Human mesenchymal stromal cells from different sources diverge in their expression of cell surface proteins and display distinct differentiation patterns

When germ-free cell cultures became a laboratory routine, hopes were high for using this novel technology for treatment of diseases or replacement of cells in patients suffering from injury, inflammation, or cancer or even refreshing cells in the elderly. Today, more than 50 years after the first successful bone marrow transplantation, clinical application of hematopoietic stem cells is a routine procedure, saving the lives of many every day. However, transplanting other than hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells is still limited to a few applications, and it mainly applies to mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) isolated from bone marrow. But research progressed and different trials explore the clinical potential of human MSCs isolated from bone marrow but also from other tissues including adipose tissue. Recently, MSCs isolated from bone marrow (bmMSCs) were shown to be a blend of distinct cells and MSCs isolated from different tissues show besides some common features also some significant differences. This includes the expression of distinct antigens on subsets of MSCs, which was utilized recently to define and separate functionally different subsets from bulk MSCs. We therefore briefly discuss differences found in subsets of human bmMSCs and in MSCs isolated from some other sources and touch upon how this could be utilized for cell-based therapies

The present and future of QCD

This White Paper presents an overview of the current status and future perspective of QCD research, based on the community inputs and scientific conclusions from the 2022 Hot and Cold QCD Town Meeting. We present the progress made in the last decade toward a deep understanding of both the fundamental structure of the sub-atomic matter of nucleon and nucleus in cold QCD, and the hot QCD matter in heavy ion collisions. We identify key questions of QCD research and plausible paths to obtaining answers to those questions in the near future, hence defining priorities of our research over the coming decades

Circumferential urinary sphincter surface electromyography: A novel diagnostic method for intrinsic sphincter deficiency

AIMS: The diagnosis of intrinsic sphincter deficiency (ISD) in patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is not well established. We explored the possibility of applying a new tool: minimally invasive circumferential sphincter surface electromyography (CSS-EMG) to assess the muscular integrity of the urethral sphincter in patients with SUI/ISD. METHODS: CSS-EMG of the urethral sphincter and urodynamic studies were performed in 44 women with SUI. A urethral pressure profile (UPP) was measured in four directions. Maximal urethral closure pressure (MUCP) <40 cm/H2 O or the presence of SUI without urethral hypermobility was used to define ISD. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients had urodynamic SUI, 23 had no SUI and 12 patients had ISD. The mean average rectified value (ARV) of the motor unit action potential (MUAP), an indicator of the strength of urethral rhabdosphincter, was estimated. ARV measured in the 12 o'clock quadrant during maximal contraction was the only CSS-EMG parameter that had significant predictive value for ISD. With an increase in the 12 o'clock ARV value, the likelihood of ISD decreases (Odds Ratio 0.36 95% confidence interval 0.67-0.92). In the ROC curve with ARV measured in the 12 o'clock quadrant during maximal contraction, the explained area was 0.794 (P = 0.02); implying that ARV measured at the 12 o'clock quadrant during maximal contraction was able to predict ISD significantly. CONCLUSIONS: Myogenic changes of the urethral sphincter that contribute to ISD can be assessed with CSS-EMG. This new concept for assessing the functionality of the female urethral sphincter may assist with better understanding of the pathophysiology, the diagnosis and the treatment of SUI. Neurourol. Urodynam. 35:186-191, 2016. (c) 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc