In search of stool donors: a multicenter study of prior knowledge, perceptions, motivators, and deterrents among potential donors for fecal microbiota transplantation

Introduction: Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is a highly effective therapy for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection. Stool donors are essential, but difficult to recruit and retain. We identified factors influencing willingness to donate stool.Methods: A 32-item questionnaire targeted young adults and health care workers via social media and university email lists in Edmonton and Kingston, Canada; London and Nottingham, England; and Indianapolis and Boston, USA. Items included baseline demographics and FMT knowledge and perception. Investigated motivators and deterrents included economic compensation, screening process, time commitment, and stool donation logistics. Logistic regression and linear regression models estimated associations of study variables with self-assessed willingness to donate stool.Results: 802 respondents completed our questionnaire: 387 (48.3%) age 21–30 years, 573 (71.4%) female, 323 (40%) health care workers. Country of residence, age and occupation were not associated with willingness to donate stool. Factors increasing willingness to donate were: already a blood donor (OR 1.64), male, altruism, economic benefit, knowledge of how FMT can help patients (OR 1.32), and positive attitudes towards FMT (OR 1.39). Factors decreasing willingness to donate were: stool collection unpleasant (OR 0.92), screening process invasive (OR 0.92), higher donation frequency, negative social perceptions of stool, and logistics of collecting/transporting feces.Discussion: Blood donors and males are more willing to consider stool donation. Altruism, economic compensation, and positive feedback are motivators. Screening process, high donation frequency, logistics of collecting/transporting feces, lack of public awareness, and negative social perception are deterrents. Considering these variables could maximize donor recruitment and retention

Elucidation of the Protective Mechanism of α Crystallin B in Cardiomyocytes

α-Crystallin B (cryAB) is the most abundant small heat shock protein in cardiomyocytes (CMs), where it has been shown to have potent anti-apoptotic properties. The mechanism by which cryAB prevents apoptosis has not been fully characterized. Therefore, I was interested in elucidating its protective mechanism in CMs. I identified its sub-cellular localization and its binding interactors following H2O2 exposure. I found that cryAB is found in the cytosol under control conditions and that following H2O2 exposure it becomes phosphorylated and translocates to the mitochondria. CryAB silencing resulted in increased apoptosis levels in CMs. Co-immunoprecipitation revealed an apparent increased interaction of cryAB and PcryAB with mitochondrial VDAC, caspase 12 and uncleaved caspase 3 in stressed hearts relative to controls. These results suggest that the cardio-protective effects of cryAB are mediated by its translocation to the mitochondria and its interaction with VDAC, caspase 12 and caspase 3 following exposure to H2O2.MAS

Numerical and Experimental Study of the Fatigue Behavior for a Medical Rehabilitation Exoskeleton Device Using the Resonance Method

In this paper, the dynamic behavior of a hip level joint device of an active exoskeleton used in the medical field is analyzed. The finite element method is used in order to determine the first frequencies and the eigenmodes, necessary for the fatigue testing in the resonance regime

Numerical and Experimental Study of the Fatigue Behavior for a Medical Rehabilitation Exoskeleton Device Using the Resonance Method

In this paper, the dynamic behavior of a hip level joint device of an active exoskeleton used in the medical field is analyzed. The finite element method is used in order to determine the first frequencies and the eigenmodes, necessary for the fatigue testing in the resonance regime

Thermal Treatment under Vacuum for Obtaining a Quenchant from Rapeseed Oil

The aim of this study was to improve the quality of a vegetable oil, having in view its use as a quenchant for metallic parts in aircrafts. A process of pyrolysis under vacuum was applied to obtain a bio-oil with reduced viscosity and good quenching properties. Preliminarily, the rapeseed oil was fast pyrolyzed at temperature in the range of 300–375 °C and absolute pressure of 1 μbar. Some results such as viscosity and yields of bio-oil were obtained with a narrowing of the temperature range between 300–320 °C, for further processing. Quenching tests with bio-oils on stainless steel 25CD4 showed cooling curves closer to those of the standard mineral oil (Castrol IloquenchTM 1), by comparing them with unprocessed vegetable oil. The hardness of the steel after treatment rose from 29–30 HRC to 43–45 HRC, in accordance with requirements (35–45 HRC). Therefore, the conclusion is that bio-oils obtained by pyrolysis under vacuum are good quenchant proceeds from this study

An insight into lung cancer: a comprehensive review exploring ALK TKI and mechanisms of resistance

Implementation of precision medicine in lung cancer has benefited from intense research in the past years, developing subsequently an improved quality of life and increased overall survival of the patients. Targeted therapy has become one of the most important therapeutic innovations for the non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) category with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene rearrangement. The aim of this review is to provide a through overview of the main molecules of ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) with their general and particular mechanisms of resistance, the main methods of ALK gene detection, each with advantages and limits and the future perspectives currently under research which try to overcome the mechanisms of resistance. We have used two of the most reliable medical databases EMBASE and PubMed to properly select the latest and the most relevant articles for this topic. Encouraged by the promising results, the clinical practice was enriched by the approval of tyrosine kinase inhibitor molecules, three generations being developed, each one with more powerful agents than the previous ones. Unfortunately, the resistance to TKI eventually occurs and it may be induced by several mechanisms, either known or unknown. Crizotinib was the most intensely studied TKI , becoming the first molecule approved into clinical practice and although four other drugs have been broadly used (alectinib, ceritinib, brigatinib and lorlatinib) it seems that even the most recently developed one remains imperfect due to the resistance mutations that developed. There are two types of resistance generally described for the entire class and for the particular drugs, but half of them remain unknown

Multivariate Analysis of the Predicted Probability of Smoking Behavior of Foster Care Minors: Results of a Study from Romania

Background: There are a multitude of factors that influence smoking status, and minors from the social protection system are a vulnerable category in terms of smoking. Methods: The objective of this research was to assess the degree of smoking dependence and to identify potential predictors of smoking status in foster care teenagers. Smoker status was confirmed by dosing CO in the exhaled air, and the degree of dependence was assessed using the Fagerström score. We performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: From the 275 foster care minors, 22.5% were current smokers. Exhaled CO was not influenced by general demographic factors, was associated with the frequency of smoking, and was positively correlated with the estimated number of cigarettes consumed daily and with the Fagerström score. The calculated probability of being a smoker was less than 20.4% in 75% of nonsmokers, whereas 75% of actual smokers had a predicted probability higher than 30.3%. Conclusions: In addition to age, gender, social environment, previous exposure to secondhand smoking, and residential type of foster care system, the expressed opinions regarding the health effects of tobacco use were associated with smoking in foster care teenagers