Analyses of ionizing radiation effects in – vitro in peripheral blood 1 lymphocytes with Raman spectroscopy

The use of Raman spectroscopy to measure the biochemical profile of healthy and diseased cells and tissues may be a potential solution to many diagnostic problems in the clinic. Although extensively used to identify changes in the biochemical profiles of cancerous cells and tissue, Raman spectroscopy has been used less often for analyzing changes to the cellular environment by external factors such as ionizing radiation. In tandem with this, the biological impact of low doses of ionizing radiation remains poorly understood. Extensive studies have been performed on the radiobiological effects associated with radiation doses above 0.1 Gy, and are well characterized, but recent studies on low-dose radiation exposure have revealed complex and highly variable responses. We report here the novel finding that demonstrate the capability of Raman spectroscopy to detect radiation-induced damage responses in isolated lymphocytes irradiated with doses of 0.05 and 0.5 Gy. Lymphocytes were isolated from peripheral blood in a cohort of volunteers, cultured ex vivo and then irradiated. Within 1 h after irradiation spectral effects were observed with Raman microspectroscopy and principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis at both doses relative to the sham-irradiated control (0 Gy). Cellular DNA damage was confirmed using parallel γ-H2AX fluorescence measurements on the extracted lymphocytes per donor and per dose. DNA damage measurements exhibited interindividual variability among both donors and dose, which matched that seen in the spectral variability in the lymphocyte cohort. Further evidence of links between spectral features and DNA damage was also observed, which may potentially allow noninvasive insight into the DNA remodeling that occurs after exposure to ionizing radiation

A study of the norcaradiene-cycloheptatriene equilibrium in a series of azulenones by NMR spectroscopy; the impact of substitution on the position of equilibrium

A systematic investigation of the influence of substitution at positions C-2 and C-3 on the azulenone skeleton, based on NMR characterisation, is discussed with particular focus on the impact of the steric and electronic characteristics of substituents on the position of the norcaradiene-cycloheptatriene (NCD-CHT) equilibrium. Variable temperature (VT) NMR studies, undertaken to enable the resolution of signals for the equilibrating valence tautomers revealed, in addition, interesting shifts in the equilibrium

Raman Spectroscopy of Lymphocytes for the Identification of Prostate Cancer Patients with Late Radiation Toxicity Following Radiotherapy

The success of radiotherapy in tumour control depends on the total dose given. However, the tolerance of the normal tissues surrounding the tumour limits this dose. It is not known why some patients develop radiation toxicity and, currently, it is not possible to predict before treatment which patients will experience adverse effects. Thus, there is an unmet clinical need for a new test to identify patients at risk of radiation toxicity. Here, we report a new approach based on Raman spectroscopy.Blood samples were collected from 42 patients who had undergone radiotherapy for prostate cancer and had shown either severe or no/minimal late radiation toxicity in follow up. Radiation response was assessed following in vitro irradiation using Raman spectroscopy in addition to the G2 chromosomal radiosensitivity assay and the H2AX DNA damage assay.A Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis model was developed to classify patients using known radiation toxicity scores. A sensitivity of 95%, specificity of 92% and overall accuracy of 93% was achieved. In the future, this technology may have potential to lead to individualised patient radiotherapy by identifying which patients are at risk of radiation toxicity

Prediction of DNA Damage and G2 Chromosomal Radio-Sensitivity Ex-vivo in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells with Label-Free Raman Microspectroscopy

Liquid biopsies are a potentially rich store of biochemical information that can be linked to an individual’s response to therapeutic treatments, including radiotherapy, and which may ultimately play a role in the individualization of treatment regimens. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) can be used for the biochemical profiling of the individual, but also, being living cells, can provide insights into the individuals response to ionizing radiation exposure

Mental health of adults in Ireland during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a nationally representative, longitudinal study

No abstract available

Mental health of adults in Ireland during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a nationally representative, longitudinal study

No abstract available

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Novel chemo-protective roles of the Vitamin D Receptor in prostate cells

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