Effect of Martian Suspended Dust on Albedo Measurements from the MGS-TES Data

Suspended dust on Mars influences albedo measurements by orbiting instruments, but not necessary the real surface albedo. The aim of this study is to characterize the role of suspended aerosols on albedo measurement by remote sensing instruments

New high-performance liquid chromatography-dad method for analytical determination of arbutin and hydroquinone in rat plasma

Natural substances present in herbal preparations should be carefully used because they can give toxic or therapeutic effects despite of their amount or the way of administration. The safety of products of vegetable origin must be assessed before commercialisation by monitoring the active ingredients and their metabolites. This study was therefore designed to identify and quantify arbutin and its metabolite hydroquinone, naturally present in Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (L.) Spreng plant in rat plasma, after an acute and subacute administration of aqueous arbutin solution in Wistar rats. For this purpose a reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with photodiode array detection was developed to assess the pharmacokinetic of arbutin and hydroquinone in plasma of female rats treated with aqueous arbutin solutions. The detection (arbutin: 0.0617 µg/ml and hydroquinone 0.0120 µg/ml) and quantification (arbutin: 0.2060 µg/ml and hydroquinone: 0.0400 µg/ml) limits were determined. At the arbutin concentration level of 10.7 µg/ml repeatability was 13.33% and its recovery 93.4±6.93%, while at the hydroquinone concentration level of 10.6 µg/ml repeatability was 11.66% and its recovery 92.9±7.75%. Furthermore the method was fully validated and the obtained data indicate that the new method provides good performances

a case of angioinvasive cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma completely regressed after low dose systemic methotrexate

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Spin-resolved charge displacement analysis as an intuitive tool for the evaluation of cPCET and HAT scenarios

We introduce here the spin-resolved version of the charge displacement function, which is applied to two competing pathways of proton-coupled electron transfer in oxidation catalysis (hydrogen-atom transfer, concerted proton-coupled electron transfer). The difference in charge displacement between the two mechanisms is directly observable and can be translated to electron flow using this new analysis tool

A New Wood Surface Flame-Retardant Based on Poly-m-Aramid Electrospun Nanofibers

Poly(meta-phenylene isophtalamide) (PMIA) was processed via electrospinning to provide nanofibrous membranes with randomly and aligned fibers. Mechanical performance of such membranes was evaluated, applying a normalization procedure that takes into account the peculiar morphology of such complex substrate where voids can sum up to almost 80% of the sample volume. Random and aligned fibers membranes are applied onto wood panels to test their fire resistance in cone calorimetry when coated in polyaramidic thin nanofiber mats. Tests highlighted that random fibers provide a better fire protection, increasing Time to Ignition and decreasing the Fire Performance Index. Another important parameter affecting the performance is the adhesive system used to apply the nanofibers onto wood that is able to significantly modify the fire performance of the polyaramidic-coated wood panels. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2019. (c) 2019 Society of Plastics Engineer

Stem-like and highly invasive prostate cancer cells expressing CD44v8-10 marker originate from CD44-negative cells

In human prostate cancer (PCa), the neuroendocrine cells, expressing the prostate cancer stem cell (CSC) marker CD44, may be resistant to androgen ablation and promote tumor recurrence. During the study of heterogeneity of the highly aggressive neuroendocrine PCa cell lines PC3 and DU-145, we isolated and expanded in vitro a minor subpopulation of very small cells lacking CD44 (CD44neg). Unexpectedly, these sorted CD44neg cells rapidly and spontaneously converted to a stable CD44high phenotype specifically expressing the CD44v8-10 isoform which the sorted CD44high subpopulation failed to express. Surprisingly and potentially interesting, in these cells expression of CD44v8-10 was found to be induced in stem cell medium. CD44 variant isoforms are known to be more expressed in CSC and metastatic cells than CD44 standard isoform. In agreement, functional analysis of the two sorted and cultured subpopulations has shown that the CD44v8-10pos PC3 cells, resulting from the conversion of the CD44neg subpopulation, were more invasive in vitro and had a higher clonogenic potential than the sorted CD44high cells, in that they produced mainly holoclones, known to be enriched in stem-like cells. Of interest, the CD44v8-10 is more expressed in human PCa biopsies than in normal gland. The discovery of CD44v8-10pos cells with stem-like and invasive features, derived from a minoritarian CD44neg cell population in PCa, alerts on the high plasticity of stem-like markers and urges for prudency on the approaches to targeting the putative CSC

DTI and MR Volumetry of Hippocampus-PC/PCC Circuit: In Search of Early Micro- and Macrostructural Signs of Alzheimers's Disease

Hippocampal damage, by DTI or MR volumetry, and PET hypoperfusion of precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex (PC/PCC) were proposed as biomarkers of conversion from preclinical (MCI) to clinical stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study evaluated structural damage, by DTI and MR volumetry, of hippocampi and tracts connecting hippocampus to PC/PCC (hipp-PC/PCC) in 10 AD, 10 MCI, and 18 healthy controls (CTRL). Normalized volumes, mean diffusivity (MD), and fractional anisotropy (FA) were obtained for grey matter (GM), white matter (WM), hippocampi, PC/PCC, and hipp-PC/PCC tracts. In hippocampi and hipp-PC/PCC tracts, decreased volumes and increased MD were found in AD versus CTRL (P < .001). The same results with lower significance (P < .05) were found in MCI versus CTRL. Verbal memory correlated (P < .05) in AD with left hippocampal and hipp-PC/PCC tract MD, and in MCI with FA of total WM. Both DTI and MR volumetry of hippocampi and hipp-PC/PCC tracts detect early signs of AD in MCI patients

Alert sign and symptoms for the early diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis: analysis of patients followed by a tertiary pediatric hospital

Background Intercepting earlier suspected TB (Tuberculosis) cases clinically is necessary to reduce TB incidence, so we described signs and symptoms of retrospective cases of pulmonary TB and tried to evaluate which could be early warning signs. Methods We conducted a retrospective descriptive study of pulmonary TB cases in children in years 2005-2017; in years 2018-2020 we conducted a cohort prospective study enrolling patients &lt; 18 years accessed to Emergency Department (ED) with signs/symptoms suggestive of pulmonary TB. Results In the retrospective analysis, 226 patients with pulmonary TB were studied. The most frequently described items were contact history (53.5%) and having parents from countries at risk (60.2%). Cough was referred in 49.5% of patients at onset, fever in 46%; these symptoms were persistent (lasting &gt;= 10 days) in about 20%. Lymphadenopathy is described in 15.9%. The prospective study enrolled 85 patients of whom 14 (16.5%) were confirmed to be TB patients and 71 (83.5%) were non-TB cases. Lymphadenopathy and contact history were the most correlated variables. Fever and cough lasting &gt;= 10 days were less frequently described in TB cases compared to non-TB patients (p &lt; 0.05). Conclusions In low TB endemic countries, pulmonary TB at onset is characterized by different symptoms, i.e. persistent fever and cough are less described, while more relevant are contact history and lymphadenopathy. It was not possible to create a score because signs/symptoms usually suggestive of pulmonary TB (considered in the questionnaire) were not significant risk factors in our reality, a low TB country

Sporadic, Nontrauma-Related, Desmoid Tumor of the Pancreas: A Rare Disease—Case Report and Literature Review

Desmoid tumors (DTs) are neoplasms of fibroblastic origin characterized by lack of a capsule. They are nonmetastatic and locally aggressive. Intraabdominal DTs are often observed in familial adenomatous polyposis and Gardner syndrome or subsequent to localized traumatic injury. Sporadic forms are defined as nontrauma- or nongenetic-related DTs. Isolated, sporadic pancreatic DTs have been considered anecdotal, with only 9 cases described in the literature. We report the case of a 68-year-old man with a case of sporadic cystic DT localized to the pancreatic tail. The tumor was discovered incidentally during computerized tomography performed for an unrelated condition. The patient was asymptomatic; however, biopsy was performed on the clinical suspicion of cystic cancer of the pancreas. Pathology analysis showed fibroblastic proliferation, and the diagnosis of DT was confirmed by immunohistochemical staining for beta-catenin. The patient underwent resection with no further treatment and remain disease-free 60 months after surgery