Extended treatment with interferon and ribavirin in a hemodialysis patient with chronic hepatitis C

Hemodialysis patient with chronic HCV infection,who was started on monotherapy with interferon.Qualitative HCV RNA remained positive at 12 weeks of treatment; ribavirin was associated. HCV RNA was negative at week 24 and treatment was extended to 72 weeks. HCV RNA negative six months after treatment.19319

Occurrence of tire and bitumen wear microplastics on urban streets and in sweepsand and washwater

Tire and road wear particles have been identified as a potential major source of microplastics in the environment. However, more knowledge of the emissions and their further fate in the environment is needed, and the effectiveness and benefits of potential measures must be investigated to support future risk management efforts. Here the concentrations of tire and bitumen microplastic particles (TBMP) on roads and in nearby in stormwater, sweepsand and washwater were measured for the first time within the same area and time period. The analysis also included plastic, paint and fiber particles. Road dust was sampled on the road surface using a wet dust sampler, before and after street sweeping on two occasions. On each of these occasions, and several occasions during a four-month period with frequent street sweeping, sweepsand and washwater, as well as flow-weighted sampling of stormwater, were collected. TBMP concentrations were operationally defined, using density separation for some samples, followed by analysis by stereo microscopy. Sodium iodide (NaI) was found to be effective for density separation of TBMP. The largest proportion of anthropogenic microplastics detected consisted of tire tread wear and bitumen. The number of TBMP ≥100 μm in the WDS samples was up to 2561 particles/L. Sweepsand and washwater contained high amounts of TBMP ≥100 μm, up to 2170 particles/kg dw and 4500 particles/L, respectively. The results show that the sweeper collects considerable amounts of TBMP, and thus weekly sweeping might prevent further transport of TBMP to the receiving stormwater. In stormwater the number of particles ≥100 μm was up to 3 particles/L and ≥ 20 μm was up to 5900 particles/L showing the importance of analysing smaller microparticle sizes than 100 μm in all samples in future studies. This study also confirms that there is a substantial volume of TBMP generated from traffic that enters the environment

Filariasis of the Axilla in a Patient Returning from Travel Abroad: A Case Report

Background: The term filariasis comprises a group of parasitic infections caused by helminths belonging to different genera in the superfamily Filaroidea. The human parasites occur mainly in tropical and subtropical regions, but filariae are also found in temperate climates, where they can infect wild and domestic animals. Humans are rarely infected by these zoonotic parasites. Patients and Methods: A 55-year-old patient presented with a new-onset, subcutaneous, non-tender palpable mass in the right axilla. Ultrasonography showed a 1.3-cm, solid, singular encapsulated node. Sonography of the breast on both sides, axilla and lymphatic drainage on the left side, lymphatic drainage on the right side, and mammography on both sides were without pathological findings. The node was excised under local anesthesia as the patient refused minimal invasive biopsy. Results: On histopathological examination, the tail of a parasite of the group of filariae was found. The patient revealed that she had stayed in Africa and Malaysia for professional reasons. 6 months before the time of diagnosis, she had also suffered from a fever and poor general condition after a trip abroad. The patient was referred for further treatment to the Institute for Tropical Medicine at the University of Dusseldorf, where a treatment with ivermectin was conducted on the basis of positive staining with antibodies against filariae. Conclusion: Our case demonstrates the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration between breast center, pathology, and other specialties such as microbiology and tropical medicine

Organic pollutants, nano- and microparticles in street sweeping road dust and washwater

Road areas are pollution hotspots where many metals, organic pollutants (OPs) and nano/microparticles accumulate before being transported to receiving waters. Particles on roads originate from e.g. road, tyre and vehicle wear, winter road maintenance, soil erosion, and deposition. Street sweeping has the potential to be an effective and affordable practice to reduce the occurrence of road dust, and thereby the subsequent spreading of pollutants, but there is currently little knowledge regarding its effectiveness. In this paper we investigate the potential of street sweeping to reduce the amounts of OPs and nano/microparticles reaching stormwater, in a case study sampling road dust and washwater from a street sweeping machine, road dust before and after sweeping, and stormwater. The compound groups generally found in the highest concentrations in all matrices were aliphatics C5–C35\ua0>\ua0phthalates\ua0>\ua0aromatics C8–C35\ua0>\ua0PAH-16. The concentrations of aliphatics C16–C35\ua0and PAHs in washwater were extremely high at\ua0≤\ua053,000\ua0\ub5g/L and\ua0≤\ua0120\ua0\ub5g/L, respectively, and the highest concentrations were found after a 3-month winter break in sweeping. In general, fewer aliphatic and aromatic petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs were detected in road dust samples than in washwater. The relative composition of the specific PAH-16 suggests tyre wear, vehicle exhausts, brake linings, motor oils and road surface wear as possible sources. The study indicates that many of the hydrophobic compounds quantified in washwater are attached to small particles or truly dissolved. The washwater contains a wide range of small particles, including nanoparticles in sizes from just below 1\ua0nm up to 300\ua0nm, with nanoparticles in the size range 25–300\ua0nm present in the highest concentrations. The results also indicated agglomeration of nanoparticles in the washwater. The street sweeping collected a large amount of fine particles and associated pollutants, leading to the conclusion that washwater from street sweeping needs to be treated before disposal

The Chemopreventive Effects of Protandim: Modulation of p53 Mitochondrial Translocation and Apoptosis during Skin Carcinogenesis

Protandim, a well defined dietary combination of 5 well-established medicinal plants, is known to induce endogenous antioxidant enzymes, such as manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). Our previous studies have shown through the induction of various antioxidant enzymes, products of oxidative damage can be decreased. In addition, we have shown that tumor multiplicity and incidence can be decreased through the dietary administration of Protandim in the two-stage skin carcinogenesis mouse model. It has been demonstrated that cell proliferation is accommodated by cell death during DMBA/TPA treatment in the two-stage skin carcinogenesis model. Therefore, we investigated the effects of the Protandim diet on apoptosis; and proposed a novel mechanism of chemoprevention utilized by the Protandim dietary combination. Interestingly, Protandim suppressed DMBA/TPA induced cutaneous apoptosis. Recently, more attention has been focused on transcription-independent mechanisms of the tumor suppressor, p53, that mediate apoptosis. It is known that cytoplasmic p53 rapidly translocates to the mitochondria in response to pro-apoptotic stress. Our results showed that Protandim suppressed the mitochondrial translocation of p53 and mitochondrial outer membrane proteins such as Bax. We examined the levels of p53 and MnSOD expression/activity in murine skin JB6 promotion sensitive (P+) and promotion-resistant (P-) epidermal cells. Interestingly, p53 was induced only in P+ cells, not P- cells; whereas MnSOD is highly expressed in P- cells when compared to P+ cells. In addition, wild-type p53 was transfected into JB6 P- cells. We found that the introduction of wild-type p53 promoted transformation in JB6 P- cells. Our results suggest that suppression of p53 and induction of MnSOD may play an important role in the tumor suppressive activity of Protandim

Catestatin Increases the Expression of Anti-Apoptotic and Pro-Angiogenetic Factors in the Post-Ischemic Hypertrophied Heart of SHR.

BACKGROUND:In the presence of comorbidities the effectiveness of many cardioprotective strategies is blunted. The goal of this study was to assess in a hypertensive rat model if the early reperfusion with anti-hypertensive and pro-angiogenic Chromogranin A-derived peptide, Catestatin (CST:hCgA352-372; CST-Post), protects the heart via Reperfusion-Injury-Salvage-Kinases (RISK)-pathway activation, limiting infarct-size and apoptosis, and promoting angiogenetic factors (e.g., hypoxia inducible factor, HIF-1α, and endothelial nitric oxide synthase, eNOS, expression). METHODS AND RESULTS:The effects of CST-Post on infarct-size, apoptosis and pro-angiogenetic factors were studied in isolated hearts of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), which underwent the following protocols: (a) 30-min ischemia and 120-min reperfusion (I/R); (b) 30-min ischemia and 20-min reperfusion (I/R-short), both with and without CST-Post (75 nM for 20-min at the beginning of reperfusion). In unprotected Wistar-Kyoto hearts, used as normal counterpart, infarct-size resulted smaller than in SHR. CST-Post reduced significantly infarct-size and improved post-ischemic cardiac function in both strains. After 20-min reperfusion, CST-Post induced S-nitrosylation of calcium channels and phosphorylation of RISK-pathway in WKY and SHR hearts. Yet specific inhibitors of the RISK pathway blocked the CST-Post protective effects against infarct in the 120-min reperfusion groups. Moreover, apoptosis (evaluated by TUNEL, ARC and cleaved caspase) was reduced by CST-Post. Importantly, CST-Post increased expression of pro-angiogenetic factors (i.e., HIF-1α and eNOS expression) after two-hour reperfusion. CONCLUSIONS:CST-Post limits reperfusion damages and reverses the hypertension-induced increase of I/R susceptibility. Moreover, CST-Post triggers antiapoptotic and pro-angiogenetic factors suggesting that CST-Post can be used as an anti-maladaptive remodeling treatment

Establishment of endomycorrhizal fungi on micropropagated teak (Tectona grandis L.f.)

No abstract available

Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Hospitality Venues in Europe

BACKGROUND: Although in the last few years some European countries have implemented smoking bans in hospitality venues, the levels of secondhand smoke (SHS) in this occupational sector Could still be extremely high in most countries. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study, was to assess exposure to SHS in hospitality venues in 10 European cities. METHODS: We included 167 hospitality venues (58 discotheques and pubs, 82 restaurants and cafeterias, and 27 fast-food restaurants) in this cross-sectional study. We carried Out fieldwork in 10 European cities: Vienna (Austria), Paris (France), Athens (Greece), Florence and Belluno (Italy), Galway (Ireland), Barcelona (Spain), Warsaw and Lublin (Poland), and Bratislava (Slovak Republic). We measured vapor-phase nicotine as an SHS marker. RESULTS: We analyzed 504 samples and found nicotine in most samples (97.4%). We found the highest median concentrations in discos/pubs [32.99 mu g/m(3); interquartile range (IQR), 8.06-66.84 mu g/m(3)] and lower median concentrations in restaurants/cafeterias (2.09 mu g/m(3); IQR, 0.49-6.73 mu g/m(3)) and fast-food restaurants (0.31 mu g/m(3); IQR, 0.11-1.30 mu g/m(3)) (p < 0.05). We found differences of exposure between countries that may be related to their smoking regulations. Where we sampled smoking and nonsmoking areas, nicotine concentrations were significantly lower in nonsmoking areas. CONCLUSIONS: Hospitality venues from European cities without smoking regulations have very high levels of SHS exposure. Monitoring of SHS on a regular basis as well as a total smoking ban in hospitality sector would be needed

Traffic-related microplastic particles, metals, and organic pollutants in an urban area under reconstruction

In urban environments, particularly areas under reconstruction, metals, organic pollutants (OP), and microplastics (MP), are released in large amounts due to heavy traffic. Road runoff, a major transport route for urban pollutants, contributes significantly to a deteriorated water quality in receiving waters. This study was conducted in Gothenburg, Sweden, and is unique because it simultaneously investigates the occurrence of OP, metals, and MP on roads and in stormwater from an urban area under reconstruction. Correlations between the various pollutants were also explored. The study was carried out by collecting washwater and sweepsand generated from street sweeping, road surface sampling, and flow-proportional stormwater sampling on several occasions. The liquid and solid samples were analyzed for metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), oxy-PAH, aliphatics, aromatics, phthalates, and MP. The occurrence of OP was also analyzed with a non-target screening method of selected samples. Microplastics, i.e. plastic fragments/fibers, paint fragments, tire wear particles (TWP) and bitumen, were analyzed with a method based on density separation with sodium iodide and identification with a stereo microscope, melt-tests, and tactile identification. MP concentrations amounted to 1500 particles/L in stormwater, 51,000 particles/L in washwater, and 2.6 7 106 particles/kg dw in sweepsand. In stormwater, washwater and sweepsand, MP ≥20 μm were found to be dominated by TWP (38%, 83% and 78%, respectively). The results confirm traffic as an important source to MP, OP, and metal emissions. Concentrations exceeding water and sediment quality guidelines for metals (e.g. Cu and Zn), PAH, phthalates, and aliphatic hydrocarbons in the C16–C35 fraction were found in most samples. The results show that the street sweeper collects large amounts of polluted materials and thereby prevents further spread of the pollutants to the receiving stormwater

Postoperative Delirium after elective and emergency surgery: analysis and checking of risk factors. A study protocol

BACKGROUND: Delirum is common in hospitalized elderly patients and may be associated with increased morbidity, length of stay and patient care costs. Delirium (acute confusional state) is defined as an acute disorder of attention and cognition. In elderly patients, delirium is often an early indicator of patho-physiological disturbances. Despite landmark studies dating back to the 1940s, the pathogenesis of Delirium remains poorly understood. Early investigators noted that Delirium was characterized by global cortical dysfunction that was associated predominantly with specific electroencephalographic changes. It's important to understand the risk factors and incidence of Delirium. Some of the risk factors are already identified in literature and can be summarized in the word "VINDICATE" which stands for: Vascular, Infections, Nutrition, Drugs, Injury, Cardiac, Autoimmune, Tumors, Endocrine. Aims of this study are: to re-evaluate the above mentioned clinical risk factors, adding some others selected from literature, and to test, as risk factors, a pattern of some genes associated to cognitive dysfunction and inflammation possibly related to postoperative Delirium. DESIGN: All patients admitted to our Emergency Unit who are meet our inclusion/exclusion criteria will be recruited. The arising of postoperative Delirium will select incidentally two groups (Delirium/non Delirium) and the forward analysis of correlate risk factors will be performed. As in a typical observational case/control study we will consider all the exposure factors to which our population are submitted towards the outcome (presence of Delirium). Our exposures are the following: ASA, Pain (SVS; VAS), Blood gas analysis (pH; Hb; pO2; pCO2), Residence pharmacological therapy (BDZ; hypnotics; narcotic drugs; alcohol; nitrous derivates), Body temperature, Arterial pressure, Heart frequency, Breath frequency, Na, K, Creatinin, Glicemia, Albumin, Hct, White blood cells, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), Cognitive state (SPMSQ), Functional state (ADL and IADL), Psychological Distress (HADS), Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS), Hypotension (classified in: light; moderate and severe and duration), Blood loss (classified in: < 2 lt and > 2 lt), Blood transfusions (< 2 lt and > 2 lt), Quantity of red cells and plasma transfusions, Visual VAS / SVS (timing: I-II-III post-operative day), Red cells and Plasma transfusions, Blood count evaluation and Saturation (O(2)%), Postoperative analgesia (Emilia-Romagna protocol), Presence of malignant tumoral disease, APACHE Score II. Moreover the presence of some relevant genetic polymorphisms will be studied in different genes such as IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, and IL-1 cluster