A higher Angiogenin expression is associated with a non-nuclear Maspin location in laryngeal carcinoma

Objectives. In numerous malignancies, angiogenin (ANG) and Maspin are important proangiogenic and antiangiogenic regulators, respectively. The aim of this study was to identify potential relationships between the biological roles of these two proteins in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). Methods. Immunohistochemical staining for ANG and Maspin was performed on specimens from 76 consecutive LSCC patients treated with surgery alone, considering the subcellular pattern of Maspin expression. Univariate and multivariate statistical models were used for prognostic purposes. Results. On univariate analysis, a different level of ANG expression was seen for patients stratified by subcellular Maspin expression pattern: the mean ANG expression was higher in cases with a nonnuclear MASPIN expression than in those with a nuclear pattern (P=0.002). Disease-free survival (DFS; in months) differed significantly when patients were stratified by N stage (P=0.01). Patients whose Maspin expression was nonnuclear (i.e., it was cytoplasmic or there was none) had a significantly higher recurrence rate (P<0.001), and shorter DFS (P=0.01) than those with a nuclear Maspin pattern. The mean ANG expression was significantly higher in cases with loco-regional recurrent disease (P=0.007); and patients with an ANG expression 655.0% had a significantly shorter DFS than those with an ANG expression <5.0% (P=0.007). On multivariate analysis, ANG expression 655.0% was a significant, independent, negative prognostic factor in terms of DFS (P=0.041). Conclusion. Our results support the hypothesis that a higher ANG expression is associated with a nonnuclear Maspin expression pattern in patients with LSCC. Further studies are needed to clarify the relationship between the ANG and Maspin pathways, and their potential diagnostic and therapeutic role in LSCC

Physical therapy for benign positional vertigo of posterior canal: the role of alternated Epley and Semont maneuvers.

Objective: To investigate if alternated Epley (EP) and Semont (ST) maneuvers could be more effective than repetition of the same in benign paroxysmal positional vertigo of posterior semicircular canal (pBPPV). Design: We retrospectively reviewed the outcome of pBPPV patients treated with a second maneuver for the persistence of positional nystagmus. Study Sample: Forty-seven patients underwent 2 STs, 64 with 2 EPs, and 71 EPs followed by ST. Videonystagmography and Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) questionnaire were performed. Results: Absence of positional nystagmus was achieved after 2 maneuvers in 136 patients with pBPPV: 65.9% in the ST group, 70.3% in the EP group, and 84.5% in the EP-ST group. Alternated EP and ST were significantly more effective than repeated ST (P = .03), while we found no significant difference when compared with repeated EP (P = .07). At 1-month follow-up, 12 patients showed persistent positional nystagmus without difference between groups. After 1 month, the 46 patients with negative outcome had significantly higher DHI values (P = .01) than other 136 patients with pBPPV. Conclusions: Alternated EP and ST seemed more effective than repeating the same maneuver in treating pBPPV, and this should be confirmed in prospective clinical studies. Resolution of nystagmus after maneuvers was fundamental to reduce handicap deriving from dizziness as reported in DHI

Endovascular treatment of penetrating atherosclerotic ulcers of the arch and thoracic aorta: In-hospital and 5-year outcomes

Objective: Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) is the treatment of choice for thoracic aorta diseases including penetrating aortic ulcer (PAU). The objective of this study was to analyze the results of TEVAR for the treatment of PAU in our population. Methods: From January 1999 to January 2019, 830 patients with type B aortic syndromes were treated with TEVAR in our institution. Of these we selected 73 patients treated for a PAU. Clinical and radiologic follow-up was performed in all patients. Results: Mean age of our population was 72 ± 8 years. Fifteen patients (20.5%) were treated in an emergency setting. The proximal landing zone was in arch zone 2 in 22 patients (30.1%). In-hospital mortality was 6.8% and was associated with acute presentation (P = .005). Distal arch delivery of the endograft was unrelated to mortality (Fisher exact test, P = .157). Survival at 1 and 5 years was 81.7% and 67.3%, respectively. Sixteen patients underwent reintervention of the thoracic aorta. Patients who underwent emergency surgery and older patients had a shorter survival (log rank test, P &lt; .001). No difference in survival was shown according to the proximal landing zone (log rank P = .292) or the dimension of the thoracic aorta (log rank P = .067). In multivariable Cox regression analysis, only age older than 75 years was associated with 5-year mortality (hazard ratio, 6.60; 95% CI, 2.12-20.56); P &lt; .001). Conclusions: The use of TEVAR for treatment of aortic PAU is a safe procedure in an elective setting despite necessity of arch stent grafting. An early intervention performed at smaller aortic diameters of &lt;55 mm might be beneficial in selected patients to improve late survival

Construction of a synthetic infectious cDNA clone of Grapevine Algerian latent virus (GALV-Nf) and its biological activity in Nicotiana benthamiana and grapevine plants

Background: Grapevine Algerian latent virus (GALV) is a tombusvirus first isolated in 1989 from an Algerian grapevine (Vitis spp.) plant and more recently from water samples and commercial nipplefruit and statice plants. No further reports of natural GALV infections in grapevine have been published in the last two decades, and artificial inoculations of grapevine plants have not been reported. We developed and tested a synthetic GALV construct for the inoculation of Nicotiana benthamiana plants and different grapevine genotypes to investigate the ability of this virus to infect and spread systemically in different hosts. Methods: We carried out a phylogenetic analysis of all known GALV sequences and an epidemiological survey of grapevine samples to detect the virus. A GALV-Nf clone under the control of the T7 promoter was chemically synthesized based on the full-length sequence of the nipplefruit isolate GALV-Nf, the only available sequence at the time the project was conceived, and the infectious transcripts were tested in N. benthamiana plants. A GALV-Nf-based binary vector was then developed for the agroinoculation of N. benthamiana and grapevine plants. Infections were confirmed by serological and molecular analysis and the resulting ultrastructural changes were investigated in both species. Results: Sequence analysis showed that the GALV coat protein is highly conserved among diverse isolates. The first epidemiological survey of cDNAs collected from 152 grapevine plants with virus-like symptoms did not reveal the presence of GALV in any of the samples. The agroinoculation of N. benthamiana and grapevine plants with the GALV-Nf binary vector promoted efficient infections, as revealed by serological and molecular analysis. The GALV-Nf infection of grapevine plants was characterized in more detail by inoculating different cultivars, revealing distinct patterns of symptom development. Ultrastructural changes induced by GALV-Nf in N. benthamiana were similar to those induced by tombusviruses in other hosts, but the cytopathological alterations in grapevine plants were less severe. Conclusions: This is the first report describing the development of a synthetic GALV-Nf cDNA clone, its artificial transmission to grapevine plants and the resulting symptoms and cytopathological alterations

Survival and reoperation in acute aortic syndromes - a single-centre experience of 912 patients

OBJECTIVES: Acute aortic syndromes are associated with poor outcomes, despite diagnostic and therapeutic advances. We analysed trends in volumes and outcomes from 2000 to 2021. METHODS: The study population includes 494 type A acute aortic syndromes (TAAAS) (54.2%) and 418 type B acute aortic syndromes (TBAAS) (45.8%). Primary outcomes were in-hospital mortality, long-term survival and freedom from aortic reoperation. RESULTS: Regardless the type of acute aortic syndrome, patient volumes increased over time. Patients with TBAAS were older, more likely to have comorbid conditions and previous cardiac surgery (P &lt; 0.001), while cerebrovascular accidents were more frequent in TAAAS (P &lt; 0.05). Among TAAAS, 143 (28.9%) required total arch and 351 (71.1%) hemiarch replacement. TBAAS management was medical therapy in 182 (43.5%), endovascular in 198 (47.4%) and surgical in 38 (9.1%) cases. Overall in-hospital mortality was 14.6% [18.2% in TAAAS (95% confidence interval (CI) 14.4-21.2%) vs 10.7% in TBAAS (95% CI 7.8%-13.7%); P = 0.0027]. After propensity score adjustment, in-hospital mortality exhibited a significantly decreasing trend from 2000 to 2021 (P &lt; 0.001) in TAAAS and TBAAS. 1-, 5- and 10-year survival was 74.2%, 62.2% and 45.5% in TAAAS and 75.4%, 60.7% and 41.0% in TBAAS (P = 0.975), with no differences among treatment strategies. The adjusted cumulative reoperation risk at 10 years was more than two-fold in TBAAS versus TAAAS (9.5% vs 20.5%, hazard ratio (HR) = 2.30, 95% I 1.31-4.04). CONCLUSIONS: In the last decades, better patient triage and surgical/endovascular techniques led to substantial improvements in the management of acute aortic syndrome, with reduction in early mortality and reoperation rate. However, long-term mortality is still &gt;50%

Ocorrência e caracterização de bactérias isoladas de nódulos de amendoinzeiro (Arachis hypogaea L.) em solos paranaenses, Brasil.

RESUMO: O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a ocorrência e caracterizar morfofisiologicamente e geneticamente bactérias isoladas de nódulos de amendoinzeiro (Arachis hypogaea L.), em solos paranaenses, Brasil. Em amostras de 36 municípios representativos do estado Paraná foi observada nodulação do amendoim em 84,4%, independente se em áreas cultivadas, ou em florestas. Nos testes de caracterização morfofisiológica de 44 estirpes autenticadas, 75% das estirpes apresentaram taxa de crescimento rápido em meio de cultura com manitol; 25 acidificaram o meio, cinco alcalinizaram e 14 não resultaram em modificação do pH. A capacidade de produzir sideróforos foi observada em 43% das estirpes e 16% foram capazes de solubilizar fosfato de cálcio em meio de cultura. O sequenciamento do gene 16S rRNA mostrou a formação de três principais grupos, correspondentes a três filos: Alfaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria e Firmicutes. O gênero com maior ocorrência foi o Bacillus

Role of endovascular repair in the management of late pseudo-aneurysms following open surgery for aortic coarctation.

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Efeito da tostagem de barricas de carvalho sobre o perfil químico e sensorial de vinhos tintos.

XV Congresso Latino-Americano de Viticultura e Enologia E XIII Congresso Brasileiro de Viticultura e Enologia. Bento Gonçalves-RS, 3 a 7 de Novembro de 2015