Attributable Outcomes of Endemic Clostridium difficile–associated Disease in Nonsurgical Patients

CDAD led to significantly worse outcomes in these patients

From Obesity-Induced Low-Grade Inflammation to Lipotoxicity and Mitochondrial Dysfunction: Altered Multi-Crosstalk between Adipose Tissue and Metabolically Active Organs

Obesity is a major risk factor for several metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular diseases, and brain disorders. Growing evidence suggests the importance of inter-organ metabolic communication for the progression of obesity and the subsequent onset of related disorders. This review provides a broad overview of the pathophysiological processes that from adipose tissue dysfunction leading to altered multi-tissue crosstalk relevant to regulating energy homeostasis and the etiology of obesity. First, a comprehensive description of the role of adipose tissue was reported. Then, attention was turned toward the unhealthy expansion of adipose tissue, low-grade inflammatory state, metabolic inflexibility, and mitochondrial dysfunction as root causes of systemic metabolic alterations. In addition, a short spot was devoted to iron deficiency in obese conditions and the role of the hepcidin–ferroportin relationship in the management of this issue. Finally, different classes of bioactive food components were described with a perspective to enhance their potential preventive and therapeutic use against obesity-related diseases

A Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis in Adult Subjects: The Relationship between Phase Angle and Body Cell Mass

The correct assessment of body composition is essential for an accurate diagnostic evaluation of nutritional status. The body mass index (BMI) is the most widely adopted indicator for evaluating undernutrition, overweight, and obesity, but it is unsuitable for differentiating changes in body composition. In recent times, bioelectrical impedance analyses (BIA) have been proven as a more accurate procedure for the assessment of body composition. Furthermore, the efficiency of bioelectrical impedance vector analyses, as an indicator of nutritional status and hydration, has been demonstrated. By applying a bioimpedance analysis, it is possible to detect fat mass (FM), fat free mass (FFM), phase angle, and body cell mass (BCM). It is important to point out that phase angle and BCM are strongly associated with health status. The aim of this research was to examine body composition and the association between the phase angle and BCM in 87 subjects (14 males and 73 females), aged between 23 and 54 years, with BMIs ranging from 17.0 to 32.0 kg/m2, according to sex. The BMI results revealed that the majority of the assessed subjects were within the normal range and had a normal percentage of FM. Our data indicate that a direct relation exists between phase angle and cellular health and that these values increase almost linearly. Consequently, a high phase angle may be related to increased BCM values

Maqroll y el imperio de la literatura Vol. 2

PublishedComo se dijo en la presentación a esta obra (primer volumen), este segundo volumen contiene la tercera parte de este proyecto editorial, titulada “Estudios de poesía y prosa”. Bajo este título se agrupan diecinueve contribuciones que estudian a fondo la compleja y unitaria obra literaria de Álvaro Mutis, desde una serie de contextos y e interpretaciones particulares. Las contribuciones aquí presentadas provienen, principalmente, de la autoría de catedráticos de literatura y expertos conocedores de la obra de Mutis, cuya actividad se desarrolla en España, Alemania, Estados Unidos, Francia, Colombia, México, Italia, Venezuela y Brasil. Construida con una eficaz pero largamente cavilada preparación durante los años ochenta, la saga de novelas que componen las Empresas y tribulaciones de Maqroll el Gaviero supone un complejo juego de referencias y relaciones tanto con la obra poética anterior a ella, como con una serie de relatos cortos y obras periodísticas. Gabriel García Márquez no dudó en llamar a este proyecto de Mutis como “uno de los más grandes milagros de nuestras letras”. Aunque, en todo momento Mutis negó la idea de unidad en torno a su obra, en el sentido en que la escritura, a su juicio, fue dando, paso a paso, las coordenas a seguir, cabe reflexionar acerca de la obra como un todo, como una producción de sentido que tiene su propia coherencia y su modo de acceso. Sobre este punto, cabe preguntarse, además: ¿Qué supone, a nivel de creación artística y poética, este inusual fenómeno? ¿Cómo debe leerse esta obra que establece contrapuntos entre la poesía y la prosa? ¿Cómo deben pensarse y asumirse los diversos planos y escenarios intertextuales presentes en la obra? Los diecinueve estudios aquí presentados ahondan, cada uno a su manera, en torno a estas cuestiones suscitadas. Como apreciará el lector, se dan aquí, en todo caso, diversos diálogos con una obra compleja y apasionante que se mueve ágilmente en los terrenos de la palabra poética y de la narrativa. Las perspectivas y los análisis que son presentados aquí provienen, en gran medida, de las voces que, internacionalmente, a lo largo de los años han llamado la atención con mayor ahínco sobre la profunda originalidad de la obra mutisiana

Integrated molecular and multiparametric MRI mapping of high-grade glioma identifies regional biologic signatures

Abstract Sampling restrictions have hindered the comprehensive study of invasive non-enhancing (NE) high-grade glioma (HGG) cell populations driving tumor progression. Here, we present an integrated multi-omic analysis of spatially matched molecular and multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) profiling across 313 multi-regional tumor biopsies, including 111 from the NE, across 68 HGG patients. Whole exome and RNA sequencing uncover unique genomic alterations to unresectable invasive NE tumor, including subclonal events, which inform genomic models predictive of geographic evolution. Infiltrative NE tumor is alternatively enriched with tumor cells exhibiting neuronal or glycolytic/plurimetabolic cellular states, two principal transcriptomic pathway-based glioma subtypes, which respectively demonstrate abundant private mutations or enrichment in immune cell signatures. These NE phenotypes are non-invasively identified through normalized K2 imaging signatures, which discern cell size heterogeneity on dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC)-MRI. NE tumor populations predicted to display increased cellular proliferation by mean diffusivity (MD) MRI metrics are uniquely associated with EGFR amplification and CDKN2A homozygous deletion. The biophysical mapping of infiltrative HGG potentially enables the clinical recognition of tumor subpopulations with aggressive molecular signatures driving tumor progression, thereby informing precision medicine targeting