KY electroproduction at CLAS12

An experimental program has been approved at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility to measure the (ep,e’K+)Y reactions using the CLAS12 setup in Hall B. Data have been obtained using a 7.5 GeV electron beam, impinging upon a liquid hydrogen target in the CLAS12 center. Scattered electrons have been detected in an angle range of 2.5° to 4.5° by the Forward Tagger (FT) and at angles greater than 5° in the CLAS12 Forward Detector, allowing to measure the KY electroproduction differential cross section and to probe the Q2 evolution of the N* resonances electrocouplings in the Q2 range from 0.05 GeV2 to 3 GeV2. The study of the Q2 dependence of the electrocouplings will provide a crucial tool to investigate the possible hybrid nature of the N* resonances. Preliminary results from CLAS12 data are compared with simulated data using a realistic Gent Regge plus resonance event generato

A microRNA signature to predict risk progression of vulvar lichen sclerosus to squamous cell carcinoma

Background: biomarkers useful for the identification of patients at risk of developing vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) on a vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS) background could lead to relevant prognostic advantages. To date, such biomarkers are not available. Objectives: we aimed to search for such biomarkers by evaluating the expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) in VLS samples that evolved or did not evolve into VSCCs. Methods: in this observational study, ten VLS samples that had not evolved into VSCC (VLS free from cancer, VLSfc) and 13 VLS samples that either had evolved into or were concomitant to high-risk HPV-negative VSCC (VLS cancer-associated, VLSca) were included. Total RNA, including miRNA, was isolated from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded VLS samples. MiRNAseq analysis was employed to measure miRNA abundance. Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified using Qlucore Omics Explorer. To assess the risk prediction of each sample, the algorithm PAM (Prediction Analysis of Microarrays) was employed. The DIANA-mirPath database v.3 was used to identify biological pathways targeted by the differentially expressed microRNAs. Results: a smallRNA seq analysis conducted on 6 VLSca and 5 VLSfc samples revealed 163 differentially expressed miRNAs. By performing an independent smallRNA seq in a second set of samples (7 LVSca and 5 LVSfc) we assessed the capacity to discriminate between evolved and non-evolved VLS of a subpanel of 21 miRNAs. The results of PAM analysis showed that this set of 21 miRNAs correctly classified 19 out of the 23 samples (83%), with a probability close to 100% in most of the cases. The DIANA-mirPath database revealed the most significant pathways targeted by up- or down-regulated miRNAs, suggesting that a signature linked to cancer was already present in the VLSca samples. Conclusions: This study provided a strong indication that a selected subset of differentially expressed miRNAs exists between VLS that evolved and VLS that did not evolve towards cancer. MiRNA expression signature appears a potential early predictive biomarker of the risk of carcinogenesis in VLS

Robotics in Interventional Radiology: Review of Current and Future Applications

This review is a brief overview of the current status and the potential role of robotics in interventional radiology. Literature published in the last decades, with an emphasis on the last 5 years, was reviewed and the technical developments in robotics and navigational systems using CT-, MR- and US-image guidance were analyzed. Potential benefits and disadvantages of their current and future use were evaluated. The role of fusion imaging modalities and artificial intelligence was analyzed in both percutaneous and endovascular procedures. A few hundred articles describing results of single or several systems were included in our analysis

Choroidal Thickness Changes After Intravitreal Ranibizumab for Exudative Age-Related Macular Degeneration

BACKGROUND: The results regarding changes of choroidal thickness following intravitreal ranibizumab injections in the literature are controversial. Vascular endothelial growth factor A is implicated in pathogenesis of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The suspected unchanged choroidal layer thickness after intravitreal injections of ranibizumab suggests a possible protection of the outer blood-retinal barrier in the human eye. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to evaluate choroidal thickness following the first administration of the study drug ranibizumab into the eyes of naïve wet AMD patients (nAMD). METHODS: In this open label, 3-month, prospective, single-center, interventional, single-arm pilot study, 20 nAMD eyes were included and underwent three consecutive monthly injections of ranibizumab (0.5 mg/0.05 ml). Vital signs (i.e., blood pressure and pulse), ophthalmic examinations, intraocular pressure, best correct visual acuity and subfoveal choroidal thickness as examined with optical coherence tomography using enhanced depth imaging (OCT-EDI) were assessed at each visit. All patients were evaluated at baseline and at 15, 30 60 and 90 days after intravitreal injection. Ten eyes with fibrotic AMD lesions were evaluated as the control group. RESULTS: In all eyes, the choroidal thicknesses (µm) exhibited no significant changes from the baseline visit to the visits at 15, 30, 60 and 90 days post-injection (P > 0.05). The intravitreal treatment with ranibizumab was well tolerated, and no adverse events were registered. CONCLUSION: Choroidal thickness appeared to be unmodified following the intravitreal injection of ranibizumab into nAMD eyes. Intravitreal ranibizumab injections probably elicit a pharmacologic effect only in the choroidal neovascularization and not in the choroid circulation under neovascular lesions. Clinical Trials Eudract Registration #: 2013-005091-17

Physics with Positron Beams at Jefferson Lab 12 GeV

Positron beams, both polarized and unpolarized, are identified as essential ingredients for the experimental program at the next generation of lepton accelerators. In the context of the Hadronic Physics program at the Jefferson Laboratory (JLab), positron beams are complementary, even essential, tools for a precise understanding of the electromagnetic structure of the nucleon, in both the elastic and the deep-inelastic regimes. For instance, elastic scattering of (un)polarized electrons and positrons off the nucleon allows for a model independent determination of the electromagnetic form factors of the nucleon. Also, the deeply virtual Compton scattering of (un)polarized electrons and positrons allows us to separate unambiguously the different contributions to the cross section of the lepto-production of photons, enabling an accurate determination of the nucleon Generalized Parton Distributions (GPDs), and providing an access to its Gravitational Form Factors. Furthermore, positron beams offer the possibility of alternative tests of the Standard Model through the search of a dark photon or the precise measurement of electroweak couplings. This letter proposes to develop an experimental positron program at JLab to perform unique high impact measurements with respect to the two-photon exchange problem, the determination of the proton and the neutron GPDs, and the search for the $A^{\prime}$ dark photon