Clinical features, prognosis, and long-term response to ranibizumab of macular CNVs in pattern dystrophies spectrum: a pilot study

Introduction. To analyze the morphological and functional features of choroidal neovascularizations (CNVs) in eyes affected by pattern dystrophies (PD), evaluating their long-term response to intravitreal ranibizumab, and comparing them with CNVs in age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The mean goal is to identify possible disease biomarkers and to evaluate the long-term prognosis of CNVs in PD. Materials and Methods. A retrospective study of 42 patients with naïve CNV (26 PD and 16 AMD), for a total of 47 eyes (29 eyes in the PD group and 18 eyes in the AMD group). Each patient received a loading dose of ranibizumab (one monthly for three months) followed by pro re nata (PRN) reinjection protocol for a period of at least three years. Morphological OCT parameters (CRT, central retinal thickness; SRF, subretinal fluid; IRF, intraretinal fluid; SHRM, subretinal hyperreflective material; HRF, hyperreflective foci; HCD, hyperreflective crystalline deposits; cCT, central choroidal thickness; slCT, sublesional choroidal thickness; EZd, ellipsoid zone disruption; and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA in logMAR scale)) were reported at baseline and last follow-up. Results. At baseline, no significant differences were found between the two groups, except for choroidal thickness parameters that were significantly greater in the PD group ( = 0.009). Longitudinal PD analysis demonstrated reduction in BCVA ( = 0.009), decrease in CRT ( = 0.046), resolution of SRF in 61.6% of cases ( = 0.004) and SHRM in 30% ( = 0.034), and choroidal thinning both centrally ( = 0.004) and sublesional ( = 0.011) compared to baseline. At 3 years, the PD group received significantly more injections than the AMD ( = 0.011) and showed significantly thicker choroid ( = 0.033) and more frequent HRF ( = 0.006). Regarding the PD group, we found a negative correlation between age and choroidal thicknesses at baseline and at 3 years ( < 0.05); significant positive correlations were found between baseline BCVA and at 3 years ( < 0.001), BCVA at 3 years and IRF ( = 0.003) and SHRM at 3 years ( = 0.003); CRT baseline and CRT 3 years ( = 0.017); HCD at 3 years was associated with greater CRT ( = 0.04) and IRF at 3 years ( = 0.019). Conclusions. Early and long-term morphofunctional features of CNVs in PD and in AMD are overlapping. CNVs in PD have poorer long-term response to ranibizumab and higher choroidal thickness suggesting different pathogenetic and evolutionary mechanisms

Regenerative Medicine and Eye Diseases

The chapter examines the use of stem cells in ophthalmological pathologies affecting both the anterior and posterior segments. The authors review the clinical trials that have most contributed to defining the role and potential of stem cell regenerative therapy in corneal and retinal pathology. The results described in the scientific literature are analyzed and commented, without neglecting the possible side effects related to the use of this therapy. Within the anterior segment, the greatest efforts were made to study the possible uses of limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs). They were the first stem cells to be discovered at the level of the anterior segment and currently the only ones involved in clinical practice with satisfactory results. At this juncture there have been significant successes in the treatment of corneal stem cell deficiency and of corneal scars. The chapter later investigates the possible applications of stem cell therapy in degenerative retinal diseases, with particular reference to retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt’s disease, and age-related macular degeneration. It then describes how the use of cell therapies, in particular those that use ADSC, can contribute, through various methods, to the containment of the evolution of retinal degenerative diseases. These mechanisms cover various biological aspects and can be summarized as follows: neurotrophism, oxidation, vascular changes, apoptosis, inflammation, or immunology. The ophthalmological modalities of the cell graft and what is the ideal approach for an ophthalmological cellular surgery are later on described. Finally, the technique used by the author and the possible outcomes in the course of degenerative retinopathy are described

A Secondary Analysis of Maternal Ultra-Processed Food Intake in Women with Overweight or Obesity and Associations with Gestational Weight Gain and Neonatal Body Composition Outcomes

This study is an observational secondary analysis of the Lifestyle Intervention for Two (LIFT) randomised controlled trial data. There is a paucity of data related to mechanisms of health effects and dietary intake of ultra-processed foods (UPF). Earlier studies demonstrate associations between greater UPF intake and weight gain. The purpose of the study was to describe associations among maternal UPF intake with gestational weight gain (GWG) and neonatal body composition. Women with overweight or obesity (n=156) and offspring (n=126) with complete energy intake, anthropometrics and body composition measures were selected. Maternal weights and diet recalls (Automated Self-Administered 24) were measured at weeks 14 and 35 gestational age (GA). Body composition was assessed by infant quantitative magnetic resonance (infant-QMR) and air displacement plethysmography (ADP) at birth. Dependent variables were GWG and neonatal fat mass, fat-free mass, and lean mass at birth; covariates were dietary, socioeconomic and biological. Stepwise linear regressions were used to test associations. Highest quartile of percentage of energy intake from UPF (PEI-UPF) was not significantly correlated with maternal GWG (p=0.215), infant QMR fat (p=0.816) and lean mass (p=0.423) or ADP fat (p=0.482) or fat-free mass (p=0.835). While no significant associations with UPF were observed in this smaller size cohort, further investigations would be justified in larger cohorts on the relationships of maternal UPF intake and GWG and offspring outcomes. Clinical Trial NCT0161614

Manifestaciones cutáneas por el uso de EPP en el personal de la salud

Background: PPE such as: masks, hats, glasses, surgical gowns, began to be implemented in all health personnel since the end of 2019 when the coronavirus outbreak spread, with the aim of safeguarding hospital personnel. Methodology: A narrative review was carried out through various databases from 2020 to 2022; The search and selection of articles was carried out in journals indexed in English and Spanish. The following keywords were used: skin manifestations, use of PPE, health personnel. Results: The prolonged use of personal protection elements implies a lower risk of virus transmission. But this can also generate serious skin manifestations in the health professional. Conclusion: It is necessary to implement systematized actions to improve the quality of working conditions, time and characteristics of the use of PPE, as well as actions that help us prevent skin injuries caused by them.Antecedentes: Los EPP como: mascarillas, gorro, gafas, batas quirúrgicas, se comenzó a implementar en todo el personal sanitario desde a finales del 2019 cuando se esparció el brote del coronavirus, con el objetivo de salvaguardar al personal intrahospitalario. Metodología:  Se realizó una revisión narrativa a través de diversas bases de datos desde el año 2020 al año 2022; la búsqueda y selección de artículos fue llevada a cabo en revistas indexadas en idioma inglés y español. Se utilizaron como palabras clave: manifestaciones cutáneas, uso de EPP, personal de la salud. Resultados: El uso prolongado de los elementos de protección personal, implica un menor riesgo de trasmisión de virus. Pero esto también puede generar manifestaciones cutáneas graves en el profesional de la salud. Conclusión: Es necesario poner en marcha acciones sistematizadas para mejorar la calidad de las condiciones de trabajo, tiempo y características del uso de los EPP, así como acciones que nos ayuden a prevenir las lesiones cutáneas producidas por estos

Filamin A Binds to CCR2B and Regulates Its Internalization

The chemokine (C-C motif) receptor 2B (CCR2B) is one of the two isoforms of the receptor for monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (CCL2), the major chemoattractant for monocytes, involved in an array of chronic inflammatory diseases. Employing the yeast two-hybrid system, we identified the actin-binding protein filamin A (FLNa) as a protein that associates with the carboxyl-terminal tail of CCR2B. Co-immunoprecipitation experiments and in vitro pull down assays demonstrated that FLNa binds constitutively to CCR2B. The colocalization of endogenous CCR2B and filamin A was detected at the surface and in internalized vesicles of THP-1 cells. In addition, CCR2B and FLNa were colocalized in lamellipodia structures of CCR2B-expressing A7 cells. Expression of the receptor in filamin-deficient M2 cells together with siRNA experiments knocking down FLNa in HEK293 cells, demonstrated that lack of FLNa delays the internalization of the receptor. Furthermore, depletion of FLNa in THP-1 monocytes by RNA interference reduced the migration of cells in response to MCP-1. Therefore, FLNa emerges as an important protein for controlling the internalization and spatial localization of the CCR2B receptor in different dynamic membrane structures

User-computer interaction: cognitive properties of icons for multidimensional data analysis

In the graphical environment, icons (i.e. symbols or pictorial representations analogous to physical objects, actions of functions) are generally more informative and easier to manipulate than verbal labels. Because icons should resemble the functions they represent, pre-testing should be done to determine whether the user understands what the icons are supposed to symbolize. In the present work we aimed at establishing whether the criteria adopted to shape the icons of graphic tool for the analysis of multidimensional field (MUDI3) were shared by the user. Method, procedure and results are presented and discussed

Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP): The Role of Oxidative Stress in the Degenerative Process Progression

Purpose: Retinitis Pigmentosa is a term that includes a group of inherited bilateral and progressive retinal degenerations, with the involvement of rod photoreceptors, which frequently leads to blindness; oxidative stress may be involved in the degeneration progression as proposed by several recent studies. The goal of this study is to evaluate whether circulating free radicals taken from capillary blood are related to one of the most important features of Retinitis pigmentosa that can affect frequently patients: cystoid macular oedema (CME). Materials: A total of 186 patients with Retinitis Pigmentosa (range: 25–69 years) were enrolled; all patients completed an ophthalmologic examination and SD-OCT at baseline and were divided into three subgroups according to the SD-OCT features. ROS blood levels were determined using FORT with monitoring of free oxygen radicals. Results: Test levels of free oxygen radicals were significantly increased, almost twice, in RP patients showing cystoid macular oedema and significantly increased compared to the control group. (p < 0.001). Discussion: Our findings suggest that oxidative stress may speed cone photoreceptors’ morphological damage (CMT); because long lasting oxidative stress in the RP may cause oxidative damage, with animal models of RP suggesting this is a micromolecular mechanism of photoreceptors’ (cone) death, it can be similar to cone damage in human RP eyes. The limitations of this paper are the relatively small sample, the horizontal design of the study, and the lack of data about the levels of ROS in the vitreous body