Vanishing bile duct syndrome related to DILI and Hodgkin lymphoma overlap: A rare and severe case

Vanishing bile duct syndrome is a rare acquired condition, characterized by progressive loss of intrahepatic bile ducts leading to ductopenia and cholestasis. It can be associated with infections, ischemia, drug adverse reactions, neoplasms, autoimmune disease, and allograft rejection. Prognosis is variable and depends on the etiology of bile duct injury. We report the case of a 25-year-old female with cholestatic hepatitis and concomitant intakes of hepatotoxic substances, such as garcinia, field horsetail, and ketoprofen. On suspicion of a drug-induced liver injury, the drugs were promptly withdrawn and ursodeoxycholic acid was started with initial clinical and laboratory improvement, and the patient was discharged from the hospital. One month later, she had a new increase in bilirubin levels and canalicular enzymes, requiring a liver biopsy that showed significant loss of intrahepatic bile ducts, which was compatible with vanishing bile duct syndrome. This was confirmed by using cytokeratin 19 on immunohistochemistry. There was subsequent lymph node enlargement in several chains, and relevant weight loss. Histological analysis of a cervical lymph node revealed nodular sclerosis-subtype classic Hodgkin lymphoma. In this setting, vanishing bile duct syndrome was related to Hodgkin lymphoma and a drug-induced liver injury overlap, leading to progressive cholestasis with a worse prognosis. The patient's response to chemotherapy was poor, requiring biological therapy with brentuximab vedotin. It is crucial for physicians to create a broad differential diagnosis in suspected vanishing bile duct syndrome patients, especially to rule out malignancies

Field spatial and temporal patterns of soil water content and bulk density changes Padrões espacial e temporal de mudanças da umidade e densidade do solo no campo

Soil water content (theta) and bulk density (rhos) greatly influence important soil and plant processes, such as water movement, soil compaction, soil aeration, and plant root system development. Spatial and temporal variability of theta and rhos during different periods of the year and different phases of crops are of fundamental interest. This work involves the characterization of spatial and temporal patterns of theta and rhos during different climatic periods of year, aiming to verify whether there are significant temporal changes in rhos at the soil surface layer when submitted to wetting and drying cycles. The field experiment was carried out in a coffee plantation, Rhodic Kandiudalf soil, clayey texture. Using a neutron/gamma surface probe, theta and rhos were measured meter by meter along a 200 m spatial transect, along an interrow contour line. During the wet period there was no difference of spatial patterns of theta while during the dry period differences were observed, and can be associated to precipitation events. It was also observed that there are rhos temporal changes at the soil surface along the studied period as a consequence of the in situ wetting and drying cycles.<br>Umidade (teta) e densidade do solo (ros) influenciam importantes processos no solo e planta tais como: movimento de água, compactação do solo, aeração do solo e desenvolvimento radicular. Baseado neste fato, questões referentes à variabilidade espacial e temporal de teta e ros para diferentes períodos do ano e diferentes fases de desenvolvimento da cultura do café tornam-se de extremo interesse. Este trabalho teve como objetivo caracterizar padrões espaciais e temporais de teta e ros durante diferentes períodos do ano e verificar se existem mudanças temporais significativas de ros na superfície do solo quando submetida a ciclos de umedecimento/secagem. O experimento foi conduzido em campo cultivado com café em um solo classificado como Nitossolo Vermelho Eutrófico. O experimento iniciou-se em maio de 2001 com espaçamento de 1,75 m entre linhas e 0,75 m entre plantas. Medidas de teta e ros foram feitas metro a metro ao longo de 200 m usando uma sonda de superfície nêutron/gama. Durante o período úmido não houve padrões de diferença espacial para teta, enquanto que para o período seco o contrário foi observado. Estes padrões podem ser associados a eventos de precipitação alterando a estrutura de correlação espacial para observações adjacentes de teta. Para ros existem mudanças temporais na superfície do solo ao longo do período estudado como uma conseqüência dos ciclos de umedecimento/secagem no campo

Implementação da seleção recorrente no melhoramento de plantas autógamas através da macho-esterilidade Implementation of recurrent selection in plant breding of autogamous crops through male sterility

Os sistemas de melhoramento convencionais baseados no método genealógico, utilizados principalmente em cereais de estação fria, determinam a redução da variabilidade e da capacidade de recombinação, devido a utilização de um número de genitores limitado nos cruzamentos. O incremento da probabilidade de recombinação através da seleção recorrente pelo aumento do número de cruzamentos pode ser a saída para este problema. A utilização da macho-esterilidade representa uma alternativa viável para propiciar o cruzamento natural em espécies de autofecundação, favorecendo a utilização da seleção recorrente como uma importante ferramenta para o melhoramento de plantas autógamas.<br>The mechanism of pedigree system used in smallgrain cereals reduce genetic variability and recombination capacity due to the limited number of parent used in crosses. The increase in recombination through recurrent selection by maximizing number of crosses may be a solution for this problem. The use of male sterility may overcome the difficult of performing artificial crosses, supporting recurrent selection as a viable and important tool for autogamous crops breeding