Hairy cell leukemia: a rare case report

Hairy cell leukemia (HCL) is a rare chronic B-cell leukemia accounting for 2% of all the leukemias and occurs more frequently in the elderly males. The etiology is unknown but possible relationships to radiation exposure, exposure to benzene, to farm animals and to commercial herbicides and pesticides have been identified. Familial predisposition among first degree relatives has been noted. It is characterized by distinctive cytoplasmic “hair like” projections on the cell surface of lymphoid cells, pancytopenia and splenomegaly. We report a rare case of 29 year old female, farm labourer presenting with fever, fatigue and weakness for 1 month. On examination the patient had hepatomegaly, massive splenomegaly and inguinal lymphadenopathy. After peripheral smear examination diagnosis of HCL was made which was confirmed by bone marrow aspiration examination, bone marrow biopsy and immunohistochemistry (IHC)

The Spitzer Survey of the Small Magellanic Cloud: Discovery of Embedded Protostars in the HII Region NGC 346

We use Spitzer Space Telescope observations from the Spitzer Survey of the Small Magellanic Cloud (S3MC) to study the young stellar content of N66, the largest and brightest HII region in the SMC. In addition to large numbers of normal stars, we detect a significant population of bright, red infrared sources that we identify as likely to be young stellar objects (YSOs). We use spectral energy distribution (SED) fits to classify objects as ordinary (main sequence or red giant) stars, asymptotic giant branch stars, background galaxies, and YSOs. This represents the first large-scale attempt at blind source classification based on Spitzer SEDs in another galaxy. We firmly identify at least 61 YSOs, with another 50 probable YSOs; only one embedded protostar in the SMC was reported in the literature prior to the S3MC. We present color selection criteria that can be used to identify a relatively clean sample of YSOs with IRAC photometry. Our fitted SEDs indicate that the infrared-bright YSOs in N66 have stellar masses ranging from 2 Msun to 17 Msun, and that approximately half of the objects are Stage II protostars, with the remaining YSOs roughly evenly divided between Stage I and Stage III sources. We find evidence for primordial mass segregation in the HII region, with the most massive YSOs being preferentially closer to the center than lower-mass objects. Despite the low metallicity and dust content of the SMC, the observable properties of the YSOs appear consistent with those in the Milky Way. Although the YSOs are heavily concentrated within the optically bright central region of N66, there is ongoing star formation throughout the complex and we place a lower limit on the star formation rate of 3.2 x 10^-3 Msun/yr over the last ~1 Myr.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures (3 in color), 2 tables. Accepted for publication in Ap

UIT Detection of Hot Stars in the Globular Cluster NGC362

We used the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope during the March 1995 Astro-2 mission to obtain a deep far-UV image of the globular cluster NGC 362, which was formerly thought to have an almost entirely red horizontal branch (HB). 84 hot (T_eff > 8500 K) stars were detected within a radius of 8'.25 of the cluster center. Of these, 43 have FUV magnitudes consistent with HB stars in NGC 362, and at least 34 are cluster members. The number of cluster members is made uncertain by background contamination from blue stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). There are six candidate supra-HB stars which have probably evolved from the HB. We discuss the implications of these results for the production of hot blue stars in stellar populations.Comment: 10 pages AASLaTeX including one postscript figure and one compressed bitmap, .jpg format. To appear in Ap. J. Letters. Postscript version also available at http://www.astro.virginia.edu/~bd4r

Deuterated Ammonia in Galactic Protostellar Cores

We report on a survey of \nh2d towards protostellar cores in low-mass star formation and quiescent regions in the Galaxy. Twenty-three out of thirty-two observed sources have significant (\gsim 5\sigma) \nh2d emission. Ion-molecule chemistry, which preferentially enhances deuterium in molecules above its cosmological value of \scnot{1.6}{-5} sufficiently explains these abundances. NH2D/NH3 ratios towards Class 0 sources yields information about the ``fossil remnants'' from the era prior to the onset of core collapse and star formation. We compare our observations with predictions of gas-phase chemical networks.Comment: 16 Pages, 7 Figures, Accepted to Ap.J., to appear in the June 20, 2001 editio

Use of Waste Plastic as a Construction Material

In todayrsquos world, increasing problems related to plastics is a concern for every living species, so there is a need to find a solution to this problem. Hence, working on this issue, the main aim of this study is to tackle the plastic waste generated in abundance throughout the world. To gain success in this, a systematic method is employed which makes use of plastic extrude for reutilizing waste plastic into suitable construction materials. Using only plastic waste or adding some other ingredients such as powder, fly ash, etc plastic is converted into useful construction materials such as pavers, railway sleepers, building blocks, etc. A number of trials with different combinations were conducted to efficiently convert waste plastic into bricks. It was noted that maximum compressive load which the LDPE plastic beads brick could sustain was 13.69 N/mm2. This was followed by LDPE fly ash composite brick with a strength of 11.48 ndash 10.42 N/mm2, which is higher than the compressive strength of the conventional bricks available in the market made up of clay which had a compressive strength of 3-5 N/mm2

Pulmonary Hypertension in Pregnancy: A Positive Outcome with a Multidisciplinary Team and Individualized Treatment Plan

PULMONARY HYPERTENSION (PH) is a challenging disease to treat and is associated with a great degree of morbidity and mortality. When a right ventricle, which is accustomed to operating at low pressure, faces the increased afterload that is conferred with PH, especially in the acute setting, it is prone to failure and ultimately can result in hemodynamic collapse. The normal physiologic changes of pregnancy, particularly increased blood volume, lower systemic vascular resistance and systemic blood pressure, and increased cardiac output, are particularly deleterious in the patient with PH. Here, the authors describe a case of a woman who was diagnosed with severe PH during pregnancy and was safely navigated through a cesarean section and the subsequent postpartum period

Mechanisms of acquired resistance to TRK inhibitors

3104 Background: First-generation TRK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are approved in a tumor-agnostic fashion in more than 40 countries for patients with NTRK fusion-positive adult and pediatric cancers. While resistance to these agents has previously been described, the exact frequency with which major mechanisms of resistance emerges is not clearly understood. Methods: Patients with an NTRK-fusion-positive tumor who received a first-generation TRK TKI were eligible. We retrospectively identified those patients that had post-progression tumor tissue analyzed by next-generation sequencing (NGS). The pattern of serial resistance to a second-generation TKI was analyzed when available. Results: Eighteen patients were identified. The median age was 46 years (range 2-67). Nine unique fusions were detected in ten different tumor types. NTRK1, NTRK2, and NTRK3 fusions were found in eight (44%), one (6%), and nine (50%) patients, respectively. Thirteen patients (72%) were treated with larotrectinib and five patients (28%) received entrectinib. NGS (MSK-IMPACT n = 17, Foundation One n = 1) carried out on post-progression tissue revealed the following profile of acquired resistance: on-target resistance (83%, n = 15/18), off-target resistance (11%, n = 2/18), and no identifiable mechanism (6%, n = 1/18). Among patients with on-target resistance, the most common mutation involved the solvent front (87%, n = 13/15: n = 7 NTRK3 G623R, n = 4 NTRK1 G595R, n = 1 NTRK2 G639L, n = 1 NTRK3 G623E) followed by the gatekeeper region (13%, n = 2/15: n = 1 NTRK1 F589L, n = 1 NTRK3 F617I). Two patients developed off-target alterations. One acquired BRAF V600E mutation and the other MET amplification. Interestingly, solvent front mutation loss was observed in two patients who transitioned to and progressed on a second-generation TRK TKI. One patient with a baseline NTRK1 G595R mutation developed polyclonal resistance with acquisition of KRAS G12A and NTRK1 G667A alterations as well as NTRK1 G595R loss. The other patient with NTRK3 G623R developed an NTRK3 F617I gatekeeper mutation with NTRK3 G623R loss. Conclusions: In NTRK fusion-positive cancers, on-target resistance preferentially involving the solvent front is more frequent than off-target resistance to first-generation TKI therapy. Furthermore, the sequential use of second-generation therapy appears to alter the evolutionary kinetics of mutation retention and acquisition