Despite scientific and clinical advances in the field of pharmacogenomics (PGx), application into routine care remains limited. Opportunely, several implementation studies and programs have been ...initiated over recent years. This article presents an overview of these studies and identifies current research gaps. Importantly, one such gap is the undetermined collective clinical utility of implementing a panel of PGx‐markers into routine care, because the evidence base is currently limited to specific, individual drug‐gene pairs. The Ubiquitous Pharmacogenomics (U‐PGx) Consortium, which has been funded by the European Commission's Horizon‐2020 program, aims to address this unmet need. In a prospective, block‐randomized, controlled clinical study (PREemptive Pharmacogenomic testing for prevention of Adverse drug REactions PREPARE), pre‐emptive genotyping of a panel of clinically relevant PGx‐markers, for which guidelines are available, will be implemented across healthcare institutions in seven European countries. The impact on patient outcomes and cost‐effectiveness will be investigated. The program is unique in its multicenter, multigene, multidrug, multi‐ethnic, and multihealthcare system approach.
Display omitted
•Composite films based on chitosan and waste coffee grounds (WCG) were developed.•WCG-containing composites enhanced the adsorption of pharmaceuticals from water.•Maximum removal of ...pharmaceuticals was verified under mild experimental conditions.•The composite shows acceptable reusability in consecutive adsorption processes.
Waste coffee-grounds (WCG), a poorly explored source of biocompounds, were combined with chitosan (Cs) and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in order to obtain composites. Overall, WCG showed a good interaction with the polymeric matrix and good dispersibility up to 10 wt-%. At 5 wt-% WCG, the composite exhibited a noticeable enhancement (from 10 to 44%) of the adsorption of pharmaceuticals (metamizol (MET), acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), acetaminophen (ACE), and caffeine (CAF)) as compared to the pristine sample. The highest removal efficiency was registered at pH 6 and the removal followed the order ASA > CAF > ACE > MET. For all pharmaceuticals, the adsorption kinetics was found to follow the pseudo-second order model, while the adsorption mechanism was explained by the Freundlich isotherm. Reuse experiments indicated that the WCG-containing composite has an attractive cost-effectiveness since it presented a remarkable reusability in at least five consecutive adsorption/desorption cycles.
The surface and edge chemistry are vital points to assess a specific application of graphene and other carbon nanomaterials. Based on first-principles density functional theory, we investigate ...twenty-four chemical functional groups containing oxygen and nitrogen atoms anchored to the edges of armchair graphene nanoribbons (AGNRs). Results for the band structures, formation energy, band gaps, electronic charge deficit, oxidation energy, reduction energy, and global hydrophilicity index are analyzed. Among the oxygen functional groups, carbonyl, anhydride, quinone, lactone, phenol, ethyl-ester, carboxyl, α-ester-methyl, and methoxy act as electron-withdrawing groups and, conversely, pyrane, pyrone, and ethoxy act as electron-donating groups. In the case of nitrogen-functional groups, amine,
N-p
-toluidine, ethylamine, pyridine-
N
-oxide, pyridone, lactam, and pyridinium transfer electrons to the AGNRs. Nitro, amide, and
N
-ethylamine act as electron-withdrawing groups. The carbonyl and pyridinium group-AGNRs show metallic behavior. The formation energy calculations revealed that AGNRs with pyridinium, amine, pyrane, carbonyl, and phenol are the most stable structures. In terms of the global hydrophilicity index, the quinone and
N
-ethylamine groups showed the most significant values, suggesting that they are highly efficient in accepting electrons from other chemical species. The oxidation and reduction energies as a function of the ribbon's width are discussed for AGNRs with quinone, hydroquinone, nitro, and nitro + 2H. Besides, we discuss the effect of nitrogen-doping in AGNRs on the oxidation and reduction energies for the quinone and hydroquinone functional groups.
Results are shown for the band structure, formation energy, band gaps, oxidation and reduction energies, electronic charge deficit, and global hydrophilicity index.
Erucic acid (cis-docosa-13-enoic acid, C22:1∆13) and nervonic acid (cis-tetracosa-15-enoic acid, C24:1 ∆15) are important renewable feedstocks in plastic, cosmetic, nylon, and lubricant industries. ...Furthermore, nervonic acid is also applied to the treatment of some neurological diseases. However, the production of these two very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA) is very limited as both are not present in the main vegetable oils (e.g., soybean, rapeseed, sunflower, and palm). Ectopic integration and heterologous expression of fatty acid elongases (3-ketoacyl-CoA synthases, KCS) from different plants in
Rhodosporidium toruloides
resulted in the de novo synthesis of erucic acid and nervonic acid in this oleaginous yeast. Increasing
KCS
gene copy number or the use of a push/pull strategy based on the expression of elongases with complementary substrate preferences increased significantly the amount of these two fatty acids in the microbial oils. Oil titers in 7-L bioreactors were above 50 g/L, and these two VLCFA represented 20–30% of the total fatty acids. This is the first time that microbial production of these types of oils is reported.
In this study of 42,760 asymptomatic women, the overall diagnostic accuracy of digital and film mammography as a means of screening for breast cancer was similar, but the former method was better ...among women under the age of 50 years, women with radiographically dense breasts, and premenopausal or perimenopausal women.
In 42,760 asymptomatic women, the overall diagnostic accuracy of digital and film mammography was similar, but digital mammography was better among women under 50 years, women with radiographically dense breasts, and premenopausal or perimenopausal women.
There is now general agreement that screening mammography reduces the rate of death from breast cancer among women who are 40 years of age or older.
1
,
2
Meta-analyses of eight large, randomized trials found a reduction in the mortality rate of 16 to 35 percent among women 50 to 69 years of age who were assigned to screening mammography,
1
whereas women who were 40 to 49 years of age at entry had a smaller but significant reduction of 15 to 20 percent.
1
–
3
The smaller benefit of screening in younger women is probably due to a lower incidence of breast . . .
Acromegaly is a rare disorder caused by chronic growth hormone (GH) hypersecretion. While diagnostic and therapeutic methods have advanced, little information exists on trends in acromegaly ...characteristics over time. The Liège Acromegaly Survey (LAS) Database, a relational database, is designed to assess the profile of acromegaly patients at diagnosis and during long-term follow-up at multiple treatment centers. The following results were obtained at diagnosis. The study population consisted of 3173 acromegaly patients from ten countries; 54.5% were female. Males were significantly younger at diagnosis than females (43.5 vs 46.4 years; P < 0.001). The median delay from first symptoms to diagnosis was 2 years longer in females (P = 0.015). Ages at diagnosis and first symptoms increased significantly over time (P < 0.001). Tumors were larger in males than females (P < 0.001); tumor size and invasion were inversely related to patient age (P < 0.001). Random GH at diagnosis correlated with nadir GH levels during OGTT (P < 0.001). GH was inversely related to age in both sexes (P < 0.001). Diabetes mellitus was present in 27.5%, hypertension in 28.8%, sleep apnea syndrome in 25.5% and cardiac hypertrophy in 15.5%. Serious cardiovascular outcomes like stroke, heart failure and myocardial infarction were present in <5% at diagnosis. Erythrocyte levels were increased and correlated with IGF-1 values. Thyroid nodules were frequent (34.0%); 820 patients had colonoscopy at diagnosis and 13% had polyps. Osteoporosis was present at diagnosis in 12.3% and 0.6–4.4% had experienced a fracture. In conclusion, this study of >3100 patients is the largest international acromegaly database and shows clinically relevant trends in the characteristics of acromegaly at diagnosis.
► NZVI efficiently immobilised Pb and Zn in polluted soils. ► NZVI had little impact on cellular viability and functionality in soil microbiota. ► Three selected treatment-related genes showed no ...changes in their expression ratios. ► NZVI caused changes in structure and composition of the soil bacteria population.
In this work, nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) particles have been used as an immobilisation strategy to reduce Pb and Zn availability and mobility in polluted soils. The application of NZVI to two soil microcosms (MPb and MZn) at a dose of 34mgg−1 soil efficiently immobilised Pb (25%) and zinc (20%). Exposure to NZVI had little impact on the microbial cellular viability and biological activity in the soils. Three bacterial genes (narG, nirS and gyrA) were used as treatment-related biomarkers. These biomarkers ruled out a broad bactericidal effect on the bulk soil microbial community. A transcriptome analysis of the genes did not reveal any changes in their expression ratios after the NZVI treatment: 1.6 (narG), 0.8 (nirS) and 0.7 (gyrA) in the MPb microcosm and 0.6 (narG), 1.2 (nirS) and 0.5 (gyrA) in the MZn microcosm. However, significant changes in the structure and composition of the soil bacteria population were detected by fluorescence insitu hybridisation. Thus, our results showed that NZVI toxicity could be highly dose and species dependent, and the effective applicability of the proposed molecular approach in assessing the impact of this immobilisation strategy on soil microbial population.
PDF
