Adult Ocular Toxocariasis Mimicking Ciliary Body Malignancy

Purpose. To discuss an unusual presentation of ocular toxocariasis. Methods. Case report. Results. A 40-year-old woman presented with decreased vision in the left eye with a long history of recurrent red eye from uveitis. Eosinophilia and positive ELISA titers for Toxocara canis favored the diagnosis of ocular toxocariasis. Over 3 months, an anterior scleral mass had a rapid growth raising the possibility of medulloepithelioma, which rarely can mimic uveitic syndromes. Surgical plan changed from local excision to enucleation. Histopathology demonstrated a large homogeneous mass of chronic inflammatory cells with inflammation of the overlying thinned out sclera, medial rectus insertion, and limbal cornea. The triad of peripheral granuloma, eosinophilia, and positive blood serology established the diagnosis of ocular toxocariasis. Conclusions. Ocular toxocariasis can mimic ocular malignancy such as medulloepithelioma in adults and rarely presents as an anterior scleral mass

Perspectives of an Enterprise Integration Plug-in System Architecture for Networked Manufacturing Systems

This paper is a part of a research project funded by the Science and Technology Development Fund (STDF), to create a product serving the digital transformation of Egyptian manufacturing companies. It allows a manufacturing company to be a member of a distributed manufacturing network. The resulting system can be plugged into any ERP system. In this work, the limitation of a centralized integration entity to satisfy loosely coupling of distributed systems is overcome. The SOA framework and the remote method invocation (RMI) are applied using SOAP-XML technology. Enterprise integration patterns (EIP) were used in the architecture design

Fully Automated Electrophysiological Model Personalisation Framework from CT Imaging

International audienceThere has been a recent growing interest for cardiac computed tomography (CT) imaging in the electrophysiological community. This imaging modality indeed allows to locate and assess post-infarct scar heterogeneity, allowing to predict zones of abnormal electrical activity and even personalise EP models. To this end, most of the literature uses manually segmented CT images where one fundamental information is extracted, the myocardial wall thickness. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of using an automated deep learning (DL) methodology to segment the left ventricular wall and extract relevant scar information on the resulting personalised models. Using CT images from 8 patients that were not used during the DL training, we show that the automated segmentation is very similar to the manual one (median Dice score: 0.9). Thickness information obtained this way is also very close to the manual one (median difference: 0.7 mm). A wavefront propagation model personalisation framework based on this thickness information does not show relevant differences in its output (median difference in local activation time: 2 ms), proving its robustness. Bipolar electrograms, simulated through a novel approach, do not differ significantly between manual and automated segmentations (Pearson's r: 0.99)

Modelling the Effect of Temperature on Respiration Rate of Fresh Cut Papaya (Carica papaya L.) Fruits.

A respiration rate (RR) model based on Peleg’s equation was developed for predicting RRs of fresh cut papaya. Respiration data for fresh cut papaya at 3/4 maturity were generated at temperatures 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30°C using a closed system. RRs was found to be significantly influenced by storage temperature and increased from 0.021 to 0.289 mL[O2]/kg·h and 0.063 to 0.393 mL[CO2]/kg·h as a function of O2 and CO2 gas concentrations, respectively. Peleg’s constant K 1 and K 2 were obtained from linear regression analysis using GraphPad Prism 5.0 software and regression coefficients have good fit with values close to unity. The model was verified to assess the capability of its predictability of the RRs over the temperatures. There was good agreement with the experimentally estimated RRs. Information derived from the model can contribute in the design of successful modified atmospheric systems for storage of fresh cut papaya

The impact of clothing style on bone mineral density among post menopausal women in Morocco: a case-control study

BACKGROUND: The clothing style is an important factor that influences vitamin D production and thus bone mineral density. We performed a case-control study in order to evaluate the effect of veil wearing (concealing clothing) on bone mineral density in Moroccan post menopausal women. METHODS: The cases were osteoporotic women whose disease was assessed by bone mineral density measurement. Each patient was matched with a non osteoporotic woman for age, and body mass index. All our patients were without secondary causes or medications that might affect bone density. The veil was defined as a concealing clothing which covered most of the body including the arms, the legs and the head. This definition is this of the usual Moroccan traditional clothing style. RESULTS: 178 post menopausal osteoporotic patients and 178 controls were studied. The mean age of the cases and the controls was 63.2 years (SD 7) and the mean body mass index was 32.1 (SD 8). The results of crude Odds Ratios analyses indicated that wearing a veil was associated with a high risk of osteoporosis: OR 2.29 (95% CI, 1.38–3.82). Multiparity or a history of familial peripheral osteoporotic fractures had also a significant effect on increasing the osteoporosis risk (ORs: 1.87 (95% CI, 1.05–3.49) and 2.01 (95% CI, 1.20–3.38)). After a multiple regression analysis, wearing the veil and a history of familial osteoporotic fractures remained the both independent factors that increased the osteoporosis risk (ORs: 2.20 (95% CI, 1.22–3.9) and 2.19 (95% CI, 1.12–4.29) respectively). CONCLUSION: our study suggested that in Moroccan post menopausal women, wearing a traditional concealing clothing covering arms, legs and head increased the risk of osteoporosis. Further studies are required to evaluate the clinical impact of the above findings and to clarify the status of vitamin D among veiled women in Morocco

Order versus Disorder: in vivo bone formation within osteoconductive scaffolds

In modern biomaterial design the generation of an environment mimicking some of the extracellular matrix features is envisaged to support molecular cross-talk between cells and scaffolds during tissue formation/remodeling. In bone substitutes chemical biomimesis has been particularly exploited; conversely, the relevance of pre-determined scaffold architecture for regenerated bone outputs is still unclear. Thus we aimed to demonstrate that a different organization of collagen fibers within newly formed bone under unloading conditions can be generated by differently architectured scaffolds. An ordered and confined geometry of hydroxyapatite foams concentrated collagen fibers within the pores, and triggered their self-assembly in a cholesteric-banded pattern, resulting in compact lamellar bone. Conversely, when progenitor cells were loaded onto nanofibrous collagen-based sponges, new collagen fibers were distributed in a nematic phase, resulting mostly in woven isotropic bone. Thus specific biomaterial design relevantly contributes to properly drive collagen fibers assembly to target bone regeneration

Candidate Genes for Expansion and Transformation of Hematopoietic Stem Cells by NUP98-HOX Fusion Genes

BACKGROUND: Hox genes are implicated in hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) regulation as well as in leukemia development through translocation with the nucleoporin gene NUP98. Interestingly, an engineered NUP98-HOXA10 (NA10) fusion can induce a several hundred-fold expansion of HSCs in vitro and NA10 and the AML-associated fusion gene NUP98-HOXD13 (ND13) have a virtually indistinguishable ability to transform myeloid progenitor cells in vitro and to induce leukemia in collaboration with MEIS1 in vivo. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: These findings provided a potentially powerful approach to identify key pathways mediating Hox-induced expansion and transformation of HSCs by identifying gene expression changes commonly induced by ND13 and NA10 but not by a NUP98-Hox fusion with a non-DNA binding homedomain mutation (N51S). The gene expression repertoire of purified murine bone marrow Sca-1+Lin- cells transduced with retroviral vectors encoding for these genes was established using the Affymetrix GeneChip MOE430A. Approximately seventy genes were differentially expressed in ND13 and NA10 cells that were significantly changed by both compared to the ND13(N51S) mutant. Intriguingly, several of these potential Hox target genes have been implicated in HSC expansion and self-renewal, including the tyrosine kinase receptor Flt3, the prion protein, Prnp, hepatic leukemia factor, Hlf and Jagged-2, Jag2. Consistent with these results, FLT3, HLF and JAG2 expression correlated with HOX A cluster gene expression in human leukemia samples. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion this study has identified several novel Hox downstream target genes and provides important new leads to key regulators of the expansion and transformation of hematopoietic stem cells by Hox

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Restrained Th17 response and myeloid cell infiltration into the central nervous system by human decidua-derived mesenchymal stem cells during experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis

Background: Multiple sclerosis is a widespread inflammatory demyelinating disease. Several immunomodulatory therapies are available, including interferon-β, glatiramer acetate, natalizumab, fingolimod, and mitoxantrone. Although useful to delay disease progression, they do not provide a definitive cure and are associated with some undesirable side-effects. Accordingly, the search for new therapeutic methods constitutes an active investigation field. The use of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to modify the disease course is currently the subject of intense interest. Decidua-derived MSCs (DMSCs) are a cell population obtained from human placental extraembryonic membranes able to differentiate into the three germ layers. This study explores the therapeutic potential of DMSCs. Methods: We used the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) animal model to evaluate the effect of DMSCs on clinical signs of the disease and on the presence of inflammatory infiltrates in the central nervous system. We also compared the inflammatory profile of spleen T cells from DMSC-treated mice with that of EAE control animals, and the influence of DMSCs on the in vitro definition of the Th17 phenotype. Furthermore, we analyzed the effects on the presence of some critical cell types in central nervous system infiltrates. Results: Preventive intraperitoneal injection of DMSCs resulted in a significant delay of external signs of EAE. In addition, treatment of animals already presenting with moderate symptoms resulted in mild EAE with reduced disease scores. Besides decreased inflammatory infiltration, diminished percentages of CD4+IL17+, CD11b+Ly6G+ and CD11b+Ly6C+ cells were found in infiltrates of treated animals. Early immune response was mitigated, with spleen cells of DMSC-treated mice displaying low proliferative response to antigen, decreased production of interleukin (IL)-17, and increased production of the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-4 and IL-10. Moreover, lower RORγT and higher GATA-3 expression levels were detected in DMSC-treated mice. DMSCs also showed a detrimental influence on the in vitro definition of the Th17 phenotype. Conclusions: DMSCs modulated the clinical course of EAE, modified the frequency and cell composition of the central nervous system infiltrates during the disease, and mediated an impairment of Th17 phenotype establishment in favor of the Th2 subtype. These results suggest that DMSCs might provide a new cell-based therapy for the control of multiple sclerosis.This work was sponsored by grants from Acción Estratégica en Salud (PI13/00297 and PI11/00581), the Neurosciences and Aging Foundation, the Francisco Soria Melguizo Foundation, Octopharma, and Parkinson Madrid (PI2012/0032).S