Evaluation of Antifingerprint Properties of Plastic Surfaces Used in Automotive Components

The antifingerprint properties of a range of surfaces produced with different technologies (in-mould decoration, in-mould labeling, and painted) were objectively evaluated by depositing on them in standard conditions an artificial fingerprint for direct determination of its visibility. The artificial fingerprint behaves similarly to the real human fingerprints. A classification method is then proposed to classify surfaces on the base of antifingerprint properties by measuring the roughness profile (Ra) and calculating the % variation of gloss (GU 20 and 60°), haze, luminance (L), and diffuse reflectance (R) values after fingerprint deposition. This approach provides an objective and quantitative test method to determine visual antifingerprint properties of coated surfaces, instead of the "easy-to-clean" properties commonly evaluated. The data acquired provides a design guideline for fabricating visually fingerprint-free surfaces by controlling roughness, texture, color, and transparency of surfaces, with the aim of optically masking fingerprints

Performance of Different Analytical Software Packages in Quantification of DNA Methylation by Pyrosequencing

BACKGROUND:Pyrosequencing has emerged as an alternative method of nucleic acid sequencing, well suited for many applications which aim to characterize single nucleotide polymorphisms, mutations, microbial types and CpG methylation in the target DNA. The commercially available pyrosequencing systems can harbor two different types of software which allow analysis in AQ or CpG mode, respectively, both widely employed for DNA methylation analysis. OBJECTIVE:Aim of the study was to assess the performance for DNA methylation analysis at CpG sites of the two pyrosequencing software which allow analysis in AQ or CpG mode, respectively. Despite CpG mode having been specifically generated for CpG methylation quantification, many investigations on this topic have been carried out with AQ mode. As proof of equivalent performance of the two software for this type of analysis is not available, the focus of this paper was to evaluate if the two modes currently used for CpG methylation assessment by pyrosequencing may give overlapping results. METHODS:We compared the performance of the two software in quantifying DNA methylation in the promoter of selected genes (GSTP1, MGMT, LINE-1) by testing two case series which include DNA from paraffin embedded prostate cancer tissues (PC study, N = 36) and DNA from blood fractions of healthy people (DD study, N = 28), respectively. RESULTS:We found discrepancy in the two pyrosequencing software-based quality assignment of DNA methylation assays. Compared to the software for analysis in the AQ mode, less permissive criteria are supported by the Pyro Q-CpG software, which enables analysis in CpG mode. CpG mode warns the operators about potential unsatisfactory performance of the assay and ensures a more accurate quantitative evaluation of DNA methylation at CpG sites. CONCLUSION:The implementation of CpG mode is strongly advisable in order to improve the reliability of the methylation analysis results achievable by pyrosequencing

Non-invasive evaluation of tacalcitol plus puva versus tacalcitol plus UVB-NB in the treatment of psoriasis: "right-left intra-individual pre/post comparison design".

Photochemotherapy with psoralen plus ultraviolet A (PUVA) and phototherapy with UVB narrow band (UVB-NB) are used in the treatment of psoriasis. Numerous studies have shown that the additional administration of either topical or systemic antipsoriatic agents may effectively increase the efficacy of these therapies. This study aimed to compare through objective data the efficacy of topical tacalcitol in combination with PUVA or UVB-NB versus PUVA and UVB-NB monotherapy in the treatment of mild to moderate chronic plaque psoriasis. Modified Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score, transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and stratum corneum hydration were used to monitor the restoration of skin barrier in the psoriatic plaques of 40 patients during photochemotherapy. The study was a right-left, intra-individual, pre/post comparison trial. PUVA and UVB-NB treatments were given three times a week. On those plaques localized on the right side of the body tacalcitol ointment was applied once a day, in the evening. Corneometry, TEWL and modified PASI score were used to evaluate the response to the treatment at baseline, one month and two months. Thirty-six of the forty enrolled subjects completed the study. The comparison between combination treatments and the PUVA/UVB-NB monotherapy showed no significant differences with regard to modified PASI index. However, significant differences were recorded with regard to TEWL and corneometry. The combination of tacalcitol plus PUVA or tacalcitol plus UVB-NB restored epidermal barrier functions as well as skin hydration faster than PUVA or UVB-NB monotherapy (TEWL: p=0.0050 and corneometry: p=0.003). The combination of tacalcitol plus UVB-NB allowed a better restoration of skin barrier functions than tacalcitol plus PUVA (p=0.013). In conclusion, the combination of tacalcitol plus PUVA or plus UVB-NB improves the therapeutic result. In addition, the data from TEWL and skin hydration suggest a means in which tacalcitol plus UVB-NB induces a better normalization of skin biophysical parameters

The combination of bortezomib with chemotherapy to treat relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukaemia of childhood

Achieving complete remission (CR) in childhood relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is a difficult task. Bortezomib, a proteasome inhibitor, has invitro activity against ALL blasts. A phase I-II trial, reported by the Therapeutic Advances in Childhood Leukaemia and Lymphoma (TACL) consortium, demonstrated that bortezomib with chemotherapy has acceptable toxicity and remarkable activity in patients with relapsed ALL failing 2-3 previous regimens. We evaluated bortezomib in combination with chemotherapy in 30 and 7 children with B-cell precursor (BCP) and T-cell ALL, respectively. Bortezomib (13mg/m(2)/dose) was administered intravenously on days 1, 4, 8, and 11. Chemotherapy agents were the same as those used in the TACL trial, consisting of dexamethasone, doxorubicin, vincristine and pegylated asparaginase. Three patients (81%) died due to infections. Twenty-seven patients (729%) achieved CR or CR with incomplete platelet recovery (CRp). Fourteen had minimal residual disease (MRD) lower than 01%. Twenty-two of 30 BCP-ALL patients (733%) and 5/7 patients (71%) with T-cell ALL achieved CR/CRp. The 2-year overall survival (OS) is 313%; CR/CRp patients with an MRD response had a remarkable 2-year OS of 684%. These data confirm that the combination of bortezomib with chemotherapy is a suitable/effective option for childhood relapsed/refractory ALL

Temozolomide as salvage treatment for recurrent intracranial ependymomas of the adult: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND: Few data are available on temozolomide (TMZ) in ependymomas. We investigated the response, survival, and correlation with MGMT promoter methylation in a cohort of patients with adult intracranial ependymoma receiving TMZ as salvage therapy after failure of surgery and radiotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrieved clinical information from the institutional database and follow-up visits, and response to TMZ on MRI was evaluated according to the MacDonald criteria. RESULTS: Eighteen patients (median age, 42 y), with either WHO grade III (10) or grade II (8) ependymoma were evaluable. Tumor location at diagnosis was supratentorial in 11 patients and infratentorial in 7. Progression before TMZ was local in 11 patients, local and spinal in 6 patients, and spinal only in one patient. A median of 8 cycles of TMZ (1–24) was administered. Response to TMZ consisted of complete response (CR) in one (5%) patient, partial response (PR) in 3 (17%) patients, stable disease (SD) in 7 (39%) patients, and progressive disease (PD) in 7 (39%) patients. Maximum response occurred after 3, 10, 14, and 15 cycles, respectively, with neurological improvement in 2 patients. All 4 responding patients were chemotherapy naïve. Both anaplastic (2) and grade II (2) tumors responded. Median progression-free survival and overall survival were 9.69 months (95% CI, 3.22–30.98) and 30.55 months (95% CI, 12.85–52.17), respectively. MGMT methylation was available in 11 patients and was not correlated with response or outcome. CONCLUSION: TMZ has a role in recurrent chemo-naïve adult patients with intracranial ependymoma, regardless of tumor grade and MGMT methylation. We suggest that, after failure of surgery and radiotherapy, TMZ should be considered as a possible first-line treatment for recurrent ependymoma

Clinical Outcome and Immune Recovery after Adoptive Infusion of BPX-501 Cells (donor iC9-transduced T cells) in Children with Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS) Given Alfa/Beta T-Cell Depleted HLA-Haploidentical Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT)

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MGMT promoter methylation in plasma of glioma patients receiving temozolomide.

Promoter methylation of the O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) gene plays a role in cellular response to alkylating agents. In the present study aimed to: (i) evaluate the concordance between MGMT promoter methylation status in tumor tissue and plasma; (ii) monitor MGMT promoter methylation status in plasma taken before and during temozolomide treatment; (iii) explore the value of MGMT promoter methylation status in plasma as a prognostic/predictive biomarker in glioma patients. We enrolled 58 patients with histologically confirmed glioma at different grades of malignancy. All patients underwent surgical resection and temozolomide treatment. Paraffin-embedded tumor tissue was available for 48 patients. Blood samples were collected from all patients before temozolomide treatment (baseline) and at each MRI examination for a 12-month period. MGMT promoter methylation status was assessed in both sample types by real time PCR with a specific probe. The frequency of MGMT promoter methylation was 60.4 % in tumor tissue and 41.38 % in plasma. MGMT promoter methylation status was concordant in the two sample types (Kappa = 0.75, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.57-0.93; p value <0.001). Overall and progression-free survival were longer in patients with methylated MGMT promoter. Mortality was higher in patients with unmethylated MGMT promoter, whether in tumor tissue [hazard ratio (HR) 2.21; 95 % CI 0.99-4.95] or plasma (HR 2.19; 95 % CI 1.02-4.68). Progression-free survival was shorter in patients with unmethylated MGMT promoter, whether in tissue (HR 2.30; 95 % CI 1.19-4.45) or plasma (HR 1.77; 95 % CI 0.95-3.30). The cumulative incidence of unmethylated MGMT promoter in plasma at baseline was 58 %, and reached virtually 100 % at 12 months. In conclusion MGMT promoter methylation status in tumor tissue and plasma was highly concordant, and both were associated with longer survival, supporting the role of the detection of methylated MGMT promoter in predicting treatment response. However we suggest caution in using plasma as a surrogate of tumor tissue due to possible false-negative results

Liver transplantation for Wilson's disease: The burden of neurological and psychiatric disorders

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