Multimodality imaging of anomalous pulmonary veins

Partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection (PAPVC) is an extremely rare congenital condition where one or more of the pulmonary veins are connected to the venous circulation. Although initially suspected with unexplained right ventricular enlargement on transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), cardiac MRI is able to delineate the anatomical variant. We present a case of a 65-year-old male diagnosed with left sided PAPVC using multimodality cardiac imaging

The blood concentration of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) in patients with active thyroid-associated orbitopathy before and after methylprednisolone treatment

Background: The soluble forms of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) have been found to be increased in the blood of patients with Graves´ disease. The aim of this study is evaluation of the serum concentrations of soluble forms of adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in patients with thyroid-associated orbitopathy (TAO) before and after methylprednisolone treatment. Material and methods: The study was performed in 40 Graves´disease, hyperthyroid and euthyroid patients with a clinically active form of TAO. Serum concentrations of sVCAM-1 and sICAM-1 in TAO patients were determined by enzymelinked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) before and after intensive pulse methylprednisolone treatment. Results: We did not find any significant changes in the studied parameters between TAO patients with hyperthyroidism and those with euthyroidism. The serum concentrations of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 were significantly increased in patients with TAO before methylprednisolone therapy when compared with the control group. After treatment serum concentrations of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 decreased significantly but were still significantly higher than for the control group. Conclusion: From the results obtained we can conclude that Graves´ orbitopathy itself but not thyroid function is probably responsible for the elevated level of the adhesion molecules studied.Wstęp: Stężenie rozpuszczalnych form cząstek adhezyjnych między innymi międzykomórkowej cząstki adhezyjnej-1 (sICAM-1) oraz naczyniowej cząstki adhezyjnej-1 wzrasta w surowicy krwi chorych na chorobę Gravesa. Celem pracy była ocena stężenia sICAM-1oraz sVCAM-1 u chorych na chorobę Gravesa powikłaną aktywną formą orbitopatii tarczycowej przed oraz po leczeniu immunosupresyjnym. Materiał i metody: Badania przeprowadzono w grupie 40 chorych na chorobę Gravesa (w stanie hyper- oraz eutyreozy) powikłaną wystąpieniem aktywnej formy orbiopatii tarczycowej. Stężenie sICAM-1oraz sVCAM-1 w surowicy krwi oznaczano metodą immunoenzymatyczną (ELISA) przed oraz po leczeniu pulsami dożylnymi metylprednisolonu. Wyniki: Nie wykazano istotnej statystycznie różnicy w stężeniu badanych cząstek adhezyjnych między chorymi na chorobę Gravesa w stanie nadczynności tarczycy oraz w eutyreozie powikłaną aktywną orbitopatią tarczycową. Stężenie sICAM- 1 oraz sVCAM-1 było znamiennie statystycznie podwyższone u chorych przed leczeniem pulsami metylprednisolonu w porównaniu z grupą kontrolną. Po leczeniu stężenie cząstek adhezyjnych uległo znamiennemu statystycznie obniżeniu. Wnioski: Na podstawie uzyskanych wyników można wnioskować, że prawdopodobnie orbitopatia tarczycowa, a nie stan metaboliczny tarczycy, odpowiedzialny jest za wzrost stężenia badanych cząstek adhezyjnych

The immune complex p53 protein/anti-p53 autoantibodies in the pathogenesis of ovarian serous carcinoma

Objectives: The tests conducted were intended to analyze the concentration of p53 protein and anti-p53 autoantibodies in serum of women with ovarian tumours. Material and methods: The study included patients with diagnosed ovarian cancer: Cystadenoma serosum or Cystadenocarcinoma papillare serosum at IIIc stage (including 10 women who had G1, 14 women who had G2 and 30 women who had G3 staging). Concentrations of parameters were measured by ELISA. Results: The analysis of the obtained results showed statistical significance between the concentration of p53 protein depending on the degree of differentiation of G1 and G3 (p < 0.001) and anti-p53 autoantibodies depending on the degree of differentiation of G1 and G2 (p < 0.05) as well as G2 and G3 (p < 0.01). In addition, the determined p53/anti-p53 autoantibodies ratio was only significant between G1 and G2 (p < 0.05), as was the assessment of the percentage of the tested parameters in the immune complex. Conclusions: Immune system disorders involving the p53 protein and anti-p53 autoantibodies may be one of the immune mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of ovarian serous cancer

Information Extraction from Satellite-Based Polarimetric SAR Data Using Simulated Annealing and SIRT Methods and GPU Processing

The main goal of this research was to propose a new method of polarimetric SAR data decomposition that will extract additional polarimetric information from the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images compared to other existing decomposition methods. Most of the current decomposition methods are based on scattering, covariance or coherence matrices describing the radar wave-scattering phenomenon represented in a single pixel of an SAR image. A lot of different decomposition methods have been proposed up to now, but the problem is still open since it has no unique solution. In this research, a new polarimetric decomposition method is proposed that is based on polarimetric signature matrices. Such matrices may be used to reveal hidden information about the image target. Since polarimetric signatures (size 18 × 9) are much larger than scattering (size 2 × 2), covariance (size 3 × 3 or 4 × 4) or coherence (size 3 × 3 or 4 × 4) matrices, it was essential to use appropriate computational tools to calculate the results of the proposed decomposition method within an acceptable time frame. In order to estimate the effectiveness of the presented method, the obtained results were compared with the outcomes of another method of decomposition (Arii decomposition). The conducted research showed that the proposed solution, compared with Arii decomposition, does not overestimate the volume-scattering component in built-up areas and clearly separates objects within the mixed-up areas, where both building, vegetation and surfaces occur

Generalized enzymatic mechanism of catalysis by tetrameric l-asparaginases from mesophilic bacteria

Abstract The mechanism of catalysis by the l-glutaminase-asparaginase from Pseudomonas 7A (PGA) was investigated using structural, mass spectrometry, and kinetic data. We had previously proposed mechanism of hydrolysis of l-Asn by the type II l-asparaginase from E. coli (EcAII), but that work was limited to just one enzyme. Based on results presented in this report, we postulate that all homotetrameric l-asparaginases from mesophilic bacteria utilize a common ping-pong mechanism of catalysis consisting of two subsequent nucleophilic substitutions. Several new structures of non-covalent complexes of PGA with different substrates, as well as structures of covalent acyl-enzyme intermediates of PGA with canonical substrates (l-Asp and l-Glu) and an opportunistic ligand, a citrate anion, were determined. The results of kinetic experiments monitored by high-resolution LC/MS, when combined with new structural data, clearly show that the reaction catalyzed by l-glutaminase-asparaginases proceeds through formation of a covalent intermediate, as observed previously for EcAII. Additionally, by showing that the same mechanism applies to l-Asn and l-Gln, we postulate that it is common for all these structurally related enzymes

Down-regulation of CBP80 gene expression as a strategy to engineer a drought-tolerant potato

Developing new strategies for crop plants to respond to drought is crucial for their innovative breeding. The down-regulation of nuclear cap-binding proteins in Arabidopsis renders plants drought tolerant. The CBP80 gene in the potato cultivar Desiree was silenced using artificial microRNAs. Transgenic plants displayed a higher tolerance to drought, ABA-hypersensitive stomatal closing, an increase in leaf stomata and trichome density, and compact cuticle structures with a lower number of microchannels. These findings were correlated with a higher tolerance to water stress. The level of miR159 was decreased, and the levels of its target mRNAs MYB33 and MYB101 increased in the transgenic plants subjected to drought. Similar trends were observed in an Arabidopsis cbp80 mutant. The evolutionary conservation of CBP80, a gene that plays a role in the response to drought, suggests that it is a candidate for genetic manipulations that aim to obtain improved water-deficit tolerance of crop plants

Multimodality cardiac imaging of a double chambered right ventricle with intrapulmonary shunting: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Double chambered right ventricle (DCRV) is a relatively rare congenital heart disease, characterized by the abnormal division of the right ventricle into a high-pressure inlet and low-pressure outlet by anomalous muscle bundles. Extra-cardiac right-to-left shunts may present with clinical symptoms in adulthood and should be sought in patients with previous cavo-pulmonary shunt procedures.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report a case of DCRV in a 29 year old Caucasian male presenting in adulthood with a right-to-left shunt secondary to venous collaterals, following cavopulmonary anastomosis for congenital pulmonary atresia and hypoplastic right ventricle.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Multimodality cardiac imaging using echocardiography, cardiac CT, cardiac MRI and cardiac catheterization is often required for complete characterization of complex congenital heart anomalies in adulthood.</p