The inheritance of halothane susceptibility in pigs

International audienc

A Novel Xenogeneic Co-Culture System to Examine Neuronal Differentiation Capability of Various Adult Human Stem Cells

Background: Targeted differentiation of stem cells is mainly achieved by the sequential administration of defined growth factors and cytokines, although these approaches are quite artificial, cost-intensive and time-consuming. We now present a simple xenogeneic rat brain co-culture system which supports neuronal differentiation of adult human stem cells under more in vivo-like conditions. Methods and Findings: This system was applied to well-characterized stem cell populations isolated from human skin, parotid gland and pancreas. In addition to general multi-lineage differentiation potential, these cells tend to differentiate spontaneously into neuronal cell types in vitro and are thus ideal candidates for the introduced co-culture system. Consequently, after two days of co-culture up to 12% of the cells showed neuronal morphology and expressed corresponding markers on the mRNA and protein level. Additionally, growth factors with the ability to induce neuronal different iation in stem cells could be found in the media supernatants of the co-cultures. Conclusions: The co-culture system described here is suitable for testing neuronal differentiation capability of numerous types of stem cells. Especially in the case of human cells, it may be of clinical relevance for future cell-based therapeutic applications

Reperfusion injury following cerebral ischemia: pathophysiology, MR imaging, and potential therapies

INTRODUCTION: Restoration of blood flow following ischemic stroke can be achieved by means of thrombolysis or mechanical recanalization. However, for some patients, reperfusion may exacerbate the injury initially caused by ischemia, producing a so-called “cerebral reperfusion injury”. Multiple pathological processes are involved in this injury, including leukocyte infiltration, platelet and complement activation, postischemic hyperperfusion, and breakdown of the blood–brain barrier. METHODS/RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can provide extensive information on this process of injury, and may have a role in the future in stratifying patients’ risk for reperfusion injury following recanalization. Moreover, different MRI modalities can be used to investigate the various mechanisms of reperfusion injury. Antileukocyte antibodies, brain cooling and conditioned blood reperfusion are potential therapeutic strategies for lessening or eliminating reperfusion injury, and interventionalists may play a role in the future in using some of these therapies in combination with thrombolysis or embolectomy. The present review summarizes the mechanisms of reperfusion injury and focuses on the way each of those mechanisms can be evaluated by different MRI modalities. The potential therapeutic strategies are also discussed

Evaluation of appendicitis risk prediction models in adults with suspected appendicitis

Background Appendicitis is the most common general surgical emergency worldwide, but its diagnosis remains challenging. The aim of this study was to determine whether existing risk prediction models can reliably identify patients presenting to hospital in the UK with acute right iliac fossa (RIF) pain who are at low risk of appendicitis. Methods A systematic search was completed to identify all existing appendicitis risk prediction models. Models were validated using UK data from an international prospective cohort study that captured consecutive patients aged 16–45 years presenting to hospital with acute RIF in March to June 2017. The main outcome was best achievable model specificity (proportion of patients who did not have appendicitis correctly classified as low risk) whilst maintaining a failure rate below 5 per cent (proportion of patients identified as low risk who actually had appendicitis). Results Some 5345 patients across 154 UK hospitals were identified, of which two‐thirds (3613 of 5345, 67·6 per cent) were women. Women were more than twice as likely to undergo surgery with removal of a histologically normal appendix (272 of 964, 28·2 per cent) than men (120 of 993, 12·1 per cent) (relative risk 2·33, 95 per cent c.i. 1·92 to 2·84; P < 0·001). Of 15 validated risk prediction models, the Adult Appendicitis Score performed best (cut‐off score 8 or less, specificity 63·1 per cent, failure rate 3·7 per cent). The Appendicitis Inflammatory Response Score performed best for men (cut‐off score 2 or less, specificity 24·7 per cent, failure rate 2·4 per cent). Conclusion Women in the UK had a disproportionate risk of admission without surgical intervention and had high rates of normal appendicectomy. Risk prediction models to support shared decision‐making by identifying adults in the UK at low risk of appendicitis were identified

O papel do gerente em projetos baseados na abordagem ágil de desenvolvimento de software

Ao longo dos últimos anos, a indústria de software tem se tornado cada vez mais imprescindível no desenvolvimento dos mais diversos empreendimentos, aumentando na mesma proporção a diversidade e complexidade de aplicações computacionais, o nível de sucesso e fracasso na condução dos projetos de desenvolvimento de software. Na tentativa de mitigar o fracasso surgiram várias abordagens cada vez mais orientadas a engenharia, com a consequente introdução de burocracia excessiva sem garantir os resultados esperados. Como contraponto, as abordagens ágeis surgiram posteriormente para lidar melhor com a complexidade dos sistemas e condições de incerteza e mudanças típicos. Nesse contexto, práticas gerenciais tradicionais tiveram sua efetividade questionada, e a importância do gerente passou a ser negligenciada. Com base nesse contexto este trabalho foi proposto com o objetivo de analisar a viabilidade de se adotar práticas de gerenciamento de projetos de desenvolvimento de software que utilizam a abordagem ágil, identificando aspectos que podem dificultar ou facilitar a adoção dessas práticas. Essa análise ajudará a mapear o papel do gerente em projetos dessa natureza. O método empregado foi a pesquisa de natureza qualitativa, com enfoque descritivo, utilizando técnicas de pesquisa documental e bibliográfica e entrevista semiestruturada ou pautada, realizada com gerentes funcionais de um departamento de desenvolvimento de software de uma empresa pública de grande porte cujo principal objeto é o desenvolvimento de soluções governamentais de Tecnologia da Informação e Comunicações. O referencial teórico mostra um quadro resumido da evolução histórica das abordagens de desenvolvimento de software, além das bases conceituais por trás das abordagens ágeis, com ênfase no framework Scrum, além do modelo Gestão 3.0 proposto por Jurgem Appelo, contendo um conjunto de práticas associadas. O trabalho conclui que a adoção de práticas ágeis propostas no modelo Gestão 3.0 tem sua aplicação plenamente viável na organização, considerando que várias práticas pressupõem iniciativas dos próprios gerentes. Em contrapartida, vários aspectos organizacionais precisam ser revistos por caracterizar restrições importantes na adoção do modelo. A principal contribuição do trabalho foi a identificação a necessidade de maior clareza tanto do papel do gerente nos projetos ágeis quanto nas mudanças organizacionais que visam a institucionalização de práticas ágeis na organização, além da necessidade de maior capacitação em práticas como as propostas pelo modelo. Como recomendações ficam a necessidade de se expandir a coleta de dados para obter a percepção de gerentes e funcionários de outros departamentos quanto a adoção do modelo estudado e a aplicação de várias das práticas propostas pelo modelo Gestão 3.0 em um time de desenvolvimento de software.By the last years, software industry has becoming even more important to the development of a large diversity of enterprise initiatives, increasing in the same proportion the diversity and complexity of the computational applications, the level of success and failure in project management conduction. Trying to mitigate the failure were created many approaches each time more engineering oriented, with the subsequent introduction of excessive bureaucracy without any guarantee of expected results. In other hand, agile approaches arose further facing the systems complexity and the typical uncertain and changing conductions. In this context, traditional management approaches had questioned their effectiveness, and the relevance of the manager was neglected. Based on this context, this paper has proposed with the goal of make a feasibility analysis of the adoption of project management practices on software project management that uses the agile approach, identifying aspects that can complicate or facilitate the adoption of these practices. This analysis will help to map the role of manager in projects related. The method applied was the qualitative research, with descriptive approach, using documentation and bibliographical research techniques and semi structured interviews, conducted with functional managers of a software development department of a large scale public company with the main focus on development of Information Technology and Communications government solution. The theoretical referential presents a summary of the historical evolution of the software development approaches, beyond the conceptual foundations behind the agile approaches, focusing on Scrum Framework, and the Management 3.0 model, proposed by Jurgen Appelo, grouping a set of related practices. The paper concluded that the adoption of the agile practices proposed on the Management 3.0 model are fully applied in the organization, considering that many of the practices suppose initiatives from the managers themselves. In other hand, many organizational aspects need to be revised related to important restrictions to the model adoption. The paper main contribution was the identification of the need of clearer managers role on agile software development projects and the manager role on the related organizational changes . Other contribution was the identification was the need of a bigger qualification on practices like these proposed by the model. The recommendations are the need of expanding the data gathering focusing to obtain the perception of managers and other workers from other departments with the adoption of the model and the application of many of the proposed practices by the Management 3.0 on a software development team