Podoplanin, expressed in the lymphatic but not in the blood vessel endothelium, is widely used as a specific marker for lymphatic endothelial cells and lymphangiogenesis. The relation between ...lymphatic vessel density and breast cancer subtype or the expression of basal markers has not yet been investigated. We assessed lymphatic vessel density (LVD), blood vessel density, and the expression of podoplanin in stromal cancer-associated fibroblasts, in 156 invasive ductal breast cancers (T≥1, N≥1, M0). Afterwards, we assessed the relationship between the above-mentioned parameters and (i) breast cancer subtype (luminal vs. HER2 vs. triple negative), (ii) tumor grade (G1 vs. G2 vs. G3), (iii) the expression of cytokeratin (CK) 5/6, (iv) P-cadherin, (v) smooth muscle actin (SMA), and (vi) the pattern/intensity of stromal lymphocytic infiltration. We found a significantly higher LVD and podoplanin expression in stromal fibroblasts in (i) G3 tumors, (ii) triple-negative carcinomas, (iii) tumors expressing CK5/6, SMA, or P-cadherin, and (iv) neoplasms with stroma intensively infiltrated by lymphocytes. Moreover, we observed a significant inverse relationship between the expression of podoplanin in luminal A subtype, P-cadherin, CK5/6, and SMA-negative tumors and tumors without strong lymphocytic infiltration. A significantly higher percentage of tumors with strong lymphocytic infiltration was noted among G3 carcinomas. Breast carcinomas of different grades, subtypes, and basal marker expression are characterized by different composition of the stroma, that is different LVD, podoplanin expression in stromal fibroblasts, and the pattern/intensity of lymphocytic infiltration.
Within stage III melanoma prognosis and outcomes significantly vary. Advances in systemic therapy improved prognosis in metastatic melanoma. Adjuvant therapy in stage III significantly lowered ...relapses, although the effect on survival is less evident. Analysis of treatment results in stage IIIC and IIID before introduction of the modern adjuvant therapy, but after introduction of the effective systemic therapy in metastatic relapse, is needed.
To analyse the clinical outcomes in patients with stage IIIC and IIID melanoma before the introduction of the novel adjuvant therapy.
Consecutive stage IIIC and IIID melanoma patients treated in 2015-2018 in 4 reference centres in Poland were enrolled in the analysis of RFS and OS (in-transit metastases excluded). Median follow-up was 26.6 months (1.7-67.2).
There were 224 stage IIIC and 49 stage IIID patients. Recurrence was observed in 170 (62.2%); 102 (45.5%) deaths in stage IIIC and 28 (57.1%) in stage IIID were reported. RFS and OS were better in stage IIIC compared to stage IIID. RFS and OS in the IIIC group were 19.7 and 36.2 months, respectively, and in IIID - 8.9 and 27.8 months, respectively.
The survival of patients with high-risk melanomas has improved in recent years, however, it is still unsatisfactory. The major changes in melanoma management related to the introduction of the adjuvant therapy require further careful observation.
In recent years laparoscopic approach to liver resections has gained important attention from surgeons worldwide. The aim of this review was to compare the results of laparoscopic and open liver ...resections.
We have performed a search in Medline, Embase and the Cochrane Library databases. Studies comparing laparoscopic and open liver resections were included.
No randomized clinical trial were identified. In the 16 observational studies included in the analysis there were 927 laparoscopic and 1049 open liver resections. The laparoscopy group had lower blood loss (MD = 244.93 ml,
< 0.00001), lower odds of transfusion (OR = 0.35,
= 0.0002), lower odds of positive margins on pathology report (OR = 0.22,
< 0.00001), lower odds of readmission (OR = 0.36,
= 0.04), lower odds of pulmonary (OR = 0.38,
= 0.003) and cardiac complications (OR = 0.30,
= 0.02) and lower odds of postoperative liver failure (OR = 0.24,
= 0.001), but in many cases the results were based on a low number of events reported in included studies.
Laparoscopic resection of liver yields complications rates comparable to open resection, but the results are based on low quality evidence from nonrandomised studies.
To assess the effectiveness of iodine-treated biocidal filter media against bacterial spore aerosols. Bacillus subtilis spores were aerosolized and introduced into a filtration system. Both treated ...and untreated filters exhibited high viable removal efficiency (>99·996%) with negligible variation in pressure drop during the entire experiment. The viability of collected spores on the filter was investigated by enumeration of spores extracted from the filter by vortexing. At room temperature and low relative humidity (RH), the survival fraction of the treated filter was significantly lower than that of the untreated filter (P-value < 0·05). Meanwhile, at room temperature and high RH and at high temperature and high RH, the survival fractions on the treated medium were statistically the same as the untreated control at room temperature and low RH. Both treated and untreated filters achieved excellent viable removal efficiency for spores. The pressure drop of the treated filter was not affected by the iodine treatment. The viability of collected bacterial spores was decreased because of the exertion of iodine disinfectant. The evaluation demonstrates that the iodine-treated filter is a viable medium for respiratory protection against infectious spore aerosols. The results warrant further evaluation of smaller biological agents, which exhibit higher penetration.
The highly polymorphic swine leucocyte antigen (SLA) genes are one of the most important determinants in swine immune responses to infectious diseases, vaccines, and in transplantation success. Study ...of SLA influence requires accurate and effective typing methods. We developed a simple and rapid method to type alleles at the three classical SLA class I loci (SLA-1, SLA-3 and SLA-2) using the PCR-sequence-specific primer (PCR-SSP) strategy. This typing system relies on 47 discriminatory PCR primer pairs designed to amplify the SLA class I alleles by groups that have similar sequence motifs. We applied this low-resolution group-specific typing method to characterize the SLA class I alleles present in three outbred pig populations (n = 202). Alleles from 24 class I allele groups corresponding to 56 class I genotypes were detected. We also identified 23 low-resolution SLA class I haplotypes in these pigs and found haplotypes Lr-1.0 (SLA-1*01XX-SLA-3*01XX-SLA-2*01XX) and Lr-4.0 (SLA-1*04XX-SLA-3*04XX-SLA-2*04XX) in all three pig populations with a high prevalence. Over 80% of the pigs examined (n = 162) were found to bear at least one of these haplotypes, resulting in a combined haplotype frequency of nearly 50%. This PCR-SSP-based typing system demonstrates a reliable and unambiguous detection of SLA class I alleles, and can be used to effectively investigate the SLA diversity in outbred pig populations. It will help to identify the role of SLA antigens in disease-resistant pigs and may facilitate the development of effective vaccines.
Feather pecking is a major welfare problem in egg production. It may be caused by endogenous (genetic and physiological) and environmental (feeding, density and housing conditions) factors. Despite ...the number and variety of experiments performed over past years, it is still not possible to define a genetic background for this trait. A possible reason is the complex nature of feather pecking, but also the lack of a homogenous approach in the studies conducted. The present paper summarizes recent findings regarding genetic and physiological components of feather pecking. Furthermore, it emphasizes the need for complex study combining a selection experiment together with the power of molecular biology and bioinformatics.
Feather pecking is a behavioural disorder of laying hens and has serious animal welfare and economic implications. One of the several aetiological hypotheses proposes that the disorder results from ...redirected exploratory behaviour. Variation in the gene encoding the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) has been shown to be associated with exploratory behaviour in several species, including in a passerine bird species. We therefore considered DRD4 as a candidate gene for feather pecking. We have annotated DRD4 in the chicken genome and have re-sequenced it in 140 animals belonging to: experimental layer lines divergently selected for high and low propensity to feather pecking; the unselected founder population; and two commercial lines with low and high propensity to feather pecking. We have identified two sub-haplotypes of DRD4 that are highly significantly associated with feather pecking behaviour in the experimental (P = 7.30 x 10⁻⁷) as well as in the commercial lines (P = 2.78 x 10⁻⁶). Linkage disequilibrium (LD) extends into a neighbouring gene encoding deformed epidermal autoregulatory factor 1 (DEAF1). The product of DEAF1 regulates the transcription of the gene encoding the serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) 1A receptor. Thus, DEAF1 represents another candidate gene for feather pecking. Re-sequencing of five animals homozygous for the 'low-pecking' sub-haplotype and of six animals homozygous for the 'high-pecking' sub-haplotype delineated an LD block of 14 833 bases spanning the two genes. None of the variants in the LD block is obviously functional. However, the haplotype information will be useful to select against the propensity to feather pecking in chicken and to elucidate the functional implications of the variants.
To investigate the performance of an iodine-releasing filter medium for use as a protective device against airborne pathogens. The filter's physical and viable removal efficiencies (VRE) were ...investigated with challenges of MS2 bacteriophage aerosols, and the infectivity of MS2 collected on the filter was analysed. To test a proposed inactivation mechanism, media containing thiosulfate or bovine serum albumin (BSA) were put in impingers to quench and consume I₂ released from the filter. In direct plating experiments, treated filters presented significantly higher VREs than did untreated filters; however, collection in excess BSA decreased VRE by half and in thiosulfate the apparent VRE decreased drastically. No significant difference in infectivity of retained viruses on treated and untreated filters was observed at the same environmental condition. Evidence presented herein for competition by dissolved I₂ in infectivity assays supports a mechanism of induced displacement and capture of I₂. It also requires that dissociation of iodine from the filter and capture of iodine by MS2 aerosols as they pass through the filter be factored in the design of the assessment methodology. The filter's strong retention capability minimizes reaerosolization but also makes it difficult to discriminate the antimicrobial effect at the surface. This study shows the direct plating assay method to be sensitive to interference by iodine-releasing materials. This requires reevaluation of earlier reports of VRE measurements.
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