Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome: Diagnosis and Management of Hemangioblastoma and Pheochromocytoma

Introduction. Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome is a pathological condition that causes various clinical symptoms and is difficult to diagnose. The most common pathological lesions are hemangioblastomas of the central nervous system, retinal angiomas, renal clear cell carcinomas, and pheochromocytomas. Case Report. A 23-year-old female had a syncope episode in 2008. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a right temporal hemangioblastoma, which was treated surgically. Genetic screening identified a VHL gene mutation, and computed tomography (CT) revealed a left adrenal mass. Since it was unclear whether the mass was a pheochromocytoma, or another benign or malignant tumors, laparoscopic adrenalectomy was performed. A month after surgery, the patient complained of general fatigue, poor concentration, loss of appetite, and insomnia. After careful clinical investigation, the patient was referred to a psychiatrist due to suspected depression, which was confirmed. Conclusions. VHL genetic screening should be performed in cases of hemangioblastoma. In VHL syndrome cases, pheochromocytoma cannot always be diagnosed by biochemical catecholamine analyses; therefore, CT or MRI scanning of the abdomen must be performed. Due to the long treatment period, some patients may develop episodes of depression, which can simulate VHL syndrome

Survival rates of familial and sporadic prostate cancer patients

Aim: To compare cancer-specific survival rates for familial and sporadic prostate cancer patients. Materials and Methods: Gleason score and age at diagnosis of familial group and sporadic group were compared by χ² and t-test. Cancer-specific survival rates were analyzed by the Kaplan — Meier method and compared by log-rank test. Statistically significant level was set at p < 0.05. Results: Among 1175 prostate cancer patients, familial group consisted of 215 (18.3%) patients, the sporadic group consisted of 960 (81.7%) patients. The familial group patient’s mean age at diagnosis (58.9 years old, 95% confidence interval (CI) 57.8–60.1) was significantly younger than that of sporadic group patients (67.2 years old, 95% CI 66.7–67.6) (p < 0.0001). Comparing Gleason score between familial group and sporadic group revealed no statistically significant difference. The analysis showed that 92% (95% CI 0.88–0.97) of familial group patients had a 10-year cancer-specific survival rates, which was a significantly better outcome than that of sporadic group with 69% (95% CI 0.60–0.78) 10-year cancer-specific survival rates (p = 0.0237). Conclusion: The study data demonstrate statistically significant difference between familial group and sporadic group concerning age and cancer-specific survival rates, but not Gleason score. Key Words: prostate cancer, hereditary, familial, survival rates

The CHEK2 del5395 is a founder mutation without direct effects for cancer risk in the latvian population

Our objective was to determine: 1) whether the checkpoint kinase 2 (CHEK2) del5395 (g.27417113-27422508 del, NC_000022.11) is a founder mutation in the Latvian population, 2) if there is an association between CHEK2 del5395 mutation and cancer risk, and 3) and whether the CHEK2 del5395 mutation impacts cancer predisposition in Chernobyl disaster liquidators (the civil and military personnel who were called upon to deal with consequences of the 1986 nuclear disaster) as well as geriatric populations. We recruited 438 breast cancer patients, 568 colorectal cancer patients, 399 ovarian cancer patients, 419 prostate cancer patients, 526 healthy blood donors, 480 Chernobyl disaster liquidators and 444 geriatric cancer-free participants. DNA samples were isolated from blood samples and subjected to multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The truncation of del5395 was estimated by fragment size of the multiplex PCR.All groups were compared to the healthy blood donors using Fisher’s exact test. All p values were two-sided and the odds ratios (OR) calculated by two-by-two table. In cancer groups, the del5395 mutation was most frequently observed in the ovarian cancer group (1.00%, OR = 1.32). In control groups, the del5395 mutation was most frequent (0.76%) in the healthy donors, which exceeded its frequency in the Chernobyl liquidators group and the geriatric group by 0.01 and 0.08%, respectively. For all groups, the OR appeared to be >1 only in ovarian cancer patients. However, OR rates showed no statistical significance in either cancer or control groups, with the p value fluctuating within the range of 0.39-1.00. The CHEK2 gene del5395 is a founder mutation in the Latvian population, which, however, does not have a direct impact on genetic predisposition toward colorectal, breast, ovarian and prostate cancer

Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome: Diagnosis and Management of Hemangioblastoma and Pheochromocytoma

Introduction. Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome is a pathological condition that causes various clinical symptoms and is difficult to diagnose. The most common pathological lesions are hemangioblastomas of the central nervous system, retinal angiomas, renal clear cell carcinomas, and pheochromocytomas. Case Report. A 23-year-old female had a syncope episode in 2008. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a right temporal hemangioblastoma, which was treated surgically. Genetic screening identified a VHL gene mutation, and computed tomography (CT) revealed a left adrenal mass. Since it was unclear whether the mass was a pheochromocytoma, or another benign or malignant tumors, laparoscopic adrenalectomy was performed. A month after surgery, the patient complained of general fatigue, poor concentration, loss of appetite, and insomnia. After careful clinical investigation, the patient was referred to a psychiatrist due to suspected depression, which was confirmed. Conclusions. VHL genetic screening should be performed in cases of hemangioblastoma. In VHL syndrome cases, pheochromocytoma cannot always be diagnosed by biochemical catecholamine analyses; therefore, CT or MRI scanning of the abdomen must be performed. Due to the long treatment period, some patients may develop episodes of depression, which can simulate VHL syndrome

Momento de recolección y tiempo de almacenamiento de soja: influencia sobre la calidad del aceite

Soybean var. IAC-8 was harvested in five different times, two previous (R7 and R8) and two subsequent (C1 and C2) to the usual commercial harvest time (H). The seeds were air dried at normal ambient temperature before storage. Those with 15% moisture could be kept for only three months. Those with 12% moisture were kept for six months. Initial characterization of the seeds revealed the least oil content in seeds from the harvest of R8. In addition, the sample R8 had the least acidity and the oil had better storage properties regarding peroxide value. During storage a general increase in acidity has been observed in the oil from seeds from all the samples and at the two moisture levels. Peroxide value of the oil decreased after three months of storage, except for R8 oils, and were even lower in the 15% moisture seeds. Spectrophotometric absorption in the ultraviolet range indicated the formation of conjugated double bonds as the period of storage increased, independently of the harvest time and seed moisture. There was little change in the iodine values of any of the samples during the storage period. The oils from R8 were the ones that showed the least oxidative deterioration during the period studied, whereas R7 and C2 seed oils were considered to have deteriorated the most.Se recolectó soja de la variedad IAC-8 en cinco momentos diferentes, dos previos (R7 y R8) y dos siguientes (C1 y C2) al tiempo normal de recolección comercial (H). Las semillas se secaron al aire a temperatura ambiente después del almacenamiento. Aquellas con un 15% de humedad pudieron ser conservadas durante solo tres meses. Aquellas con un 12% de humedad fueron guardadas durante seis meses. La caracterización inicial de las semillas mostró el más bajo contenido en aceite en semillas procedentes de la cosecha R8. Además la muestra RB tuvo la menor acidez y el aceite presentó las mejores propiedades al almacenamiento considerando el índice de peróxido. Durante el almacenamiento, se observó un incremento general en la acidez en los aceites de semillas de todas las muestras y a dos niveles de humedad. El Índice de peróxido de los aceites disminuyó después de tres meses de almacenamiento, excepto para aceites R8, y fue incluso menor en las semillas con un 15% de humedad. La absorción espectrofotométrica en el rango ultravioleta indicó la formación de dobles enlaces conjugados cuando el periodo de almacenamiento aumentó, independientemente del momento de cosecha y humedad de la semilla. Hubo pequeños cambios en los índices de iodo de algunas muestras durante el periodo de almacenamiento. Los aceites de R8 fueron aquellos que mostraron la menor deterioración oxidativa durante el periodo estudiado, mientras que los aceites de semillas R7 y C2 fueron los que sufrieron mayor deterioración

Modelling microwave devices using artificial neural networks / Mikrobangų įtaisų modeliavimas, taikant dirbtinių neuronų tinklus

Artificial neural networks (ANN) have recently gained attention as fast and flexible equipment for modelling and designing microwave devices. The paper reviews the opportunities to use them for undertaking the tasks on the analysis and synthesis. The article focuses on what tasks might be solved using neural networks, what challenges might rise when using artificial neural networks for carrying out tasks on microwave devices and discusses problem-solving techniques for microwave devices with intermittent characteristics. Santrauka Nagrinėjamos dirbtinių neuronų tinklų taikymo galimybės mikrobangų įtaisams tirti. Apžvelgiami eksperimentiniai ir teoriniai darbai. Pateikiama apibendrinta informacija apie uždavinius, sprendžiamus taikant neuronų tinklus, problemas, kylančias dirbtinius neuronų tinklus taikant mikrobangų uždaviniams spręsti, ir problemų sprendimo būdus. Pateikiama bendra neuronų tinklų struktūra ir konkretūs neuronų tinklų naudojimo pavyzdžiai. Reikšminiai žodžiai: mikrobangų įtaisai, neuronų tinklai, lėtinimo sistemos, iteraciniai skaičiavimai

Telomere length in Chernobyl accident recovery workers in the late period after the disaster

The outcome of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (CNPP) accident was that a huge number of people were exposed to ionizing radiation. Previous studies of CNPP clean-up workers from Latvia revealed a high occur-rence of age-associated degenerative diseases and cancer in young adults, as well as a high mortality as a result of cardiovascular disorders at age 45–54 years. DNA tandem repeats that cap chromosome ends, known as telomeres, are sensitive to oxidative damage and exposure to ionizing radiation. Telomeres are important in aging processes and carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term effect of protracted ionizing radiation exposure on telomere length in CNPP clean-up workers. Relative telomere length (RTL) was measured in peripheral blood leukocytes of 595 CNPP clean-up workers and 236 gender- and age-matched controls using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR). Close attention was paid to participation year and tasks performed during the worker’s stay in Chernobyl, health status, and RTL differ-ences between subgroups. Telomere shortening was not found in CNPP clean-up workers; on the contrary, their RTL was slightly greater than in controls (P = 0.001). Longer telomeres were found in people who worked during 1986, in those undertaking ‘dirty ’ tasks (digging and deactivation), and in people with cancer. Shorter telomeres appeared frequently in those with cataract, osteoporosis, atherosclerosis, or coronary hear