A prospective study on changes in blood levels of cholecystokinin-8and leptin in patients with refractory epilepsy treated with theketogenic diet

Objective: To evaluate the changes in serum CCK-8 and leptin levels in patients with refractory epilepsy treated with the ketogenic diet (KD). Methods: In this prospective study, patients aged between one and 40 years with refractory epilepsy were included. CCK-8 and leptin were measured in serum at baseline and after three and 12 months of treatment with the KD using an enzyme-linked Immunoabsorbant Assay. Seizure frequency and responsiveness were calculated. Results: Fifty-four patients were included; 26 patients (48%) were still on the KD at 12 months. After three and 12 months, respectively, 39% and 26% were responders. CCK-8 values were statistically significantly increased at three months (p=0.005) and 12 months (p=0.012). In responders, at three months follow-up, this increase of CCK-8 was significant (p = 0.020), whereas in the non-responders it was not (p = 0.34). Leptin values were decreased at three and 12 months, the decrease at three months being statistically significant in post-pubertal men (p=0.028) and post-pubertal women (p=0.007). Significance: In responders to the KD, serum CCK-8 increased statistically significantly during treatment at three months. Serum leptin decreased statistically significantly at three months in men and in postpubertal women. It is plausible that the increase of CCK-8 and the decrease of leptin contribute to the anti-convulsive effect of the KD

Póster: Proyecto Arq 196 - Eficiencia energética en las viviendas de interés social.

En el marco del proyecto de investigación ARQ 196 "Eficiencia energética en las viviendas de interés social", el trabajo surge como respuesta ante la problemática ambiental mundialmente afectada. Se basa en el estudio y la evaluación del desempeño térmico-energético de tres (3) prototipos de vivienda social unifamiliar de dos dormitorios en planta baja: Vivienda Universal VU Posición 1, Vivenda Universal VU Posición 3, y Vivienda Evolutiva VE c.l. Las mismas fueron diseñadas y redactados los pliegos licitatorios por la Dirección Provincial de la Vivienda y Urbanismo (DPVU) de Santa Fe, el Servicio Público de la Vivienda (SPV) de la ciudad de Rosario y el Ministerio del Interior de la Nación. Se procede al análisis de la documentación licitatoria gráfica y escrita (planimetrías, detalles constructivos y pliegos de especificaciones técnicas) de dichas viviendas donde se diagnostica que las mismas no contemplan criterios de diseño pasivo y eficiencia energética. El trabajo evalúa paralelamente el desempeño térmico-energético de los tres prototipos mencionados anteriormente. Se verifican según la Ordenanza 8757 (2011) de la ciudad de Rosario los valores de transmitancia térmica (K) de cerramientos opacos y vidriados y los valores máximos de exposición solar (FES). Bajo las Normas IRAM 11625 (2000) y 11630 (2000) se realizan los estudios de condensación superficial e intersticial de la envolvente. El coeficiente volumétrico “G” de pérdidas de calor y la determinación de la carga térmica anual son evaluados según las Normas IRAM 11604 (2001). Seguidamente se califica la eficiencia a través de una metodología simplificada de etiquetado de las envolventes basada en la norma IRAM 11900 (2010). Por último, se comparan los resultados obtenidos y se realiza una evaluación cuantitativa de los déficits.Fil: Musura, Victor - Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Arquitectura, Planeamiento y Diseño; Argentina

Clinical predictors of bacterial involvement in exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Contains fulltext : 57556.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: The wide use of antibiotics for treatment of exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) lacks evidence. The efficacy is debatable, and bacterial involvement in exacerbation is difficult to verify. The aim of this prospective study was to identify factors that can help to estimate the probability that a microorganism is involved in exacerbation of COPD and, therefore, predict the success of antibiotic treatment. METHODS: Clinical data and sputum samples were obtained from 116 patients during exacerbation of COPD. Bacterial infection was defined by the abundant presence of >or=1 potential pathological microorganism in relation to the normal flora in sputum. RESULTS: Of 116 exacerbations, 22 (19%) had bacterial involvement. The combination of a negative result of a sputum Gram stain, a relevant nonclinical decrease in lung function (compared with baseline measurements), and occurrence of <2 exacerbations in the previous year were 100% predictive of a nonbacterial origin of the exacerbation. The presence of all 3 of these clinical characteristics yielded a positive predictive value of 67% for a bacterial exacerbation. CONCLUSIONS: Patients presenting with an exacerbation who have a negative result of a sputum Gram stain, do not have a clinically relevant decrease in lung function, and who have not experienced <2 exacerbations of COPD in the previous year do not require antibiotic treatment. A treatment protocol taking into account these variables might lead to a 5%-24% reduction in unnecessary treatment with antibiotics, depending on actual prescription rates

High BRE expression predicts favorable outcome in adult acute myeloid leukemia, in particular among MLL-AF9-positive patients

Item does not contain fulltextAberrations in protein ubiquitination have recently been identified in the pathogenesis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). We studied whether expression changes of more than 1600 ubiquitination related genes correlated with clinical outcome in 525 adult AML patients. High expression of one of these genes, BRE, was observed in 3% of the cases and predicted favorable prognosis independently of known prognostic factors (5-year overall survival: 57%). Remarkably, unsupervised expression profiling showed that 86% of high BRE-expressing patients were confined to a previously unrecognized cluster. High BRE expression was mutually exclusive with FLT3 ITD, CEBPA, IDH1, and IDH2 mutations, EVI1 overexpression, and favorable karyotypes. In contrast, high BRE expression co-occurred strongly with FAB M5 morphology and MLL-AF9 fusions. Within the group of MLL-AF9-positive patients, high BRE expression predicted superior survival, while normal BRE expression predicted extremely poor survival (5-year overall survival of 80% vs 0%, respectively, P = .0002). Both the co-occurrence of high BRE expression with MLL-AF9 and its prognostic impact were confirmed in an independent cohort of 436 AML patients. Thus, high BRE expression defines a novel subtype of adult AML characterized by a favorable prognosis. This work contributes to improved risk stratification in AML, especially among MLL-AF9-positive patients