High-speed Beveled Tip Versus Standard Tip Vitrectomy Probe: A Prospective Randomized Clinical Trial

Purpose: To compare the efficiency of the advanced ultravit beveled vitrector probe (10,000 cuts per minute) to the current standard ultravit highspeed (7500 cuts per minute) vitrector probe. Methods: A prospective, randomized controlled trial was conducted on patients undergoing routine vitrectomy surgery for epiretinal membrane, full-thickness macular hole, and vitreous opacities. Patients were randomly assigned to undergo PPV with the ultravit highspeed probe (Probe 1) or the advanced ultravit beveled probe (Probe 2). The main outcome measure was time to completion of core vitrectomy and vitreous base shave. Results: Forty patients were enrolled in this study, 20 in each cohort. The average time to completion of core vitrectomy was 10.4 +/- 1.8 min in the Probe 1 cohort compared to 9.7 +/- 2 min in the Probe 2 cohort (P = 0.21). The average time to completion of vitreous base shave was 9.6 +/- 2.7 min in the Probe 1 cohort compared to 9.4 +/- 1.8 min in the Probe 2 cohort (P = 0.39). Conclusion: In the current study, the advanced ultravit beveled probe was noninferior to the ultravit highspeed vitrectomy probe when looking at the time to completion of core vitrectomy and vitreous base shave. The increased cut rate did not affect the efficiency of vitreous removal

The Effects of Hydration on Growth of the House Cricket, Acheta domesticus

Maintenance of biochemical gradients, membrane fluidity, and sustained periods of activity are key physiological and behavioral functions of water for animals living in desiccating environments. Water stress may reduce the organism's ability to maintain these functions and as such, may reduce an organism's growth. However, few studies have examined this potential effect. The effects of altered hydration state of the house cricket, Acheta domesticus L. (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) on individual growth were studied under laboratory conditions. Crickets were permitted access to water for three different durations each day, resulting in significant differences in hydration state (32% greater hydration for maximum than minimum duration of water availability). Growth was 59% and 72% greater in dry mass and length, respectively, between the lowest and highest hydration state treatments. These findings may be representative for a variety of animal species and environments and could have important ecological implications

Outcomes of a modified capsular tension ring with a single black occluder paddle for eyes with congenital and acquired iris defects: Report 2.

PurposeTo evaluate the safety and efficacy of Morcher 96F iris diaphragm implantation to manage small defects of the human iris.SettingJules Stein Eye Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA.DesignProspective nonrandomized interventional case series.MethodsDemographic, preoperative, and postoperative data of patients who had implantation of the modified capsular tension ring (CTR) and followed to 1 year were reviewed. Safety measures included loss of corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), perioperative complications, adverse events, and secondary surgical interventions. Efficacy measures included CDVA with glare, daytime and nighttime glare symptom scores, and subjective cosmesis scores.ResultsSixteen patients had CTR implantation. There was a statistically significant improvement in the median CDVA of 2.5 Snellen lines (P < .01), with 4 patients having minor decreases in CDVA for reasons unrelated to the device. There were no intraoperative complications. Three adverse events were reported: 1 ocular hypertension, 1 postoperative retinal detachment, and 1 25-degree rotation of the CTR. There were 4 secondary surgical interventions. There was a statistically significant improvement in the median CDVA with glare of 8 Snellen lines (P < .01), but 2 patients had a decrease in CDVA with glare for reasons unrelated to the device. There were statistically significant improvements in the median daytime and nighttime glare symptom scores of 5 points and 4 points, respectively (both P < .01). There was no change in cosmesis for most patients.ConclusionIris diaphragm CTR implantation was relatively safe and effective at reducing light and glare sensitivity in eyes with small iris defects.Financial disclosureNo author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned

A rare presentation of choroidal metastasis from primary esophageal adenocarcinoma successfully treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy

Purpose: In this case report, we present a case of choroidal metastasis from a primary esophageal adenocarcinoma that was treated successfully with intensity-modulated radiation therapy. Observations: A 65-year-old male with known stage IV esophageal adenocarcinoma presented with a central scotoma in his left eye and was ultimately found to have a large choroidal metastatic lesion with overlying subretinal fluid. IMRT was administered over the course of four weeks, resulting in restoration of the patient's vision, regression of the metastatic lesion, and resolution of the subretinal fluid. As of 16 months following completion of radiation, there remains no evidence of choroidal recurrence or radiation-associated ocular complications. Conclusions: and Importance: To our knowledge, this is the first published case report of a choroidal metastasis from esophageal cancer responding durably to IMRT. IMRT should therefore be considered a viable treatment option for this rare disease. Keywords: Choroidal metastasis, Esophageal adenocarcinoma, Intensity-modulated radiation therapy, External beam radiation therapy, Retin

Evolutionary Analysis and Classification of OATs, OCTs, OCTNs, and Other SLC22 Transporters: Structure-Function Implications and Analysis of Sequence Motifs.

The SLC22 family includes organic anion transporters (OATs), organic cation transporters (OCTs) and organic carnitine and zwitterion transporters (OCTNs). These are often referred to as drug transporters even though they interact with many endogenous metabolites and signaling molecules (Nigam, S.K., Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, 14:29-44, 2015). Phylogenetic analysis of SLC22 supports the view that these transporters may have evolved over 450 million years ago. Many OAT members were found to appear after a major expansion of the SLC22 family in mammals, suggesting a physiological and/or toxicological role during the mammalian radiation. Putative SLC22 orthologs exist in worms, sea urchins, flies, and ciona. At least six groups of SLC22 exist. OATs and OCTs form two Major clades of SLC22, within which (apart from Oat and Oct subclades), there are also clear Oat-like, Octn, and Oct-related subclades, as well as a distantly related group we term "Oat-related" (which may have different functions). Based on available data, it is arguable whether SLC22A18, which is related to bacterial drug-proton antiporters, should be assigned to SLC22. Disease-causing mutations, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and other functionally analyzed mutations in OAT1, OAT3, URAT1, OCT1, OCT2, OCTN1, and OCTN2 map to the first extracellular domain, the large central intracellular domain, and transmembrane domains 9 and 10. These regions are highly conserved within subclades, but not between subclades, and may be necessary for SLC22 transporter function and functional diversification. Our results not only link function to evolutionarily conserved motifs but indicate the need for a revised sub-classification of SLC22

List of Major and Sub Clades of SLC22 Family Members in Human and Mouse.

<p>List of Major and Sub Clades of SLC22 Family Members in Human and Mouse.</p

Unrooted Phylogeny of the SLC22 Transporter Family Using 163 Sequences of Various Organisms for Each of the 31 SLC22 Members.

<p>The sequences were aligned and the tree was generated using Clustal X 2.1 (using default parameters). The tree was viewed using Interactive Tree of Life (iTOL), an online tree viewing tool [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0140569#pone.0140569.ref055" target="_blank">55</a>]. Accession numbers are listed in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0140569#pone.0140569.s007" target="_blank">S1 Table</a>. Bootstrap values are shown at each node of this phylogeny.</p

Shared Motifs of SLC22 Family Transporters by MEME Analysis on 16 of the Sequences Used in the Analysis.

<p>Abbreviations of the SLC22 member number is on the far left (e.g., A15 = SLC22A15) and known common names are on the far right. In green are the SLC22 family-conserved motifs which are lettered (A-P) in the order that they appear in the SLC22A6 amino acid sequence. The majority of the sequences follow this motif order. In red are the subclade-specific motifs overlaid on the same 1D representation of each SLC22 sequence. The first box labeled the Large Extracellular Loop represents the predicted Large Extracellular Loop [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0140569#pone.0140569.ref056" target="_blank">56</a>] and the second box labeled the Large Intracellular Loop represents the predicted Large Intracellular Loop. Note that each 1D representation is proportionally scaled such that each sequence length can be estimated in the scale near the bottom of the figure.</p