Sex difference and intra-operative tidal volume: Insights from the LAS VEGAS study

BACKGROUND: One key element of lung-protective ventilation is the use of a low tidal volume (VT). A sex difference in use of low tidal volume ventilation (LTVV) has been described in critically ill ICU patients.OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine whether a sex difference in use of LTVV also exists in operating room patients, and if present what factors drive this difference.DESIGN, PATIENTS AND SETTING: This is a posthoc analysis of LAS VEGAS, a 1-week worldwide observational study in adults requiring intra-operative ventilation during general anaesthesia for surgery in 146 hospitals in 29 countries.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Women and men were compared with respect to use of LTVV, defined as VT of 8 ml kg-1 or less predicted bodyweight (PBW). A VT was deemed 'default' if the set VT was a round number. A mediation analysis assessed which factors may explain the sex difference in use of LTVV during intra-operative ventilation.RESULTS: This analysis includes 9864 patients, of whom 5425 (55%) were women. A default VT was often set, both in women and men; mode VT was 500 ml. Median [IQR] VT was higher in women than in men (8.6 [7.7 to 9.6] vs. 7.6 [6.8 to 8.4] ml kg-1 PBW, P < 0.001). Compared with men, women were twice as likely not to receive LTVV [68.8 vs. 36.0%; relative risk ratio 2.1 (95% CI 1.9 to 2.1), P < 0.001]. In the mediation analysis, patients' height and actual body weight (ABW) explained 81 and 18% of the sex difference in use of LTVV, respectively; it was not explained by the use of a default VT.CONCLUSION: In this worldwide cohort of patients receiving intra-operative ventilation during general anaesthesia for surgery, women received a higher VT than men during intra-operative ventilation. The risk for a female not to receive LTVV during surgery was double that of males. Height and ABW were the two mediators of the sex difference in use of LTVV.TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered at Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01601223

Immunity to murine breast cancer modified to express MUC1 in transgenic mice tolerant to human MUC1.

Immunity to murine breast cancer modified to express MUC1 in transgenic mice tolerant to human MUC1

Generation of hepatitis C virus-like particles by use of a recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus vector

These include: This article cites 71 articles, 38 of which can be accessed free at

Generation of Hepatitis C Virus-Like Particles by Use of a Recombinant Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Vector

Hepatitis C virus (HCV), a major etiologic agent of hepatocellular carcinoma, presently infects approximately 400 million people worldwide, making the development of protective measures against HCV infection a key objective. Here we have generated a recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), which expresses the HCV structural proteins, by inserting the contiguous Core, E1, and E2 coding region of HCV into the VSV genome. Recombinant VSV expressing HCV Core, E1, and E2 (VSV-HCV-C/E1/E2) grew to high titers in vitro and efficiently expressed the incorporated HCV gene product, which became fully processed into the individual HCV structural proteins. Biochemical and biophysical analysis indicated that the HCV Core, E1, and E2 proteins assembled to form HCV-like particles (HCV-LPs) possessing properties similar to the ultrastructural properties of HCV virions. Mice immunized with VSV-HCV-C/E1/E2 generated cell-mediated immune responses to all of the HCV structural proteins, and humoral responses, particularly to E2, were also readily evident. Our data collectively indicate that engineered VSVs expressing HCV Core, E1, and E2 and/or HCV-LPs represent useful tools in vaccine and immunotherapeutic strategies designed to address HCV infection

Genetically Engineered Vesicular Stomatitis Virus in Gene Therapy: Application for Treatment of Malignant Disease

We report here the generation of recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) able to produce the suicide gene product thymidine kinase (TK) or cytokine interleukin 4 (IL-4). In vitro cells infected with the engineered viruses expressed remarkably high levels of biologically active TK or IL-4 and showed no defects in replication compared to the wild-type virus. Recombinant viruses retained their ability to induce potent apoptosis in a variety of cancer cells, while normal cells were evidently more resistant to infection and were completely protected by interferon. Significantly, following direct intratumoral inoculation, VSV expressing either TK or IL-4 exhibited considerably more oncolytic activity against syngeneic breast or melanoma tumors in murine models than did the wild-type virus or control recombinant viruses expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP). Complete regression of a number of tumors was achieved, and increased granulocyte-infiltrating activity with concomitant, antitumor cytotoxic T-cell responses was observed. Aside from discovering greater oncolytic activity following direct intratumoral inoculation, however, we also established that VSV expressing IL-4 or TK, but not GFP, was able to exert enhanced antitumor activity against metastatic disease. Following intravenous administration of the recombinant viruses, immunocompetent BALB/c mice inoculated with mammary adenocarcinoma exhibited prolonged survival against lethal lung metastasis. Our data demonstrate the validity of developing novel types of engineered VSV for recombinant protein production and as a gene therapy vector for the treatment of malignant and other disease

Effect of the Degree of Conversion on Mechanical Properties and Monomer Elution from Self-, Dual- and Light-Cured Core Composites

The objective of this work was to measure and correlate the degree of conversion (DC), mechanical properties and monomer elution from self-, dual- and light-cured core composites. Five samples of each of the following materials were prepared for each test: Clearfil (Core, Photo Core, Automix), Bisco (Core-Flo, Light-Core and Bis-Core). DC was determined using FTIR, compressive and flexural strength and modulus of elasticity using a universal testing machine and microhardness using Vickers hardness. Elution was measured using HPLC. One-way ANOVA with Tukey's post-test and Pearson's correlation were used to statistically analyze the data. DC of Clearfil-Dual (70.1%) and Clerafil-Photo (66.8%) were higher than Clearfil-Self (55.4%) and all Bisco materials (51.4-55.3%). Flexural strength of Clearfilwas higher than that of Bisco composites. The Microhardness of Clearfil-Dual (119.8VHN) and Clearfil-Photo (118.0VHN) were higher compared to other materials. The greatest elution was detected from self-cured materials. DC positively correlated to microhardness and compressive/flexural strength and negatively to BisGMA elution. Clearfil-Photo and Automix showed higher conversion, lower monomer elution and, generally, better mechanical properties. Self-cured composites should not be recommended for routine clinical use as their performance was inferior to dual- and light-cured composites. Microhardness may be used as an indicator of elution

Clinical and microbiological effects of the initial periodontal therapy

Introduction. Periodontitis is a destructive inflammatory disease of the tooth-supporting tissues, primarily caused by Gram-negative microorganisms. Thus, the primary objective of cause-related initial periodontal therapy is disruption and removal of the subgingival biofilm. Objective. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical and microbiological effects of the initial therapy in patients diagnosed with chronic periodontitis. Methods. Forty patients with chronic periodontitis were included in the study. As a part of the clinical assessment undertaken prior to the initial therapy, as well as one month and three months post-therapy, plaque index, gingival index, papilla bleeding index, probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level were recorded. Microbiological testing was performed prior to the initial therapy and three months after therapy. Polymerase chain reaction assays were used to determine the presence of Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythensis, Prevotella intermedia and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. Results. All clinical parameters were significantly reduced after therapy. The prevalence of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans was reduced by 22.5%, which was a statistically significant decrease compared to the baseline. The prevalence of Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythensis and Prevotella intermedia tended to decrease after therapy; however, the difference did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion. The results of the present study demonstrated the beneficial effects of the initial periodontal therapy on both the clinical and microbiological parameters. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 175075

Identification of Synthetic Organic Pigments (SOPs) Used in Modern Artist’s Paints with Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry with MeV Ions

This work reports on the first systematic study using secondary ion mass spectrometry with MeV ions (MeV-SIMS) for analysis of synthetic organic pigments (SOPs) that can be usually found in modern and contemporary art paints. In order to prove the applicability of the method to different chemical classes of SOPs, 17 pigments were selected for the analyses. The focus was on blue and green phthalocyanines, yellow and red (naphthol AS) azo pigments, red quinacridone, anthraquinone, and diketopyrrolo-pyrrole pigments. Since there are no reference spectra available for this technique, pure pigment powders were measured first to create a database. Simple two-component paint systems were also prepared for testing purposes by mixing synthetic organic pigments with alkyd and acrylic binders. Commercial paints that contain the SOPs with identical C.I. numbers as in the prepared two-component samples were analyzed. All pigments were successfully identified in commercial products in the MeV-SIMS mass spectra through molecular and larger specific fragment ion peaks in the positive-ion mode. The main advantages of MeV-SIMS over other techniques used in SOPs identification, like pyrolysis gas chromatography mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), direct-temperature resolved mass spectrometry (DTMS), and laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (LDIMS), can be summarized as follows: (i) pigments and binders can be detected simultaneously in the same mass spectrum acquired over a short measurement time (up to 500 s), (ii) only small sample flakes are required for the measurements, which are analyzed without any chemical treatment prior to the analyses, (iii) samples are not consumed during the analyses and can be reused for other measurements, e.g., multielemental analysis by other ion beam analysis (IBA) techniques, such as particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE). Compared to, e.g., Raman spectroscopy, the significant benefit of MeV-SIMS is the exact identification of the SOPs in the paints even if pigments of similar structures are measured

En face optical coherence tomography investigation of interface fiber posts/adhesive cement/root canal wall

This study analyzes the adaptation and gap width between fiber posts, adhesive luting cement and root canal wall using optical coherence tomography. The results prove the importance of assessing the quality of the interface after each process of fiber post luting