The XIIIth Banff Conference on Allograft Pathology: The Banff 2015 Heart Meeting Report: Improving Antibody-Mediated Rejection Diagnostics: Strengths, Unmet Needs, and Future Directions.

The 13th Banff Conference on Allograft Pathology was held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from October 5 to 10, 2015. The cardiac session was devoted to current diagnostic issues in heart transplantation with a focus on antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) and small vessel arteriopathy. Specific topics included the strengths and limitations of the current rejection grading system, the central role of microvascular injury in AMR and approaches to semiquantitative assessment of histopathologic and immunophenotypic indicators, the role of AMR in the development of cardiac allograft vasculopathy, the important role of serologic antibody detection in the management of transplant recipients, and the potential application of new molecular approaches to the elucidation of the pathophysiology of AMR and potential for improving the current diagnostic system. Herein we summarize the key points from the presentations, the comprehensive, open and wide-ranging multidisciplinary discussion that was generated, and considerations for future endeavors

Maximal LpL^p-regularity for stochastic evolution equations

We prove maximal $L^p$-regularity for the stochastic evolution equation \{{aligned} dU(t) + A U(t)\, dt& = F(t,U(t))\,dt + B(t,U(t))\,dW_H(t), \qquad t\in [0,T], U(0) & = u_0, {aligned}. under the assumption that $A$ is a sectorial operator with a bounded $H^\infty$-calculus of angle less than $\frac12\pi$ on a space $L^q(\mathcal{O},\mu)$. The driving process $W_H$ is a cylindrical Brownian motion in an abstract Hilbert space $H$. For $p\in (2,\infty)$ and $q\in [2,\infty)$ and initial conditions $u_0$ in the real interpolation space \XAp we prove existence of unique strong solution with trajectories in L^p(0,T;\Dom(A))\cap C([0,T];\XAp), provided the non-linearities F:[0,T]\times \Dom(A)\to L^q(\mathcal{O},\mu) and B:[0,T]\times \Dom(A) \to \g(H,\Dom(A^{\frac12})) are of linear growth and Lipschitz continuous in their second variables with small enough Lipschitz constants. Extensions to the case where $A$ is an adapted operator-valued process are considered as well. Various applications to stochastic partial differential equations are worked out in detail. These include higher-order and time-dependent parabolic equations and the Navier-Stokes equation on a smooth bounded domain \OO\subseteq \R^d with $d\ge 2$. For the latter, the existence of a unique strong local solution with values in (H^{1,q}(\OO))^d is shown.Comment: Accepted for publication in SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysi

News from the Muon (g-2) Experiment at BNL

The magnetic moment anomaly a_mu = (g_mu - 2) / 2 of the positive muon has been measured at the Brookhaven Alternating Gradient Synchrotron with an uncertainty of 0.7 ppm. The new result, based on data taken in 2000, agrees well with previous measurements. Standard Model evaluations currently differ from the experimental result by 1.6 to 3.0 standard deviations.Comment: Talk presented at RADCOR - Loops and Legs 2002, Kloster Banz, Germany, September 8-13 2002, to be published in Nuclear Physics B (Proc. Suppl.); 5 pages, 3 figure

Study of the Correlation Between Bronchial Hyperresponsiveness and Exhaled Nitric Oxide in Subjects with Suspected Symptoms of Asthma

Background: Bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) is one of main features of asthma within chronic inflammation and reversible bronchoconstriction. Actually, methacholine challenge is useful method to detect BHR in subjects with suspected asthma symptoms. However, this method has some limitations due to its safety and side effects. The measure of exhaled nitric oxide (NO) demonstrates currently as the alternative method for methacholine challenge. Methods: Ninety-five subjects had at least one of the following symptoms were included in this study: wheezing or chest tightness during exercise, chronic cough, or nocturnal coughing. They were divided into two groups depending on the positivity or negativity of BHR. Lung function test, exhaled NO measurement, and methacholine challenge were done for each study subject. Results: There were no significant differences between two groups for age and male/female ratio (41 ± 22 vs 38 ± 23 years old and 0.9 vs 1.1; P > 0.05 and P > 0.05; respectively). The percentage of wheezing and nocturnal coughing in subjects with positive BHR (BHR+) was significantly higher than that in subjects with negative BHR (BHR-: 70.9% and 64.5% vs 31.2% and 45.1%; P<0.001 and P<0.01; respectively). FENO measured at 50 mL/s in subjects with BHR+ was significantly higher subjects with BHR- (36 ± 10 ppb vs 11 ± 9 ppb; P<0.001). There was a significant correlation between FENO-50 mL/s and methacholine dose in subjects with BHR+ (R= -0.695; P<0.001). FENO-50 mL/s at 35 ppb had 86.7% of sensibility and 82.9% of specificity for diagnosis of BHR. Conclusion: FENO is a useful biomarker for diagnosis of asthma in subjects with suspected symptoms of asthma. FENO level has a high sensitivity and specificity for screening out subjects with BHR. The measurement of exhaled NO may be an alternative method for detecting BHR in diagnosis of asthma in clinical practice

Prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus in eastern and southeastern Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Aim. To review the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Eastern and Southeastern Asia. Methods. We systematically searched for observational studies on GDM prevalence from January 2000 to December 2016. Inclusion criteria were original English papers, with full texts published in peer-reviewed journals. The quality of included studies was evaluated using the guidelines of the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia. Fixed effects and random effects models were used to estimate the summary prevalence of GDM and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results. A total of 4415 papers were screened, and 48 studies with 63 GDM prevalence observations were included in the final review. The pooled prevalence of GDM was 10.1% (95% CI: 6.5%–15.7%), despite substantial variations across nations. The prevalence of GDM in lower- or upper-middle income countries was about 64% higher than in their high-income counterparts. Moreover, the one-step screening method was twice more likely to be used in diagnosing GDM when compared to the two-step screening procedure. Conclusions. The prevalence of GDM in Eastern and Southeastern Asia was high and varied among and within countries. There is a need for international uniformity in screening strategies and diagnostic criteria for GDM

Low dietary intakes of essential nutrients during pregnancy in Vietnam

Inadequate intake of nutrients during pregnancy has been associated with poor pregnancy and infant outcomes; however, evidence remains limited in low-resource settings in Asia. This paper assessed food, macronutrient, and micronutrient intakes among 1944 Vietnamese pregnant women. Dietary information was collected via an interviewer-administered food frequency questionnaire, and nutrient intakes were estimated using the Vietnamese food composition tables. The levels of nutrient intakes were evaluated against the Vietnamese recommended nutrient intakes (RNI) for pregnancy. The diet profiles were reported as means and percentages. The average daily food intakes across socio-demographic factors were compared using ANOVA, with adjustment for multiple comparisons by the Tukey–Kramer test. Rice, fruits, and vegetables were the main food sources consumed. The mean energy intake was 2004 kcal/day with 15.9%, 31.8%, and 52.2% of energy deriving from proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, respectively. Just over half of the women did not meet the RNI for total energy intake. The intakes of essential micronutrients including folate, calcium, iron, and zinc were below the RNI, and almost all pregnant women failed to meet the recommendations for these micronutrients. The associations of maternal age, education, and pre-pregnancy body mass index with nutrient intakes varied across the nutrient subgroups. Targeted programs are needed to improve nutrient intakes in Vietnamese pregnant women

Extensive ethnolinguistic diversity in Vietnam reflects multiple sources of genetic diversity

Vietnam features extensive ethnolinguistic diversity and occupies a key position in Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA). Yet, the genetic diversity of Vietnam remains relatively unexplored, especially with genome-wide data, because previous studies have focused mainly on the majority Kinh group. Here we analyze newly-generated genome-wide SNP data for the Kinh and 21 additional ethnic groups in Vietnam, encompassing all five major language families in MSEA. In addition to analyzing the allele and haplotype sharing within the Vietnamese groups, we incorporate published data from both nearby modern populations and ancient samples for comparison. In contrast to previous studies that suggested a largely indigenous origin for Vietnamese genetic diversity, we find that Vietnamese ethnolinguistic groups harbor multiple sources of genetic diversity that likely reflect different sources for the ancestry associated with each language family. However, linguistic diversity does not completely match genetic diversity: there have been extensive interactions between the Hmong-Mien and Tai-Kadai groups; different Austro-Asiatic groups show different affinities with other ethnolinguistic groups; and we identified a likely case of cultural diffusion in which some Austro-Asiatic groups shifted to Austronesian languages during the past 2,500 years. Overall, our results highlight the importance of genome-wide data from dense sampling of ethnolinguistic groups in providing new insights into the genetic diversity and history of an ethnolinguistically-diverse region, such as Vietnam

Conceptualizing pathways linking women's empowerment and prematurity in developing countries.

BackgroundGlobally, prematurity is the leading cause of death in children under the age of 5. Many efforts have focused on clinical approaches to improve the survival of premature babies. There is a need, however, to explore psychosocial, sociocultural, economic, and other factors as potential mechanisms to reduce the burden of prematurity. Women's empowerment may be a catalyst for moving the needle in this direction. The goal of this paper is to examine links between women's empowerment and prematurity in developing settings. We propose a conceptual model that shows pathways by which women's empowerment can affect prematurity and review and summarize the literature supporting the relationships we posit. We also suggest future directions for research on women's empowerment and prematurity.MethodsThe key words we used for empowerment in the search were "empowerment," "women's status," "autonomy," and "decision-making," and for prematurity we used "preterm," "premature," and "prematurity." We did not use date, language, and regional restrictions. The search was done in PubMed, Population Information Online (POPLINE), and Web of Science. We selected intervening factors-factors that could potentially mediate the relationship between empowerment and prematurity-based on reviews of the risk factors and interventions to address prematurity and the determinants of those factors.ResultsThere is limited evidence supporting a direct link between women's empowerment and prematurity. However, there is evidence linking several dimensions of empowerment to factors known to be associated with prematurity and outcomes for premature babies. Our review of the literature shows that women's empowerment may reduce prematurity by (1) preventing early marriage and promoting family planning, which will delay age at first pregnancy and increase interpregnancy intervals; (2) improving women's nutritional status; (3) reducing domestic violence and other stressors to improve psychological health; and (4) improving access to and receipt of recommended health services during pregnancy and delivery to help prevent prematurity and improve survival of premature babies.ConclusionsWomen's empowerment is an important distal factor that affects prematurity through several intervening factors. Improving women's empowerment will help prevent prematurity and improve survival of preterm babies. Research to empirically show the links between women's empowerment and prematurity is however needed

Austenite in Transformation-Induced Plasticity Steel Subjected to Multiple Isothermal Heat Treatments

The thermodynamic limit to the progress of the bainite reaction in steels containing a cementite inhibitor often leaves large quantities of thermally or mechanically unstable austenite. Such austenite is not effective in delaying the onset of plastic instabilities during the course of deformation. In such circumstances, it is useful to conduct isothermal transformation at a high temperature where the rate of reaction is relatively rapid, followed by a lower temperature step that permits more bainite to be generated. This in turn increases the stability of the refined austenite, which then transforms gently over a large range of strain during a tensile test. A significant corollary is that the two-step heat treatments are unnecessary in low-carbon steels, where the bainite reaction is able to proceed to a greater extent before reaching the thermodynamic limit. Furthermore, the two-step process can be counterproductive in low carbon steel, because the austenite content is reduced to a level below which it does not enhance the mechanical properties. Other circumstances in which multiple heat treatments are necessary are also discussed.The authors are grateful to POSCO for support through Steel Innovation Programme, and to the World Class University Programme of the National Research Foundation of Korea, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, project number R32-2008-000-10147.This is the accepted manuscript version. The final published version is available from Springer at http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11661-014-2405-z

Combination Antifungal Therapy for Cryptococcal Meningitis

Background Combination antifungal therapy (amphotericin B deoxycholate and flucytosine) is the recommended treatment for cryptococcal meningitis but has not been shown to reduce mortality, as compared with amphotericin B alone. We performed a randomized, controlled trial to determine whether combining flucytosine or high-dose fluconazole with high-dose amphotericin B improved survival at 14 and 70 days. Methods We conducted a randomized, three-group, open-label trial of induction therapy for cryptococcal meningitis in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection. All patients received amphotericin B at a dose of 1 mg per kilogram of body weight per day; patients in group 1 were treated for 4 weeks, and those in groups 2 and 3 for 2 weeks. Patients in group 2 concurrently received flucytosine at a dose of 100 mg per kilogram per day for 2 weeks, and those in group 3 concurrently received fluconazole at a dose of 400 mg twice daily for 2 weeks. Results A total of 299 patients were enrolled. Fewer deaths occurred by days 14 and 70 among patients receiving amphotericin B and flucytosine than among those receiving amphotericin B alone (15 vs. 25 deaths by day 14; hazard ratio, 0.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.30 to 1.08; unadjusted P=0.08; and 30 vs. 44 deaths by day 70; hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.39 to 0.97; unadjusted P=0.04). Combination therapy with fluconazole had no significant effect on survival, as compared with monotherapy (hazard ratio for death by 14 days, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.44 to 1.41; P=0.42; hazard ratio for death by 70 days, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.45 to 1.11; P=0.13). Amphotericin B plus flucytosine was associated with significantly increased rates of yeast clearance from cerebrospinal fluid (−0.42 log10 colony-forming units [CFU] per milliliter per day vs. −0.31 and −0.32 log10 CFU per milliliter per day in groups 1 and 3, respectively; P<0.001 for both comparisons). Rates of adverse events were similar in all groups, although neutropenia was more frequent in patients receiving a combination therapy. Conclusions Amphotericin B plus flucytosine, as compared with amphotericin B alone, is associated with improved survival among patients with cryptococcal meningitis. A survival benefit of amphotericin B plus fluconazole was not found