Two cases of occupational allergic contact dermatitis from a cycloaliphatic epoxy resin in a neat oil: Case Report

BACKGROUND: Metal-working fluids contain complex mixtures of chemicals and metal workers constitute a potential risk group for the development of allergic contact dermatitis. CASE PRESENTATION: Two metal workers developed allergic contact dermatitis on the hands and lower arms from exposure to a neat oil used in metal processing. Patch testing revealed that the relevant contact allergen was a cycloaliphatic epoxy resin, 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, bis(oxiranylmethyl) ester, added to the oil as a stabilizer. None of the patients had positive reactions to the bisphenol A-based epoxy resin in the standard series. CONCLUSIONS: These cases emphasize that well-known contact allergens may show up from unexpected sources of exposure. Further, it can be a long-lasting, laborious process to detect an occupational contact allergen and cooperation from the patient and the manufacturer of the sensitizing product is essential

Seasonality of Plasmodium falciparum transmission: a systematic review

This article is fully open access and the published version is available free of charge from the jounal website.http://www.malariajournal.com/content/14/1/343Background Although Plasmodium falciparum transmission frequently exhibits seasonal patterns, the drivers of malaria seasonality are often unclear. Given the massive variation in the landscape upon which transmission acts, intra-annual fluctuations are likely influenced by different factors in different settings. Further, the presence of potentially substantial inter-annual variation can mask seasonal patterns; it may be that a location has “strongly seasonal” transmission and yet no single season ever matches the mean, or synoptic, curve. Accurate accounting of seasonality can inform efficient malaria control and treatment strategies. In spite of the demonstrable importance of accurately capturing the seasonality of malaria, data required to describe these patterns is not universally accessible and as such localized and regional efforts at quantifying malaria seasonality are disjointed and not easily generalized. Methods The purpose of this review was to audit the literature on seasonality of P. falciparum and quantitatively summarize the collective findings. Six search terms were selected to systematically compile a list of papers relevant to the seasonality of P. falciparum transmission, and a questionnaire was developed to catalogue the manuscripts. Results and discussion 152 manuscripts were identified as relating to the seasonality of malaria transmission, deaths due to malaria or the population dynamics of mosquito vectors of malaria. Among these, there were 126 statistical analyses and 31 mechanistic analyses (some manuscripts did both). Discussion Identified relationships between temporal patterns in malaria and climatological drivers of malaria varied greatly across the globe, with different drivers appearing important in different locations. Although commonly studied drivers of malaria such as temperature and rainfall were often found to significantly influence transmission, the lags between a weather event and a resulting change in malaria transmission also varied greatly by location. Conclusions The contradicting results of studies using similar data and modelling approaches from similar locations as well as the confounding nature of climatological covariates underlines the importance of a multi-faceted modelling approach that attempts to capture seasonal patterns at both small and large spatial scales. Keywords: Plasmodium falciparum ; Seasonality; Climatic driversAcknowledgements This work was supported by the Research and Policy for Infectious Disease Dynamics (RAPIDD) program of the Science and Technology Directory, Department of Homeland Security, and Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health. DLS is funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1110495), which also supports RCR. PMA is grateful to the University of Utrecht for supporting him with The Belle van Zuylen Chair. PWG is a Career Development Fellow (K00669X) jointly funded by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) under the MRC/DFID Concordat agreement and receives support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1068048, OPP1106023)

Comparative Live-Cell Imaging Analyses of SPA-2, BUD-6 and BNI-1 in Neurospora crassa Reveal Novel Features of the Filamentous Fungal Polarisome

A key multiprotein complex involved in regulating the actin cytoskeleton and secretory machinery required for polarized growth in fungi, is the polarisome. Recognized core constituents in budding yeast are the proteins Spa2, Pea2, Aip3/Bud6, and the key effector Bni1. Multicellular fungi display a more complex polarized morphogenesis than yeasts, suggesting that the filamentous fungal polarisome might fulfill additional functions. In this study, we compared the subcellular organization and dynamics of the putative polarisome components BUD-6 and BNI-1 with those of the bona fide polarisome marker SPA-2 at various developmental stages of Neurospora crassa. All three proteins exhibited a yeast-like polarisome configuration during polarized germ tube growth, cell fusion, septal pore plugging and tip repolarization. However, the localization patterns of all three proteins showed spatiotemporally distinct characteristics during the establishment of new polar axes, septum formation and cytokinesis, and maintained hyphal tip growth. Most notably, in vegetative hyphal tips BUD-6 accumulated as a subapical cloud excluded from the Spitzenkörper (Spk), whereas BNI-1 and SPA-2 partially colocalized with the Spk and the tip apex. Novel roles during septal plugging and cytokinesis, connected to the reinitiation of tip growth upon physical injury and conidial maturation, were identified for BUD-6 and BNI-1, respectively. Phenotypic analyses of gene deletion mutants revealed additional functions for BUD-6 and BNI-1 in cell fusion regulation, and the maintenance of Spk integrity. Considered together, our findings reveal novel polarisome-independent functions of BUD-6 and BNI-1 in Neurospora, but also suggest that all three proteins cooperate at plugged septal pores, and their complex arrangement within the apical dome of mature hypha might represent a novel aspect of filamentous fungal polarisome architecture

Cytogenetic alterations in ovarian clear cell carcinoma detected by comparative genomic hybridisation

Ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) accounts for a small but significant proportion of all ovarian cancers and is a distinct clinical and pathological entity. It tends to be associated with poorer response rates to chemotherapy and with a worse prognosis. Little is known about possible underlying genetic changes. DNA extracted from paraffin-embedded samples of 18 pure OCCC cases was analysed for genetic imbalances using comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH). All of the 18 cases showed genomic alterations. The mean number of alterations detected by CGH was 6 (range 1–15) indicating a moderate level of genetic instability. Chromosome deletions were more common than amplifications. The most prominent change involved chromosome 9 deletions in 10 cases (55%). This correlates with changes seen in other epithelial ovarian cancers. This deletion was confirmed using microsatellite markers to assess loss of heterozygosity (LOH) at four separate loci on chromosome 9. The most distinct region of loss detected was around the IFNA marker at 9p21 with 41% (11 out of 27cases) LOH. Other frequent deletions involved 1p (five out of 18; 28%); 11q (four out of 18; 22%) and 16 (five out of 18; 28%). Amplification was most common at chromosome 3 (six out of 18; 33%); 13q (four out of 18; 22%) and 15 (three out of 18; 17%). No high-level amplifications were identified. These features may serve as useful prognostic indicators in the management of OCCC

Severe traumatic injury during long duration spaceflight: Light years beyond ATLS

Traumatic injury strikes unexpectedly among the healthiest members of the human population, and has been an inevitable companion of exploration throughout history. In space flight beyond the Earth's orbit, NASA considers trauma to be the highest level of concern regarding the probable incidence versus impact on mission and health. Because of limited resources, medical care will have to focus on the conditions most likely to occur, as well as those with the most significant impact on the crew and mission. Although the relative risk of disabling injuries is significantly higher than traumatic deaths on earth, either issue would have catastrophic implications during space flight. As a result this review focuses on serious life-threatening injuries during space flight as determined by a NASA consensus conference attended by experts in all aspects of injury and space flight