Influence of 5-fluorouracil-loaded microsphere formulation on efficient rat glioma radiosensitization

PURPOSE: To determine (i) the efficiency of radiosensitizing 5-FU-loaded microspheres and (ii) the impact of microparticle formulation on response to treatment. METHODS: C6 tumor-bearing rats were stereotactically implanted with microspheres and/or allocated to: control groups (untreated) or treatment (only radiotherapy; fast-release 5-FU microspheres + radiotherapy; slow-release 5-FU microspheres + radiotherapy). The next day, fractionated radiotherapy, limited to the hemibrain, was initiated in all treated animals. The irradiation cycle included 36 Gy, given in 9 sessions for 3 consecutive weeks. Tumor development was assessed by T2-weighted MRI. RESULTS: 5-FU microspheres associated with radiotherapy caused a 47% complete remission rate (9/19) as opposed to the 8% rate (1/12) when radiotherapy alone or 0% in control animals. Drug delivery for 3 weeks produced better survival results (57%) compared to one-week sustained release (41%). MR images showed exponentially increasing tumor volumes during the first half of the radiotherapy cycle, followed by a decrease, and the disappearance of the tumor if survival exceeded 120 days. CONCLUSIONS: 5-FU controlled delivery is a promising strategy for radiosensitizing gliomas. Drug delivery system formulation is unambiguously implicated in both the response to treatment and the limitation of toxic side effects

30-Day Postoperative Morbidity of Emergency Surgery for Obstructive Right- and Left-Sided Colon Cancer in Obese Patients: A Multicenter Cohort Study of the French Surgical Association

BACKGROUND: Emergency surgery impairs postoperative outcomes in colorectal cancer patients. No study has assessed the relationship between obesity and postoperative results in this setting. OBJECTIVE: To compare the results of emergency surgery for obstructive colon cancer (OCC) in an obese patient population with those in overweight and normal weight patient groups. METHODS: From 2000 to 2015, patients undergoing emergency surgery for OCC in French surgical centers members of the French National Surgical Association were included. Three groups were defined: normal weight (body mass index [BMI] < 25.0 kg/m2), overweight (BMI 25.0-29.9 kg/m2), and obese (BMI ≥30.0 kg/m2). RESULTS: Of 1,241 patients, 329 (26.5%) were overweight and 143 (11.5%) were obese. Obese patients had significantly higher American society of anesthesiologists score, more cardiovascular comorbidity and more hemodynamic instability at presentation. Overall postoperative mortality and morbidity were 8 and 51%, respectively, with no difference between the 3 groups. For obese patients with left-sided OCC, stoma-related complications were significantly increased (8 vs. 5 vs. 15%, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Compared with lower BMI patients, obese patients with OCC had a more severe presentation at admission but similar surgical management. Obesity did not increase 30-day postoperative morbidity except stoma-related complications for those with left-sided OCC

Macrophage Activation and Polarization: Nomenclature and Experimental Guidelines

Description of macrophage activation is currently contentious and confusing. Like the biblical Tower of Babel, macrophage activation encompasses a panoply of descriptors used in different ways. The lack of consensus on how to define macrophage activation in experiments in vitro and in vivo impedes progress in multiple ways, including the fact that many researchers still consider there to be only two types of activated macrophages, often termed M1 and M2. Here, we describe a set of standards encompassing three principles—the source of macrophages, definition of the activators, and a consensus collection of markers to describe macrophage activation—with the goal of unifying experimental standards for diverse experimental scenarios. Collectively, we propose a common framework for macrophage-activation nomenclature

Standardization Definition Document

The objective of this document is the definition of a set of cartographic and technical standards and directions to be used, adapted or -in minor form -established for GMAP. Standards proposed and mentioned in the present documents include geologic and cartographic aspects. Some of the proposed directions and standards are initial ones that are planned to be refined and/or updated throughout the Europlanet H2024RI project, to be used within the VA activities and for future sustainable European planetarymapping efforts beyond the RI.The state of the art and relevant documents are included, as well as process-specific and body-specific best practice and exemplary published cases. The approaches for two-dimensional mapping and three-dimensional geologic mapping and modelling are introduced, as well as the range of non-standard map types that are envisaged within GMAP activities. Mapping review directions are indicated, as well data sharing, distribution and discovery.Proposed standards, best practice, andtools are based on existing ones or on additional or new developments and adaptations.Appendices are included and point to either individual developments or external resources and tools that will be maintained throughout the duration of the research infrastructure, and beyond it, through sustainability.The present document is going to be a live document permanently accessible on the GMAP wiki and periodically updated in form of a deliverable

Hydrothermal Alteration of Ultramafic Rocks in Ladon Basin, Mars - Insights From CaSSIS, HiRISE, CRISM, and CTX

The evolution of the Ladon basin has been marked by intense geological activity and the discharge of huge volumes of water from the Martian highlands to the lowlands in the late Noachian and Hesperian. We explore the potential of the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter/Color and Stereo Surface Imaging System color image data set for geological interpretation and show that it is particularly effective for geologic mapping in combination with other data sets such as HiRISE, Context, and Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars. The study area displays dark lobate flows of upper Hesperian to early Amazonian age, which were likely extruded from a regional extensional fault network. Spectral analysis suggests that these flows and the underlying rocks are ultramafic. Two distinct altered levels are observed below the lobate flows. The upper, yellow-orange level shows hundreds of structurally controlled narrow ridges reminiscent of ridges of listwanite, a suite of silicified, fracture-controlled silica-carbonate rocks derived from an ultramafic source and from serpentine. In addition to serpentinite, the detected mineral assemblages may include chlorite, carbonates, and talc. Kaolin minerals are detected in the lower, white level, which could have formed by groundwater alteration of plagioclase in the volcanic pile. Volcanism, tectonics, hydrothermal activity, and kaolinization are interpreted to be coeval, with hydrothermal activity and kaolinization controlled by the interactions between the aquifer and the hot, ultramafic lobate flows. Following our interpretations, East Ladon may host the first listwanite ridges described on Mars, involving a hydrothermal system rooted in a Hesperian aquifer and affecting ultramafic rocks from a magmatic source yet to be identified