Impact of visceral fat on skeletal muscle mass and vice versa in a prospective cohort study: The Korean Sarcopenic Obesity Study (KSOS)

Objectives: Sarcopenia and visceral obesity have been suggested to aggravate each other, resulting in a vicious cycle. However, evidence based on prospective study is very limited. Our purpose was to investigate whether visceral fat promotes a decrease in skeletal muscle mass and vice versa. Methods: We observed changes in anthropometric and body composition data during a follow-up period of 27.6±2.8 months in 379 Korean men and women (mean age 51.9±14.6 years) from the Korean Sarcopenic Obesity Study (KSOS). Appendicular lean soft tissue (ALST) mass was calculated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and visceral fat area (VFA) was measured using computed tomography at baseline and follow-up examination. Results: ALST mass significantly decreased, whereas trunk and total fat mass increased in both men and women despite no significant change in weight and body mass index. In particular, women with visceral obesity at baseline had a greater decrease in ALST mass than those without visceral obesity (P=0.001). In multiple linear regression analysis, baseline VFA was an independent negative predictor of the changes in ALST after adjusting for confounding factors including age, gender, life style and body composition parameters, insulin resistance, high sensitivity C-reactive protein and vitamin D levels (P=0.001), whereas the association between baseline ALST mass and changes in VFA was not statistically significant (P=0.555). Conclusions: This longitudinal study showed that visceral obesity was associated with future loss of skeletal muscle mass in Korean adults. These results may provide novel insight into sarcopenic obesity in an aging society

Response to imatinib rechallenge in a patient with a recurrent gastrointestinal stromal tumor after adjuvant therapy: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Adjuvant imatinib improves recurrence-free survival of patients following resection of primary KIT-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors. However, it is unknown whether patients who previously received adjuvant imatinib therapy will respond to imatinib rechallenge as treatment for recurrent disease. Here we present the first report documenting the benefits of imatinib rechallenge in a patient previously exposed to imatinib during adjuvant treatment.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 51-year-old Asian woman with a wedge-resected primary gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumor at high risk of relapse underwent two years of adjuvant treatment with imatinib. Only 10 months after the completion of adjuvant imatinib treatment, a computed tomography scan revealed gastrointestinal stromal tumor recurrence in this patient, with multiple peritoneal nodules in the upper abdomen being detected. Our patient was rechallenged with imatinib 400 mg/day and had a partial response after one month of treatment. Imatinib rechallenge was well tolerated by our patient; the only adverse events she experienced were grade 1 edema, anemia and fatigue. Our patient maintained a partial response two years and six months after the imatinib rechallenge. However, computed tomography scans three months later showed that our patient had disease progression.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This case report demonstrates that a patient with a gastrointestinal stromal tumor who had previously received adjuvant imatinib therapy responded to imatinib rechallenge as treatment for her recurrent disease. These results indicate that imatinib sensitivity can be maintained in a patient with previous exposure to adjuvant imatinib therapy.</p

Atomic-scale combination of germanium-zinc nanofibers for structural and electrochemical evolution

Alloys are recently receiving considerable attention in the community of rechargeable batteries as possible alternatives to carbonaceous negative electrodes; however, challenges remain for the practical utilization of these materials. Herein, we report the synthesis of germanium-zinc alloy nanofibers through electrospinning and a subsequent calcination step. Evidenced by in situ transmission electron microscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy characterizations, this one-dimensional design possesses unique structures. Both germanium and zinc atoms are homogenously distributed allowing for outstanding electronic conductivity and high available capacity for lithium storage. The as-prepared materials present high rate capability (capacity of similar to 50% at 20 C compared to that at 0.2 C-rate) and cycle retention (73% at 3.0 C-rate) with a retaining capacity of 546 mAh g(-1) even after 1000 cycles. When assembled in a full cell, high energy density can be maintained during 400 cycles, which indicates that the current material has the potential to be used in a large-scale energy storage system

Troppo - A Python framework for the reconstruction of context-specific metabolic models

The surge in high-throughput technology availability for molecular biology has enabled the development of powerful predictive tools for use in many applications, including (but not limited to) the diagnosis and treatment of human diseases such as cancer. Genome-scale metabolic models have shown some promise in clearing a path towards precise and personalized medicine, although some challenges still persist. The integration of omics data and subsequent creation of context-specific models for specific cells/tissues still poses a significant hurdle, and most current tools for this purpose have been implemented using proprietary software. Here, we present a new software tool developed in Python, troppo - Tissue-specific RecOnstruction and Phenotype Prediction using Omics data, implementing a large variety of context-specific reconstruction algorithms. Our framework and workflow are modular, which facilitates the development of newer algorithms or omics data sources.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2019 unit and BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte. The authors also thank the PhD scholarships funded by national funds through Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia, with references: SFRH/BD/133248/2017 (J.F.), SFRH/BD/118657/2016 (V.V.).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology International Workshop 2014

published_or_final_versio

3D printing of twisting and rotational bistable structures with tuning elements

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is ideal for the fabrication of various customized 3D components with fine details and material-design complexities. However, most components fabricated so far have been static structures with fixed shapes and functions. Here we introduce bistability to 3D printing to realize highly-controlled, reconfigurable structures. Particularly, we demonstrate 3D printing of twisting and rotational bistable structures. To this end, we have introduced special joints to construct twisting and rotational structures without post-assembly. Bistability produces a well-defined energy diagram, which is important for precise motion control and reconfigurable structures. Therefore, these bistable structures can be useful for simplified motion control in actuators or for mechanical switches. Moreover, we demonstrate tunable bistable components exploiting shape memory polymers. We can readjust the bistability-energy diagram (barrier height, slope, displacement, symmetry) after printing and achieve tunable bistability. This tunability can significantly increase the use of bistable structures in various 3D-printed components

Prognostic parameters for recurrence of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) is defined as a papillary thyroid carcinoma less than or equal to 1.0 cm in size. Independent prognostic factors for clinical recurrence of PTMC have not been clearly delineated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Clinicopathological parameters predicting PTMC recurrence were determined by retrospective analysis of 307 patients.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 293 patients eligible for analysis, 14 (5%) had recurrence during a median follow-up time of 65 months. Recurrence was observed in 8 of 166 patients (0.5%) treated with total or near-total thyroidectomy; gender (P = 0.02) and presence of lateral cervical node metastases at initial surgery (P = 0.01) were associated with recurrence. Six of the 127 patients (0.5%) treated with hemi- or subtotal thyroidectomy experience recurrences, but no significant prognostic factor for recurrence was identified. Multivariate Cox-regression analysis showed that gender and cervical lymph node metastasis were significant variables</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>PTMC showed very diverse disease extent and could not be regarded as indolent, relatively benign disease based on the primary tumor size. The extent of surgery should be based on prognostic parameters, such as gender and lateral neck node metastasis, in patients with PTMC.</p