Perkinsus-marinus (Apicomplexa) As A Potential Source Of Oyster Crassostrea-virginica Mortality In Coastal Lagoons Of Tabasco, Mexico

Poorly documented, but apparently sporadic oyster Crassostrea virginica mortality in the coastal lagoons Carmen, Machona and Mecoacan at the southern extreme of the Gulf of Mexico in Tabasco, Mexico, has been attributed by local oystermen to pollution resulting from oil refinery operations. In September 1992 we sampled oysters in these lagoons to investigate the potential for disease-induced mortality from the oyster pathogen Perkinsus marinus. Prevalence of P. marinus was 100% at Lodazal, a high salinity (31 ppt) site in Carmen lagoon and 60% at Rio San Felipe, a low salinity (15 ppt) site. At Los Jimenez, a high salinity (32 ppt) site in Machona lagoon with previous high mortality, prevalence of P. marinus was 90% and weighted prevalence, a measure of intensity, was 3.1, a high value associated with heavy infections and mortality. Samples collected at the Buena Vista aquaculture facility in Mecoacan lagoon revealed 60 to 100% prevalence of P. marinus, although most infections were low intensity. P. marinus is a potential source of oyster mortality in these coastal lagoons; more intensive sampling is necessary to determine the mortality attributable to P. marinus

Co-infection with Trypanosoma cruzi protects mice against early death by neurological or pulmonary disorders induced by Plasmodium berghei ANKA

Objective: the objective of this study was to investigate whether the infection of C57BL/ 6 mice by P. berghei ANKA, which causes severe malaria, was modulated by co-infection with Trypanosoma cruzi.Methods: Groups of C57BL/ 6 mice were infected either with P. berghei ANKA, T. cruzi strain G, or with both parasites. the presence of parasites was checked by microscopic examination of blood samples. Symptoms of neurological or respiratory disorders, as well as mortality, were registered. Breakdown of the blood brain barrier was determined by injecting the dye Evans blue. Histological sections of the lung were prepared and stained with hematoxilin-eosin.Results: All mice infected only with P. berghei ANKA died within 7-11 days post-infection, either with symptoms of cerebral malaria or with respiratory abnormalities. the animals co- infected with T. cruzi strain G survived longer, without any of the referred to symptoms. Protection against the early death by severe malaria was effective when mice were given T. cruzi 15 days before P. berghei inoculation. Breakdown of the blood brain barrier and extensive pulmonary oedema, caused by malaria parasites, were much less pronounced in co- infected mice. the degree of protection to severe malaria and early death, conferred by co- infection with T. cruzi, was comparable to that conferred by treatment with anti-CD8 antibodies.Conclusion: Co-infection with T. cruzi protects C57BL/ 6 against the early death by malaria infection, by partially preventing either the breakdown of the blood brain, and cerebral malaria as a consequence, or the pulmonary oedema.Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Microbiol Immunol & Parasitol, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Morfol, São Paulo, BrazilUniv Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Dept Parasitol, Campinas, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Microbiol Immunol & Parasitol, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Morfol, São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc

An unusual case of an isolated capitellar fracture of the right elbow in a child: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Although elbow fractures have a high incidence in the pediatric population, fractures of the capitellum are almost exclusively observed in individuals older than 12 years of age. Due to their rarity in children, reports with large numbers of cases are lacking in the literature and the surgical treatment options are poorly defined.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present the case of an 11-year-old Portuguese girl with a displaced fracture of the capitellum of the right elbow, a typical Hahn-Steinthal or Type 1 fracture, which was followed for one year. The treatment and outcome of this fracture are described. Our patient underwent an open reduction and internal fixation with two cannulated screws. There were no complications and normal elbow function was recovered.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The authors believe that cannulated screw fixation is a reliable method of treatment for Type 1 capitellar fracture in children because it enables good interfragmentary compression, early mobilization, faster functional elbow recovery and implant removal is rarely necessary.</p

Dynamical Boson Stars

The idea of stable, localized bundles of energy has strong appeal as a model for particles. In the 1950s John Wheeler envisioned such bundles as smooth configurations of electromagnetic energy that he called {\em geons}, but none were found. Instead, particle-like solutions were found in the late 1960s with the addition of a scalar field, and these were given the name {\em boson stars}. Since then, boson stars find use in a wide variety of models as sources of dark matter, as black hole mimickers, in simple models of binary systems, and as a tool in finding black holes in higher dimensions with only a single killing vector. We discuss important varieties of boson stars, their dynamic properties, and some of their uses, concentrating on recent efforts.Comment: 79 pages, 25 figures, invited review for Living Reviews in Relativity; major revision in 201

Heart and systemic effects of statin pretreatment in a rat model of abdominal sepsis. Assessment by Tc99m-sestamibi biodistribition

PURPOSE: To evaluate the heart and the Tc-99m-sestamibi biodistribution after statin pretreatment in a rat model of abdominal sepsis. METHODS: Twenty-four Wistar rats were randomly distributed into four groups (n=6 per group): 1) sepsis with simvastatin treatment, 2) sepsis with vehicle, 3) sham control with simvastatin and 4) sham control with vehicle. 24 hours after cecal ligation and puncture rats received 1.0MBq of Tc-99m-sestamibi i.v. 30min after, animals were euthanized for ex-vivo tissue counting and myocardium histological analysis. RESULTS: Myocardial histologic alterations were not detected 24 hours post-sepsis. There was significantly increased cardiac Tc-99m-sestamibi activity in the sepsis group with simvastatin treatment (1.9$\pm$0.3%ID/g, p<0.001) in comparison to the sepsis group+vehicle (1.0$\pm$0.2% ID/g), control sham group+ simvastatin (1.2$\pm$0.3% ID/g) and control sham group (1.3$\pm$0.2% ID/g). Significant Tc-99m-sestamibi activity in liver, kidney and lungs was also detected in the sepsis group treated with simvastatinin comparison to the other groups. CONCLUSIONS: Statin treatment altered the biodistribution of Tc-99m-sestamibi with increased cardiac and solid organ activity in rats with abdominal sepsis, while no impact on controls. Increased myocardial tracer activity may be a result of a possible protection effect due to increased tissue perfusion mediated by statins

Addition of Bevacizumab to Chemotherapy in Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

INTRODUCTION: Recently, studies have demonstrated that the addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy could be associated with better outcomes in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the benefit seems to be dependent on the drugs used in the chemotherapy regimens. This systematic review evaluated the strength of data on efficacy of the addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy in advanced NSCLC. METHODS: PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases were searched. Eligible studies were randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that evaluated chemotherapy with or without bevacizumab in patients with advanced NSCLC. The outcomes included overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), response rate (RR), toxicities and treatment related mortality. Hazard ratios (HR) and odds ratios (OR) were used for the meta-analysis and were expressed with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: We included results reported from five RCTs, with a total of 2,252 patients included in the primary analysis, all of them using platinum-based chemotherapy regimens. Compared to chemotherapy alone, the addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy resulted in a significant longer OS (HR 0.89; 95% CI 0.79 to 0.99; p = 0.04), longer PFS (HR 0.73; 95% CI 0.66 to 0.82; p<0.00001) and higher response rates (OR 2.34; 95% CI 1.89 to 2.89; p<0.00001). We found no heterogeneity between trials, in all comparisons. There was a slight increase in toxicities in bevacizumab group, as well as an increased rate of treatment-related mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy in patients with advanced NSCLC prolongs OS, PFS and RR. Considering the toxicities added, and the small absolute benefits found, bevacizumab plus platinum-based chemotherapy can be considered an option in selected patients with advanced NSCLC. However, risks and benefits should be discussed with patients before decision making

Pre-Operative Risk Factors Predict Post-Operative Respiratory Failure after Liver Transplantation

OBJECTIVE: Post-operative pulmonary complications significantly affect patient survival rates, but there is still no conclusive evidence regarding the effect of post-operative respiratory failure after liver transplantation on patient prognosis. This study aimed to predict the risk factors for post-operative respiratory failure (PRF) after liver transplantation and the impact on short-term survival rates. DESIGN: The retrospective observational cohort study was conducted in a twelve-bed adult surgical intensive care unit in northern Taiwan. The medical records of 147 liver transplant patients were reviewed from September 2002 to July 2007. Sixty-two experienced post-operative respiratory failure while the remaining 85 patients did not. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Gender, age, etiology, disease history, pre-operative ventilator use, molecular adsorbent re-circulating system (MARS) use, source of organ transplantation, model for end-stage liver disease score (MELD) and Child-Turcotte-Pugh score calculated immediately before surgery were assessed for the two groups. The length of the intensive care unit stay, admission duration, and mortality within 30 days, 3 months, and 1 year were also evaluated. Using a logistic regression model, post-operative respiratory failure correlated with diabetes mellitus prior to liver transplantation, pre-operative impaired renal function, pre-operative ventilator use, pre-operative MARS use and deceased donor source of organ transplantation (p<0.05). Once liver transplant patients developed PRF, their length of ICU stay and admission duration were prolonged, significantly increasing their mortality and morbidity (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The predictive pre-operative risk factors significantly influenced the occurrence of post-operative respiratory failure after liver transplantation

Parathyroid Hormone versus Bisphosphonate Treatment on Bone Mineral Density in Osteoporosis Therapy: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

BACKGROUND: Bisphosphonates and parathyroid hormone (PTH) represent the antiresorptive and anabolic classes of drugs for osteoporosis treatment. Bone mineral density (BMD) is an essential parameter for the evaluation of anti-osteoporotic drugs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of PTH versus bisphosphonates on BMD for the treatment of osteoporosis. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We performed a literature search to identify studies that investigated the effects of PTH versus bisphosphonates treatment on BMD. A total of 7 articles were included in this study, representing data on 944 subjects. The pooled data showed that the percent change of increased BMD in the spine is higher with PTH compared to bisphosphonates (WMD = 5.90, 95% CI: 3.69-8.10, p<0.01,). In the hip, high dose (40 µg) PTH (1-34) showed significantly higher increments of BMD compared to alendronate (femoral neck: WMD = 5.67, 95% CI: 3.47-7.87, p<0.01; total hip: WMD = 2.40, 95%CI: 0.49-4.31, p<0.05). PTH treatment has yielded significantly higher increments than bisphosphonates with a duration of over 12 months (femoral neck: WMD = 5.67, 95% CI: 3.47-7.86, p<0.01; total hip: WMD = 2.40, 95% CI: 0.49-4.31, P<0.05) and significantly lower increments at 12 months (femoral neck: WMD = -1.05, 95% CI: -2.26-0.16, p<0.01; total hip: WMD: -1.69, 95% CI: -3.05-0.34, p<0.05). In the distal radius, a reduction in BMD was significant between PTH and alendronate treatment. (WMD = -3.68, 95% CI: -5.57-1.79, p<0.01). DISCUSSION: Our results demonstrated that PTH significantly increased lumbar spine BMD as compared to treatment with bisphosphonates and PTH treatment induced duration- and dose-dependent increases in hip BMD as compared to bisphosphonates treatment. This study has also disclosed that for the distal radius, BMD was significantly lower from PTH treatment than alendronate treatment