What is fundamental for the maintenance of excellence in scientific periodicals?

I am honored to contribute to this centenary edition of what will mark a landmark in the publication of medical science for the Revista de Medicina from the University of Sao Paulo Medical School. In response to the question, “What is fundamental for the maintenance of excellence in scientific periodicals?”, as an author, clinician scientist, and the Editor in Chief of the American Journal of Ophthalmology, my answer has remained the same. The criteria for meaningful scientific contributions in clinical medicine are threefold. [...

Glaucoma Screening in the Haitian Afro-Caribbean Population of South Florida

Objective: To evaluate the presence of clinical signs consistent with suspected glaucoma in Haitian Afro-Caribbean individuals residing in South Florida who do not receive regular eye examinations. Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional study. Methods: SETTING: Community health center in the Little Haiti district of Miami, Florida. PATIENT POPULATION: We reviewed medical records and screening forms from five health screenings between October 2011 to October 2013 of 939 Afro-Caribbean individuals older than 18 years, who were never diagnosed with glaucoma or had an eye examination within the last ten years. PROCEDURES: Measurements of distance visual acuity (VA), intraocular eye pressure (IOP), central corneal thickness (CCT), cup-to-disc ratio (CDR), frequency doubling technology (FDT) perimeter visual field (VF). Main Outcome Measures: Proportion of glaucoma suspects, based on IOP greater than or equal to 24 mm Hg or CDR greater than or equal to 0.7 in either eye, and determinants of CDR and IOP. Results: One hundred ninety-one (25.5%) of 750 patients were identified as glaucoma suspects. Glaucoma suspects were common in both the youngest and oldest age groups (70 years, 25.0%; 95% CI, 21.8–28.2) and higher in men than women less than 70 years; the reverse was true after 70 years. Among all patients, mean IOP was 19.2±4.5 mmHg, mean CDR was 0.37±0.17, and mean CCT was 532±37.1 µm. In multiple linear stepwise regression analysis, determinates of increased CDR included increasing age (P = 0.004), lack of insurance (P = 0.019), and higher IOP (P<0.001), while increasing CDR (P<0.001) and thicker CCT (P<0.001) were associated with higher IOP. Conclusions: This first glaucoma survey in a U.S. Haitian Afro-Caribbean population indicates glaucoma suspect status is high across all age groups, and suggests glaucoma monitoring in people less than 40 years of age is indicated in this population

Treatment of gastroparesis: a multidisciplinary clinical review

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75594/1/j.1365-2982.2006.00760.x.pd

Combined pars plana vitrectomy and Baerveldt glaucoma implant placement for refractory glaucoma

To evaluate outcomes of combined pars plana vitrectomy and Baerveldt glaucoma implant (PPV-BGI) placement for refractory glaucoma

Vitamin D receptor polymorphisms and survival in patients with cutaneous melanoma: a population-based study

Factors known to affect melanoma survival include age at presentation, sex and tumor characteristics. Polymorphisms also appear to modulate survival following diagnosis. Result from other studies suggest that vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms (SNPs) impact survival in patients with glioma, renal cell carcinoma, lung, breast, prostate and other cancers; however, a comprehensive study of VDR polymorphisms and melanoma-specific survival is lacking. We aimed to investigate whether VDR genetic variation influences survival in patients with cutaneous melanoma. The analysis involved 3566 incident single and multiple primary melanoma cases enrolled in the international population-based Genes, Environment, and Melanoma Study. Melanoma-specific survival outcomes were calculated for each of 38 VDR SNPs using a competing risk analysis after adjustment for covariates. There were 254 (7.1%) deaths due to melanoma during the median 7.6 years follow-up period. VDR SNPs rs7299460, rs3782905, rs2239182, rs12370156, rs2238140, rs7305032, rs1544410 (BsmI) and rs731236 (TaqI) each had a statistically significant (trend P values < 0.05) association with melanoma-specific survival in multivariate analysis. One functional SNP (rs2239182) remained significant after adjustment for multiple testing using the Monte Carlo method. None of the SNPs associated with survival were significantly associated with Breslow thickness, ulceration or mitosis. These results suggest that the VDR gene may influence survival from melanoma, although the mechanism by which VDR exerts its effect does not seem driven by tumor aggressiveness. Further investigations are needed to confirm our results and to understand the relationship between VDR and survival in the combined context of tumor and host characteristics

bantam Is Required for Optic Lobe Development and Glial Cell Proliferation

microRNAs (miRNAs) are small, conserved, non-coding RNAs that contribute to the control of many different cellular processes, including cell fate specification and growth control. Drosophila bantam, a conserved miRNA, is involved in several functions, such as stimulating proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis in the wing disc. Here, we reported the detailed expression pattern of bantam in the developing optic lobe, and demonstrated a new, essential role in promoting proliferation of mitotic cells in the optic lobe, including stem cells and differentiated glial cells. Changes in bantam levels autonomously affected glial cell number and distribution, and non-autonomously affected photoreceptor neuron axon projection patterns. Furthermore, we showed that bantam promotes the proliferation of mitotically active glial cells and affects their distribution, largely through down regulation of the T-box transcription factor, optomotor-blind (omb, Flybase, bifid). Expression of omb can rescue the bantam phenotype, and restore the normal glial cell number and proper glial cell positioning in most Drosophila brains. These results suggest that bantam is critical for maintaining the stem cell pools in the outer proliferation center and glial precursor cell regions of the optic lobe, and that its expression in glial cells is crucial for their proliferation and distribution

In vitro and in vivo delivery of a sustained release nanocarrier-based formulation of an MRTF/SRF inhibitor in conjunctival fibrosis

Abstract Background Sustained drug delivery is a large unmet clinical need in glaucoma. Here, we incorporated a Myocardin-Related Transcription Factor/Serum Response Factor inhibitor, CCG-222740, into slow release large unilamellar vesicles derived from the liposomes DOTMA (1,2-di-O-octadecenyl-3-trimethylammonium propane) and DOPC (1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine), and tested their effects in vitro and in vivo. Results The vesicles were spherical particles of around 130 nm and were strongly cationic. A large amount of inhibitor could be incorporated into the vesicles. We showed that the nanocarrier CCG-222740 formulation gradually released the inhibitor over 14 days using high performance liquid chromatography. Nanocarrier CCG-222740 significantly decreased ACTA2 gene expression and was not cytotoxic in human conjunctival fibroblasts. In vivo, nanocarrier CCG-222740 doubled the bleb survival from 11.0 ± 0.6 days to 22.0 ± 1.3 days (p = 0.001), decreased conjunctival scarring and did not have any local or systemic adverse effects in a rabbit model of glaucoma filtration surgery. Conclusions Our study demonstrates proof-of-concept that a nanocarrier-based formulation efficiently achieves a sustained release of a Myocardin-Related Transcription Factor/Serum Response Factor inhibitor and prevents conjunctival fibrosis in an established rabbit model of glaucoma filtration surgery.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146540/1/12951_2018_Article_425.pd

Biomass production of herbaceous energy crops in the United States: field trial results and yield potential maps from the multiyear regional feedstock partnership

Current knowledge of yield potential and best agronomic management practices for perennial bioenergy grasses is primarily derived from small-scale and short-term studies, yet these studies inform policy at the national scale. In an effort to learn more about how bioenergy grasses perform across multiple locations and years, the U.S. Department of Energy (US DOE)/Sun Grant Initiative Regional Feedstock Partnership was initiated in 2008. The objectives of the Feedstock Partnership were to (1) provide a wide range of information for feedstock selection (species choice) and management practice options for a variety of regions and (2) develop national maps of potential feedstock yield for each of the herbaceous species evaluated. The Feedstock Partnership expands our previous understanding of the bioenergy potential of switchgrass, Miscanthus, sorghum, energycane, and prairie mixtures on Conservation Reserve Program land by conducting long-term, replicated trials of each species at diverse environments in the U.S. Trials were initiated between 2008 and 2010 and completed between 2012 and 2015 depending on species. Field-scale plots were utilized for switchgrass and Conservation Reserve Program trials to use traditional agricultural machinery. This is important as we know that the smaller scale studies often overestimated yield potential of some of these species. Insufficient vegetative propagules of energycane and Miscanthus prohibited farm-scale trials of these species. The Feedstock Partnership studies also confirmed that environmental differences across years and across sites had a large impact on biomass production. Nitrogen application had variable effects across feedstocks, but some nitrogen fertilizer generally had a positive effect. National yield potential maps were developed using PRISM-ELM for each species in the Feedstock Partnership. This manuscript, with the accompanying supplemental data, will be useful in making decisions about feedstock selection as well as agronomic practices across a wide region of the country