Morphological and Functional Correlations in Acute Central Serous Chorioretinopathy

Purpose: We evaluate morphological and functional correlations in patients with acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Methods: A prospective study was conducted on 50 patients with an acute CSC episode lasting less than 3 months. At baseline, assessments included optical coherence tomography (OCT), best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), contrast sensitivity (CS), microperimetry (MP), and multifocal electroretinography (mfERG). A correlation analysis between OCT morphological parameters (maximal subretinal fluid height (SRF), central retinal thickness (CRT), and macular volume (MV)) and functional parameters was conducted on the affected eye for each patient. Results: Among the morphological parameters, SRF showed the strongest correlations with functional parameters (r absolute value range = 0.10–0.70). Weak correlations were observed between BCVA and morphological parameters (r absolute value range = 0.14–0.26). Average retinal sensitivity (MP-A) was the functional parameter displaying the most robust negative correlation with morphological parameters (r absolute value range = 0.61–0.70). In contrast, average contrast sensitivity (CS-A) and mfERG average amplitude density in the first (mfERG-A1) and second (mfERG-A2) ring showed weak to moderate (r absolute value range = 0.35–0.56) yet statistically significantly nonzero correlations. Conclusions: SRF and CRT could serve as the most representative morphological proxies for visual function deficit in acute CSC patients. Retinal sensitivity, as measured by MP, may be superior to BCVA in clinical research studies or when an in-depth visual function evaluation is needed

Clearing the undergrowth: detection and quantification of low level impurities using 19F NMR

A new 19F NMR method, ODYSSEUS, allows low level impurities to be detected without interference from 13C satellites.</p

Vitamin A supplementation and risk of atopy:long-term follow-up of a randomized trial of vitamin A supplementation at six and nine months of age

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization recommends high-dose vitamin A supplementation (VAS) for children above six months of age in low-income countries. VAS has been associated with up-regulation of the Th2 response. We aimed to determine if VAS is associated with atopy in childhood. METHODS: Infants in Guinea-Bissau were randomly allocated VAS or placebo, either at six and nine months of age, or only at nine months of age. At six months of age, children were furthermore randomized to measles vaccine or inactivated polio vaccine. At nine months of age all children received measles vaccine. Children were revisited seven years later and skin prick testing was performed. Atopy was defined as a skin prick reaction ≥3 mm. RESULTS: 40 of 263 children (15%) were atopic. Overall VAS had no significant effect on the risk of atopy (Prevalence Ratio 1.23; 95% CI 0.69-2.18). The Prevalence Ratio was 1.60 (0.66-3.90) for males and 1.00 (0.46-2.15) for females. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant effect of VAS in infancy on atopy later in childhood. The role of infant VAS in the development of atopy is still unclear

Occlusive retinal vasculitis associated with intravitreal Faricimab injections

Purpose: We describe a case of occlusive vasculitis associated with intravitreal Faricimab (Vabysmo) injections. Methods: A retrospective case report. Results: A 52-year old man treated with monthly Faricimab injections for diabetic macula oedema presented with sudden reduced vision, new retinal hemorrhages, significant retinal vascular occlusions and ischemia. After screening for differential diagnoses was unremarkable, the patient was treated with oral and intravitreal steroid therapy under which the occlusive vasculitis was stabilized. Conclusion: Occlusive vasculitis, though rare, is a potential complication of Faricimab therapy. Comprehensive reporting and large-scale analyses are essential to better understand and manage this adverse event

Rosa26-GFP Direct Repeat (RaDR-GFP) Mice Reveal Tissue- and Age-Dependence of Homologous Recombination in Mammals In Vivo

Homologous recombination (HR) is critical for the repair of double strand breaks and broken replication forks. Although HR is mostly error free, inherent or environmental conditions that either suppress or induce HR cause genomic instability. Despite its importance in carcinogenesis, due to limitations in our ability to detect HR in vivo, little is known about HR in mammalian tissues. Here, we describe a mouse model in which a direct repeat HR substrate is targeted to the ubiquitously expressed Rosa26 locus. In the Rosa26 Direct Repeat-GFP (RaDR-GFP) mice, HR between two truncated EGFP expression cassettes can yield a fluorescent signal. In-house image analysis software provides a rapid method for quantifying recombination events within intact tissues, and the frequency of recombinant cells can be evaluated by flow cytometry. A comparison among 11 tissues shows that the frequency of recombinant cells varies by more than two orders of magnitude among tissues, wherein HR in the brain is the lowest. Additionally, de novo recombination events accumulate with age in the colon, showing that this mouse model can be used to study the impact of chronic exposures on genomic stability. Exposure to N-methyl-N-nitrosourea, an alkylating agent similar to the cancer chemotherapeutic temozolomide, shows that the colon, liver and pancreas are susceptible to DNA damage-induced HR. Finally, histological analysis of the underlying cell types reveals that pancreatic acinar cells and liver hepatocytes undergo HR and also that HR can be specifically detected in colonic somatic stem cells. Taken together, the RaDR-GFP mouse model provides new understanding of how tissue and age impact susceptibility to HR, and enables future studies of genetic, environmental and physiological factors that modulate HR in mammals.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Program Project Grant P01-CA026731)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (R33-CA112151)National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30-ES002109)Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology CenterNational Institutes of Health (U.S.) (P41-EB015871)National Cancer Institute (U.S.) (P30-CA014051

Gajenje slatkovodnih riba u centralnoj i istočnoj Evropi: potrebe za istraživanjem i razvojem

Gajenje slatkovodinih riba ima veoma važnu ulogu za stabilizaciju biodiversiteta, resursa podzemnih voda, klime regiona kao i za snabdevenost hranom u Centralnoj i Istočnoj Evropi. Velika konkurencija cena ribe na međunarodnom tržištu i promene u navikama ishrane ljudi pojačavaju pritisak na mala i srednja preduzeća u Centralnoj i Istočnoj Evropi koja se bave gajenjem ribe i mogu da ugroze predeo oko uzgojnih jezera. Da bi povećali vrednost svih karika u lancu proizvodnje slatkovodnih riba, naučnici i proizvođači su identifikovali uobičajene i potencijalne izazove. Da bi se procenile potrebe sektora akvakulture u centralnoj i istočnoj Evropi, sprovedeni su polu strukturirani intervjui sa proizvođačima i prerađivačima ribe i udruženjima u Poljskoj i Češkoj, u okviru projekta SIAD i FP7 EU projekta TRAFOON. Takođe su održane radionice sa istraživačima u sektoru akvakulture duž svake karike lanca proizvodnje riba u Centralnoj i Istočnoj Evropi. Različite interesne strane su identifikovale nekoliko izazova koji ometaju razvoj slatkovodne akvakulture u Centralnoj i Istočnoj Evropi. Razvoj akvakulture zahteva postojanje harmonizovanog regulativnog/pravnog okvira. Razmena znanja bi imala pozitivan uticaj na razvoj uniformnih standarda za održivost, i pomogla bi stvaranju pravnih procedura za izdavanje dozvola i licenci. Potrebno je izvršiti ekonomsku procenu usluga koje ekosistem ribnjaka pruža. Poboljšana tehnoligija koja je povoljna po životnu sredinu i sistemi za upravljanje kvalitetom u proizvodnji i preradi su neophodni da bi se obezbedila ustaljenija ponuda proizvoda od ribe viskog kvaliteta. Potrošači treba da budu bolje informisani o funkciji koju slatkovodna akvakultura i njeni proizvodi imaju za životnu sredinu. Da bi došlo do održivog razvoja sektora akvakulture i da bi se izgradilo poverenje javnosti, veoma je važno podstaći društvene inovacije koje su primenljive na pojedinačni sektor ili pojedinačnu teritoriju. Da bi došlo do održivog razvoja sektora slatkovodne akvakulture potrebno je razviti strategije makro regionalnog razvoja koje su prilagođene određenim tržištima, uslovima životne sredine, ponašanju potrošača, kulturi i tradiciji i koje nude potencijal za razvoj izvan granica jedne zemlje. Razvoj i adaptacija ključnih tehnologija potrebni su da bi se stabilizovala konkurentna i održiva proizvodnja i prerada ribe u čijoj su proizvodnji resursi efikasno iskorišćeni

Sequential approach to joint flow-seismic inversion for improved characterization of fractured media

Seismic interpretation of subsurface structures is traditionally performed without any account of flow behavior. Here we present a methodology for characterizing fractured geologic reservoirs by integrating flow and seismic data. The key element of the proposed approach is the identification—within the inversion—of the intimate relation between fracture compliance and fracture transmissivity, which determine the acoustic and flow responses of a fractured reservoir, respectively. Owing to the strong (but highly uncertain) dependence of fracture transmissivity on fracture compliance, the modeled flow response in a fractured reservoir is highly sensitive to the geophysical interpretation. By means of synthetic models, we show that by incorporating flow data (well pressures and tracer breakthrough curves) into the inversion workflow, we can simultaneously reduce the error in the seismic interpretation and improve predictions of the reservoir flow dynamics. While the inversion results are robust with respect to noise in the data for this synthetic example, the applicability of the methodology remains to be tested for more complex synthetic models and field cases.Eni-MIT Energy Initiative Founding Member ProgramKorea (South). Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs (15AWMP-B066761-03

Ultraselective, Ultrahigh Resolution 1D TOCSY

Solution state 1H NMR spectroscopy provides valuable insights into molecular structure and conformation. However, when the spectrum exhibits severe signal overlap, it hampers the extraction of key structural information. Here, an ultraselective, ultrahigh resolution TOCSY method is introduced that greatly reduces spectral complexity, allowing the extraction of previously inaccessible spectral information. It combines the recently developed GEMSTONE excitation with homonuclear decoupling to provide highly simplified through-bond correlation 1D 1H NMR spectra, showing all signals within the selected spin system as singlets. The new method can greatly facilitate the analysis of mixtures, as shown here for a mixture of Cinchona alkaloids (popular catalysts in asymmetric synthesis) and a mixture of glucocorticoids (used for treating conditions such as asthma)