Shop stewards’ leadership, left-wing activism and collective workplace union organisation

Providing an account of the dynamic interrelationship between shop steward leadership and membership interaction, Ralph Darlington focuses particular attention on the much-neglected crucial role that left-wing political activists can play in shaping the nature of collective workplace relations

Current approach to the treatment of penile implant infections

Modern penile implants, introduced to the market almost four decades ago, have provided a predictable and reliable treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) despite the development of less-invasive therapies. Infection associated with the placement of these devices does occur, and with prophylactic measures and protocols the incidence has decreased fortunately. In the presence of an infection the implant and all foreign material should be removed. A salvage procedure, during which the wound is thoroughly washed with antiseptic solutions after device removal and placement of a new implant during the same procedure, has a high success rate and is becoming a popular approach. The alternative, device removal with return at a later date for placing a new implant, entails a more difficult corporal dilation, and the resulting erection is noticeably shorter. Patient and partner satisfaction with a penile implant is the highest among all of the treatments for ED

Linking indirect effects of cytomegalovirus to modulation of monocyte innate immune function

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in the immunocompromised host. In transplant recipients, a variety of clinically important "indirect effects" are attributed to immune modulation by CMV, including increased mortality from fungal disease, allograft dysfunction and rejection in solid organ transplantation, and graft-versus-host-disease in stem cell transplantation. Monocytes, key cellular targets of CMV, are permissive to primary, latent and reactivated CMV infection. Here, pairing unbiased bulk and single cell transcriptomics with functional analyses we demonstrate that human monocytes infected with CMV do not effectively phagocytose fungal pathogens, a functional deficit which occurs with decreased expression of fungal recognition receptors. Simultaneously, CMV-infected monocytes upregulate antiviral, pro-inflammatory chemokine, and inflammasome responses associated with allograft rejection and graft-versus-host disease. Our study demonstrates that CMV modulates both immunosuppressive and immunostimulatory monocyte phenotypes, explaining in part, its paradoxical "indirect effects" in transplantation. These data could provide innate immune targets for the stratification and treatment of CMV disease.</p

Avaliação clínica e histopatológica de alo-transplante de bexiga em cães Clinical and histopathological evaluation of urinary bladder allotransplant in dogs

Testou-se a hipótese de o alo-transplante de bexiga devolver a capacidade estrutural e funcional desse órgão, usando-se 10 cães machos, saudáveis, submetidos à cistectomia parcial com preservação do trígono vesical. Utilizou-se o alo-transplante na reconstrução da vesícula urinária com acompanhamento dos animais durante 60 dias. Aos oito dias de pós-operatório, os cães apresentavam capacidade de contenção urinária e micção espontânea. Houve aumento gradativo do volume da vesícula urinária, alcançando, aos 60 dias, valores significativamente mais altos que os observados antes da cirurgia. Verificou-se integração tecidual com regeneração parcial na interface do transplante, caracterizada por reconstituição epitelial, proliferação fibroblástica, neoangiogênese e surgimento de fibras musculares lisas, aos 60 dias. Problemas como rejeição e obstrução uretral ocorreram em três cães. Conclui-se que o alo-transplante de bexiga em cães é viável e devolve a capacidade de repleção e as demais funções fisiológicas da vesícula urinária, ocorrendo regeneração parcial dos tecidos aos 60 dias de pós-operatório.<br>The hypothesis that urinary bladder allotransplant in dogs repairs the functional and structural capacity of this organ. Ten healthy male dogs were submitted to partial cystectomy, preserving the vesicle trigon. Allotransplant was used on the reconstruction of the urinary bladder and the animals were kept under observation for 60 days. On day seven after surgery, the dogs presented spontaneous capacity of contention and micturition. There was a gradual increase of the volume of the urinary bladder reaching to significantly higher values on day 60. Tissue integration with partial regeneration on the interface of the transplant, characterized by epithelial reconstitution, fibroblastic proliferation, neoangiogenesis and smooth muscular fibers appearance were observed on day 60. Problems as rejection and urethral obstruction occurred in three dogs. It is concluded that the allotransplant in dogs is viable, repairing the bladder capacity and other physiologic functions of the urinary bladder, although partial tissue regeneration is observed 60 days after operation