Efficacy and safety of universal valganciclovir prophylaxis combined with a tacrolimus/mycophenolate-based regimen in kidney transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Immunosuppressive and antiviral prophylactic drugs are needed to prevent acute rejection and infection after transplantation. We assessed the efficacy and safety of the introduction of universal valganciclovir prophylaxis in combination with a tacrolimus/mycophenolate-based regimen in kidney transplantation at our centre. METHODS: We reviewed all consecutive patients who underwent kidney transplantation over a 5.5-year period. Patients transplanted from January 2000 to March 2003 (period 1) were compared to patients from April 2003 to July 2005 (period 2). In period 1 patients were treated with basiliximab, cyclosporine, steroids and mycophenolate (or azathioprine). Prophylaxis with valacyclovir was prescribed in cytomegalovirus (CMV) D+/R- patients, while any R+ patients were managed with a preemptive approach. In period 2, immunosuppression consisted of basiliximab or thymoglobulin induction, tacrolimus, steroids and mycophenolate. Three-month CMV prophylaxis with valganciclovir was used in all at-risk patients. RESULTS: Data analysis included 73 patients (period 1) and 70 (period 2). Acute rejection was more frequent in period 1 than in period 2 (42% vs 7%, p <0.001). Overall, 30% of patients in period 1 were diagnosed with CMV infection/disease requiring antiviral treatment, compared with 11.4% in period 2 (p = 0.003). Late-onset CMV disease remained a problem in D+/R- patients in both periods. There was no difference in incidence of BK virus nephropathy, fungal infections, PTLD, graft loss or mortality. However, 4 cases (5.7%) of delayed transient asymptomatic agranulocytosis were observed in period 2. CONCLUSIONS: The present analysis indicates that the combined regimen introduced in period 2 improved clinical results with a significant decrease in acute rejection and in CMV infection/disease incidence. However, a unique syndrome of delayed transient agranulocytosis probably due to drug myelotoxicity was observed in a subset of patients

Measurement of CP observables in B± → D(⁎)K± and B± → D(⁎)π± decays

Measurements of CP observables in B ± →D (⁎) K ± and B ± →D (⁎) π ± decays are presented, where D (⁎) indicates a neutral D or D ⁎ meson that is an admixture of D (⁎)0 and D¯ (⁎)0 states. Decays of the D ⁎ meson to the Dπ 0 and Dγ final states are partially reconstructed without inclusion of the neutral pion or photon, resulting in distinctive shapes in the B candidate invariant mass distribution. Decays of the D meson are fully reconstructed in the K ± π ∓ , K + K − and π + π − final states. The analysis uses a sample of charged B mesons produced in pp collisions collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.0, 1.0 and 2.0 fb −1 taken at centre-of-mass energies of s=7, 8 and 13 TeV, respectively. The study of B ± →D ⁎ K ± and B ± →D ⁎ π ± decays using a partial reconstruction method is the first of its kind, while the measurement of B ± →DK ± and B ± →Dπ ± decays is an update of previous LHCb measurements. The B ± →DK ± results are the most precise to date

The relationship between genetic liability, childhood maltreatment, and IQ: findings from the EU-GEI multicentric case–control study

This study investigated if the association between childhood maltreatment and cognition among psychosis patients and community controls was partially accounted for by genetic liability for psychosis. Patients with first-episode psychosis (N = 755) and unaffected controls (N = 1219) from the EU-GEI study were assessed for childhood maltreatment, intelligence quotient (IQ), family history of psychosis (FH), and polygenic risk score for schizophrenia (SZ-PRS). Controlling for FH and SZ-PRS did not attenuate the association between childhood maltreatment and IQ in cases or controls. Findings suggest that these expressions of genetic liability cannot account for the lower levels of cognition found among adults maltreated in childhood

Measurement of CPCP asymmetries in D±→η′π±D^{\pm}\rightarrow \eta^{\prime} \pi^{\pm} and Ds±→η′π±D_s^{\pm}\rightarrow \eta^{\prime} \pi^{\pm} decays

See paper for full list of authors - All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://lhcbproject.web.cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/LHCbProjectPublic/LHCb-PAPER-2016-041.html - Submitted to Phys. Lett. BInternational audienceA search for CP violation in D±→η′π± and D±s→η′π± decays is performed using proton-proton collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3 fb−1, recorded by the LHCb experiment at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV. The measured CP-violating charge asymmetries are ACP(D±→η′π±)=(−0.61±0.72±0.55±0.12)% and ACP(D±s→η′π±)=(−0.82±0.36±0.24±0.27)%, where the first uncertainties are statistical, the second systematic, and the third are the uncertainties on the ACP(D±→K0Sπ±) and ACP(D±s→ϕπ±) measurements used for calibration. The results represent the most precise measurements of these asymmetries to date

Observation of ηc(2S)→ppˉ\eta_{c}(2S) \to p \bar p and search for X(3872)→ppˉX(3872) \to p \bar p decays

The first observation of the decay $\eta_{c}(2S) \to p \bar p$ is reported using proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $3.0\rm \, fb^{-1}$ recorded by the LHCb experiment at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV. The $\eta_{c}(2S)$ resonance is produced in the decay $B^{+} \to [c\bar c] K^{+}$. The product of branching fractions normalised to that for the $J/\psi$ intermediate state, ${\cal R}_{\eta_{c}(2S)}$, is measured to be \begin{align*} {\cal R}_{\eta_{c}(2S)}\equiv\frac{{\mathcal B}(B^{+} \to \eta_{c}(2S) K^{+}) \times {\mathcal B}(\eta_{c}(2S) \to p \bar p)}{{\mathcal B}(B^{+} \to J/\psi K^{+}) \times {\mathcal B}(J/\psi\to p \bar p)} =~& (1.58 \pm 0.33 \pm 0.09)\times 10^{-2}, \end{align*} where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. No signals for the decays $B^{+} \to X(3872) (\to p \bar p) K^{+}$ and $B^{+} \to \psi(3770) (\to p \bar p) K^{+}$ are seen, and the 95\% confidence level upper limits on their relative branching ratios are % found to be ${\cal R}_{X(3872)}<0.25\times10^{-2}$ and ${\cal R}_{\psi(3770))}<0.10$. In addition, the mass differences between the $\eta_{c}(1S)$ and the $J/\psi$ states, between the $\eta_{c}(2S)$ and the $\psi(2S)$ states, and the natural width of the $\eta_{c}(1S)$ are measured as \begin{align*} M_{J/\psi} - M_{\eta_{c}(1S)} =~& 110.2 \pm 0.5 \pm 0.9 \rm \, MeV, M_{\psi(2S)} -M_{\eta_{c}(2S)} =~ & 52.5 \pm 1.7 \pm 0.6 \rm \, MeV, \Gamma_{\eta_{c}(1S)} =~& 34.0 \pm 1.9 \pm 1.3 \rm \, MeV. \end{align*}Comment: 16 pages, 2 figures All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://lhcbproject.web.cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/LHCbProjectPublic/LHCb-PAPER-2016-016.htm