exploratory factor analysis. Of the 238 participants, 39% had been injured at least once, of which 67.3% in the second year. Higher perceptions of “personal exposure” (4.06, SD 3.78) were reported by third-year students. Higher scores for “perceived benefits” of preventive behaviours (13.6, SD 1.46) were reported by second-year students

Shedding light on typical species : implications for habitat monitoring

Habitat monitoring in Europe is regulated by Article 17 of the Habitats Directive, which suggests the use of typical species to assess habitat conservation status. Yet, the Directive uses the term “typical” species but does not provide a definition, either for its use in reporting or for its use in impact assessments. To address the issue, an online workshop was organized by the Italian Society for Vegetation Science (SISV) to shed light on the diversity of perspectives regarding the different concepts of typical species, and to discuss the possible implications for habitat monitoring. To this aim, we inquired 73 people with a very different degree of expertise in the field of vegetation science by means of a tailored survey composed of six questions. We analysed the data using Pearson's Chi-squared test to verify that the answers diverged from a random distribution and checked the effect of the degree of experience of the surveyees on the results. We found that most of the surveyees agreed on the use of the phytosociological method for habitat monitoring and of the diagnostic and characteristic species to evaluate the structural and functional conservation status of habitats. With this contribution, we shed light on the meaning of “typical” species in the context of habitat monitoring