Abstract
We present a detailed prompt emission and early optical afterglow analysis of the two very-high-energy (VHE) detected bursts GRB 201015A and GRB 201216C, and their comparison with a subset ...of similar bursts. Time-resolved spectral analysis of multistructured GRB 201216C using the Bayesian binning algorithm revealed that during the entire duration of the burst, the low-energy spectral index (
α
pt
) remained below the limit of the synchrotron line of death. However, statistically some of the bins supported the additional thermal component. Additionally, the evolution of spectral parameters showed that both the peak energy (
E
p
) and
α
pt
tracked the flux. These results were further strengthened using the values of the physical parameters obtained by synchrotron modeling of the data. Our earliest optical observations of both bursts using the F/Photometric Robotic Atmospheric Monitor Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos and Burst Observer and Optical Transient Exploring System robotic telescopes displayed a smooth bump in their early optical light curves, consistent with the onset of the afterglow due to synchrotron emission from an external forward shock. Using the observed optical peak, we constrained the initial bulk Lorentz factors of GRB 201015A and GRB 201216C to Γ
0
= 204 and Γ
0
= 310, respectively. The present early optical observations are the earliest known observations constraining outflow parameters and our analysis indicate that VHE detected bursts could have a diverse range of observed luminosity within the detectable redshift range of present VHE facilities.
As lung cancer has increased to the most common cause of cancer death worldwide, prognostic biomarkers and effective targeted treatments remain lacking despite advances based on patients' ...stratification. Multiple core cyclins, best known as drivers of cell proliferation, are commonly deregulated in lung cancer where they may serve as oncogenes. The recent expansion of the cyclin family raises the question whether new members might play oncogenic roles as well. Here, we investigated the protein levels of eight atypical cyclins in lung cancer cell lines and formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) human tumors, as well as their functional role in lung cancer cells. Of the new cyclins evaluated, CNTD2 was significantly overexpressed in lung cancer compared to adjacent normal tissue, and exhibited a predominant nuclear location. CNTD2 overexpression increased lung cancer cell viability, Ki-67 intensity and clonogenicity and promoted lung cancer cell migration. Accordingly, CNTD2 enhanced tumor growth in vivo on A549 xenograft models. Finally, the analysis of gene expression data revealed a high correlation between elevated levels of CNTD2 and decreased overall survival in lung cancer patients. Our results reveal CNTD2 as a new oncogenic driver in lung cancer, suggesting value as a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in this disease.
Objective: To describe and analyse the clinical characteristics of 100 patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) associated with infections. Methods: Patients were identified by a computer ...assisted search (Medline) of published reports to locate all cases of APS published in English, Spanish, and French from 1983 to 2003. The bilateral Fisher exact test was used for statistics. Results: 59 female and 41 male patients were identified (mean (SD) age, 32 (18) years (range 1 to 78)): 68 had primary APS, 27 had systemic lupus erythematosus, two had “lupus-like” syndrome, two had inflammatory bowel disease, and one had rheumatoid arthritis. APS presented as a catastrophic syndrome in 40% of cases. The main clinical manifestations of APS included: pulmonary involvement (39%), skin involvement (36%), and renal involvement (35%; nine with renal thrombotic microangiopathy, RTMA). The main associated infections and agents included skin infection (18%), HIV (17%), pneumonia (14%), hepatitis C (13%), and urinary tract infection (10%). Anticoagulation was used in 74%, steroids in 53%, intravenous immunoglobulins in 20%, cyclophosphamide in 12%, plasma exchange in 12%, and dialysis in 9.6%. Twenty three patients died following infections and thrombotic episodes (16 with catastrophic APS). Patients given steroids had a better prognosis (p = 0.024). The presence of RTMA and requirement for dialysis carried a worse prognosis (p = 0.001 and p = 0.035, respectively). Conclusions: Various different infections can be associated with thrombotic events in patients with APS, including the potentially lethal subset termed catastrophic APS. Aggressive treatment with anticoagulation, steroids, and appropriate antibiotic cover is necessary to improve the prognosis.
Pump–probe femtosecond microscopy has been applied to reveal the time evolution of the ablation processes at sub-picosecond resolution with combined pulses of different photon energies. Experimental ...results revealed that differences in the photon energies of ablation pulses influenced the temporal response of the material. Significant differences in the excitation and melting of the material within 10 ps of irradiation were observed. The analysis of dynamic Newton's rings observed with the pump–probe technique confirmed and explained the faster expansion of ablated matter when using shorter irradiation wavelengths. The results also implied that optical properties of the material play a significant role.
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•Influence of irradiation wavelength with femtosecond laser pulses are studied by time-resolved pump-probe microscopy.•Temporal response of the excitation is characterized by the photon energy and the optical properties of the material.•Wavelength dependence of materials can be evaluated by Newton's rings analysis.
Background
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) impairs quality of life (HRQOL), as does systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Both are more common in women and are associated with fibromyalgia (FM). ...However, the relationship between IBS and SLE and its impact on HRQOL has not been explored. Therefore, we aimed to study the frequency and features likely to influence the presence of IBS‐type symptoms in SLE and their impact on HRQOL.
Methods
Female patients with SLE were studied. The presence of IBS‐type symptoms and bowel habit subtype were established by Rome III criteria and HRQOL was assessed using the SF‐36. Fibromyalgia and depression were assessed using the American College of Rheumatology criteria and CES‐D scale, respectively.
Key Results
A total of 105 consecutive patients (43.62 ± 11.34 years old) were included; 48.6% had IBS‐type symptoms (SLE+IBS) and were classified as IBS‐C: 23.5%, IBS‐D: 37.3%, and IBS‐M: 39.2%. In addition, 23.8% had FM. SLE+IBS vs Non‐IBS SLE patients had higher SLE activity scores (2.55 ± 1.65 vs 1.74 ± 2.19; p = 0.03), were more likely to have FM (33.0% vs 14.8%; p = 0.02) and depression (41.1% vs 25.9%, p = 0.04). Logistic multivariate analysis showed that IBS‐type symptoms were associated with FM (OR = 2.85, 95% CI: 1.11–7.43) and depression (OR = 1.07, 95% CI: 1.02–1.13). Finally, SLE+IBS vs Non‐IBS SLE patients had lower SF‐36 scores (49.65 ± 18.57 vs 62.67 ± 18.14; p = 0.02).
Conclusions & Inferences
IBS‐type symptoms are highly prevalent among women with SLE and are associated with FM and depression. SLE+IBS patients had worse HRQOL vs Non‐IBS SLE, independently of FM status. We suggest that treating IBS symptoms may improve HRQOL in women with SLE.
The objective of this study was to assess the effects of rituximab on bone mineral density (BMD) in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) 1 year after treatment. Thirty active female SLE ...patients treated with rituximab were compared with 43 SLE women not treated with rituximab. BMD was measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) before initiating biologic therapy and after 1 year. The mean age was 38.5 ± 2.1 years; median disease duration was 7 years. In the rituximab group, after 1 year of follow-up, BMD at the femoral neck (FN) decreased from 0.980 ± 0.130 g/cm2 to 0.809 ± 0.139 g/cm2 (−17.4%; p = 0.001). Similarly, BMD at the lumbar spine (LS) decreased from 1.062 ± 0.137 g/cm2 to 0.893 ± 0.194 g/cm2 (−15.8%; p = 0.001). In control subjects, BMD at the FN decreased from 0.914 ± 0.193 g/cm2 to 0.890 ± 0.135 g/cm2 (−2.6%; p = 0.001), and BMD at the LS decreased from 0.926 ± 0.128 g/cm2 to 0.867 ± 0.139 g/cm2 (−6.2%; p = 0.09). After 1 year, SLE patients had lower BMD at both the FN and LS, but the loss was greater in postmenopausal patients who had received rituximab therapy.
The Burst Observer and Optical Transient Exploring System (BOOTES) was first designed as an asset of autonomous telescopes that started to be deployed in 1998, taking 24 years to be fully developed ...around the earth. Nowadays BOOTES has became a global network of robotic telescopes, being the first one present in all continents, as of 2022. Here we present the details of the network and review its achievements over the last 2 decades regarding follow-up observations of high-energy transient events. Moreover, considering the recent operations of neutrino and gravitational wave detectors, some hot-topic expectations related to robotic astronomy are discussed within the framework of multi-wavelength astrophysics.
The immune system undergoes continuousmorphologic and functionalchanges throughoutthe years, and it is now believed that the immune response has its peak function in puberty and gradually decreases ...with age (immunosenescence). Recent studies in healthy octogenarian patients suggest that the immune system, instead of suffering a generalized deterioration, undergoes a remodelling/readjustment of its major functions. Increase in two contrasting phenomena coexist in immunosenescence: on the one hand, a decrease in the capacity of the immune response and, on the other hand autoantibodyproduction.The possibleconsequencesof this progressive‘ageing’ of the immune system are the increasein autoimmune phenomena, incidenceof neoplasiaand predisposition to infections. The study of autoimmune manifestations in elderly populations should be considered a priority for future medical research because of increasing life expectancy, especially in developed countries. This review analyses the main immune disorders associated with immunosenescence, the prevalence and clinical significance of autoantibodiesin the elderly and the clinical expression of the main autoimmune diseases in older patients.
Background: Anti-chromatin antibodies have recently been described in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and it has been suggested that their presence is associated with lupus ...nephritis. Objective: To assess the prevalence and clinical associations of these antibodies in SLE. Methods: The presence of anti-chromatin antibodies in 100 patients with SLE was investigated by an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). To determine the specificity of these antibodies, 100 patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome, 30 with primary antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), 10 with systemic sclerosis, and 100 normal controls were also tested. Results: Positive levels were detected in 69/100 (69%) patients with SLE. In contrast, they were found in only 8/100 (8%) of those with primary Sjögren’s syndrome, in 1/10 (10%) with systemic sclerosis, in 2/30 (7%) with primary APS, and in none of the 100 healthy controls. Patients with anti-chromatin antibodies had a twofold higher prevalence of lupus nephropathy than those without these antibodies (58% v 29%, p<0.01). A significant correlation was found between the levels of anti-chromatin antibodies and disease activity score as measured by the European Consensus Lupus Activity Measurement (ECLAM; p=0.011). Conclusions: The measurement of anti-chromatin antibodies appears to be a useful addition to the laboratory tests that can help in the diagnosis and treatment of SLE. These antibodies are both sensitive and specific for SLE, and are a useful marker for an increased risk of lupus nephritis.
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