A microbiological assay method for p-aminobenzoic acid

Since the establishment of p-aminobenzoic acid as a member of the B vitamin group, a considerable interest has been shown in methods of determination in natural materials. Since known chemical methods are not sufficiently sensitive, it became evident that microbiological tests should be the most practicable. The organism Clostridium acetobutylicum has been used (1) but no general assay procedure has been presented. Several bacterial strains which respond to p-aminobenzoic acid have been investigated in this laboratory, but satisfactory assay procedures with these organisms have not yet been devised. For the discovery of the test organism used in the procedure described in this paper, we are indebted to Dr. Beadle and Dr. Tatum who kindly furnished us with a culture of their p-aminobenzoic acid requiring a mutant strain of Neurospora crassa, designated by them as Neurospora crassa p-aminobenzoicless No. 1633 (2). This mold will grow optimally on a medium consisting of inorganic salts, ammonium tartrate, sucrose, biotin, and p-aminobenzoic acid. For purposes of assay, however, it has proved advantageous to supplement this basal medium with natural extracts which are either naturally low in p-aminobenzoic acid or have been treated to remove it. With such a complex medium, the possibility of interference by toxic substances or stimulatory substances other than p-aminobenzoic acid which might be present in samples to be assayed is reduced to a minimum. Since the completion of a considerable part of the experimental work described in this paper, microbiological assay methods for p-aminobenzoic acid have been published by Landy and Dicken (3) utilizing the organism Acetobacter suboxydans and by Lewis (4) using Lactobacillus arabinosus 17-5

Medicare at Fifty Years: Impact on Health Care Disparities

Objectives: To review history of legislation to development of Medicare program in the United States To delineate key Medicare milestones To review recent changes in Medicare To define impact on disparities An examination of the history of Medicare and its impact on our ability to deliver patient-centered, interprofessional care. A description of global interprofessional education and practice, highlighting real world examples from the work of Partners In Health in West Africa and Haiti

Medicare at 50: Its Effect on Disparities

This Forum presentation provides an overview of the historical impact of the Medicare with emphasis on key milestones related to reducing health disparities. Recent challenges related to ACA are also discussed. Objectives: Review the history of legislation leading to development of the Medicare program in the U.S Delineate key Medicare milestones Identify recent changes in Medicare Define the impact on disparities and quality of care Presentation: 47:48 Note: PowerPoint slides are at bottom of pag

Associations Between Oncogenic Risk Markers and Clinical Outcomes among Black and White Colorectal Cancer Patients

Introduction: Blacks have a 25% higher incidence of colorectal cancer compared to their white societal counterparts. Additionally, the overall mortality rate among black colorectal cancer patients is 50% higher than that of whites. However, little is known about the biomarkers prevalent among blacks and their possible correlation to treatment response and patient outcomes. Objective: The objective of this study is to explore disease trends that may unveil a correlation between molecular markers and poor clinical outcomes among black colorectal cancer patients. Methods: De-identified patient data was obtained from The Oncology Data Services Department (Cancer Registry) of TJUH. The population cohort included newly diagnosed colorectal cancer patients treated at TJUH from 2000-2019, and included information regarding patient race, sex, age at presentation, stage at presentation, histological code, tumor markers: KRAS, NRAS, BRAF, MS1, treatment received, surgical findings: tumor size, lymph node involvement, presence of distant metastases at first surgery, response to chemotherapy & disease-free survival. Results: Preliminary data on the analyzed population demonstrates that biomarker profiles did not correlate with patient race. Therefore, racial disparities seen among colorectal cancer patients cannot be attributed to these findings. Conclusion: Biomarker trends among newly diagnosed colorectal cancer patients at TJUH do not correlate with racial identity. Additional data is needed regarding possible etiologies for the comparatively higher incidence and mortality rates among black colorectal cancer patients. Health professionals should continue to explore possible etiologies for this racial disparity in future studies

Does diabetes mellitus influence pathologic complete response and tumor downstaging after neoadjuvant chemoradiation for esophageal and gastroesophageal cancer? A two-institution report.

BACKGROUND: Esophageal carcinoma is an aggressive disease that is often treated with neoadjuvant therapy followed by surgical resection. Diabetes mellitus (DM) has been associated with reduced efficacy of chemoradiation (CRT) in other gastrointestinal cancers. The goal of this study was to determine if DM affects response to neoadjuvant CRT in the management of gastroesophageal carcinoma. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the esophageal cancer patient databases and subsequently analyzed those patients who received neoadjuvant CRT followed by surgical resection at two institutions, Thomas Jefferson University (TJUH) and Fox Chase Cancer Center (FCCC). Comparative analyses of rates of pathologic complete response rate (pCR) and pathologic downstaging in DM patients versus non-DM patients was performed. RESULTS: Two hundred sixty patients were included in the study; 36 patients had DM and 224 were non-diabetics. The average age of the patients was 61 years (range 24-84 years). The overall pCR was 26%. The pCR rate was 19% and 27% for patients with DM and without DM, respectively (P = 0.31). Pathologic downstaging occurred in 39% of study patients, including of 33% of DM patients and 40% of non-DM patients (P = 0.42). CONCLUSIONS: Although the current analysis does not demonstrate a significant reduction in pCR rates or pathologic downstaging in patients with DM, the observed trend suggests that a potential difference may be observed with a larger patient population. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the influence of DM on the effectiveness of neoadjuvant CRT in esophageal cancer

Consistent Surgeon Evaluations of Three-Dimensional Rendering of PET/CT Scans of the Abdomen of a Patient with a Ductal Pancreatic Mass.

Two-dimensional (2D) positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) are used for diagnosis and evaluation of cancer patients, requiring surgeons to look through multiple planar images to comprehend the tumor and surrounding tissues. We hypothesized that experienced surgeons would consistently evaluate three-dimensional (3D) presentation of CT images overlaid with PET images when preparing for a procedure. We recruited six Jefferson surgeons to evaluate the accuracy, usefulness, and applicability of 3D renderings of the organs surrounding a malignant pancreas prior to surgery. PET/CT and contrast-enhanced CT abdominal scans of a patient with a ductal pancreatic mass were segmented into 3D surface renderings, followed by co-registration. Version A used only the PET/CT image, while version B used the contrast-enhanced CT scans co-registered with the PET images. The six surgeons answered 15 questions covering a) the ease of use and accuracy of models, b) how these models, with/without PET, changed their understanding of the tumor, and c) what are the best applications of the 3D visualization, on a scale of 1 to 5. The six evaluations revealed a statistically significant improvement from version A (score 3.6±0.5) to version B (score 4.4±0.4). A paired-samples t-test yielded t(14) = -8.964,

Racial Disparities in Diabetes Mellitus Prevalence in Prostate Cancer Patients on Androgen Deprivation Therapy

Intro/Background Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is successfully used in patients with advanced prostate cancer. ADT has show to prolong survival. The use of ADT is associated with many side effects, most notably an increase in diabetes incidence for patients on ADT. African American men have higher prevalence and mortality rates from prostate cancer than White men. It is unclear how prostate cancer treatment such as ADT affects these disparities. This study examines racial differences in the prevalence of diabetes mellitus in prostate cancer patients based on their ADT status in the US.https://jdc.jefferson.edu/medoncposters/1016/thumbnail.jp