Quantity, distribution and immunophenotypical modification of dendritic cells upon biological treatments in psoriasis.

Psoriasis is an immune-mediated disease which affects a large world population. It has long been considered a dermatological disorder in which keratinocytes and lymphocytes play a relevant pathogenic role. The aim of our study is to more closely observe and better define the role of dendritic cells (DCs) in psoriasis. We made a comparative analysis of the antigenic profile and the number, by immunohistochemical and electron microscopical study, of skin biopsy samples from psoriatic patients before and 4 months after biological treatments. Our results demonstrate an abundant distribution of activated DCs in lesional skin of psoriatic plaques and a marked decrease after biological therapies [a decrease of 70% for Langerhans cells (LCs) and mature myeloid dendritic cells (mDCs) and of 50% for plasmocytoid dendritic cells (pDCs)]. Both previous reports and the results of the present study support an underlying persistent immune response involving DCs in the onset and persistence of psoriasis. As DCs play a pivotal role in pathogenesis of psoriasis by presenting antigens via major histocompatibility complex class (MHC) II molecules, the present study supports the view that biological therapies are also effective in clearing psoriatic lesions as well as in reducing the number of DCs

The Global sphere reconstruction (GSR) - Demonstrating an independent implementation of the astrometric core solution for Gaia

Context. The Gaia ESA mission will estimate the astrometric and physical data of more than one billion objects, providing the largest and most precise catalog of absolute astrometry in the history of Astronomy. The core of this process, the so-called global sphere reconstruction, is represented by the reduction of a subset of these objects which will be used to define the celestial reference frame. As the Hipparcos mission showed, and as is inherent to all kinds of absolute measurements, possible errors in the data reduction can hardly be identified from the catalog, thus potentially introducing systematic errors in all derived work. Aims. Following up on the lessons learned from Hipparcos, our aim is thus to develop an independent sphere reconstruction method that contributes to guarantee the quality of the astrometric results without fully reproducing the main processing chain. Methods. Indeed, given the unfeasibility of a complete replica of the data reduction pipeline, an astrometric verification unit (AVU) was instituted by the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC). One of its jobs is to implement and operate an independent global sphere reconstruction (GSR), parallel to the baseline one (AGIS, namely Astrometric Global Iterative Solution) but limited to the primary stars and for validation purposes, to compare the two results, and to report on any significant differences. Results. Tests performed on simulated data show that GSR is able to reproduce at the sub-$\mu$as level the results of the AGIS demonstration run presented in Lindegren et al. (2012). Conclusions. Further development is ongoing to improve on the treatment of real data and on the software modules that compare the AGIS and GSR solutions to identify possible discrepancies above the tolerance level set by the accuracy of the Gaia catalog.Comment: Accepted for publication on Astronomy & Astrophysic

Clinical, Electrodiagnostic Findings and Quality of Life of Dogs and Cats with Brachial Plexus Injury

Brachial plexus injury (BPI) represents a common consequence of road traffic accidents in humans and small animals. In humans, neuropathic pain is a common symptom after BPI. The aim of the study was to describe the clinical signs, the electrodiagnostic findings, the outcome and the quality of life (QoL) of a cohort of dogs and cats with BPI. Clinical records of 40 dogs and 26 cats with BPI were retrospectively reviewed. Specific attention was put on the evaluation of electrodiagnostic findings (35/40 dogs; 14/26 cats) and telephonic interview results (26/40 dogs; 18/26 cats). The most common neurological condition was the inability to bear weight and sensory deficits on the affected limb. Radial and ulnar motor nerve conduction studies (MNCSs) were absent respectively in 47% (radial) and 62% (ulnar) of dogs and 57% (radial) and 57% (ulnar) of cats. The absence of radial (p = 0.003) and ulnar (p = 0.007) MNCSs in dogs and ulnar MNCSs in cats (p = 0.02) was significantly associated to the amputation of the affected limb. The owners described signs of pain/discomfort in 73% of dogs and 56% of cats. This is the first report suggesting that neuropathic pain/discomfort should be adequately considered in order to improve the QoL

Expression of ALDH and SOX-2 in Pulmonary Sclerosing Pnemocytoma (PSP) of the Lung: Is There a Meaning Behind?

Background: Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma (PSP) is a rare benign pulmonary tumor that derives from primitive respiratory epithelium of the pulmonary alveolus. The etiology and pathogenesis are still unclear. Histopathological diagnosis focuses on cells that are positive for TTF1, EMA, cytokeratin-7, and CAM 5.2. The aim of our study is to highlight the elevated expression of ALDH and the presence of SOX-2 in pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma. Methods: We report five cases of pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma undergone surgery at our Division of Thoracic Surgery, during a period between 1994 and 2011. ALDH and SOX-2 markers were also tested for positivity in all the patients. Results: Patients showed elevated expression of ALDH during immunohistochemistry and mild expression of SOX-2, although in two cases in which SOX-2 was highly expressed. Among these two patients, one presented with lymph node recurrence while the other had no recurrence with a PET-positive nodule. In particular, the patient who had developed recurrence had an ALDH score of 4 and a SOX-2 score of 3, whereas the patient with the PET-positive nodule showed an ALDH score of 4 with a mild SOX-2expression of score 1. Conclusions: This is the first attempt demonstrating the elevated expression of ALDH in this disease. SOX-2 expression was noted in both the patient who developed recurrence and the patient with a PET-positive nodule. We believe that further investigation may be highly useful to better characterize these two markers as well as understandtheir function

ALDH Expression in Angiosarcoma of the Lung: A Potential Marker of Aggressiveness?

Background: Primary angiosarcoma of the lung is a very aggressive rare malignant disease resulting in a severe prognosis (1). This type of cancer represents about 2% of all soft tissue sarcomas and has a high rate of metastasis through the hematogenous route. For the rarity of this malignant vascular tumor it is still challenging to set a diagnosis (1). The diagnostic features that have thus far been considered include primarily clinical and radiological findings. In some cases, immunohistochemical characteristics based on the most common markers used in pathology have been described. The aim of this report is to present two cases of angiosarcoma of the lung in which the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) marker was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Methods: We report two cases of angiosarcoma of the lung in patients underwent lung surgery at our Unit. In addition to the standard histopathological analysis for this disease, immunohistochemistry using an ALDH1A1 antibody was performed in both of the cases. For ALDH quantification, a semi-quantitative method based on the positivity of the tumor cells was used: 0 (<5%), 1 (5–25%), 2 (>25–50%), 3 (>50–75%), 4 (>75%). Results: One patient with recurrent lung disease survived, achieving complete remission after chemo- and radiotherapy. The second patient died of recurrent disease within 5 years of diagnosis. ALDH1A1 was evaluated in both of these cases using an immunohistochemistry scoring system based on the positivity for this marker. The scores were consistent with the patients’ clinical outcomes, as the lower (score 1) was observed in the patient with the better clinical outcome, while the higher (score 3) was seen in the patient with the worse outcome. Conclusion: Our data suggest that ALDH may be an important clinical marker in angiosarcoma of the lung. Although further studies need to be performed in a larger cohort of patients, we believe that, if the results will be confirmed, ALDH1A1 may be used to stratify patients in terms of prognosis and for targeted therapy

Knowledge creation and management in the five LHC experiments at CERN: implications for technology innovation and transfer

The present study analyses knowledge creation, acquisition and transfer in the five LHC physics experiments at CERN: ALICE, ATLAS, CMS, LHCb, and TOTEM. A questionnaire was provided during collaboration meetings and a total of 291 replies were obtained and analysed. The results of this research study provide evidence that the social process of participation in meetings, acquisition of skills in different areas, and the development of interests by interaction with colleagues are key elements of the learning process. Furthermore, the results indicate that knowledge acquisition in a multicultural environment plays a mediating role in the interaction between social capital constructs (social interaction, relationship quality, and network ties) and competitive advantage outcomes (invention development and technological distinctiveness). Social interaction, relationship quality, and network ties are connected to greater knowledge acquisition, and also contribute to innovation and transfer of the knowledge to industry. The fertile environment of the five LHC experiments building and managing multiple processes, involves a dynamic, interactive,and simultaneous exchange of knowledge both inside and outside their organization