Functional Regeneration of Supraspinal Connections in a Patient With Transected Spinal Cord Following Transplantation of Bulbar Olfactory Ensheathing Cells With Peripheral Nerve Bridging

Treatment of patients sustaining a complete spinal cord injury remains an unsolved clinical problem because of the lack of spontaneous regeneration of injured central axons. A 38-year-old man sustained traumatic transection of the thoracic spinal cord at upper vertebral level Th9. At 21 months after injury, the patient presented symptoms of a clinically complete spinal cord injury (American Spinal Injury Association class A-ASIA A). One of the patient's olfactory bulbs was removed and used to derive a culture containing olfactory ensheathing cells and olfactory nerve fibroblasts. Following resection of the glial scar, the cultured cells were transplanted into the spinal cord stumps above and below the injury and the 8-mm gap bridged by four strips of autologous sural nerve. The patient underwent an intense pre- and postoperative neurorehabilitation program. No adverse effects were seen at 19 months postoperatively, and unexpectedly, the removal of the olfactory bulb did not lead to persistent unilateral anosmia. The patient improved from ASIA A to ASIA C. There was improved trunk stability, partial recovery of the voluntary movements of the lower extremities, and an increase of the muscle mass in the left thigh, as well as partial recovery of superficial and deep sensation. There was also some indication of improved visceral sensation and improved vascular autoregulation in the left lower limb. The pattern of recovery suggests functional regeneration of both efferent and afferent long-distance fibers. Imaging confirmed that the grafts had bridged the left side of the spinal cord, where the majority of the nerve grafts were implanted, and neurophysiological examinations confirmed the restitution of the integrity of the corticospinal tracts and the voluntary character of recorded muscle contractions. To our knowledge, this is the first clinical indication of the beneficial effects of transplanted autologous bulbar cells

Structures of Cu-Based Glass Forming System Doped with Iron

The effects of iron additions on the structure of (Cu0.47Ti0.34Zr0.11Ni0.08)100−xFex (x = 0, 1.5, 3, 6) glass forming system are presented. The alloys were synthesized by arc melting of high purity elements and melt spun to form rapidly quenched ribbons. X-ray diffraction studies showed the amorphous structure of the base and Fe-containing alloys, confirmed by the presence of exothermic peaks on differential scanning calorimetry curves. Bulk samples in the form of rods (Φ3 × 55 mm) were cast using a suction casting unit attached to the arc melter. Structural investigations revealed partial crystallization of the base Cu47Ti34Zr11Ni8 alloy. Iron additions significantly decreased the glass forming ability of the alloy, leading to primary crystallization of dendrites

Quantifying uncertainty in exposure to coastal hazards associated with both climate change and adaptation strategies : a U.S. Pacific Northwest alternative coastal futures analysis

Coastal communities face heightened risk to coastal flooding and erosion hazards due to sea-level rise, changing storminess patterns, and evolving human development pressures. Incorporating uncertainty associated with both climate change and the range of possible adaptation measures is essential for projecting the evolving exposure to coastal flooding and erosion, as well as associated community vulnerability through time. A spatially explicit agent-based modeling platform, that provides a scenario-based framework for examining interactions between human and natural systems across a landscape, was used in Tillamook County, OR (USA) to explore strategies that may reduce exposure to coastal hazards within the context of climate change. Probabilistic simulations of extreme water levels were used to assess the impacts of variable projections of sea-level rise and storminess both as individual climate drivers and under a range of integrated climate change scenarios through the end of the century. Additionally, policy drivers, modeled both as individual management decisions and as policies integrated within adaptation scenarios, captured variability in possible human response to increased hazards risk. The relative contribution of variability and uncertainty from both climate change and policy decisions was quantified using three stakeholder relevant landscape performance metrics related to flooding, erosion, and recreational beach accessibility. In general, policy decisions introduced greater variability and uncertainty to the impacts of coastal hazards than climate change uncertainty. Quantifying uncertainty across a suite of coproduced performance metrics can help determine the relative impact of management decisions on the adaptive capacity of communities under future climate scenarios

Incremental value of contrast myocardial perfusion to detect intermediate versus severe coronary artery stenosis during stress-echocardiography

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We aimed to compare the incremental value of contrast myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) for the detection of intermediate versus severe coronary artery stenosis during dipyridamole-atropine echocardiography (DASE).</p> <p>Wall motion (WM) assessment during stress-echocardiography demonstrates suboptimal sensitivity to detect coronary artery disease (CAD), particularly in patients with isolated intermediate (50%-70%) coronary stenosis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We performed DASE with MPI in 150 patients with a suspected chest pain syndrome who were given clinical indication to coronary angiography.</p> <p>Results and discussion</p> <p>When CAD was defined as the presence of a ≥50% stenosis, the addition of MPI increased sensitivity (+30%) and decreased specificity (-14%), with a final increase in total diagnostic accuracy (+16%, p < 0.001). The addition of MPI data substantially increased the sensitivity to detect patients with isolated intermediate stenosis from 37% to 98% (p < 0.001); the incremental sensitivity was much lower in patients with severe stenosis, from 85% to 96% (p < 0.05), at the expense of a higher decrease in specificity and a final decrease in total diagnostic accuracy (-18%, p < 0.001).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The addition of MPI on top of WM analysis during DASE increases the diagnostic sensitivity to detect obstructive CAD, whatever its definition (≥50% or > 70% stenosis), but it is mainly driven by the sensitivity increase in the intermediate group (50%-70% stenosis).</p> <p>The total diagnostic accuracy increased only when defining CAD as ≥50% stenosis, since in patients with severe stenosis (> 70%) the decrease in specificity is not counterbalanced by the minor sensitivity increase.</p

Measurement of the mass difference and the binding energy of the hypertriton and antihypertriton

According to the CPT theorem, which states that the combined operation of charge conjugation, parity transformation and time reversal must be conserved, particles and their antiparticles should have the same mass and lifetime but opposite charge and magnetic moment. Here, we test CPT symmetry in a nucleus containing a strange quark, more specifically in the hypertriton. This hypernucleus is the lightest one yet discovered and consists of a proton, a neutron, and a $\Lambda$ hyperon. With data recorded by the STAR detector{\cite{TPC,HFT,TOF}} at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, we measure the $\Lambda$ hyperon binding energy $B_{\Lambda}$ for the hypertriton, and find that it differs from the widely used value{\cite{B_1973}} and from predictions{\cite{2019_weak, 1995_weak, 2002_weak, 2014_weak}}, where the hypertriton is treated as a weakly bound system. Our results place stringent constraints on the hyperon-nucleon interaction{\cite{Hammer2002, STAR-antiH3L}}, and have implications for understanding neutron star interiors, where strange matter may be present{\cite{Chatterjee2016}}. A precise comparison of the masses of the hypertriton and the antihypertriton allows us to test CPT symmetry in a nucleus with strangeness for the first time, and we observe no deviation from the expected exact symmetry