TCGA Data Leveraged for Developing FDA-Designated Breakthrough Therapy

LOXO-101, a promising new drug developed by Loxo Oncology, received FDA breakthrough therapy designation in July, 2016, for the treatment of metastatic cancers with tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK) fusions. Using publically available data, including those from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Loxo Oncology identified TRK fusions as prime targets for drug development, says Loxo Oncology's Chief Executive Officer, Josh Bilenker, M.D.

"We found that TCGA efforts had contributed to a better understanding of the clinical settings in which TRK fusions occur. Also, TCGA data helped confirm that TRK fusions were typically present in the absence of other known oncogenic drivers," said Dr. Bilenker. "Taken together, these insights helped point the way to clinical settings we might not have considered, while increasing our confidence that TRK fusions were likely to be oncogenic drivers susceptible to therapeutic intervention."

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Accuracy of Tumor Sizing in Breast Cancer: A Comparison of Strain Elastography, 3-D Ultrasound and Conventional B-Mode Ultrasound with and without Compound Imaging

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Author(s): Angrit Stachs, Alexander Pandjaitan, Annett Martin, Johannes Stubert, Steffi Hartmann, Bernd Gerber, Änne Glass
The objective of this study was to compare the accuracy of strain elastography (SE), 3-D ultrasound (US), B-mode US with compound imaging (CI) and B-mode US without compound imaging for lesion sizing in breast cancer. The prospective study included 93 patients with invasive breast cancer. The largest tumor diameters measured by B-mode US, B-mode US with CI, SE and 3-D US were compared in Bland–Altman plots versus pathology as reference. A general linear model repeated measures (GLM Rep) was applied to investigate factors influencing tumor sizing. All methods underestimated pathologic size, with SE (−0.08 ± 7.7 mm) and 3-D US (−1.4 ± 6.5 mm) having the smallest mean differences from pathology. Bland–Altman plots revealed that B-mode US, B-mode US with CI and 3-D US systematically underestimated large tumor sizes, and only SE was technically comparable to pathology. The study indicates that sonographic underestimation of tumor size occurs mainly in tumors >20 mm; in this subgroup, SE is superior to other ultrasound methods.



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Effect of Low-Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound after Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Injection to Treat Osteochondral Defects: An In Vivo Study

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Author(s): Shoki Yamaguchi, Tomoki Aoyama, Akira Ito, Momoko Nagai, Hirotaka Iijima, Junichi Tajino, Xiangkai Zhang, Kiyan Wataru, Hiroshi Kuroki
We investigated the effect of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) treatment combined with mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) injection for cartilage repair and subchondral bone reconstitution for treatment of osteochondral defects. An osteochondral defect was created on both femur grooves of Wistar rats. Four weeks later, bone marrow MSCs were injected into the right knee joint. The rats were divided into two intervention groups: without or with LIPUS irradiation. Cartilage repair was evaluated histologically based on the Wakitani cartilage repair score. Subchondral bone reconstitution was evaluated as bone volume (BV)/tissue volume (TV) by micro-computed tomography analysis. MSC injection improved the cartilage repair score, and LIPUS irradiation improved BV/TV. Combination treatment promoted both cartilage repair and BV/TV improvement. Thus, MSC injection combined with LIPUS irradiation is more effective than either treatment alone in promoting concurrent cartilage repair and subchondral reconstitution.



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Short Hairpin RNA Knockdown of Connective Tissue Growth Factor by Ultrasound-Targeted Microbubble Destruction Improves Renal Fibrosis

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Author(s): Shuping Wei, Chaoli Xu, Joshua J. Rychak, Alice Luong, Yu Sun, Zhijian Yang, Mingxia Li, Chunrui Liu, Ninghua Fu, Bin Yang
The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether ultrasound-targeted microbubble destruction transfer of interfering RNA against connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in the kidney would ameliorate renal fibrosis in vivo. A short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting CTGF was cloned into a tool plasmid and loaded onto the surface of a cationic microbubble product. A unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) model in mice was used to evaluate the effect of CTGF knockdown. Mice were administered the plasmid-carrying microbubble intravenously, and ultrasound was applied locally to the obstructed kidney. Mice undergoing a sham UUO surgery and untreated UUO mice were used as disease controls, and mice administered plasmid alone, plasmid with ultrasound treatment and microbubbles and plasmid without ultrasound were used as treatment controls. Mice were treated once and then evaluated at day 14. CTGF in the kidney was measured by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and Western blot. Expression of CTGF, transforming growth factor β1, α smooth muscle actin and type I collagen in the obstructed kidney was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. The cohort treated with plasmid-carrying microbubbles and ultrasound exhibited reduced mRNA and protein expression of CTGF (p < 0.01). Furthermore, CTGF gene silencing decreased the interstitial deposition of transforming growth factor β1, α smooth muscle actin and type I collagen as assessed in immunohistochemistry, as well as reduced renal fibrosis in pathologic alterations (p < 0.01). No significant changes in target mRNA, protein expression or disease pathology were observed in the control cohorts. A single treatment of ultrasound-targeted microbubble destruction is able to deliver sufficient shRNA to inhibit the expression of CTGF and provide a meaningful reduction in disease severity. This technique may be a potential therapy for treatment of renal fibrosis.



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Expanding Role of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in Guidance and Monitoring of Percutaneous Thermal Ablation

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Author(s): Chiara De Angelis, Giovanni Mauri




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Principal Component Analysis of the Longitudinal Carotid Wall Motion in Association with Vascular Stiffness: A Pilot Study

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology
Author(s): Heikki Yli-Ollila, Mika P. Tarvainen, Tomi P. Laitinen, Tiina M. Laitinen
The longitudinal motion of the carotid wall during a heart cycle has a multiphasic waveform. Recent studies have examined the amplitude of this motion. Instead of amplitude measurements, we focus on making a detailed characterization of the motion waveform. Two-minute carotid ultrasound videos were obtained for 19 healthy volunteers, and a speckle tracking algorithm was used to measure the motion of the carotid wall. Principal component analysis revealed the characteristic features of wall motion and their relation to known arterial stiffness indices. By estimating two principal components, we could account for more than 92% of the variation in the motion graphs. The first principal component derived from the longitudinal motion curves was significantly correlated to pulse pressure, indicating that the main dominant base waveform of the longitudinal motion was related to blood pressure. The second principal component derived from the longitudinal motion curves had multiple significant correlations to known stiffness indices, indicating that the stronger biphasic structure of the motion curve, especially on the adventitia layer, was associated with higher distensibility and compliance, as well as reduced carotid artery stiffness. According to this study, the second principal component of the longitudinal motion may be a useful parameter reflecting vascular health.



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Potentiodynamic Corrosion Testing

Here, we present a protocol to set up and run an in vitro potentiodynamic corrosion system to analyze pitting corrosion for small metallic medical devices.

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A Push-pull Protocol to Reduce Colonization of Bird Nest Boxes by Honey Bees

Preventing colonization of bird nest boxes by invasive Africanized honey bees is important for conservation efforts of nest-site limited birds. We provide an integrated pest management approach to "push" bees away from nest boxes with a repellant insecticide, permethrin, and "pull" them toward pheromone baited swarm traps.

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sIgA, peroxidase and collagenase in saliva of smokers aggressive periodontal patients

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Journal of Oral Biology and Craniofacial Research
Author(s): Myriam A. Koss, Cecilia E. Castro, Agustina M. Gramajo, María E. López
BackgroundTobacco smoking is strongly associated with destructive periodontal disease, alveolar bone loss and poor response to periodontal therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of smoking on antimicrobials and destructive proteins in the saliva of patients with generalized aggressive periodontal disease.Material and methodsThe study group consisted of 55 adult subjects. They were classified according to their clinical diagnoses either as having generalized aggressive periodontitis (n=27; 13 smokers and 14 non-smokers) or as periodontitis-free control group (n=28; 14 smokers and 14 non-smokers). Total proteins, sIgA, peroxidase and collagenase were quantified in whole saliva. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey tests.ResultsStatistical differences were found between smokers with periodontal disease and healthy control subjects for sIgA, and between non-smokers with periodontal disease and healthy control subjects for peroxidase. Collagenase activity was higher in smokers and non-smokers with periodontal disease, and tobacco use was found to increase collagenase activity in healthy subjects.ConclusionWhole saliva from all patients with periodontal disease had higher sIgA and lower peroxidase content. Smokers with periodontitis had higher sIgA than smokers without periodontitis. Smokers with and without periodontitis had higher collagenase activity than non-smokers (with and without periodontitis).



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Peroneal perforator-based peroneus longus tendon and sural neurofasciocutaneous composite flap transfer for a large soft-tissue defect of the forearm: A case report

Abstract

We describe the use of a composite flap composed of a sural neurofasciocutaneous flap and a vascularized peroneus longus tendon for the reconstruction of severe composite forearm tissue defects in a patient. A 43-year-old man had his left arm caught in a conveyor belt resulting in a large soft-tissue defect of 18 × 11 cm over the dorsum forearm. The extensor carpi radialis, superficial radial nerve, and radial artery were severely damaged. A free neurofasciocutaneous composite flap measuring 16 × 11 cm was outlined on the patient's left lower leg to allow simultaneous skin, tendon, nerve, and artery reconstruction. The flap, which included the peroneus longus tendon, was elevated on the subfascial plane. After the flap was transferred to the recipient site, the peroneal artery was anastomosed to the radial artery in a flow-through manner. The vascularized tendon graft with 15 cm in length was used to reconstruct the extensor carpi radialis longus tendon defect using an interlacing suture technique. As the skin paddle of the sural neurofasciocutaneous flap and the vascularized peroneus longus tendon graft were linked by the perforator and minimal fascial tissue, the skin paddle was able to rotate and slide with comparative ease. The flap survived completely without any complications. The length of follow-up was 12 months and was uneventful. Range of motion of his left wrist joint was slightly limited to 75 degrees. This novel composite flap may be useful for reconstructing long tendon defects associated with extensive forearm soft tissue defects.

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Sensate hypothenar perforator free flap for resurfacing large volar surface defect of the digit

Abstract

In this report we present a case of large sized volar surface defect of a digit reconstructed by hypothenar perforator free flap coverage. A 57-year-old male patient presented with a 5 × 2 cm sized avulsive injury on his left little finger involving near total loss of the volar surface. The perforator arteries of the hypothenar area were identified around 5–15% on the x-axis and 25–50% on the y-axis (y-axis: a line from the pisiform base to the metacarpophalangeal joint, x-axis: a line perpendicular to the y-axis.) The hypothenar free flap was designed centered on the anticipated location of the perforator artery. Upon dissection, the perforator artery was found as predicted and a superficial palmar vein was saved for venous drainage. In addition, a neighboring cutaneous branch of the ulnar nerve was also saved. The flap survived with satisfactory flap contour, durability, skin color and texture. Five months of follow-up showed acceptable range of motion for joints of the affected digit and nearly full range of motion for the hand. The sensate hypothenar perforator free flap could be considered as a useful surgical option for large sized volar side defects of finger.

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Pretreatment Evaluation of Glioma

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Neuroimaging Clinics of North America
Author(s): Ali Mohammadzadeh, Vahid Mohammadzadeh, Soheil Kooraki, Houman Sotoudeh, Sakineh Kadivar, Madjid Shakiba, Bahman Rasuli, Ali Borhani, Maryam Mohammadzadeh

Teaser

Glioma is considered the most common type of primary central nervous system (CNS) tumor. Imaging is crucial for diagnosis, characterization, grading, and therapeutic planning of CNS gliomas. Along with a brief description of conventional computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging techniques, this article reviews the ever-developing role of modern imaging techniques in preoperative management of CNS gliomas. It discusses current clinical applications, promising features, and limitations of each imaging method.


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Advanced MR Imaging Techniques in Daily Practice

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Neuroimaging Clinics of North America
Author(s): Marc C. Mabray, Soonmee Cha

Teaser

This article presents a summary of advanced MR imaging techniques and their use in the evaluation of patients with brain tumors. It reviews diffusion-weighted imaging, diffusion-tensor imaging, T2* susceptibility–sensitive imaging, MR spectroscopy, MR perfusion, and functional MR imaging, and discusses their current roles in the evaluation of patients with brain tumors.


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Automated tissue segmentation of MR brain images in the presence of white matter lesions

Publication date: January 2017
Source:Medical Image Analysis, Volume 35
Author(s): Sergi Valverde, Arnau Oliver, Eloy Roura, Sandra González-Villà, Deborah Pareto, Joan C. Vilanova, Lluís Ramió-Torrentà, Àlex Rovira, Xavier Lladó
Over the last few years, the increasing interest in brain tissue volume measurements on clinical settings has led to the development of a wide number of automated tissue segmentation methods. However, white matter lesions are known to reduce the performance of automated tissue segmentation methods, which requires manual annotation of the lesions and refilling them before segmentation, which is tedious and time-consuming. Here, we propose a new, fully automated T1-w/FLAIR tissue segmentation approach designed to deal with images in the presence of WM lesions. This approach integrates a robust partial volume tissue segmentation with WM outlier rejection and filling, combining intensity and probabilistic and morphological prior maps. We evaluate the performance of this method on the MRBrainS13 tissue segmentation challenge database, which contains images with vascular WM lesions, and also on a set of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patient images. On both databases, we validate the performance of our method with other state-of-the-art techniques. On the MRBrainS13 data, the presented approach was at the time of submission the best ranked unsupervised intensity model method of the challenge (7th position) and clearly outperformed the other unsupervised pipelines such as FAST and SPM12. On MS data, the differences in tissue segmentation between the images segmented with our method and the same images where manual expert annotations were used to refill lesions on T1-w images before segmentation were lower or similar to the best state-of-the-art pipeline incorporating automated lesion segmentation and filling. Our results show that the proposed pipeline achieved very competitive results on both vascular and MS lesions. A public version of this approach is available to download for the neuro-imaging community.

Graphical abstract

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Data on combination effect of PEG-coated gold nanoparticles and non-thermal plasma inhibit growth of solid tumors

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Data in Brief
Author(s): Nagendra Kumar Kaushik, Neha Kaushik, Ki Chun Yoo, Nizam Uddin, Ju Sung Kim, Su Jae Lee, Eun Ha Choi
Highly resistant tumor cells are hard to treat at low doses of plasma. Therefore, researchers have gained more attention to development of enhancers for plasma therapy. Some enhancers could improve the efficacy of plasma towards selectivity of cancer cells damage. In this dataset, we report the application of low doses of PEG-coated gold nanoparticles with addition of plasma treatment. This data consists of the effect of PEG-coated GNP and cold plasma on two solid tumor cell lines T98G glioblastoma and A549 lung adenocarcinoma. Cell proliferation, frequency of cancer stem cell population studies by this co-treatment was reported. Finally, we included in this dataset the effect of co-treatment in vivo, using tumor xenograft nude mice models. The data supplied in this article supports the accompanying publication "Low doses of PEG-coated gold nanoparticles sensitize solid tumors to cold plasma by blocking the PI3K/AKT-driven signaling axis to suppress cellular transformation by inhibiting growth and EMT" [1].



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Time Perspective and Well-Being: Swedish Survey Questionnaires and Data

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Data in Brief
Author(s): Danilo Garcia, Ali Al Nima, Erik Lindskär
The data pertains 448 Swedes' responses to questionnaires on time perspective (Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory), temporal life satisfaction (Temporal Satisfaction with Life Scale), affect (Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule), and psychological well-being (Ryff's Scales of Psychological Well-Being—short version). The data was collected among university students and individuals at a training facility (see [1]). Since there were no differences in any of the other background variables, but exercise frequency, all subsequent analyses were conducted on the 448 participants as one single sample. In this article we include the Swedish versions of the questionnaires used to operationalize the time perspective and well-being variables. The data is available, SPSS file, as supplementary material in this article. We used the Expectation-Maximization Algorithm to input missing values. Little's Chi-Square test for Missing Completely at Random showed a χ²=67.25 (df=53, p=.09) for men and χ²=77.65 (df=72, p=.31) for women. These values suggested that the Expectation-Maximization Algorithm was suitable to use on this data for missing data imputation.



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Morphological and optical data of AgNW embedded transparent conductive layer

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Data in Brief
Author(s): Hong-Sik Kim, Dipal B. Patel, Malkeshkumar Patel, Joondong Kim
In this data article, morphological and optical data of AgNW encapsulated between ITO layers are presented to get insights into our article (DOI:10.1016/j.solmat.2016.04.038) [1]. SEM images for the formation of AgNWs networks by number of spin coating are also presented. SEM photographs showing the surface morphologies before and after rapid thermal treatment of prepared samples have been presented. Apart from morphological data set, optical characteristics of this type of samples are given. The comparison plots of optical reflectance from AgNW encapsulated between ITO layers and bare ITO are given between the wavelength ranges from 300 to 1100nm. At the end, transmittance and reflectance curves of native glass substrates used in this study are presented.



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Actividad laboral en pacientes tratados con implantes cocleares

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Acta Otorrinolaringológica Española
Author(s): Alicia Huarte, Marta Martínez-López, Raquel Manrique-Huarte, Sandra Erviti, Diego Calavia, Cora Alonso, Manuel Manrique
IntroducciónEl objetivo de este trabajo es conocer el impacto que el implante coclear (IC) tiene en la vida laboral de las personas implantadas, a través de una primera versión de un cuestionario elaborado en el programa de implantes cocleares de la Clínica Universidad de Navarra. Se pretende demostrar que el IC está teniendo un impacto significativo en la vida laboral de estos pacientes.Material y métodosSe estudia una población de 60 pacientes de 48 años de edad media, con hipoacusia neurosensorial profunda bilateral tratada con un IC, a la que se le presenta un cuestionario elaborado para evaluar su calidad de vida laboral con carácter retrospectivo.ResultadosEl 94,23% de los pacientes que completaron el cuestionario están actualmente satisfechos con su trabajo. El 93,05% se sienten más motivados para ir a trabajar tras su IC. Un 79,31% se consideran más competentes tras la cirugía y activación del dispositivo. Un 67,23% de los pacientes han mejorado sus relaciones interpersonales en el ámbito de trabajo tras la implantación coclear.ConclusionesEl IC proporciona una ayuda positiva en la esfera profesional al igual que en las destrezas sociales al beneficiar la capacidad de comunicación de los pacientes implantados. El desarrollo de herramientas para evaluar el grado de satisfacción laboral de los pacientes tratados con un IC es de gran interés.IntroductionThe aim of this study was to determine the impact that the cochlear implant (CI) had in the working life of individuals implanted, using the first version of a questionnaire developed in the cochlear implant program at the University Clinic of Navarre. Its purpose was to demonstrate that the CI significantly affected the working lives of these patients.Material and methodsThis was a retrospection study on a population of 60 patients (mean age, 48 years old) with bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss treated with CI and to whom a questionnaire on working life satisfaction was given.ResultsOf the patients completing the questionnaire, 94.23% were currently satisfied at work. Almost all of them (93.05%) were more motivated to go to work after the implantation. The majority (79.31%) considered themselves more competent after surgery and device activation. Social relations at work were considered to have improved after cochlear implantation by 67.23% of patients.ConclusionsThe CI provided positive support in the professional sphere as well as in social abilities by improving communication skills of implanted patients. The development of tools to assess the degree of job satisfaction of patients treated with a CI is of great interest.



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PROTEUS

PROTEUS swarming in BG agar, Just beautiful.

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TWiV 405: All the world's a phage

The TWiXers discuss a study on vertical transmission of Zika virus by Aedes mosquitoes, and uncovering Earth's virome by mining existing metagenomic sequence data.

Hosts: Vincent Rac...

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Functional activity and white matter microstructure reveal the independent effects of age of acquisition and proficiency on second-language learning

Publication date: December 2016
Source:NeuroImage, Volume 143
Author(s): Emily S. Nichols, Marc F. Joanisse
Two key factors govern how bilingual speakers neurally maintain two languages: the speakers' second language age of acquisition (AoA) and their subsequent proficiency. However, the relative roles of these two factors have been difficult to disentangle given that the two can be closely correlated, and most prior studies have examined the two factors in isolation. Here, we combine functional magnetic resonance imaging with diffusion tensor imaging to identify specific brain areas that are independently modulated by AoA and proficiency in second language speakers. First-language Mandarin Chinese speakers who are second language speakers of English were scanned as they performed a picture-word matching task in either language. In the same session we also acquired diffusion-weighted scans to assess white matter microstructure, along with behavioural measures of language proficiency prior to entering the scanner. Results reveal gray- and white-matter networks involving both the left and right hemisphere that independently vary as a function of a second-language speaker's AoA and proficiency, focused on the superior temporal gyrus, middle and inferior frontal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus, and the basal ganglia. These results indicate that proficiency and AoA explain separate functional and structural networks in the bilingual brain, which we interpret as suggesting distinct types of plasticity for age-dependent effects (i.e., AoA) versus experience and/or predisposition (i.e., proficiency).

Graphical abstract

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Adult age differences in subcortical myelin content are consistent with protracted myelination and unrelated to diffusion tensor imaging indices

Publication date: December 2016
Source:NeuroImage, Volume 143
Author(s): Muzamil Arshad, Jeffrey A. Stanley, Naftali Raz
Post mortem studies suggest protracted myelination of subcortical white matter into the middle age followed by gradual decline in the late adulthood. To date, however, establishing the proposed inverted-U pattern of age-myelin association proved difficult, as the most common method of investigating white matter, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), usually reveals only linear associations between DTI indices and age among healthy adults. Here we use a novel method of estimating Myelin Water Fraction (MWF) based on modeling the short spin-spin (T2) relaxation component from multi-echo T2 relaxation imaging data and assess subcortical myelin content within six white matter tracts in a sample of healthy adults (N=61, age 18–84 years). Myelin content evidenced a quadratic relationship with age, in accord with the pattern observed postmortem studies. In contrast, DTI-derived indices that are frequently cited as proxies for myelination, fractional anisotropy (FA) and radial diffusivity (RD), exhibited linear or null relationships with age. Furthermore, the magnitude of age differences in MWF varied across the white matter tracts. Myelin content estimated by MWF was unrelated to FA and correlated with RD only in the splenium. These findings are consistent with the notion that myelination continues throughout the young adulthood into the middle age. The results demonstrate that single-tensor DTI cannot serve as a source of specific proxies for myelination of white matter tracts.



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Applications of CRISPR Genome Engineering in Cell Biology

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Trends in Cell Biology
Author(s): Fangyuan Wang, Lei S. Qi
Recent advances in genome engineering are starting a revolution in biological research and translational applications. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated RNA-guided endonuclease CRISPR associated protein 9 (Cas9) and its variants enable diverse manipulations of genome function. In this review, we describe the development of Cas9 tools for a variety of applications in cell biology research, including the study of functional genomics, the creation of transgenic animal models, and genomic imaging. Novel genome engineering methods offer a new avenue to understand the causality between the genome and phenotype, thus promising a fuller understanding of cell biology.



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Implantation of octacalcium phosphate collagen composites (OCP/Col) after extraction of canine deciduous teeth achieved undisturbed permanent tooth eruption

Publication date: December 2016
Source:Archives of Oral Biology, Volume 72
Author(s): Naofumi Kanda, Keiko Matsui, Tadashi Kawai, Hiroshi Edamatsu, Yuji Tanuma, Osamu Suzuki, Tetsu Takahashi, Shinji Kamakura
ObjectiveComposite of synthetic octacalcium phosphate and collagen (OCP/Col) enhances bone regeneration if implanted into human, canine, or rodent bone defects. This study was designed to investigate the influence on eruption of the permanent successor tooth and alveolar height of OCP/Col implantation into extraction cavities of deciduous teeth.DesignDisks of OCP/Col prepared from synthetic granules of octacalcium phosphate (OCP) and porcine atelocollagen, and commercially available sintered porous β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) was implanted into the prepared defect of eleven male beagle dogs by extraction of two deciduous premolars. Untreated group had nothing implanted into the prepared defect, and physiological group (Physiol group) was observed without any treatment. Periodical macroscopic and radiographic examinations were performed until the period equivalent to the physiological eruption of permanent successor teeth (P3 and P4).ResultsAlthough no unerupted permanent successor teeth were observed among the OCP/Col, Untreated, and Physiol groups, two permanent successor teeth were unerupted in the β-TCP group. No significant difference of the alveolar heights or the eruptive position in P3 and P4 was observed between OCP/Col and Physiol groups.ConclusionOCP/Col implantation in the alveolar region that included the unerupted permanent successor teeth would cause no disturbance of permanent tooth eruption and preserve the alveolar ridge.



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RE: “What factors influence British medical students’ career intentions?” Location and social relationships

Miah, MASI; Venugopal, S; Pang, K; Rubakumar, Z; Begum, H; (2015) RE: "What factors influence British medical students' career intentions?" Location and social relationships. Medical Teacher 10.3109/0142159X.2015.1041470 .

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Penile fracture

Aldiwani, M; Mosey, R; Miah, MASI; Inman, R; (2014) Penile fracture. Core Surgical Journal

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The contribution of CT and MRI in staging, treatment planning and prognosis prediction of malignant tumors of external auditory canal

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Clinical Imaging
Author(s): Zhiye Wang, Meizhu Zheng, Shuang Xia
Carcinomas of EAC are rare. Radiological imaging in particular CT and MRI plays an important role in the staging, treatment planning and follow up of the patients with malignant EAC tumor. This article aims to review the role of CT and MRI in the describing different tumor growth pattern, tumor staging, treatment planning, follow up and predicting the prognosis of malignant tumors of EAC.



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Optimization of Breathing Instructions and Timing of Late Arterial Phase Acquisition on Gadobutrol-enhanced MRI of the Liver

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Clinical Imaging
Author(s): Daniella F. Pinho, Naama Lev-Cohain, Haitham Awdeh, Yin Xi, Gaurav Khatri, Takeshi Yokoo, Ivan Pedrosa
PurposeTo compare a protocol with higher-concentration macrocyclic gadolinium-based contrast agent (GBCA) [study group] to the traditional protocol with lower-concentration linear GBCAs [control group] for breath-held arterial phase MRI.Material and MethodsA total of 136 patients were quantitatively evaluated for image quality (IQ), breathing artifacts (BA), and timing of the arterial phase (Tap).Quantitative analysis was also performed.ResultsNo significant differences in IQ, BA and Tap (P>.05).Study group exhibited less enhancement of the aorta (P=.0091) and smaller standard deviation for the portal vein enhancement (P=.0173).ConclusionSimilar arterial-phase image quality can be achieved with a macrocyclic GBCA compared to traditional linear GBCA.



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Applicability and discriminative value of a semi-automatic 3D-spherical-volume for the assessment of the apparent-diffusion-coefficient in suspicious breast lesions – feasibility study

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Clinical Imaging
Author(s): Jan Hering, Frederik Bernd Laun, Wolfgang Lederer, Heidi Daniel, Tristan Anselm Kuder, Anne Stieber, Stefan Delorme, Klaus H. Maier-Hein, Heinz-Peter Schlemmer, Sebastian Bickelhaupt
IntroductionTo evaluate the feasibility and accuracy of a semi-automatic, three-dimensional volume-of-interest (3D-sphere) for measuring the apparent-diffusion-coefficient (ADC) in suspicious breast lesions compared to conventional single-slice 2D-regions-of-interest (2D ROI).MethodThis IRB-approved study included 56 participants with BIRADS 4/5 lesion. All received DWI-MRI prior biopsy (b=0–1500 s/mm²). ADC-values were measured in the lesions with both methods. Reproducibility and accuracies were compared.ResultsArea-under-the-curve (AUC) was 0.93 (95%-CI:0.86–0.99) for the 3D-sphere and 0.91 (95%-CI:0.84–0.98) for the 2D-ROI without significantly differing reproducibility (P=.45).ConclusionA semi-automatic 3D-sphere could reliably estimate ADC values in suspicious breast lesions without significant difference compared to conventional 2D-ROIs.



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Application of Traditional Chinese Medical Herbs in Prevention and Treatment of Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common viral pathogen of the lower respiratory tract, which, in the absence of effective management, causes millions of cases of severe illness per year. Many of these infections develop into fatal pneumonia. In a review of English and Chinese medical literature, recent traditional Chinese medical herb- (TCMH-) based progress in the area of prevention and treatment was identified, and the potential anti-RSV compounds, herbs, and formulas were explored. Traditional Chinese medical herbs have a positive effect on inhibiting viral attachment, inhibiting viral internalization, syncytial formation, alleviation of airway inflammation, and stimulation of interferon secretion and immune system; however, the anti-RSV mechanisms of TCMHs are complicated, which should be further investigated.

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Acupuncture Decreases Blood Pressure Related to Hypothalamus Functional Connectivity with Frontal Lobe, Cerebellum, and Insula: A Study of Instantaneous and Short-Term Acupuncture Treatment in Essential Hypertension

The therapeutic effects of acupuncture in decreasing blood pressure are ambiguous and underlying acupuncture in hypertension treatment has not been investigated. Our objective was to observe the change of quality of life and compare the differences in brain functional connectivity by investigating instantaneous and short-term acupuncture treatment in essential hypertension patients. A total of 30 patients were randomly divided into the LR3 group and sham acupoint group. Subjects received resting-state fMRI among preacupuncture, postinstantaneous, and short-term acupuncture treatment in two groups. Hypothalamus was selected as the seed point to analyze the changes in connectivity. We found three kinds of results: (1) There was statistical difference in systolic blood pressure in LR3 group after the short-term treatment and before acupuncture. (2) Compared with sham acupoint, acupuncture at LR3 instantaneous effects in the functional connectivity with seed points was more concentrated in the frontal lobe. (3) Compared with instantaneous effects, acupuncture LR3 short-term effects in the functional connectivity with seed points had more regions in frontal lobe, cerebellum, and insula. These brain areas constituted a neural network structure with specific functions that could explain the mechanism of therapy in hypertension patients by LR3 acupoint.

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Recurrent Embolic Stroke due to a Saccular Aneurysm of Left Subclavian Artery: Endovascular Treatment

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Author(s): C. Pantoja Peralta, A. Velescu




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Fluid–Structure Interaction Simulations of Aortic Dissection with Bench Validation

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Author(s): H.Y. Chen, S.V. Peelukhana, Z.C. Berwick, J. Kratzberg, J.F. Krieger, B. Roeder, S. Chambers, G.S. Kassab
IntroductionThe blood flow and stresses in the flap in aortic dissections are not well understood. Validated fluid–structure interaction (FSI) simulations of the interactions between the blood flow and the flap will provide insight into the dynamics of aortic dissections and may lead to developments of novel therapeutic approaches.MethodsA coupled, two-way blood flow and flap wall computational model was developed. The Arbitrary Lagrange–Eulerian method was used, which allowed the fluid mesh to deform. Inflow velocity waveforms from a pulse duplicator system were used in the simulations.ResultsThe velocities for true lumen (TL) and false lumen (FL) were not significantly different between bench and simulation. The dynamics of the TL % cross-sectional area (CSA) during the cycle was similar between the bench and computational simulations, with the TL %CSA being most reduced near peak systole of the cycle. The experimental distal measurements had significantly lower velocities, likely due to the spatially heterogeneous flow distally. The conservation of mass and validity of simulations were confirmed. Additionally, regions of stress concentrations were found on the flap leading edge, towards the corners, and through the entire vessel wall. The pressure gradient across the FL results in a net force on the flap.ConclusionThe FSI flow velocities in the TL and the FL as well as the dynamics of the CSA during the cardiac cycle were validated by bench experiments. The validated FSI model may provide insights into aortic dissection including the stresses on the dissection flap and related flow disturbance, which may be subdued by novel therapeutic approaches. Simulations of more realistic human aortic dissections and the effects of current therapeutic approaches such as stent-graft can be developed in the future using the validated computational platform provided in the present study.



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Response to commentary on ‘Transcranial Doppler Microemboli for Case Selection in Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis’

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Author(s): L.M.J. Best, T. Richards




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Massive Blood Transfusion in Patients with Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Author(s): C. Montan, U. Hammar, A. Wikman, E. Berlin, J. Malmstedt, J. Holst, C.M. Wahlgren
ObjectivesThe aim was to study blood transfusions and blood product ratios in massively transfused patients treated for ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms (rAAAs).MethodsThis was a registry based cohort study of rAAA patients repaired at three major vascular centres between 2008 and 2013. Data were collected from the Swedish Vascular Registry, hospitals medical records, and local transfusion registries. The transfusion data were analysed for the first 24 h of treatment. Massive transfusion (MT) was defined as 4 or more units of red blood cell (RBC) transfused within 1 h, or 10 or more RBC units within 24 h. Logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratio of 30 day mortality associated with the ratios of blood products and timing of first units of platelets (PLTs) and fresh frozen plasma (FFP) transfused.ResultsThree hundred sixty nine rAAA patients were included: 80% men; 173 endovascular aneurysm repairs (EVARs) and 196 open repairs (ORs) with median RBC transfusion 8 units (Q1–Q3, 4–14) and 14 units (Q1–Q3, 8–28), respectively. A total of 261 (71%) patients required MT. EVAR patients with MT (n = 96) required less transfusion than OR patients (n = 165): median RBC 10 units (Q1–Q3, 6–16.5) vs. 15 units (Q1–Q3, 9–26) (p = .002), FFP 6 units (Q1–Q3, 2–14.5) vs. 13 units (Q1–Q3, 7–24) (p < .001), and PLT 0 units (Q1–Q3, 0–2) vs. 2 units (Q1–Q3, 0–4) (p = .01). Median blood product ratios in MT patients were FFP/RBC (EVAR group 0.59 [0.33–0.86], OR group 0.84 [0.67–1.2]; p < .001], and PLT/RBC (EVAR 0 [0–0.17], OR 0.12 (0–0.18); p < .001]. In patients repaired by OR a FFP/RBC ratio close to 1 was associated with reduced 30 day mortality (p = .003). The median PLT/RBC ratio was higher during the later part of the study period (p < .001, median test), whereas there was no significant difference in median FFP/RBC ratio (p = .101, median test).ConclusionThe majority of rAAA patients undergoing EVAR required MT. EVAR patients treated with MT had lower FFP/RBC and PLT/RBC ratios than OR patients with MT. The mortality risk was lower with FFP/RBC ratio close to 1:1 in open repaired patients requiring MT. The 24 h PLT/RBC ratio increased over the study period.



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Efficacy and Safety of LASIK Combined with Accelerated Corneal Collagen Cross-Linking for Myopia: Six-Month Study

This was a prospective controlled clinical trial. 48 myopia patients (96 eyes) were included in this study. After LASIK, accelerated corneal collagen cross-linking (ACXL) was used for myopia treatment. During 6-month follow-up, the results of LASIK-ACXL treatment were studied and compared to the LASIK-only procedure. The results showed that no statistically significant differences in UDVA, CDVA, MRSE, mean, pachymetry, or ECD were found between the two groups at the visit after 6 months of follow-up (all ). At 6 months postoperatively, 2 eyes lost one or more lines of visual acuity in the LASIK-ACXL group, whereas all LASIK-only treated eyes had a stable CDVA. In vivo confocal microscopy showed a decrease of keratocyte density and appearance of honeycomb-like structures in the anterior residual stroma bed; the changes were similar but more pronounced following LASIK-only. None of the cases in both groups developed signs of significant keratitis, regression, or ectasia during the 6-month follow-up. LASIK-ACXL can effectively correct refractive error in patients with myopia, with no significant complications during 6-month follow-up, indicating stability and morphologic change similar to those with LASIK-only treatment.

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Aberrant LncRNA Expression Profile in a Contusion Spinal Cord Injury Mouse Model

Long noncoding RNAs (LncRNAs) play a crucial role in cell growth, development, and various diseases related to the central nervous system. However, LncRNA differential expression profiles in spinal cord injury are yet to be reported. In this study, we profiled the expression pattern of LncRNAs using a microarray method in a contusion spinal cord injury (SCI) mouse model. Compared with a spinal cord without injury, few changes in LncRNA expression levels were noted 1 day after injury. The differential changes in LncRNA expression peaked 1 week after SCI and subsequently declined until 3 weeks after injury. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to validate the reliability of the microarray, demonstrating that the results were reliable. Gene ontology (GO) analysis indicated that differentially expressed mRNAs were involved in transport, cell adhesion, ion transport, and metabolic processes, among others. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis showed that the neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and focal adhesions were potentially implicated in SCI pathology. We constructed a dynamic LncRNA-mRNA network containing 264 LncRNAs and 949 mRNAs to elucidate the interactions between the LncRNAs and mRNAs. Overall, the results from this study indicate for the first time that LncRNAs are differentially expressed in a contusion SCI mouse model.

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Association of Overall Opioid Prescriptions on Adolescent Opioid Abuse

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:The Journal of Emergency Medicine
Author(s): David C. Sheridan, Amber Laurie, Robert G. Hendrickson, Rongwei Fu, Bory Kea, B. Zane Horowitz
BackgroundOpioid abuse is a public health epidemic in the United States. Much literature has focused on the prescribing practices of physicians and opioid misuse by adults. However, there are limited data on the effect of opioid prescriptions on adolescent recreational ingestion of these medications.ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to assess for a relationship between opioid prescribing practices across the United States and adolescent opioid ingestion calls to poison centers.MethodsThis was an observational study using the National Poison Data System. The study population consisted of poison center calls regarding adolescents between 2005 and 2010 in the database with a coding of "intentional abuse" and an opioid ingestion. National opioid prescription estimates were generated using nationally representative outpatient and inpatient databases.ResultsThere were 4186 adolescent opioid ingestion calls during the study period. There was a general increase between 2005 and 2010 in both teen opioid abuse calls (617 in 2005 to 782 in 2010) and national opioid prescriptions (approximately 78 million in 2005 to 108 million in 2010). For each opioid prescription increase per 100 persons per year, the annual teen opioid abuse calls increased by 1.8% (95% confidence interval 0.9–2.8%), equivalent to an absolute increase of about 0.04 to 0.05 calls per 100,000 teens annually.ConclusionsThere appears to be an association between opioid prescriptions nationally and poison center calls for adolescent opioid ingestions. This is particularly important in this patient population because of impulsivity and early exposure to substance abuse. Providers should be aware of the nonmedical use of opioids by adolescents and educate patients accordingly.



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Diagnosis of Traumatic Temporal Artery Pseudoaneurysm by Ultrasound in the Emergency Department

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:The Journal of Emergency Medicine
Author(s): Mathew Nelson, Kirk Szustkiewicz, Brendon Stankard
BackgroundEmergency bedside point-of-care ultrasound provides an extremely fast and cost-effective diagnostic modality for the diagnosis of vascular abnormalities, such as pseudoaneurysms. The cost–benefit and timing advantages of ultrasound are increasingly apparent when compared to more conventional diagnostic tests, such as computed tomography angiography and magnetic resonance angiography scans.Case ReportA 33-year-old man with no medical history presented to our emergency department complaining of a constant, throbbing, left-sided headache over his temple with an associated mass. The physical examination revealed a 0.5-cm, tender, flesh-colored, pulsatile mass over his left temple. The tender mass was evaluated at the bedside by an emergency physician with a linear array L-14 probe on the ZONARE ultrasound system (ZONARE Medical Systems, Inc., Mountain View, CA). A small anechoic collection adjacent to the superficial temporal artery was identified with a sac containing flow in a prototypical "yin and yang" pattern. These findings were consistent with a superficial temporal artery pseudoaneurysm.Why Should an Emergency Physician be Aware of This?We present this case report because of the implications of missing the diagnosis. Emergency physicians should be aware of the possible diagnosis of pseudoaneurysm of the temporal artery because of the plethora of head injuries that we evaluate on a regular basis. Missing the diagnosis can lead to delayed neurologic sequela and potential life-threatening bleeding in patients presenting with what appears to be a minor complaint.



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Effectiveness of Fluticasone Furoate–Vilanterol for COPD in Clinical Practice

Guidelines on the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are based on numerous randomized, controlled trials of efficacy, which are usually generated for registration purposes. However, these trials have included patients who were selected with the use of strict criteria and…

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Nonsense mediated RNA decay and evolutionary capacitance

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Gene Regulatory Mechanisms
Author(s): Vivek Kumar Raxwal, Karel Riha
Nonsense mediated RNA decay (NMD) is well-known as an RNA quality control mechanism that sequesters a substantial portion of RNA from expression by targeting it for degradation. However, a number of recent studies across a range of organisms indicate a broader role for NMD in gene regulation and transcriptome homeostasis. Here we propose a novel role for NMD as a buffering system with the capability of accumulating and subsequently releasing a wide spectrum of cryptic genetic variation in response to environmental stimuli, and hence facilitating adaptive evolution. We discuss this role for NMD in the context of evolution of plant pathogen defense, whereby NMD may promote rapid diversification of intracellular immune receptors by mitigating the potentially harmful impact of their newly formed variants on plant fitness.



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A simplification-translation-restoration framework for domain adaptation in statistical machine translation: a case study in medical record translation

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2016
Source:Computer Speech & Language
Author(s): Han-Bin Chen, Hen-Hsen Huang, An-Chang Hsieh, Hsin-Hsi Chen
Integration of in-domain knowledge into an out-of-domain statistical machine translation (SMT) system poses challenges due to the lack of resources. Lack of in-domain bilingual corpora is one such issue. In this paper, we propose a simplification-translation-restoration (STR) framework for domain adaptation in SMT systems. An SMT system to translate medical records from English to Chinese is taken as a case study. We identify the critical segments in a medical sentence and simplify them to alleviate the data sparseness problem in the out-of-domain SMT system. After translating the simplified sentence, the translations of these critical segments are restored to their proper positions. Besides the simplification pre-processing step and the restoration post-processing step, we also enhance the translation and language models in the STR framework by using pseudo bilingual corpora generated by the background MT system. In the experiments, we adapt an SMT system from a government document domain to a medical record domain. The results show the effectiveness of the STR framework.



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The toxicity of methotrexate in male fertility and paternal teratogenicity.

The toxicity of methotrexate in male fertility and paternal teratogenicity.

Expert Opin Drug Metab Toxicol. 2016 Sep 2;

Authors: Gutierrez JC, Hwang K

Abstract
INTRODUCTION: There is a high prevalence of methotrexate (MTX) use in males of reproductive age. The scope of this paper reviews what is known regarding risks to fertility and partners' pregnancy outcomes with regard to MTX use in men.
AREAS COVERED: This paper reviews the evidence for current recommendations for MTX use and male fertility and aims to educate professionals regarding MTX use in reproducing males so that patients may be counseled appropriately. A literature search included peer-reviewed sources from PubMed searches and the literature referenced within.
EXPERT OPINION: There is a lack of evidence regarding effects of MTX on male fertility. The recommendation to stop MTX three months prior to conception is safe, but is not evidenced by an understanding of the impact of MTX on spermatogenesis or paternal-mediated teratogenicity but rather the timeframe of spermatogenesis. Given the unclear evidence, patients treated with MTX must be counseled on the likelihood of adverse effects of MTX and role of sperm cryopreservation. Future studies are needed to help elucidate the unclear evidence of MTX effects on male fertility and pregnancy outcomes.

PMID: 27590039 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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Effectiveness of Fluticasone Furoate–Vilanterol for COPD in Clinical Practice

Guidelines on the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are based on numerous randomized, controlled trials of efficacy, which are usually generated for registration purposes. However, these trials have included patients who were selected with the use of strict criteria and…

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Effectiveness of Fluticasone Furoate–Vilanterol for COPD in Clinical Practice

Guidelines on the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are based on numerous randomized, controlled trials of efficacy, which are usually generated for registration purposes. However, these trials have included patients who were selected with the use of strict criteria and…

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Abdominal paracentesis drainage protects rats against severe acute pancreatitis-associated lung injury by reducing the mobilization of intestinal XDH/XOD

Publication date: October 2016
Source:Free Radical Biology and Medicine, Volume 99
Author(s): Jing Zhou, Zhu Huang, Ning Lin, Weihui Liu, Guan Yang, Dongye Wu, Heda Xiao, Hongyu Sun, Lijun tang
Our previous study showed that abdominal paracentesis drainage (APD) benefits patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) by delaying or avoiding multiple organ failure. However, the role of APD treatment in SAP-associated lung injury (PALI) remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated the impact of APD on PALI in rats to explore the mechanisms underlying its potential treatment benefits. A drainage tube was inserted into the right lower quadrant of rats immediately after SAP induction via the retrograde infusion of 5% sodium taurocholate into the biliopancreatic duct. Mortality rates, histological scores, wet-to-dry weight (W/D) ratios, inflammatory infiltration and oxidative stress in lung tissues were then examined. Xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) and xanthine oxidase (XOD) activities in the sera, intestines and lungs were assessed, as was P-selectin expression. APD treatment significantly decreased pathological damage scores, oxidative stress and neutrophil infiltration in lung tissues, indicating that APD has protective effects against PALI in rats. Moreover, APD decreased the levels of serum α-amylase and trypsin and resulted in a significant decrease in XDH mobilization from the intestines, which suppressed P-selectin expression in lung tissues following SAP induction. APD treatment exerts a significant protective effect against lung injury secondary to SAP by reducing the mobilization of intestinal XDH or XOD (XDH/XOD) and the expression of P-selectin in the lungs. These findings provide novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of APD in patients with SAP.

Graphical abstract

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Nutrient overload, lipid peroxidation and pancreatic beta cell function

Publication date: Available online 4 September 2016
Source:Free Radical Biology and Medicine
Author(s): Shlomo Sasson
Since the landmark discovery of α,β-unsaturated 4-hydroxyalkenals by Esterbauer and colleagues most studies have addressed the consequences of the tendency of these lipid peroxidation products to form covalent adducts with macromolecules and modify cellular functions. Many studies describe detrimental and cytotoxic effects of 4-hydroxy-2E-nonenal (4-HNE) in myriad tissues and organs and numerous pathologies. Other studies similarly assigned unfavorable effects to 4-hydroxy-2E-hexenal (4-HHE) and 4-hydroxy-2E,6Z-dodecadienal (4-HDDE). Nutrient overload (e.g., hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia) modifies lipid metabolism in cells and promotes lipid peroxidation and the generation of α,β-unsaturated 4-hydroxyalkenals. Advances glycation- and lipoxidation end products (AGEs and ALEs) have been associated with the development of insulin resistance and pancreatic beta cell dysfunction and the etiology of type 2 diabetes and its peripheral complications. Less acknowledged are genuine signaling properties of 4-hydroxyalkenals in hormetic processes that provide defense against the consequences of nutrient overload. This review addresses recent findings on such lipohormetic mechanisms that are associated with lipid peroxidation in pancreatic beta cells.



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Uterine carcinosarcoma including angiosarcoma: A short case report

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Treatment and auditory rehabilitation of intralabyrinthine schwannoma by means of cochlear implants : English version.

Treatment and auditory rehabilitation of intralabyrinthine schwannoma by means of cochlear implants : English version.

HNO. 2016 Sep 2;

Authors: Aschendorff A, Arndt S, Laszig R, Wesarg T, Hassepaß F, Beck R

Abstract
BACKGROUND: To date, the therapy of intralabyrinthine schwannoma consists mainly of a wait-and-see approach, completely ignoring auditory rehabilitation. Only a few single-case reports are as yet available on treatment with cochlear implants (CI).
AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aimed to assess the results of auditory rehabilitation after treatment with CI in a series of cases.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The demographic findings, symptoms, and results of surgical therapy in 8 patients were evaluated in a retrospective analysis.
RESULTS: Prior to surgery, all patients presented with profound hearing loss and tinnitus. Episodic dizziness was reported by 3 patients. Among the patients, 4 had an intracochlear and 3 an intravestibular schwannoma, and a transmodiolar schwannoma was found in 1 patient. A total of 6 patients underwent treatment with CI. The results of auditory rehabilitation are favorable with open-set speech comprehension.
CONCLUSION: CI treatment following resection of an intralabyrinthine schwannoma is a promising option for auditory rehabilitation, even in single-sided deafness. This is a new treatment concept in contrast to the wait-and-scan policy. Expectant management appears justified only if the patient still has usable hearing.

PMID: 27590489 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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Expressions of ion co-transporter genes in salicylate-induced tinnitus and treatment effects of spirulina.

Expressions of ion co-transporter genes in salicylate-induced tinnitus and treatment effects of spirulina.

BMC Neurol. 2016;16(1):159

Authors: Hwang JH, Chan YC

Abstract
BACKGROUND: Although the activity of tinnitus-related ion co-transporter are known, their mRNA expressions has seldom been reported. We aimed to investigate the mRNA expressions of tinnitus-related ion co-transporter genes, and treatment effects of Spirulina.
METHODS: The mRNA expressions of K(+)-Cl(-) co-transporter (KCC2) and Na-K-2Cl co-transporter 1 (NKCC1) genes in the cochlea and brain of mice were evaluated after tinnitus was induced by intraperitoneal injection of salicylate. The effects of spirulina water extract on these gene expressions were investigated.
RESULTS: Compared to the control group, the tinnitus scores increased significantly, however, the salicylate-induced tinnitus could be reduced significantly by spirulina water extract. The tinnitus group had higher of borderline significance mRNA expression of KCC2 gene in the cochlear, significantly higher in the temporal lobes and in the frontal lobes. Meanwhile, compared to the tinnitus group, the spirulina group had significantly lower mRNA expression of KCC2 gene in the cochlear, temporal lobes, frontal lobes and parahippocampus/hippocampus. However, the NKCC1 mRNA expression was not significantly different between three groups in the cochlea and these brain areas.
CONCLUSION: Salicylate-induced tinnitus might be associated with increased mRNA expression of KCC2 gene, but not with mRNA expressions of NKCC1 gene in the cochlear and some tinnitus-related brain areas. Spirulina reduced the expression of KCC2 genes in salicylate-induced tinnitus.

PMID: 27590453 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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