Oxetane-containing metabolites: origin, structures, and biological activities

Cyclobutanes containing one oxygen atom in a molecule are called oxetane-containing compounds (OCC). More than 600 different OCC are found in nature; they are produced by microorganisms, and also found in marine invertebrates and algae. The greatest number of them is found in plants belonging to the genus Taxus. Oxetanes are high-energy oxygen-containing nonaromatic heterocycles that are of great interest as new potential pharmacophores with a significant spectrum of biological activities. The biological activity of OCC that is produced by bacteria and Actinomycetes demonstrates antineoplastic, antiviral (arbovirus), and antifungal activity with confidence an angiogenesis stimulator, respiratory analeptic, and antiallergic activity dominate with confidence from 81 to 99%

The Effect of Processing Route on Properties of HfNbTaTiZr High Entropy Alloy

High entropy alloys (HEA) have been one of the most attractive groups of materials for researchers in the last several years. Since HEAs are potential candidates for many (e.g., refractory, cryogenic, medical) applications, their properties are studied intensively. The most frequent method of HEA synthesis is arc or induction melting. Powder metallurgy is a perspective technique of alloy synthesis and therefore in this work the possibilities of synthesis of HfNbTaTiZr HEA from powders were studied. Blended elemental powders were sintered, hot isostatically pressed, and subsequently swaged using a special technique of swaging where the sample is enveloped by a titanium alloy. This method does not result in a full density alloy due to cracking during swaging. Spark plasma sintering (SPS) of mechanically alloyed powders resulted in a fully dense but brittle specimen. The most promising result was obtained by SPS treatment of gas atomized powder with low oxygen content. The microstructure of HfNbTaTiZr specimen prepared this way can be refined by high pressure torsion deformation resulting in a high hardness of 410 HV10 and very fine microstructure with grain size well below 500 nm.11Ysciescopu

Carcinoma developing in ectopic pancreatic tissue in the stomach: a case report

The development of pancreatic tissue outside the confines of the main gland, without anatomic or vascular connections between them, is a congenital abnormality referred to as heterotopic pancreas. A heterotopic pancreas in the gastrointestinal tract is usually discovered incidentally and the risk of its malignant transformation is extremely low. In this study, we describe the first case of endoepithelial carcinoma arising in a gastric heterotopic pancreas of a 56-year old woman in Greece. She presented with epigastric pain, periodic nausea and vomiting. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed an ulcerated lesion in the gastric antrum, biopsies of which showed intense epithelial dysplasia with incipient malignant degeneration. The pathology report of the distal gastrectomy specimen demonstrated a 2 cm in diameter ulcerative mass in the gastric antrum. Microscopically, an endoepithelial (in situ) carcinoma of the gastric antrum was determined, which in places turned into an microinvasive endomucosal adenocarcinoma. It also incidentally demonstrated heterotopic pancreatic ducts, detected within the mucosa to the muscularis propria of the same region of the stomach, in which an endoepithelial (in situ) carcinoma was evolving. The follow-up course was uneventful 6 months postoperatively

Effect of central nervous system (CNS) metastases in a real-world multicenter cohort study of Spanish ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients (p)

Background: CNS is a common site of metastases in patients with ALK-positive NSCLC. CNS metastases are associated with a number of deleterious effects, such as reduction in quality of life. However, the relationship between brain metastases and prognosis remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the effect of CNS metastases on overall survival (OS) in a multicenter cohort of Spanish ALK-positive NSCLC patients diagnosed between 2008 and 2017. Methods: We included patients with stage IV at diagnoses, followed up to April 2018; OS (months [m]) was estimated with the Kaplan-Meier method. Survival curves were compared between groups of patients using the log-rank test. Hazard risk (HR) to death was estimated with multivariable Cox model. Results: Out of 163 patients in the cohort, a total of 116 were evaluated, with a median of follow-up of 29.2 m and 59 deaths reported. Characteristics at diagnosis were a median age of 58 years, 50% female, 58.6% never-smokers, 54.3% with comorbidities, PS by ECOG 0-1 93.1%. CNS metastases (median number of lesions 6) were present in 43.1% of patients and 34% of patients with CNS metastases were treated with local therapy (11.8 % local radiotherapy and 76.5% holocraneal radiotherapy). ALK inhibitors as first line and second line treatment were administered to 45.5% and 78.6% of patients, respectively. The median OS was 39 months; OS in patients with CNS metastases at diagnosis was 34.4 m and 39.0 m in those without CNS metastases at diagnosis (p=.9). In patients without CNS metastases at baseline (n=60), 22 developed CNS, with a median OS greater than in those without CNS metastases during follow-up, although the difference is not significant (45.5 m vs 33.3 m; p=.9). There were 81 patients who presented with metastases in more than one organ and 33 patients with metastases in a single organ. The risk of death increased as the number of metastatic organs at diagnoses increased (HR=1.26, p=.0305), with worse OS in those presenting with liver metastases at diagnoses (21.1%, OS: 20 m), compared to those without tumor involvement (OS: 45.4 m; p =.008). Conclusions: OS was similar for ALK-positive NSCLC patients with and without CNS metastases at diagnoses. OS was worse as the number of metastatic organs at diagnosis increased, with liver metastases being associated with the highest risk of mortality

Differences in the macrozoobenthic fauna colonising empty bivalve shells before and after invasion by Corbicula fluminea

Bivalve shells can potentially alter the structure of aquatic benthic communities. However, little is known about the effect that different shell morphologies have on their associated fauna. This study aimed to understand how empty shells, from four different freshwater bivalve species, affect macrozoobenthic communities, using the River Minho (Iberian Peninsula) as a study area. Three native (Anodonta anatina, Potomida littoralis, Unio delphinus) and one non-indigenous (Corbicula fluminea) species were used for this research. Comparisons among species and between scenarios (i.e. before and after invasion by C. fluminea) were performed. Our results suggest that macrozoobenthic community structure did not vary among treatments, with the exception of species richness, which was higher on shells of native species. Furthermore, little difference was detected when comparing scenarios with and without C. fluminea shells, despite dissimilarities in size and morphology between species. The empty shells of C. fluminea partially (in terms of density and biomass, but not in species richness) replaced the role of empty shells of native species as a physical substratum for the associated macrozoobenthic community.Martina Ilarri is supported by a Post-doc grant (SFRH/BPD/90088/2012) from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology – FCT through POPH/FSE funds. This study was conducted within the scope of the project ECO-IAS: Ecosystem-level impacts of an invasive alien species, supported by FCT and COMPETE funds (contract: PTDC/AAC-AMB/116685/2010) and was also partially supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through COMPETE funds (PEst-C/MAR/LA0015/2011) and by FCT/MEC through Portuguese funds (PIDDAC – PEst-OE/BIA/UI4050/2014).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

ДИАГНОСТИКА ИШЕМИЧЕСКИХ ПОВРЕЖДЕНИЙ КИШЕЧНИКА ПРИ НЕКОТОРЫХ ОСТРЫХ ХИРУРГИЧЕСКИХ ЗАБОЛЕВАНИЯХ ОРГАНОВ БРЮШНОЙ ПОЛОСТИ

Introduction. Ischemic damages play an important role in etiology, pathogenesis of diseases of the abdominal cavity, they acquire special relevance under conditions of emergency surgery in terms of diagnosis and assessment of the extent of these violations, and choice of pathogenetically valid methods of correction and treatment. The aim of this study was to estimate the capacity of laboratory, endoscopic, some instrumental methods to diagnose ischemic bowel violations experimentally and in a clinical setting. Materials and methods. This paper presents an analysis of the reliability of the laboratory, instrumental methods to diagnose ischemic bowel damage in patients with acute strangulated intestinal obstruction (n=79), acute disorders of mesenteric blood circulation (n=124) experimentally in animals with the model of intra-abdominal hypertension syndrome (compression). Patients have been examined for defining the level of blood lactate, pH of the gastric mucosa, ultrasonic dopplerography of visceral branches of the abdominal aorta, the examination determined the level of intra-abdominal pressure, and at the same time the patients have undergone the review X-rays of the abdominal cavity organs, and the coagulogram indicators have been analysed. In order to study the role of intra-abdominal hypertension in the developing ischemic infringements of abdominal organs, as well as lactate as a marker of ischemia, the simulation of the abdominal compartment syndrome by a tense pneumoperitoneum under pressure of 20 mm Hg. within two hours was carried out on 5 pigs weighing 60-70 kg and 7 piglets weighing 8-10 kg. The research suggested an algorithm of diagnosis at pre- and postoperative periods. Results. The findings show that modern laboratory techniques (level of lactate), tools (endoscopic, ultrasound, radiopaque, laser flowmetry, etc.) allow with precision > 90% to diagnose ischemic bowel violations. Conclusions. To monitor the status of bowels, the anastomoses zones it is recommended to use the technique of programmed fibrolaparoscopy through the control abdominal cavity drainage.Введение. Ишемические повреждения играют важную роль в этиологии, патогенезе заболеваний органов брюшной полости. Особую актуальность они приобретают в условиях экстренной хирургии в плане диагностики и оценки степени этих нарушений, выбора патогенетически обоснованных методов коррекции и лечения. Целью настоящего исследования явилась оценка возможностей лабораторных, эндоскопических и некоторых инструментальных методов диагностики ишемических нарушений кишечника в эксперименте и клинике. Материалы и методы. В статье представлен анализ достоверности лабораторных, инструментальных методов диагностики ишемических повреждений кишечника у больных с острой странгуляционной кишечной непроходимостью (n=79), острыми нарушениями мезентериального кровообращения (n=124) и в эксперименте у животных с моделью синдрома интраабдоминальной гипертензии (компрессии). Пациентам проводились определение уровня лактата крови, рН слизистой оболочки желудка, ультразвуковая допплерография висцеральных ветвей брюшной аорты, определялся уровень внутрибрюшного давления, одновременно проводили обзорную рентгенографию органов брюшной полости, а также исследовали показатели коагулограммы. В целях изучения роли интраабдоминальной гипертензии в развитии ишемических нарушений органов брюшной полости, а также лактата как маркера ишемии проведено моделирование абдоминального компартмент-синдрома путем напряженного пневмоперитонеума под давлением 20 мм рт.ст. в течение двух часов на 5 свиньях массой 60-70 кг и на 7 поросятах массой 8-10 кг. Предложен алгоритм диагностики в до – и послеоперационном периодах. Результаты. Установлено, что современные лабораторные (уровень лактата) и инструментальные (эндоскопические, ультразвуковые, рентгеноконтрастные, лазерная флоуметрия и др.) методы позволяют с точностью >90% диагностировать ишемические нарушения кишечника. Заключение. Для контроля состояния кишечника и зоны анастомозов рекомендовано использовать методику программированной фибролапароскопии через контрольный дренаж брюшной полости

Two New Acylated Flavanone Glycosides from the Leaves and Branches of Phyllanthus emblica

Two new acylated flavanone glycosides, (S)-eriodictyol 7-O-(6″-O-trans-p-coumaroyl)-β-D-glucopyranoside (1) and (S)-eriodictyol 7-O-(6″-O-galloyl)-β-D-glucopyranoside (2) were isolated from the leaves and branches of Phyllanthus emblica together with a new phenolic glycoside, 2-(2-methylbutyryl)phloroglucinol 1-O-(6″-O-β-D-apiofuranosyl)-β-D-glucopyranoside (3), as well as 22 known compounds. Their structures were determined by spectral and chemical methods

Consistency of impact assessment protocols for non-native species

Standardized tools are needed to identify and prioritize the most harmful non-native species (NNS). A plethora of assessment protocols have been developed to evaluate the current and potential impacts of non-native species, but consistency among them has received limited attention. To estimate the consistency across impact assessment protocols, 89 specialists in biological invasions used 11 protocols to screen 57 NNS (2614 assessments). We tested if the consistency in the impact scoring across assessors, quantified as the coefficient of variation (CV), was dependent on the characteristics of the protocol, the taxonomic group and the expertise of the assessor. Mean CV across assessors was 40%, with a maximum of 223%. CV was lower for protocols with a low number of score levels, which demanded high levels of expertise, and when the assessors had greater expertise on the assessed species. The similarity among protocols with respect to the final scores was higher when the protocols considered the same impact types. We conclude that all protocols led to considerable inconsistency among assessors. In order to improve consistency, we highlight the importance of selecting assessors with high expertise, providing clear guidelines and adequate training but also deriving final decisions collaboratively by consensus