Probing the Nature of Short Swift Bursts via Deep INTEGRAL Monitoring of GRB 050925

We present results from Swift, XMM-Newton, and deep INTEGRAL monitoring in the region of GRB 050925. This short Swift burst is a candidate for a newly discovered soft gamma-ray repeater (SGR) with the following observational burst properties: 1) galactic plane (b=-0.1 deg) localization, 2) 150 msec duration, and 3) a blackbody rather than a simple power-law spectral shape (with a significance level of 97%). We found two possible X-ray counterparts of GRB 050925 by comparing the X-ray images from Swift XRT and XMM-Newton. Both X-ray sources show the transient behavior with a power-law decay index shallower than -1. We found no hard X-ray emission nor any additional burst from the location of GRB 050925 in ~5 Ms of INTEGRAL data. We discuss about the three BATSE short bursts which might be associated with GRB 050925, based on their location and the duration. Assuming GRB 050925 is associated with the H II regions (W 58) at the galactic longitude of l=70 deg, we also discuss the source frame properties of GRB 050925.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in ASR special issue on Neutron Stars and Gamma Ray Bursts, full resolution of Fig 5 is available at http://asd.gsfc.nasa.gov/Takanori.Sakamoto/GRB050925/integral_ibis_images.ep

Structural characterisation of neutrophil glycans by ultra sensitive mass spectrometric glycomics methodology

Neutrophils are the most abundant white blood cells in humans and play a vital role in several aspects of the immune response. Numerous reports have implicated neutrophil glycosylation as an important factor in mediating these interactions. We report here the application of high sensitivity glycomics methodologies, including matrix assisted laser desorption ionisation (MALDI-TOF) and MALDI-TOF/TOF analyses, to the structural analysis of N- and O-linked carbohydrates released from two samples of neutrophils, prepared by two separate and geographically remote laboratories. The data produced demonstrates that the cells display a diverse range of sialylated and fucosylated complex glycans, with a high level of similarity between the two preparations

Significant differential gene duplication without ancestral tetraploidy in a genus of mexican fish

A comparison of the protein products of 20–25 structural gene loci among the known species of the goodeid fish genus Skiffia suggests that at least 4 loci (16–20%) have undergone species-specific duplications (or, in 1 case, apparent loss) during the evolution of the genus. The species are clearly diploids, and the data therefore indicate that even a large proportion of differentially duplicated loci within a group of related fish species is not critical evidence of common tetraploid ancestry. Differential duplication of structural gene loci may be an important component of the genetic differences that separate congeneric conventional diploid species.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42725/1/18_2005_Article_BF01953797.pd

Clinical and prognostic relevance of cardiac wasting in patients with advanced cancer

BACKGROUND: Body wasting in patients with cancer can affect the heart. OBJECTIVES: The frequency, extent, and clinical and prognostic importance of cardiac wasting in cancer patients is unknown. METHODS: This study prospectively enrolled 300 patients with mostly advanced, active cancer but without significant cardiovascular disease or infection. These patients were compared with 60 healthy control subjects and 60 patients with chronic heart failure (ejection fraction <40%) of similar age and sex distribution. RESULTS: Cancer patients presented with lower left ventricular (LV) mass than healthy control subjects or heart failure patients (assessed by transthoracic echocardiography: 177 ± 47 g vs 203 ± 64 g vs 300 ± 71 g, respectively; P < 0.001). LV mass was lowest in cancer patients with cachexia (153 ± 42 g; P < 0.001). Importantly, the presence of low LV mass was independent of previous cardiotoxic anticancer therapy. In 90 cancer patients with a second echocardiogram after 122 ± 71 days, LV mass had declined by 9.3% ± 1.4% (P < 0.001). In cancer patients with cardiac wasting during follow-up, stroke volume decreased (P < 0.001) and resting heart rate increased over time (P = 0.001). During follow-up of on average 16 months, 149 patients died (1-year all-cause mortality 43%; 95% CI: 37%-49%). LV mass and LV mass adjusted for height squared were independent prognostic markers (both P < 0.05). Adjustment of LV mass for body surface area masked the observed survival impact. LV mass below the prognostically relevant cutpoints in cancer was associated with reduced overall functional status and lower physical performance. CONCLUSIONS: Low LV mass is associated with poor functional status and increased all-cause mortality in cancer. These findings provide clinical evidence of cardiac wasting–associated cardiomyopathy in cancer

A review of diagnostic and functional imaging in headache

The neuroimaging of headache patients has revolutionised our understanding of the pathophysiology of primary headaches and provided unique insights into these syndromes. Modern imaging studies point, together with the clinical picture, towards a central triggering cause. The early functional imaging work using positron emission tomography shed light on the genesis of some syndromes, and has recently been refined, implying that the observed activation in migraine (brainstem) and in several trigeminal-autonomic headaches (hypothalamic grey) is involved in the pain process in either a permissive or triggering manner rather than simply as a response to first-division nociception per se. Using the advanced method of voxel-based morphometry, it has been suggested that there is a correlation between the brain area activated specifically in acute cluster headache — the posterior hypothalamic grey matter — and an increase in grey matter in the same region. No structural changes have been found for migraine and medication overuse headache, whereas patients with chronic tension-type headache demonstrated a significant grey matter decrease in regions known to be involved in pain processing. Modern neuroimaging thus clearly suggests that most primary headache syndromes are predominantly driven from the brain, activating the trigeminovascular reflex and needing therapeutics that act on both sides: centrally and peripherally

A multi-center study on the attitudes of Malaysian emergency health care staff towards allowing family presence during resuscitation of adult patients

BACKGROUND The practice of allowing family members to witness on-going active resuscitation has been gaining ground in many developed countries since it was first introduced in the early 1990s. In many Asian countries, the acceptability of this practice has not been well studied. AIM We conducted a multi-center questionnaire study to determine the attitudes of health care professionals in Malaysia towards family presence to witness ongoing medical procedures during resuscitation. METHODS Using a bilingual questionnaire (in Malay and English language), we asked our respondents about their attitudes towards allowing family presence (FP) as well as their actual experience of requests from families to be allowed to witness resuscitations. Multiple logistic regression was used to analyze the association between the many variables and a positive attitude towards FP. RESULTS Out of 300 health care professionals who received forms, 270 responded (a 90% response rate). Generally only 15.8% of our respondents agreed to allow relatives to witness resuscitations, although more than twice the number (38.5%) agreed that relatives do have a right to be around during resuscitation. Health care providers are significantly more likely to allow FP if the procedures are perceived as likely to be successful (e.g., intravenous cannulation and blood taking as compared to chest tube insertion). Doctors were more than twice as likely as paramedics to agree to FP (p-value = 0.002). This is probably due to the Malaysian work culture in our health care systems in which paramedics usually adopt a 'follow-the-leader' attitude in their daily practice. CONCLUSION The concept of allowing FP is not well accepted among our Malaysian health care providers

Autoantibodies against type I IFNs in patients with life-threatening COVID-19

Interindividual clinical variability in the course of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is vast. We report that at least 101 of 987 patients with life-threatening coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia had neutralizing immunoglobulin G (IgG) autoantibodies (auto-Abs) against interferon-w (IFN-w) (13 patients), against the 13 types of IFN-a (36), or against both (52) at the onset of critical disease; a few also had auto-Abs against the other three type I IFNs. The auto-Abs neutralize the ability of the corresponding type I IFNs to block SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro. These auto-Abs were not found in 663 individuals with asymptomatic or mild SARS-CoV-2 infection and were present in only 4 of 1227 healthy individuals. Patients with auto-Abs were aged 25 to 87 years and 95 of the 101 were men. A B cell autoimmune phenocopy of inborn errors of type I IFN immunity accounts for life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia in at least 2.6% of women and 12.5% of men

Dexamethasone intravitreal implant in previously treated patients with diabetic macular edema : Subgroup analysis of the MEAD study

Background: Dexamethasone intravitreal implant 0.7 mg (DEX 0.7) was approved for treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME) after demonstration of its efficacy and safety in the MEAD registration trials. We performed subgroup analysis of MEAD study results to evaluate the efficacy and safety of DEX 0.7 treatment in patients with previously treated DME. Methods: Three-year, randomized, sham-controlled phase 3 study in patients with DME, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 34.68 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study letters (20/200.20/50 Snellen equivalent), and central retinal thickness (CRT) 65300 \u3bcm measured by time-domain optical coherence tomography. Patients were randomized to 1 of 2 doses of DEX (0.7 mg or 0.35 mg), or to sham procedure, with retreatment no more than every 6 months. The primary endpoint was 6515-letter gain in BCVA at study end. Average change in BCVA and CRT from baseline during the study (area-under-the-curve approach) and adverse events were also evaluated. The present subgroup analysis evaluated outcomes in patients randomized to DEX 0.7 (marketed dose) or sham based on prior treatment for DME at study entry. Results: Baseline characteristics of previously treated DEX 0.7 (n = 247) and sham (n=261) patients were similar. In the previously treated subgroup, mean number of treatments over 3 years was 4.1 for DEX 0.7 and 3.2 for sham, 21.5 % of DEX 0.7 patients versus 11.1 % of sham had 6515-letter BCVA gain from baseline at study end (P = 0.002), mean average BCVA change from baseline was +3.2 letters with DEX 0.7 versus +1.5 letters with sham (P = 0.024), and mean average CRT change from baseline was -126.1 \u3bcm with DEX 0.7 versus -39.0 \u3bcm with sham(P < 0.001). Cataract-related adverse events were reported in 70.3 % of baseline phakic patients in the previously treated DEX 0.7 subgroup; vision gains were restored following cataract surgery. Conclusions: DEX 0.7 significantly improved visual and anatomic outcomes in patients with DME previously treated with laser, intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor, intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide, or a combination of these therapies. The safety profile of DEX 0.7 in previously treated patients was similar to its safety profile in the total study population