Significant Increase in Antibody Titers after the 3rd Booster Dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Healthcare Workers in Greece.

The aim of our study was to assess the immunogenicity of the third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Comirnaty) in a cohort of 129 health-care workers in Greece whose anti-S1 RBD IgG titers were monitored over the course of nine months. Titers were measured for each participant just before the third dose (nine months after the second dose) and also one month after the third dose. Of the 129 participants, 19 had been previously infected before starting the vaccination scheme. The SARS-CoV-2 IgG II Quant assay on the Architect System was employed to longitudinally assess the titers of IgG against the receptor-binding domain of the S1 subunit of the spike protein (anti-S1 RBD). Boosters raised Geometric Mean Concentrations (GMCs) by a factor of approximately 47 relative to levels at 9 months and by a factor of approximately 23 relative to levels at 6 months. The immune response one month after the third dose was significantly higher than the response achieved one month after the second dose (p = 0.008). In conclusion, our findings verify the potent immunogenicity elicited by the third dose in all age and prior COVID-19 status groups, suggesting that the timely administration of the third (booster) dose maximizes the immunogenic potential of the vaccine

Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic properties of the novel antidepressant vortioxetine

Η βορτιοξετίνη είναι ένα νέο αντικαταθλιπτικό φάρμακο το οποίο, πέραν της αναστολής που προκαλεί στον μεταφορέα της σεροτονίνης, αλληλεπιδρά με διάφορους τύπους υποδοχέων της σεροτονίνης και γι’ αυτό το λόγο έχει χαρακτηριστεί ως διαμορφωτής και διεγέρτης των υποδοχέων της σεροτονίνης. Η παρούσα εργασία αποτελεί μια σύντομη ανασκόπηση πρόσφατων δεδομένων σχετικών με τη φαρμακοδυναμική, τη φαρμακοκινητική και την κλινική χρήση του φαρμάκου αυτού.Vortioxetine is a novel antidepressant which exhibits multi modal activity; in addition to inhibiting the serotonin transporter (SERT) it interacts directly with various types of 5-HT receptors and is thus classified as a serotonin modulator and stimulator (SMS). This is a short update of recent findings concerning vortioxetine’s pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics and clinical use

Pregabalin’s effect on human genetic material: in vitro study

Purpose of the study: Pregabalin is a prescription drug approved for the treatment of generalized anxiety disor­der; partial epilepsy; neuropathic pain and fibromyalgia. It is an alpha-2-delta ligand, structurally related to the neurotransmitter GABA that inhibits calcium currents via high-voltage-activated channels containing the a2d-1 subunit.Aim of the present study was to investigate the in vitro effect of pregabalin on healthy human cultured lymphocytes, by esti­mating three sensitive cytogenetic indices: Sister Chromatid Exchanges (SCEs), Proliferation Rate Index (PRI) and Mitotic Index (MI).Methods: SCEs are considered as one of the most sensitive markers of genotoxicity, whereas PRI is one of the most reli­able markers of cytostatic activity and MI shows precisely the ability of the cell to proliferate. We prepared eight pregabalin solutions commonly used in clinical practice. The solutions were added to cultures of peripheral blood lymphocytes taken from two young healthy donors. After 72 hours of incubation with the appropriate technique the cultured lymphocytes were plated on glass slides, stained with the Fluorescence plus Giemsa method and the above indices were estimated with the optical microscope.Results and Conclusions: Pregabalin at therapeutic doses exhibited dose-dependent cytogenetic activity in vitro, increasing SCE frequencies and diminishing PRI levels in normal human lymphocyte cultures. Interestingly, the variation of the magni­tude of MI reduction seems to be directly related to the decrease of PRI values as well as to the increase of SCE frequencies. Considering that the use of pregabalin is rapidly increased, further studies in other cell lines and in in vivo experimental settings are needed in order to evaluate its effect on genetic material

Δεδομένα Προσωπικού Χαρακτήρα Εργαζομένων: Το Επιτρεπτό της Επεξεργασίας σύμφωνα με τον Γενικό Κανονισμό για την Προστασία Δεδομένων (GDPR). Αρχές επεξεργασίας και ειδικά ζητήματα συγκατάθεσης

Το παρόν πόνημα εστιάζει σε ζητήματα προσωπικών δεδομένων, έτσι όπως διαμορφώθηκαν έπειτα από τη θέση σε ισχύ του Γενικού Κανονισμού Προστασίας Δεδομένων 2016/679, σε συνδυασμό με ζητήματα εργατικού δικαίου. Εξετάζονται ειδικότερα, το νόμιμο και επιτρεπτό της επεξεργασίας, όπως αναλύεται αφενός στην τήρηση των αρχών για μία σύννομη επεξεργασία και αφετέρου στη συγκατάθεση, ως νομιμοποιητικό λόγο της επεξεργασίας των δεδομένων προσωπικού χαρακτήρα. Αναδεικνύεται τόσο η σημασία της συγκατάθεσης όσο και η σχετικότητα αυτής, εν όψει της ανισορροπίας δυνάμεων στο πλαίσιο μιας εργασιακής σχέσης.This dissertation focuses on personal data issues, as they have been developed since the entry into force of the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679, in conjunction with labor law issues. In particular, the dissertation emphasizes the legal issues on the allowability of processing, on the one hand, as analyzed through the principles of lawful processing and, on the other hand, the consent issues, examined as a legitimate reason for the processing of personal data. Both the importance of consent and its relativity are highlighted in view of the imbalance of powers in the context of an employment relationship

USE OF NOVEL PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES (NPS) OF NATURAL ORIGIN: AN INTERNATIONAL SURVEY

Aim NPS recreational use are mostly derived and modified from constituents of natural origin. Here we investigated the motivation of natural NPS use, perception of potential associated health risks and demographic factors associated with natural NPS use. Methodology The Bristol Online Survey was in English and advertised on the drug forum Bluelight and social media Facebook pages and via University email between 1 July and 17 November 2018 (812 responses; 458 NPS users). This pharmacoepidemiologic study was evaluated using SPSS software (IBM SPSS Statistics version 24;MacOS Sierra 10.12.3). Results The main motivation (67%) for natural NPS use was curiosity to ‘’experience something new and different’’ with a low perception of health risk (85%). The preferred natural NPS was magic mushrooms (psilocybin, 95%) often in combination with cannabis (63%). Gender, living area, educational background, smoking frequency and employment significantly affected (P<0.001) natural NPS use. Male respondents, residents of suburban and rural areas, smokers and respondents with low educational level represented the majority of natural NPS users as well as the employed, the unable to work and retired groups. Similarly, sexual orientation significantly affected (p<0.05) natural NPS use. Conclusion Users’ low perception of natural NPS safety profile and the fact that natural NPS use correlates with a lower level of education, indicates a need for enhanced statutory targeted prevention interventions in schools. Many users (67%) reported natural NPS make them happier and more optimistic about life emphasizing the need to study the potential application of these substances in appropriate clinical settings for therapeutic purposes in mental health.Peer reviewe

First postoperative day review after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery: Is it necessary?

BACKGROUND: Our purpose was to examine the value of the first postoperative day review after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery. METHODS: 291 patients who underwent uneventful phacoemulsification were randomized into two groups (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01247155): i) Next day review (NDR group, n = 146) and ii) No next day review (NNDR group, n = 145). The rate of complications, percentage of patients seeking non-scheduled medical consultation up to postoperative day 14, presence of any inflammation-related sign and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) on postoperative day 28 were analyzed. RESULTS: In the NDR group, 5.5% of patients developed a postoperative complication, whereas the respective rate was 6.2% in the NNDR group. The difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.791). The most frequent complications were: elevated intraocular pressure, allergy to postoperative treatment, corneal abrasion, punctuate epitheliopathy, iris prolapse and postoperative hyphema, whose rates did not differ between the two groups. The rate of patients seeking non-scheduled medical consultation up to postoperative day 14, presence of any inflammation-related sign, as well as BCVA on day 28 did not exhibit any significant differences between the study groups. CONCLUSIONS: First postoperative day review could be omitted in cases of uneventful cataract surgery

Graves’ Ophthalmopathy Misdiagnosed as Relapsing Conjunctivitis

A 59-year-old female patient presented at the outpatients’ Department of Ophthalmology with epiphora, eyelid swelling, and a foreign body feeling in the right eye. The symptoms were present for 4 months, and the patient was treated as suffering from relapsing conjunctivitis. The slit lamp examination revealed keratitis due to exposure, related with the deficient closure of the eyelids. There was a 2 mm difference in the readings with the Hertel exophthalmometry examination between the eyes. Her medical history was clear, and she was referred for computed tomography of the orbits and brain and biochemical examinations (FT3, FT4, and TSH) to investigate the presence of an intraorbital mass. FT3 was significantly increased and TSH was accordingly low, indicating the diagnosis of Graves’ disease, which presented without other signs and symptoms apart from ophthalmopathy. Computed tomography scan excluded the diagnosis of an intraorbital mass. Therefore, it is important not to underestimate the ocular manifestations of systemic diseases

Immunisation with ‘naïve' syngeneic dendritic cells protects mice from tumour challenge

Dendritic cells (DCs) ‘pulsed' with an appropriate antigen may elicit an antitumour immune response in mouse models. However, while attempting to develop a DC immunotherapy protocol for the treatment of breast cancer based on the tumour-associated MUC1 glycoforms, we found that unpulsed DCs can affect tumour growth. Protection from RMA-MUC1 tumour challenge was achieved in C57Bl/6 MUC1 transgenic mice by immunising with syngeneic DCs pulsed with a MUC1 peptide. However, unpulsed DCs gave a similar level of protection, making it impossible to evaluate the effect of immunisation of mice with DCs pulsed with the specific peptide. Balb/C mice could also be protected from tumour challenge by immunisation with unpulsed DCs prior to challenge with murine mammary tumour cells (410.4) or these cells transfected with MUC1 (E3). Protection was achieved with as few as three injections of 50 000 naïve DCs per mouse per week, was not dependent on injection route, and was not specific to cell lines expressing human MUC1. However, the use of Rag2-knockout mice demonstrated that the adaptive immune response was required for tumour rejection. Injection of unpulsed DCs into mice bearing the E3 tumour slowed tumour growth. In vitro, production of IFN-γ and IL-4 was increased in splenic cells isolated from mice immunised with DCs. Depleting CD4 T cells in vitro partially decreased cytokine production by splenocytes, but CD8 depletion had no effect. This paper shows that naïve syngeneic DCs may induce an antitumour immune response and has implications for DC immunotherapy preclinical and clinical trials