Does local chain conformation affect the chiral recognition ability of an amylose derivative? Comparison between linear and cyclic amylose tris(3,5-dimethylphenylcarbamate)

The full-text file will be made open to the public on 16 August 2021 in accordance with the publisher's policy.Akiyuki Ryoki, Yuto Kimura, Shinichi Kitamura, Katsuhiro Maeda, Ken Terao. Does local chain conformation affect the chiral recognition ability of an amylose derivative? Comparison between linear and cyclic amylose tris(3,5-dimethylphenylcarbamate). Journal of Chromatography A, 1599, 2019, pp. 144-151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2019.04.019

Estimating the immunogenicity of measles-rubella vaccination administered during a mass campaign in Lao People's Democratic Republic using multi-valent seroprevalence data.

Measles and rubella are important causes of morbidity and mortality globally. Despite high coverage reported for measles vaccination, outbreaks continue to occur in some countries. The reasons for these outbreaks are poorly understood. We apply Bayesian methods to multi-valent seroprevalence data for measles and rubella, collected 2 years and 3 months after a mass measles-rubella vaccination campaign in Lao PDR to estimate the immunogenicity and vaccination coverage. When the vaccination coverage was constrained to exceed 95% or 90%, consistent with officially-reported values, the immunogenicity of the measles vaccine component was unexpectedly low (75% (95% CR: 63-82%) and 79% (CR: 70-87%) respectively. The estimated immunogenicity increased after relaxing constraints on the vaccination coverage, with best-fitting values of 83% (95% CR: 73-91%) and 97% (95% CR: 90-100%) for the measles and rubella components respectively, with an estimated coverage of 83% (95% CR: 80-88%). The findings suggest that, if the vaccine coverage was as high as that reported, continuing measles outbreaks in Lao PDR, and potentially elsewhere, may be attributable to suboptimal immunogenicity attained in mass campaigns. Vaccine management in countries with high reported levels of coverage and ongoing measles outbreaks needs to be reviewed if measles elimination targets are to be achieved

Evaluation of nationwide supplementary immunization in Lao People's Democratic Republic: Population-based seroprevalence survey of anti-measles and anti-rubella IgG in children and adults, mathematical modelling and a stability testing of the vaccine.

BACKGROUND: Measles outbreaks have occurred in some countries despite supplementary immunization activities (SIA) using measles-containing vaccine with high vaccination coverage. We conducted a cross-sectional seroprevalence survey to estimate population immunity in Lao People's Democratic Republic where repeated mass immunization has failed to eliminate measles. METHODS AND FINDINGS: In this nationwide multistage cluster sampling survey conducted in 2014 based on probability proportionate to size sampling, blood samples were collected from 2,135 children and adults living in 52 randomly selected villages. Anti-measles and anti-rubella IgG were measured, and IgG prevalence was calculated. We applied mathematical modelling to estimate the number of cases of congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) in 2013 that were averted by the 2011 SIA. A stability testing was applied to the MR vaccine at 4°C, 25°C, and 35°C to examine stability differences between measles and rubella vaccine components. Measles IgG prevalence was significantly lower in the target age groups (5-21 years) of the 2011 SIA using a combination vaccine for measles and rubella vaccine (MR vaccine) than in young adults (22-39 years) (86.8% [95% CI: 83.0-90.6] vs. 99.0% [98.3-99.8]; p<0.001), whereas rubella IgG prevalence was significantly higher (88.2% [84.5-91.8] vs. 74.6% [70.7-78.5]; p<0.001). In the SIA target age groups, prevalence of measles IgG, but not rubella IgG, increased with age. CRS cases prevented in 2013 ranged from 16 [0-50] to 92 [32-180] if the force of infection had remained unchanged or had been reduced by 75%, respectively. In freeze-dried conditions, the measles vaccine component was more heat sensitive than the rubella component. CONCLUSIONS: Inconsistent IgG prevalence between measles and rubella in Lao PDR can be partly explained by different stability of the measles and rubella vaccine components under heat exposure. Suboptimal vaccine handling may cause insufficient immunogenicity for measles, which subsequently leads to an outbreak despite high SIA coverage, while direct evidence is lacking. Temperature monitoring of the vaccine should be conducted

Treatment strategies for well-differentiated liposarcomas and therapeutic outcomes

This study examined 45 patients with welldifferentiated liposarcoma who were surgically treated at our hospital (initial surgery in 41 patients and reoperation in 4). Only one patient had recurrence among patients who underwent initial surgery, and the recurrence was localised in the retroperitoneal space. For patients who underwent reoperation, the mean time between the initial surgery and the recurrence was 16.5 years. None of the 45 patients developed distant metastasis. It is important to preserve not only neurovascular bundles but also lower limb muscles in order to maintain ambulatory ability in the elderly patients. For well-differentiated liposarcomas of the limbs, it is important to establish a surgical margin beyond the marginal resection border and to perform muscle resection to the extent that would not greatly reduce the muscle strength

Distribution of lectin-bindings in the testis of the lesser mouse deer, Tragulus javanicus

The distribution of lectin bindings in the testis of the smallest ruminant, lesser mouse deer (Tragulus javanicus), was studied using 12 biotinylated lectins specific for d-galactose (peanut agglutinin PNA, Ricinus communis agglutinin RCA I), N-acetyl-d-galactosamine (Dolichos biflorus agglutinin DBA, Vicia villosa agglutinin VVA, Soybean agglutinin SBA), N-acetyl-d-glucosamine and sialic acid (wheat germ agglutinin WGA, s-WGA), d-mannose and d-glucose (Lens culinaris agglutinin LCA, Pisum sativum agglutinin PSA, Concanavalin A Con A), l-fucose (Ulex europaeus agglutinin UEA I), and oligosaccharide (Phaseolus vulgaris agglutinin PHA-E) sugar residues. In Golgi-, cap-, and acrosome-phase spermatids, lectin-bindings were found in the acrosome (PNA, RCA I, VVA, SBA, WGA and s-WGA), and in the cytoplasm (PNA, RCA I, VVA, SBA, WGA, LCA, PSA, Con A and PHA-E). s-WGA binding was confined to the spermatid acrosome, but other lectins were also observed in spermatocytes. In spermatogonia, VVA, WGA, Con A, and PHA-E bindings were observed. Sertoli cells were intensely stained with DBA and Con A, and weakly with PHA-E. In interstitial Leydig cells, RCA I, DBA, VVA, Con A, PSA, LCA, WGA and PHA-E were positive. UEA I was negative in all cell types including spermatogenic cells. Unusual distribution of lectin-bindings noted in the testis of lesser mouse deer included the limited distribution of s-WGA only in the spermatid acrosome, the distribution of DBA in Sertoli cells, Leydig cells and lamina propria, and the absence of UEA I in all type cells. The present results were discussed in comparison with those of other animals and their possible functional implications

Risk stratification for the prognosis of patients with chemoresistant urothelial cancer treated with pembrolizumab

The use of immune checkpoint inhibitors to treat urothelial carcinoma (UC) is increasing rapidly without clear guidance for validated risk stratification. This multicenter retrospective study collected clinicopathological information on 463 patients, and 11 predefined variables were analyzed to develop a multivariate model predicting overall survival (OS). The model was validated using an independent dataset of 292 patients. Patient characteristics and outcomes were well balanced between the discovery and validation cohorts, which had median OS times of 10.2 and 12.5 mo, respectively. The final validated multivariate model was defined by risk scores based on the hazard ratios (HRs) of independent prognostic factors including performance status, site of metastasis, hemoglobin levels, and the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio. The median OS times (95% confidence intervals [CIs]) for the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups (discovery cohort) were not yet reached (NYR) (NYR–19.1), 6.8 mo (5.8-8.9), and 2.3 mo (1.2-2.6), respectively. The HRs (95% CI) for OS in the low- and intermediate-risk groups vs the high-risk group were 0.07 (0.04-0.11) and 0.23 (0.15-0.37), respectively. The objective response rates for in the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups were 48.3%, 28.8%, and 10.5%, respectively. These differential outcomes were well reproduced in the validation cohort and in patients who received pembrolizumab after perioperative or first-line chemotherapy (N = 584). In conclusion, the present study developed and validated a simple prognostic model predicting the oncological outcomes of pembrolizumab-treated patients with chemoresistant UC. The model provides useful information for external validation, patient counseling, and clinical trial design