Spread of a SARS-CoV-2 variant through Europe in the summer of 2020

[EN] Following its emergence in late 2019, the spread of SARS-CoV-21,2 has been tracked by phylogenetic analysis of viral genome sequences in unprecedented detail3,4,5. Although the virus spread globally in early 2020 before borders closed, intercontinental travel has since been greatly reduced. However, travel within Europe resumed in the summer of 2020. Here we report on a SARS-CoV-2 variant, 20E (EU1), that was identified in Spain in early summer 2020 and subsequently spread across Europe. We find no evidence that this variant has increased transmissibility, but instead demonstrate how rising incidence in Spain, resumption of travel, and lack of effective screening and containment may explain the variant’s success. Despite travel restrictions, we estimate that 20E (EU1) was introduced hundreds of times to European countries by summertime travellers, which is likely to have undermined local efforts to minimize infection with SARS-CoV-2. Our results illustrate how a variant can rapidly become dominant even in the absence of a substantial transmission advantage in favourable epidemiological settings. Genomic surveillance is critical for understanding how travel can affect transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and thus for informing future containment strategies as travel resumes.S

La ganadería ante escenarios complejos.

La calidad de las contribuciones, producto de la pluma de especialistas en los temas tratados, el presente es un libro que esperamos, basándonos en la importancia de los temas tratados, sea de utilidad y abone a la reflexión de los estudiosos de la ganadería mexicana y, por supuesto, en beneficio de las familias ganaderas y de los consumidores de sus productos.este libro refleja en muchos sentidos la situación de la ganadería mexicana, a la que se le están demandando mayor producción y productividad, que los procesos productivos tengan la menor huella ecológicposible, que los alimentos sean inocuos, que se abatan costos de producción y, cada vez aumentan las presiones de diversos grupos para, que se incluyan los protocolos de bienestar animal, solamente por citar algunos de los retos que tiene. Algunas de estas demandas son complementarias, otras se contraponen, lo que hace valiosos a los estudios que desde las ciencias sociales se realizan y, desde diversas ópticas, se hagan propuestas de política pública balanceadas que consideren lo mejor de cada enfoque, pero sin desechar por completo los antagónicos.Universidad Autónoma Chaping

R1 en pacientes con tumor de páncreas sometidos a intervención quirúrgica en el Hospital Solca en el periodo 2012 al 2016

Introducción: El 90% de los tumores pancreáticos está constituido por el adenocarcinoma de cabeza de páncreas siendo éste de origen multifactorial con factores de riesgo que predisponen dicha alteración celular. La cirugía continúa siendo la única opción terapéutica potencialmente curativa. La infiltración de los márgenes quirúrgicos (R1) en las piezas operatorias es un factor negativo e independiente para la supervivencia de los pacientes. Método: Este estudio es de tipo observacional retrospectivo realizado en el Hospital SOLCA (2012-2016) donde se obtuvo un universo de 107 historias clínicas correspondientes a tumores de páncreas de los cuales se excluyeron 43 expedientes por corresponder únicamente a biopsia, 6 que sólo incluían colocación de Implantofix, 19 en quienes se realizó laparotomía exploratoria más biopsia, obteniendo una muestra final de 39 historias clínicas que fueron sometidos a intervención quirúrgica que contaron con pieza operatoria, de las cuales 17 de ellas fueron por duodenopancreatectomía cefálica (DPC, técnica Whipple) y 22 por otros tipos de cirugía. Resultados: De los 39 récords operatorios revisados en este estudio, se constató que el 74,5% fueron sometidos a DPC. Veintidós (56,41%) pacientes continuaron vivos al final de la investigación y 17 (43,58%) fallecieron. Los márgenes estudiados en prácticamente todos los pacientes (90%) fueron el pancreático, el proximal y el distal, mientras que los menos informados fueron el margen biliar (informado en el 20,5% de las piezas), el uncinado y el vascular, ambos en un 5.13% cada uno (p=<0.05). De los márgenes antes mencionados, 33 piezas operatorias tuvieron márgenes libres, y en 5 piezas al menos un margen estuvo comprometido. De ellos, el compromiso fue evidente en márgenes pancreáticos (2 casos), biliares (2 casos) y uncinado (1 caso). Al momento del seguimiento postquirúrgico se comprobó que 27 pacientes recidivaron, 10 tuvieron evolución favorable y 2 pacientes no acudieron a sus control posterior a la cirugía. De los pacientes que recidivaron se comprobó que su status final fue: 9 vivos (33,30%) y 17 fallecidos (62,90%). La DPC fue la técnica quirúrgica más empleada (74,35%). La mediana de sobrevida global fue de 13 meses. Conclusión: A pesar de la intervención quirúrgica, la recidiva sigue siendo alta, esto podría deberse a irresecabilidad al momento de la cirugía, o a una falta de protocolos histopatológicos en el cual se pueda estandarizar la cantidad de ganglios extraídos y determinar con certeza el compromiso ganglionar, así como la lectura de los márgenes quirúrgicos. Recomendaciones: Se recomienda la elaboración de un protocolo institucional para cáncer de cabeza de páncreas y su uso adecuado para futuras investigaciones.

Iron bioavailability of Lupinus rotundiflorus seeds and roots in low-iron-diet treated rats

<div><p>ABSTRACT Objective To evaluate iron bioavailability of roots and cooked seeds of Lupinus rotundiflorus for human consumption using a low-iron-diet rat model. Methods A hemoglobin depletion–repletion test was performed using rats. A standard diet containing 8mg kg-1 of iron was used. Three experimental diets were prepared based on the standard diet: 2.3g of root flour added to D1, 21.5g cooked seed flour added to D2, and 0.03g of ferrous sulfate added to D3 (control diet), adjusting iron concentration of the diets to 24mg kg-1. Hemoglobin regeneration efficiency was used to measure iron bioavailability. Results Hemoglobin regeneration efficiency showed values of 13.80+2.49%, 13.70+1.60% and 18.38+1.56 in D1, D2 and D3 respectively, and biological relative values of 72.8, 75.08, and 100.00% (.<0.05). Conclusion Roots and cooked seeds of Lupinus rotundiflorus showed potential iron bioavailability, despite being a vegetal source, which could also encourage the study of other species of lupin as a source of iron.</p></div

Effectiveness and Safety of Attic Exposition–Antrum Exclusion versus Canal Wall-Up in Patients with Acquired Stage Ib and II Cholesteatoma Affecting the Attic and Tympanic Cavity

This study aims to test the effectiveness and safety of exteriorization surgery comprising atticotomy and obliteration of the additus ad antrum, also referred to as attic exposition–antrum exclusion (AE-AE) surgery. This surgery combines otoendoscopy with surgical microscopy for the treatment of acquired pars flaccida cholesteatoma in stages Ib and II (according to the classification of the Japan Otological Society) present in the attic and the tympanic cavity. We reviewed a historical cohort of 65 patients. Of the total, 21 were treated with canal wall-up tympanomastoidectomy (CWU). Patients in whom the AE-AE technique was performed had residual and recurrence rates of 0% and 9.1%, respectively, compared with 28.6% and 9.5%, respectively, for those treated with CWU. In the AE-AE procedure, surgery is performed in one stage compared with the two stages in CWU, to address the risk of residual cholesteatoma. Auditory thresholds were higher in the CWU group compared with the AE-AE group in the pre-surgery (53 ± 16 vs. 44 ± 15 dB; p = 0.039) and post-surgery (52 ± 18 vs. 42 ± 16 dB; p = 0.042) evaluations but not in pre–post-surgery comparisons for either the AE-AE technique (p = 0.89) or the CWU technique (p = 0.96). We conclude that AE-AE is an effective and safe technique for the treatment of acquired stage Ib and II cholesteatoma present in the attic and tympanic cavities

Role of Intracellular Drug Disposition in the Response of Acute Myeloid Leukemia to Cytarabine and Idarubicin Induction Chemotherapy

Despite its often low efficacy and high toxicity, the standard treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is induction chemotherapy with cytarabine and idarubicin. Here, we have investigated the role of transporters and drug-metabolizing enzymes in this poor outcome. The expression levels (RT-qPCR) of potentially responsible genes in blasts collected at diagnosis were related to the subsequent response to two-cycle induction chemotherapy. The high expression of uptake carriers (ENT2), export ATP-binding cassette (ABC) pumps (MDR1), and enzymes (DCK, 5-NT, and CDA) in the blasts was associated with a lower response. Moreover, the sensitivity to cytarabine in AML cell lines was associated with ENT2 expression, whereas the expression of ABC pumps and enzymes was reduced. No ability of any AML cell line to export idarubicin through the ABC pumps, MDR1 and MRP, was found. The exposure of AML cells to cytarabine or idarubicin upregulated the detoxifying enzymes (5-NT and DCK). In AML patients, 5-NT and DCK expression was associated with the lack of response to induction chemotherapy (high sensitivity and specificity). In conclusion, in the blasts of AML patients, the reduction of the intracellular concentration of the active metabolite of cytarabine, mainly due to the increased expression of inactivating enzymes, can determine the response to induction chemotherapy.Junta de Castilla y León (España)Fundación Mutua MadrileñaInstituto de Salud Carlos III (España)European CommissionMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)Depto. de Biología CelularDepto. de MedicinaFac. de MedicinaTRUEpubDescuento UC

Role of Intracellular Drug Disposition in the Response of Acute Myeloid Leukemia to Cytarabine and Idarubicin Induction Chemotherapy

Despite its often low efficacy and high toxicity, the standard treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is induction chemotherapy with cytarabine and idarubicin. Here, we have investigated the role of transporters and drug-metabolizing enzymes in this poor outcome. The expression levels (RT-qPCR) of potentially responsible genes in blasts collected at diagnosis were related to the subsequent response to two-cycle induction chemotherapy. The high expression of uptake carriers (ENT2), export ATP-binding cassette (ABC) pumps (MDR1), and enzymes (DCK, 5-NT, and CDA) in the blasts was associated with a lower response. Moreover, the sensitivity to cytarabine in AML cell lines was associated with ENT2 expression, whereas the expression of ABC pumps and enzymes was reduced. No ability of any AML cell line to export idarubicin through the ABC pumps, MDR1 and MRP, was found. The exposure of AML cells to cytarabine or idarubicin upregulated the detoxifying enzymes (5-NT and DCK). In AML patients, 5-NT and DCK expression was associated with the lack of response to induction chemotherapy (high sensitivity and specificity). In conclusion, in the blasts of AML patients, the reduction of the intracellular concentration of the active metabolite of cytarabine, mainly due to the increased expression of inactivating enzymes, can determine the response to induction chemotherapy

Frequency of the T307A, N680S, and -29G>A single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the follicle-stimulating hormone receptor in Mexican subjects of Hispanic ancestry

Abstract Background FSHR SNPs may influence the ovarian sensitivity to endogenous and exogenous FSH stimulation. Given the paucity of data on the FSHR c.919A > G, c.2039A > G and − 29G > A SNPs in Hispanic population, we here analyzed their frequency distribution in Mexican mestizo women. Methods Samples from 224 Mexican mestizo women enrolled in an IVF program as well as a genotype database from 8182 Mexican mestizo subjects, were analyzed for FSHR SNPs at positions c.919, c.2039 and − 29G > A. Association between the genetic variants and reproductive outcomes was assessed. Results The c.919 and c.2039 SNPs were in strong linkage disequilibrium and their corresponding genotype frequencies in the IVF group were: AA 46.8%, AG 44.2%, and GG 8.9%, and AA 41.9%, AG 48.2% and GG 9.8%, respectively. For the -29G > A SNP, genotype frequencies were 27% (GG), 50% (GA) and 23% (AA). In normal oocyte donors with the c.2039 GG genotype, the number of oocytes recovered after ovarian stimulation (COS) were significantly (p  A SNP. Analysis of the large scale database revealed that both allelic and genotype frequencies for the three SNPs were very similar to those detected in the IVF cohort (p ≥ 0.38) and that female carriers of the c.2039 G allele tended to present lower number of pregnancies than women bearing the AA genotype; this trend was stronger when women with more Native American ancestry was separately analyzed (OR = 2.0, C.I. 95% 1.03–3.90, p = 0.04). There were no differences or trends in the number of pregnancies among the different genotypes of the -29G > A SNP. Conclusions The frequency of the GG/GG combination genotype for the c.919 and c.2039 SNPs in Mexican hispanics is among the lowest reported. The GG genotype is associated with decreased number of oocytes recovered in response to COS as well as to lower pregnancy rates in Hispanic women from the general population. The absence of any effect of the -29AA genotype on the response to COS, indicates that there is no need to perform this particular genotype testing in Hispanic women with the purpose of providing an individually-tailored COS protocol