The usefulness of SPECT-CT with radioisotope-labeled leukocytes in diagnosing lead-dependent infective endocarditis

Background. Lead-dependent infective endocarditis (LDIE) is a life-threatening complication of permanent transvenous cardiac pacing. According to the 2015 European Society of Cardiology (ECS) guidelines, the diagnosis of LDIE is based on the modified Duke criteria (MDC), while single-photon emission computed tomography with conventional computed tomography (SPECT-CT) with radioisotope-labeled leukocytes serves as an additional tool in difficult cases. The major challenge is to differentiate between true vegetation and a thrombus.   Objectives. The aim of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of SPECT-CT with radioisotope-labeled leukocytes in diagnosing LDIE in patients with intracardiac masses (ICMs).   Material and Methods. The prospective registry included 40 consecutive patients admitted with an ICM on the lead and suspicion of LDIE. The confirmation or rejection of the LDIE diagnosis was made according to an algorithm based on the MDC. The cohort was divided into 2 groups: patients with definite and possible LDIE diagnoses based on the MDC (the LDIE-positive group), and patients with negative LDIE diagnoses according to the MDC (the LDIE-negative group). All patients underwent SPECT-CT with radioisotope-labeled leukocytes. The diagnostic ability of SPECT-CT was compared to the gold standard MDC.   Results. The LDIE-positive group with diagnosis based on the MDC consisted of 19 patients (LDIE definite – 11; LDIE possible – 8). The LDIE diagnosis was rejected on the basis of the MDC in 21 patients. The SPECT-CT results were compared with the MDC results and showed 73.7% sensitivity, 81.0% specificity, 77.5% accuracy, 77.8% positive predictive value (PPV), 77.3% negative predictive value (NPV), likelihood ratio positive (LR+) 3.868, likelihood ratio negative (LR–) 0.325, and moderate agreement (κ = 0.548, p < 0.001). After the exclusion of 5 patients treated with antibiotics at the time of the SPECT-CT, LR+ and LRimproved to 5.250 and 0, respectively, and inter-test agreement amounted to almost perfect concordance (κ = 0.773, p < 0.001).   Conclusion. Single-photon emission computed tomography with conventional CT with radioisotopelabeled leukocytes is a useful, efficient, single-step test for diagnosing LDIE

European domestic horses originated in two holocene refugia

The role of European wild horses in horse domestication is poorly understood. While the fossil record for wild horses in Europe prior to horse domestication is scarce, there have been suggestions that wild populations from various European regions might have contributed to the gene pool of domestic horses. To distinguish between regions where domestic populations are mainly descended from local wild stock and those where horses were largely imported, we investigated patterns of genetic diversity in 24 European horse breeds typed at 12 microsatellite loci. The distribution of high levels of genetic diversity in Europe coincides with the distribution of predominantly open landscapes prior to domestication, as suggested by simulation-based vegetation reconstructions, with breeds from Iberia and the Caspian Sea region having significantly higher genetic diversity than breeds from central Europe and the UK, which were largely forested at the time the first domestic horses appear there. Our results suggest that not only the Eastern steppes, but also the Iberian Peninsula provided refugia for wild horses in the Holocene, and that the genetic contribution of these wild populations to local domestic stock may have been considerable. In contrast, the consistently low levels of diversity in central Europe and the UK suggest that domestic horses in these regions largely derive from horses that were imported from the Eastern refugium, the Iberian refugium, or both.This work was partially supported by a research studentship from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BB/E527604/1) and a PhD studentship from the German Academic Exchange Service (D/07/44562) to VW, and a Leverhulme Trust project grant (F/09 757/B) to MAB. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

The 42nd Symposium Chromatographic Methods of Investigating Organic Compounds : Book of abstracts

The 42nd Symposium Chromatographic Methods of Investigating Organic Compounds : Book of abstracts. June 4-7, 2019, Szczyrk, Polan

Natural radioactivity of wastes

By-products of the combustion of coal (wastes) are often used for various types of construction (dwellings, roads, etc.). The legal regulations (The Ordinance of the Council of Ministers of 2 January 2007 “On the requirements for the content of natural radioactive isotopes of potassium K-40, radium Ra-226 and thorium Th-228 in raws and materials used in buildings for the residence of people and livestock, as well as in the industrial by-products used in the construction, and the control of the content of the aforementioned isotopes” – Law Gazette no. 4/2007 item 29) are in force in Poland. The regulations permit the possibility of utilization of raws and by-products basing upon the level of the natural radioactivity of the examined raws and materials. The article is a survey of the results obtained during the measurements of many types of raws and building materials for almost 30 years by the network of the laboratories in Poland. It is based upon the results stored in the database of the Central Laboratory for Radiological Protection (CLRP), Warsaw. The article tends to outline the radioactivity of the waste materials with respect to other raws and materials used in the construction industry. The article shows the possibilities for the use of by-products originating in the power stations and heat- and power stations (mainly ashes, slag and hinter) in the construction of dwellings and roads