Imaging Hepatocellular Carcinoma With 68Ga-Citrate PET: First Clinical Experience.

While cross-sectional imaging with computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging is the primary method for diagnosing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), they provide little biological insight into this molecularly heterogeneous disease. Nuclear imaging tools that can detect molecular subsets of tumors could greatly improve diagnosis and management of HCC. To this end, we conducted a patient study to determine whether HCC can be resolved using 68Ga-citrate positron emission tomography (PET). One patient with recurrent HCC was injected with 300 MBq of 68Ga-citrate and imaged with PET/CT 249 minutes post injection. Four (28%) of 14 hepatic lesions were avid for 68Ga-citrate. One extrahepatic lesion was not PET avid. The average maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) for the lesions was 7.2 (range: 6.2-8.4), while the SUVmax of the normal liver parenchyma was 4.7 and blood pool was 5.7. The avid lesions were not significantly larger than the quiescent lesions, and a prior contrast CT showed uniform enhancement among the lesions, suggesting that tumor signals are due to specific binding of the radiotracer to the transferrin receptor, rather than enhanced vascularity in the tumor microenvironment. Further studies are required in a larger patient cohort to verify the molecular basis of radiotracer uptake and the clinical utility of this tool

<em>Trichoderma harzianum</em> Rifai: A Beneficial Fungus for Growth and Development of <em>Abroma augusta</em> L. Seedlings with Other Microbial Bio-Inoculants

Rhizospheric microbes play an important role in plant health. Rhizosphere is an area around the roots of plants where all microbes repose and influence the health of plants. These microbes require organic matter for their activity and provide nutrients to the plants and maintain the plant health. In this research paper, these useful microbes like fungi (Trichoderma harzianum), endomycorrhizae (Arbuscular Mycorrhiza) and bacteria (Pseudomonas putida) were isolated and after mass multiplication applied as bio-inoculants in alone and in combination to see the effect on growth and development of Abroma augusta seedlings which is a threatened medicinal plant in north-eastern part of India. T. harzianum alone and in combined form showed significant growth and development effect on seedlings. The effect of alone and combined treatments of T. harzianum on growth and development of this important medicinal plant species has been discussed in detail in this research paper

Hyperpolarized 13C-pyruvate MRI detects real-time metabolic flux in prostate cancer metastases to bone and liver: a clinical feasibility study.

BackgroundHyperpolarized (HP) 13C-pyruvate MRI is a stable-isotope molecular imaging modality that provides real-time assessment of the rate of metabolism through glycolytic pathways in human prostate cancer. Heretofore this imaging modality has been successfully utilized in prostate cancer only in localized disease. This pilot clinical study investigated the feasibility and imaging performance of HP 13C-pyruvate MR metabolic imaging in prostate cancer patients with metastases to the bone and/or viscera.MethodsSix patients who had metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer were recruited. Carbon-13 MR examination were conducted on a clinical 3T MRI following injection of 250 mM hyperpolarized 13C-pyruvate, where pyruvate-to-lactate conversion rate (kPL) was calculated. Paired metastatic tumor biopsy was performed with histopathological and RNA-seq analyses.ResultsWe observed a high rate of glycolytic metabolism in prostate cancer metastases, with a mean kPL value of 0.020 ± 0.006 (s-1) and 0.026 ± 0.000 (s-1) in bone (N = 4) and liver (N = 2) metastases, respectively. Overall, high kPL showed concordance with biopsy-confirmed high-grade prostate cancer including neuroendocrine differentiation in one case. Interval decrease of kPL from 0.026 at baseline to 0.015 (s-1) was observed in a liver metastasis 2 months after the initiation of taxane plus platinum chemotherapy. RNA-seq found higher levels of the lactate dehydrogenase isoform A (Ldha,15.7 ± 0.7) expression relative to the dominant isoform of pyruvate dehydrogenase (Pdha1, 12.8 ± 0.9).ConclusionsHP 13C-pyruvate MRI can detect real-time glycolytic metabolism within prostate cancer metastases, and can measure changes in quantitative kPL values following treatment response at early time points. This first feasibility study supports future clinical studies of HP 13C-pyruvate MRI in the setting of advanced prostate cancer

Fabrication of Variable Morphologies on Argon Sputtered PMMA Surfaces

Ion beam induced patterning and fabrication of various topographies over polymeric surfaces has drawn strong interest due to latent applications in photonics, magnetic devices, optical devices and photovoltaics etc. In this work, we report the controlled surface structuring and evolution of different morphologies in Poly(methyl methacrylate) polymer using Ar+ ion beam fabrication technique. Morphological and structural analysis has been performed by ex situ Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and X-ray Diffraction. The effect of oblique incidences on argon sputtered films was evaluated by various surface topography and texture parameters, such as Fast Fourier Transforms, surface roughness, skewness, kurtosis. AFM study demonstrates fabrication of transient morphologies over argon sputtered surfaces. One dimensional (1D) cross section scans of surface profiles are determined and morphological features are investigated. The results showed halo peaks in the XRD patterns, which indicate the amorphous nature of this type of polymer. The formation of these surface structures is attributed to the different degree of sputtering yield at different off-normal incidences and preferential sputtering of hydrogen in comparison to carbon in ion sputtered surfaces

MRI and MR Arthrography Imaging of the Pathologies of the Wrist: A Pictorial Essay

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has a special advantage over radiographs and Computed Tomography (CT) in evaluating an anatomically complex structure like wrist, owing to its excellent soft-tissue resolution and multiplanar imaging functionality. MR arthrography further improves the diagnostic value of MRI by virtue of its meticulous depiction of even small tears involving the Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex (TFCC), intrinsic and extrinsic ligaments of the wrist. This article focuses on the MRI and MR arthrography illustration of various traumatic as well as non traumatic pathologies affecting the wrist region and is mainly intended to educate the residents by comprehensively reviewing the imaging features of the major afflictions of this complex joint in a systematic fashion using checklists