Acute Stroke Intervention In Young Patients

Purpose: Stroke is a disease of the elderly, however it can affect the younger patients. We present a retrospective review of our series of young patients (55 years old and younger), treated at our institution from 2007 to 2012, to assess the safety, efficacy and patient outcome of multimodal endovascular treatment in this patient population. Methods: A total of 42 patients underwent multimodal endovascular revascularization for acute ischemic events. Recanalization rates were assessed using the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI)and clinical outcomes were assessed using the Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) obtained at discharge and follow-up visits. Patient demographics, medical co-morbidities, treatment complications and mortality data were collected and analyzed. Results: Of 42 patients, an improvement in Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction score (TIMI score) was noted in 38 patients (90.47%). The average modified Rankin Scale score on discharge was 3.2 with 25 patients (60%) having a favorable score of 0-3. All 21 patients (100%) with available clinical follow-up had a favorable mRS score (mean follow-up of 10.4 months). Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage occurred in four patients (9.5%); none required surgery. Three fatalities resulted from intraoperative vessel rupture (7.14%). Conclusion: We observed good recanalization rates and favorable clinical outcomes after endovascular stroke intervention in young patients. Also, there was a low morbidity and mortality rate overall. Therefore multimodal endovascular recanalization of acute ischemic stroke is an effective treatment in younger patients, which justifies aggressive management of those patients

Lymphocytic Hypophysitis

A 59 year-old female presented with visual problems in 2006, and was initially diagnosed with a pituitary macroadenoma on MRI (Figure 1). Preoperatively, the pituitary lesion decreased in size after the patient was started on steroids, raising the possibility of lymphoma and inflammatory conditions. Ultimately, endoscopic trans-nasal biopsy of the pituitary lesion revealed lymphocytic hypophysitis. She was treated with steroids for two years and developed several side effects from chronic steroid use, including Cushingoid features, diabetes, cataracts, weight-gain and osteopenia. As a result, she was subsequently treated with methotrexate and gradual weaning of the steroids

Early Life Socioeconomic Circumstance and Late Life Brain Hyperintensities : A Population Based Cohort Study

Funding: Image acquisition and image analysis for this study was funded by the Alzheimer's Research Trust (now Alzheimer's Research UK). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank the participants of the Aberdeen 1936 Birth Cohort (ABC36), without whom this research would not have been possible.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Endotracheal intubation skill acquisition by medical students

During the course of their training, medical students may receive introductory experience with advanced resuscitation skills. Endotracheal intubation (ETI – the insertion of a breathing tube into the trachea) is an example of an important advanced resuscitation intervention. Only limited data characterize clinical ETI skill acquisition by medical students. We sought to characterize medical student acquisition of ETI procedural skill.11Presented as a poster discussion on 17 October 2007 at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists in San Francisco, CA.The study included third-year medical students participating in a required anesthesiology clerkship. Students performed ETI on operating room patients under the supervision of attending anesthesiologists. Students reported clinical details of each ETI effort, including patient age, sex, Mallampati score, number of direct laryngoscopies and ETI success. Using mixed-effects regression, we characterized the adjusted association between ETI success and cumulative ETI experience.ETI was attempted by 178 students on 1,646 patients (range 1–23 patients per student; median 9 patients per student, IQR 6–12). Overall ETI success was 75.0% (95% CI 72.9–77.1%). Adjusted for patient age, sex, Mallampati score and number of laryngoscopies, the odds of ETI success improved with cumulative ETI encounters (odds ratio 1.09 per additional ETI encounter; 95% CI 1.04–1.14). Students required at least 17 ETI encounters to achieve 90% predicted ETI success.In this series medical student ETI proficiency was associated with cumulative clinical procedural experience. Clinical experience may provide a viable strategy for fostering medical student procedural skills

Kaiso (ZBTB33) subcellular partitioning functionally links LC3A/B, the tumor microenvironment, and breast cancer survival

The use of digital pathology for the histomorphologic profiling of pathological specimens is expanding the precision and specificity of quantitative tissue analysis at an unprecedented scale; thus, enabling the discovery of new and functionally relevant histological features of both predictive and prognostic significance. In this study, we apply quantitative automated image processing and computational methods to profile the subcellular distribution of the multi-functional transcriptional regulator, Kaiso (ZBTB33), in the tumors of a large racially diverse breast cancer cohort from a designated health disparities region in the United States. Multiplex multivariate analysis of the association of Kaiso’s subcellular distribution with other breast cancer biomarkers reveals novel functional and predictive linkages between Kaiso and the autophagy-related proteins, LC3A/B, that are associated with features of the tumor immune microenvironment, survival, and race. These findings identify effective modalities of Kaiso biomarker assessment and uncover unanticipated insights into Kaiso’s role in breast cancer progression.Fil: Singhal, Sandeep K.. North Dakota State University; Estados UnidosFil: Byun, Jung S.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Park, Samson. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Yan, Tingfen. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Yancey, Ryan. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Caban, Ambar. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Hernandez, Sara Gil. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Hewitt, Stephen M.. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. National Institute of Health. National Cancer Institute; Estados UnidosFil: Boisvert, Heike. Ultivue, Inc; Reino UnidoFil: Hennek, Stephanie. Ultivue Inc.; Reino UnidoFil: Bobrow, Mark. Ultivue Inc.; Reino UnidoFil: Ahmed, Md Shakir Uddin. Tuskegee University; Estados UnidosFil: White, Jason. Tuskegee University; Estados UnidosFil: Yates, Clayton. Tuskegee University; Estados UnidosFil: Aukerman, Andrew. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Vanguri, Rami. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Bareja, Rohan. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Lenci, Romina. Columbia University; Estados UnidosFil: Farré, Paula Lucía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: de Siervi, Adriana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Nápoles, Anna María. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Vohra, Nasreen. East Carolina University; Estados UnidosFil: Gardner, Kevin. Columbia University; Estados Unido

Heterostructured electrode with concentration gradient shell for highly efficient oxygen reduction at low temperature

Heterostructures of oxides have been widely investigated in optical, catalytic and electrochemical applications, because the heterostructured interfaces exhibit pronouncedly different transport, charge, and reactivity characteristics compared to the bulk of the oxides. Here we fabricated a three-dimensional (3D) heterostructured electrode with a concentration gradient shell. The concentration gradient shell with the composition of Ba0.5-xSr0.5-yCo0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (BSCF-D) was prepared by simply treating porous Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (BSCF) backbone with microwave-plasma. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy reveals that the oxygen surface exchange rate of the BSCF-D is enhanced by ~250% that of the pristine BSCF due to the appearance of the shell. The heterostructured electrode shows an interfacial resistance as low as 0.148 Ω cm2 at 550°C and an unchanged electrochemical performance after heating treatment for 200 h. This method offers potential to prepare heterostructured oxides not only for electrochemical devices but also for many other applications that use ceramic materials

Restriction of HIV-1 Replication in Monocytes Is Abolished by Vpx of SIVsmmPBj

Background: Human primary monocytes are refractory to infection with the human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) or transduction with HIV-1-derived vectors. In contrast, efficient single round transduction of monocytes is mediated by vectors derived from simian immunodeficiency virus of sooty mangabeys (SIVsmmPBj), depending on the presence of the viral accessory protein Vpx. Methods and Findings: Here we analyzed whether Vpx of SIVsmmPBj is sufficient for transduction of primary monocytes by HIV-1-derived vectors. To enable incorporation of PBj Vpx into HIV-1 vector particles, a HA-Vpr/Vpx fusion protein was generated. Supplementation of HIV-1 vector particles with this fusion protein was not sufficient to facilitate transduction of human monocytes. However, monocyte transduction with HIV-1-derived vectors was significantly enhanced after delivery of Vpx proteins by virus-like particles (VLPs) derived from SIVsmmPBj. Moreover, pre-incubation with Vpx-containing VLPs restored replication capacity of infectious HIV-1 in human monocytes. In monocytes of non-human primates, single-round transduction with HIV-1 vectors was enabled. Conclusion: Vpx enhances transduction of primary human and even non-human monocytes with HIV-1-derived vectors, only if delivered in the background of SIVsmmPBj-derived virus-like particles. Thus, for accurate Vpx function the presence of SIVsmmPBj capsid proteins might be required. Vpx is essential to overcome a block of early infection steps in primary monocytes

Potential Role of Plant Growth Regulators in Administering Crucial Processes Against Abiotic Stresses

Plant growth regulators are naturally biosynthesized chemicals in plants that influence physiological processes. Their synthetic analogous trigger numerous biochemical and physiological processes involved in the growth and development of plants. Nowadays, due to changing climatic scenario, numerous biotic and abiotic stresses hamper seed germination, seedling growth, and plant development leading to a decline in biological and economic yields. However, plant growth regulators (PGRs) can potentially play a fundamental role in regulating plant responses to various abiotic stresses and hence, contribute to plant adaptation under adverse environments. The major effects of abiotic stresses are growth and yield disturbance, and both these effects are directly overseen by the PGRs. Different types of PGRs such as abscisic acid (ABA), salicylic acid (SA), ethylene (ET), and jasmonates (JAs) are connected to boosting the response of plants to multiple stresses. In contrast, PGRs including cytokinins (CKs), gibberellins (GAs), auxin, and relatively novel PGRs such as strigolactones (SLs), and brassinosteroids (BRs) are involved in plant growth and development under normal and stressful environmental conditions. Besides, polyamines and nitric oxide (NO), although not considered as phytohormones, have been included in the current review due to their involvement in the regulation of several plant processes and stress responses. These PGRs are crucial for regulating stress adaptation through the modulates physiological, biochemical, and molecular processes and activation of the defense system, upregulating of transcript levels, transcription factors, metabolism genes, and stress proteins at cellular levels. The current review presents an acumen of the recent progress made on different PGRs to improve plant tolerance to abiotic stress such as heat, drought, salinity, and flood. Moreover, it highlights the research gaps on underlying mechanisms of PGRs biosynthesis under stressed conditions and their potential roles in imparting tolerance against adverse effects of suboptimal growth conditions.Fil: Sabagh, Ayman EL. Kafrelsheikh University; EgiptoFil: Mbarki, Sonia. National Institute Of Research In Rural Engineering; TúnezFil: Hossain, Akbar. Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute; BangladeshFil: Iqbal, Muhammad Aamir. University Of Poonch Rawalakot; PakistánFil: Islam, Mohammad Sohidul. Hajee Mohammad Danesh And Technology University; BangladeshFil: Raza, Ali. Fujian Agriculture And Forestry University; ChinaFil: Llanes, Analia Susana. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Agrobiotecnologicas. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Investigaciones Agrobiotecnologicas.; ArgentinaFil: Reginato, Mariana Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Agrobiotecnologicas. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Investigaciones Agrobiotecnologicas.; ArgentinaFil: Rahman, Md Atikur. Grassland And Forage Division National Institute; Corea del SurFil: Mahboob, Wajid. Nuclear Institute Of Agriculture,; PakistánFil: Singhal, Rajesh Kumar. Indian Council Of Agricultural Research; IndiaFil: Kumari, Arpna. Guru Nanak Dev University; IndiaFil: Rajendran, Arvind. Vellore Institute Of Technology; IndiaFil: Wasaya, Allah. Bahauddin Zakariya University; PakistánFil: Javed, Talha. Fujian Agriculture And Forestry University; JapónFil: Shabbir, Rubab. University Of Poonch Rawalakot; PakistánFil: Rahim, Junaid. University Of Çukurova; PakistánFil: Barutçular, Celaleddin. Institute Of Crop Science And Resource Conservation; AlemaniaFil: Habib Ur Rahman, Muhammad. Sichuan Agricultural University; ChinaFil: Raza, Muhammad Ali. Sichuan Agricultural University; ChinaFil: Ratnasekera, Disna. University Of Ruhuna; Sri LankaFil: Konuskan l, Ömer. Mustafa Kemal University; TurquíaFil: Hossain, Mohammad Anwar. Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute; BangladeshFil: Meena, Vijay Singh. Indian Council Of Agricultural Research; IndiaFil: Ahmed, Sharif. Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute; BangladeshFil: Ahmad, Zahoor. Bangladesh Wheat And Maize Research Institute; BangladeshFil: Mubeen, Muhammad. Sichuan Agricultural University; ChinaFil: Singh, Kulvir. Punjab Agricultural University; IndiaFil: Skalicky, Milan. Czech University Of Life Sciences Prague; República ChecaFil: Brestic, Marian. Slovak University Of Agriculture; EslovaquiaFil: Sytar, Oksana. Slovak University Of Agriculture; EsloveniaFil: Karademir, Emine. Siirt University; TurquíaFil: Karademir, Cetin. Siirt University; TurquíaFil: Erman, Murat. Siirt University; TurquíaFil: Farooq, Muhammad. College Of Agricultural And Marine Sciences Sultan; Omá

Robust water repellent ZnO nanorod array by Swift Heavy Ion Irradiation: Effect of Electronic Excitation Induced Local Chemical State Modification

Tailoring the surface properties by varying the chemistry and roughness could be of interest for self-cleaning applications. We demonstrate the transformation of hydrophobic ZnO Nano rod (NR) array into superhydrophobic nature by changing the local chemical state and without altering the surface roughness by swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation. The aligned ZnO NR arrays were irradiated using 150 MeV Ag ions with different fluences from 5E10 to 3E12 ions/cm2. The observed static water contact angles of ZnO NRs samples were 103° ± 3°, 152° ± 4°,161° ± 3°, 164° ± 2°, 167° ± 2°,154 ± 3° and 151° ± 2° for the pristine, ion fluencies of 1E11, 3E11, 5E11, 7E11, 1E12 and 3E12 ions cm−2, respectively. The change in local surface chemistry via formation of surface oxygen related defects due to electronic excitations induced by ion irradiation determine the water dewetting properties. It is found that surface oxygen related defects could be tuned by varying the fluence of the SHIs. Durability tests show that the SHI induced surface oxygen-deficient ZnO NRs have the stable superhydrophobic behavior for more than a year