Non-Hodgkin lymphomas of oral cavity

Non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) often show up in an extranodal pattern, especially in the head and neck. Intraoral locations are much less frequent, particularly when they are single. This, in turn, can lead to a prolonged diagnosis and even to inadequate treatment. Different patients with initial extranodal location of NHL which were not previously diagnosed and in which it was manifested only intraoraly are presented in this paper. These cases are presented together with the additional examinations used for the early diagnosis and with the corresponding clinical pictures, as well as with the overview of other cases from the available literature

Genomic investigations of unexplained acute hepatitis in children

Since its first identification in Scotland, over 1000 cases of unexplained pediatric hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide, including 278 cases in the UK 1. Here we report investigation of 38 cases, 66 age-matched immunocompetent controls and 21 immunocompromised comparator subjects, using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and immunohistochemical methods. We detected high levels of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) DNA in liver, blood, plasma or stool from 27/28 cases. We found low levels of Adenovirus (HAdV) and Human Herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B), in 23/31 and 16/23 respectively of the cases tested. In contrast, AAV2 was infrequently detected at low titre in blood or liver from control children with HAdV, even when profoundly immunosuppressed. AAV2, HAdV and HHV-6 phylogeny excluded emergence of novel strains in cases. Histological analyses of explanted livers showed enrichment for T-cells and B-lineage cells. Proteomic comparison of liver tissue from cases and healthy controls, identified increased expression of HLA class 2, immunoglobulin variable regions and complement proteins. HAdV and AAV2 proteins were not detected in the livers. Instead, we identified AAV2 DNA complexes reflecting both HAdV and HHV-6B-mediated replication. We hypothesize that high levels of abnormal AAV2 replication products aided by HAdV and in severe cases HHV-6B, may have triggered immune-mediated hepatic disease in genetically and immunologically predisposed children

Genomic investigations of unexplained acute hepatitis in children

Since its first identification in Scotland, over 1,000 cases of unexplained paediatric hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide, including 278 cases in the UK1. Here we report an investigation of 38 cases, 66 age-matched immunocompetent controls and 21 immunocompromised comparator participants, using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and immunohistochemical methods. We detected high levels of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) DNA in the liver, blood, plasma or stool from 27 of 28 cases. We found low levels of adenovirus (HAdV) and human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B) in 23 of 31 and 16 of 23, respectively, of the cases tested. By contrast, AAV2 was infrequently detected and at low titre in the blood or the liver from control children with HAdV, even when profoundly immunosuppressed. AAV2, HAdV and HHV-6 phylogeny excluded the emergence of novel strains in cases. Histological analyses of explanted livers showed enrichment for T cells and B lineage cells. Proteomic comparison of liver tissue from cases and healthy controls identified increased expression of HLA class 2, immunoglobulin variable regions and complement proteins. HAdV and AAV2 proteins were not detected in the livers. Instead, we identified AAV2 DNA complexes reflecting both HAdV-mediated and HHV-6B-mediated replication. We hypothesize that high levels of abnormal AAV2 replication products aided by HAdV and, in severe cases, HHV-6B may have triggered immune-mediated hepatic disease in genetically and immunologically predisposed children

Final Report of the Oceanographic Survey NextData201. Project NEXTDATA WP-1.5 : Paleoclimatic Data from Marine Sediments

The retrieval of series of proxy data on the past climate will serve to acquire a deeper understanding of the climate system and a more accurate prediction of its future development, as a priority task for the scientific community. In particular, the analysis of climate data of the past is an essential tool for studying the dynamics of the earth's climatic system in conditions different from present ones, and irreplaceable for testing the validity of medium- and long-term forecasting models. The determination of the influence of anthropogenic impacts on the planet’s environment is predicated on a clear understanding of the natural ways in which the earth's climate responds to the complex set of external forcings. Therefore, in recent decades, many national and international research groups have focused attention on the study of the climate evolution in late-Quaternary sediments from the Mediterranean area. By virtue of its close relationship with continental masses subject to different climatic processes, the Mediterranean basin permits the documentation of climate evolution both globally and in the Northern Hemisphere. Finally, it is worth noting that shallow sea (continental shelf) areas are natural repositories for the monitoring of short-term climate change and anthropogenic impacts on the marine system. To make available information on climate history and environment yielded by marine sediments, this WP will be dedicated to analyzing and, where possible, collecting cores of marine sediments, especially those drilled in shallow sea environments, and focusing on climate dynamics in the Mediterranean over past centuries. During its course, the project will analyse and, where possible, sample marine sediment cores in continental shelf environments and in different sectors of the Mediterranean basin. Previous studies have indicated them as key sites for the identification of major short-term climate fluctuations, due to global and local forces active during the Quaternary and particularly in the past thousand years. In fact, the possibility of enriching the databases referring to this time interval (to date, still limited to the Mediterranean) will provide new working hypotheses for the implementation of numerical models that attempt simulate how the Mediterranean, in particular the marine-coastal sector, has responded to past climate dynamics (Medieval Warm Period / Little Ice Age transition, Little Ice Age, the Industrial Age, and Modern Warming). The cores obtained will be the focus of multidisciplinary studies involving national and international research groups

Antibiofilm effect of Zuccagnia punctata on Listeria monocytogenes FBUNT as an anti-quorum sensing strategy

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen able to survive in a wide range of environments even at refrigerated conditions. Their persistence in food processing environments is due to its ability to form biofilm. Bacteria regulate physiological processes such as biofilm formation through a cellular communication system demonized quorum sensing (QS). A strategy to overcome L. monocytogenes contamination consists in the inhibition of QS system through antimicrobial compounds like phytoextracts. Zuccagnia punctata Cav. (Fabaceae, Caesalpiniaceae) is a plant with a long history used in Argentine traditional medicines as antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor, among others. Thus, the aim of this study was to control L. monocytogenes FBUNT biofilms by Z. punctata extract at sub-inhibitory concentrations through an anti-QS strategy. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of Z. punctata ethanolic extract against the pathogen was determined by the broth microdilution method. The extract sub-inhibitory concentrations were used to evaluate the inhibition of pathogen biofilm and its growth. The extract sub-inhibitory concentrations were used to evaluate the inhibition of pathogen biofilm and its growth. Biofilm formation of L. monocytogenes FBUNT with and without extract was detected using crystal violet method after 3 and 6 days of incubation at 10 °C. In addition, the effect of Z. punctata extract was evaluated as quorum sensing inhibitor utilizing Vibrio harveyi BB170 as microbial reporter, which modifies the emission of luminescence in response to changes in signal molecules (auto-inducer 2; AI-2) involved in the process. Z. punctata extract was active against L. monocytogenes FBUNT with a MIC of 125 µg/ml. Extract concentrations of 15.6, 31.3 and 62.5 µg/mL produced significant reductions in the formation of biofilms without affecting the growth of the pathogen after 3 and 6 days of incubation at 10°C. A 35% reduction in biofilm formation was observed after 3 days, while a value of 21% was reached after 6 days of incubation. Luminescence and growth of V. harveyi BB170 were determined in presence of 15.6, 31.3 and 62.5 µg/mL of Z. punctata extract. Cell-free culture supernatant of V. harveyi BB152 (producer of AI-2) was used as positive control inducing luminescence in the reporter strain. The extract concentrations used did not affect the growth of the V. harveyi BB170 compared to the control and reduced luminescence production by the strain in a concentration dependent manner, indicating quorum sensing inhibition. Results indicate a potential application of Z. punctata extract as novel QS-based anti-biofilm strategy for the control of persistent L. monocytogenes biofilms in the food industry. Unlike bactericidal strategies, the implementation of this approach would cause a lower selective pressure and therefore a lower possibility of developing resistance to the antimicrobial compound.Fil: Melian, Constanza Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Segli, Julio Franco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Isla, Maria Ines. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Química del Noroeste. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química del Noroeste; ArgentinaFil: Zampini, Iris Catiana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Química del Noroeste. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química del Noroeste; ArgentinaFil: Vignolo, Graciela Margarita. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Castellano, Patricia Haydee. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaLVI Annual Meeting Argentine Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (SAIB); XV Annual Meeting Argentinean Society for General Microbiology (SAMIGE)ArgentinaSociedad Argentina de Investigación en Bioquímica y Biología MolecularSociedad Argentina de Microbiología Genera

Comparing metoclopramide electrotransport kinetics in vitro and in vivo

The purpose of this work was to investigate the transdermal iontophoretic delivery of metoclopramide and to determine (i) the dependence of electrotransport on current density and drug concentration, (ii) the relative contributions of electromigration and electroosmosis and (iii) the feasibility of administering therapeutic amounts of drug, using a drug-sparing iontophoretic configuration. Iontophoretic delivery of metoclopramide (MCL) across dermatomed porcine ear skin was investigated in vitro as a function of concentration (10, 20, 40, 80 and 100mM) and current density (0.1, 0.2 and 0.3mAcm(-2)) using vertical flow-through diffusion cells. In vivo studies were performed in Wistar rats (40mM MCL, 0.3mAcm(-2), 5h); the anodal and drug formulation compartments were separated by a salt bridge. Cumulative delivery in vitro after 7h of current application (40mM MCL; 0.3mAcm(-2)) in the absence of electrolyte was 624.45+/-99.45microgcm(-2) (flux - 2.55+/-0.35microgcm(-2)min(-1)). There was a linear relationship between flux and both current density and drug concentration. Co-iontophoresis of acetaminophen confirmed that electromigration was the major transport mechanism (accounting for approximately 80% of MCL delivery). Electroosmotic inhibition, albeit modest, was only observed at the highest MCL concentration (100mM). Although the delivery rate observed in vivo in male Wistar rats (1.21+/-0.55microgcm(-2)min(-1)) was lower than that observed in vitro, the results suggest that drug input rates would be sufficient to achieve therapeutic levels in humans using non-invasive transdermal iontophoresis