38 research outputs found
Osteoporosis: ¿Diagnóstico o signo de sospecha?
Objetivo: Se presenta un caso clínico de un paciente varón de 52 años
que acude a consulta de Neurología por referir en los últimos meses
deterioro progresivo del estado general con deterioro cognitivo, espe-
cialmente de memoria y funciones ejecutivas, debilidad proximal en
las cuatro extremidades, dolor en zona lumbar y disminución de 10
cm de talla. Se realizó una densitometría ósea siendo diagnosticado de
osteoporosis precoz.
Resultados/conclusión: En la analítica se objetivó aumento del cortisol
libre en orina (1725 g/24h), con ACTH detectable (89 pg/ml) compati-
ble con síndrome de Cushing ACTH-dependiente. Se realizaron pruebas
para diferenciar un posible origen hipofi
sario o ectópico realizándose
un cateterismo de senos petrosos (CSPI) dado que se trata de la prueba
con mayor sensibilidad demostrada. INGLÉS: We present the case of a fifty-year-old male who presented at the Neurology Service. During the previous months he had noticed progressive cognitive deterioration, and particularly a loss of memory and executive abilities, as well as proximal weakness of the four limbs and lumbar tenderness. He had lost ten centimetres of height. A bone densitometry was performed, which showed early osteoporosis.
RESULTS/CONCLUSIONS: The laboratory results showed an increase in urine cortisol excretion (1725 g/24h), with detectable plasma ACTH concentration (89 pg/ml), suggesting ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome, Additional tests were run in order to determine a hypothalamic or ectopic location of the syndrome. To this end, a bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sample (BIPSS) was performed for ACTH determination. BIPSS is the test that has been proven to have the best sensitivity to achieve differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrom
Tratamiento de la hepatitis crónica por virus C
La hepatitis crónica por virus C es la principal causa de enfermedad crónica hepática en nuestro medio y la indicación más frecuente de trasplante hepático. Afecta a un millón de personas en España, cerca de 4 millones en los Estados Unidos, más de 5 millones en Europa y de 170 millones en todo el mundo. Estas cifras hablan de la necesidad de encontrar un tratamiento eficaz, capaz de eliminar la infección o, al menos, detener la progresión de la enfermedad hepática. El tratamiento de elección en la actualidad, la combinación de interferón alfa pegilado y ribavirina, ha duplicado las tasas de respuesta sostenida obtenidas hace tan sólo algunos años, pero dista aún de ser óptimo. El gran número de enfermos no respondedores al tratamiento, la mala respuesta de los enfermos cirróticos o en circunstancias especiales y la evidencia de la recurrencia universal de la enfermedad tras el trasplante exigen nuevas estrategias terapéuticas en el futuro inmediato.Chronic hepatitis C is the major cause of chronic liver disease in western countries and the leading indication for liver transplant. An estimated one million people are infected in Spain, four million in the US, five million in Europe and more than 170 million worldwide. An effective treatment, able to eradicate the virus or to stop the progression of liver disease is clearly needed. Current treatment of chronic hepatitis C, the combination of pegylated alpha interferon and ribavirin, has doubled the sustained response rate there was only a few years ago, but this treatment is far from ideal. The number of non-responders, the low response rates in cirrhotic patients or those with special situations, and the evidence of recurrence of liver disease after liver transplant call for new therapeutic strategies in the near future
ICAM-1 nanoclusters regulate hepatic epithelial cell polarity by leukocyte adhesion-independent control of apical actomyosin
Epithelial intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 is apically polarized, interacts with,
and guides leukocytes across epithelial barriers. Polarized hepatic epithelia organize their apical
membrane domain into bile canaliculi and ducts, which are not accessible to circulating immune cells
but that nevertheless confine most of ICAM-1. Here, by analyzing ICAM-1_KO human hepatic cells,
liver organoids from ICAM-1_KO mice and rescue-of-function experiments, we show that ICAM-1
regulates epithelial apicobasal polarity in a leukocyte adhesion-independent manner. ICAM-1 signals
to an actomyosin network at the base of canalicular microvilli, thereby controlling the dynamics
and size of bile canalicular-like structures. We identified the scaffolding protein EBP50/NHERF1/
SLC9A3R1, which connects membrane proteins with the underlying actin cytoskeleton, in the proximity interactome of ICAM-1. EBP50 and ICAM-1 form nano-scale domains that overlap in microvilli,
from which ICAM-1 regulates EBP50 nano-organization. Indeed, EBP50 expression is required for
ICAM-1-mediated control of BC morphogenesis and actomyosin. Our findings indicate that ICAM-1
regulates the dynamics of epithelial apical membrane domains beyond its role as a heterotypic cell–
cell adhesion molecule and reveal potential therapeutic strategies for preserving epithelial architecture during inflammatory stress
Obstructive sleep apnea severity is associated with left ventricular mass independent of other cardiovascular risk factors in morbid obesity
OBJECTIVE:
To evaluate the relation between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and left ventricular mass (LVM) in morbid obesity and the influence of gender, menopausal status, anthropometry, body composition, hypertension, and other cardiovascular risk factors in this relationship.
DESIGN:
Cross-sectional descriptive study.
METHODS:
Polysomnographic and echocardiographic studies were performed in a cohort of 242 patients (86 men, 100 premenopausal (PreM) and 56 postmenopausal (PostM) women), with grade II obesity and above (BMI: 43.7 ± 0.4 kg/m(2)) to investigate OSA and LVM respectively. Anthropometry, body composition, glucose tolerance, and blood pressure were also recorded.
RESULTS:
OSA to different degrees was diagnosed in 76.2% of the patients (n: 166), its prevalence being 90.9% (n: 70) for men, and 76% (n: 38) and 63.8% (n: 58) for PostM and PreM women, respectively (p < 0.01). LVM excess was greatest for PostM women (90.2%), followed by men (81.9%) and PreM females (69.6%) (p < 0.01). LVM values increased in accordance to OSA severity (absence, 193.7 ± 6.9 g; mild, 192.6 ± 7.8 g; moderate, 240.5 ± 12.5 g; severe, 273.6 ± 14.6 g; p < 0.01). LVM magnitude correlated with the menopausal state, age, central adiposity, hypertension (HT), type 2 diabetes (DM), desaturation index (DI), and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) (r = 0.41; p < 0.01). The relationship between LVM and AHI persisted in the multivariate analysis (β = 0.25; p < 0.05) after adjusting for age, gender, menopausal state, BMI, waist circumference, neck circumference, DI, fasting plasma glucose, DM, and HT. But if tobacco habits are included, the statistical difference disappears (β = 0.22; p = 0.06).
CONCLUSIONS:
Morbid obesity is frequently associated with abnormal LVM, particularly in patients with OSA; this association is independent of HT, BMI, body composition, and other clinical factors, supporting a direct role of OSA on LVM in morbid obesity. This suggests that OSA and LVM might be taken as predictors of the cardiovascular risk in these patients.
KEYWORDS:
Sleep apnea; apnea-hypopnea index; left ventricular mass; morbid obesit
Bearded Reedlings Adjust Their Pair-Bond Behaviour in Relation to the Sex and Attractiveness of Unpaired Conspecifics
An individual's investment in mating or keeping a pair bond intact may be influenced not only by the attractiveness of its current mate, but also by that of other potential mates. In this study, we investigated the effect of relative attractiveness on pair-bond behaviour in bearded reedlings, Panurus biarmicus. We showed that mate attractiveness, in terms of beard length in males and tail length in females, influenced courtship behaviour when the pair was kept isolated. In the presence of a conspecific, contact initiations within a pair increased. This increment was mainly related to the sex of the unpaired conspecific, however, and less to differences in attractiveness between the current partner and the unpaired conspecific. Female contact initiations towards potential extra mates were independent of male attractiveness, whereas male contact behaviour was significantly influenced by female attractiveness. However, females displayed more contact initiations to their current mate when they were less attractive than the unpaired females. Males decreased their overtures towards other females with increasing attractiveness of their current mates. Overall, our results suggested that, when there was a risk of losing their mate, bearded reedlings adjust their pair-bond investment mainly in response to the presence or absence of a competitor, and fine-tune investment to a lesser extent in response to the attractiveness of that potential competitor
ICAM-1 nanoclusters regulate hepatic epithelial cell polarity by leukocyte adhesion-independent control of apical actomyosin
Epithelial intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 is apically polarized, interacts with, and guides leukocytes across epithelial barriers. Polarized hepatic epithelia organize their apical membrane domain into bile canaliculi and ducts, which are not accessible to circulating immune cells but that nevertheless confine most of ICAM-1. Here, by analyzing ICAM-1_KO human hepatic cells, liver organoids from ICAM-1_KO mice and rescue-of-function experiments, we show that ICAM-1 regulates epithelial apicobasal polarity in a leukocyte adhesion-independent manner. ICAM-1 signals to an actomyosin network at the base of canalicular microvilli, thereby controlling the dynamics and size of bile canalicular-like structures. We identified the scaffolding protein EBP50/NHERF1/SLC9A3R1, which connects membrane proteins with the underlying actin cytoskeleton, in the proximity interactome of ICAM-1. EBP50 and ICAM-1 form nano-scale domains that overlap in microvilli, from which ICAM-1 regulates EBP50 nano-organization. Indeed, EBP50 expression is required for ICAM-1-mediated control of BC morphogenesis and actomyosin. Our findings indicate that ICAM-1 regulates the dynamics of epithelial apical membrane domains beyond its role as a heterotypic cell–cell adhesion molecule and reveal potential therapeutic strategies for preserving epithelial architecture during inflammatory stress
Goodbye Hartmann trial: a prospective, international, multicenter, observational study on the current use of a surgical procedure developed a century ago
Background: Literature suggests colonic resection and primary anastomosis (RPA) instead of Hartmann's procedure (HP) for the treatment of left-sided colonic emergencies. We aim to evaluate the surgical options globally used to treat patients with acute left-sided colonic emergencies and the factors that leading to the choice of treatment, comparing HP and RPA. Methods: This is a prospective, international, multicenter, observational study registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. A total 1215 patients with left-sided colonic emergencies who required surgery were included from 204 centers during the period of March 1, 2020, to May 31, 2020. with a 1-year follow-up. Results: 564 patients (43.1%) were females. The mean age was 65.9 ± 15.6 years. HP was performed in 697 (57.3%) patients and RPA in 384 (31.6%) cases. Complicated acute diverticulitis was the most common cause of left-sided colonic emergencies (40.2%), followed by colorectal malignancy (36.6%). Severe complications (Clavien-Dindo ≥ 3b) were higher in the HP group (P < 0.001). 30-day mortality was higher in HP patients (13.7%), especially in case of bowel perforation and diffused peritonitis. 1-year follow-up showed no differences on ostomy reversal rate between HP and RPA. (P = 0.127). A backward likelihood logistic regression model showed that RPA was preferred in younger patients, having low ASA score (≤ 3), in case of large bowel obstruction, absence of colonic ischemia, longer time from admission to surgery, operating early at the day working hours, by a surgeon who performed more than 50 colorectal resections. Conclusions: After 100 years since the first Hartmann's procedure, HP remains the most common treatment for left-sided colorectal emergencies. Treatment's choice depends on patient characteristics, the time of surgery and the experience of the surgeon. RPA should be considered as the gold standard for surgery, with HP being an exception
HISTOLOGICAL STUDIES ON THE MIDGUT GLAND OF MELANOPSIS-DUFOURI
Volume: 9Start Page: 483End Page: 48