Hepatocellular adenomas (HCAs) are benign liver tumors associated with bleeding or malignant transformation. Data on the indication for surgery are scarce. We analyzed indications and outcome of ...patients operated for HCAs < 50 mm compared to HCAs ≥ 50 mm. Changes in final postoperative diagnosis were assessed. We performed a retrospective study that included patients who underwent resection for (suspected) HCAs in the Netherlands from 2014 to 2019. Indication for resection was analyzed and stratified for small (<50 mm) and large (≥50 mm) tumors. Logistic regression analysis was performed on factors influencing change in tumor diagnosis. Out of 222 patients who underwent surgery, 44 (20%) patients had a tumor <50 mm. Median age was 46 (interquartile range IQR, 33-56) years in patients with small tumors and 37 (IQR, 31-46) years in patients with large tumors ( p = 0.016). Patients with small tumors were more frequently men (21% vs. 5%, p = 0.002). Main indications for resection in patients with small tumors were suspicion of (pre)malignancy (55%), (previous) bleeding (14%), and male sex (11%). Patients with large tumors received operations because of tumor size >50 mm (52%), suspicion of (pre)malignancy (28%), and (previous) bleeding (5.1%). No difference was observed in HCA-subtype distribution between small and large tumors. Ninety-six (43%) patients had a postoperative change in diagnosis. Independent risk factors for change in diagnosis were tumor size <50 mm (adjusted odds ratio aOR, 3.4; p < 0.01), male sex (aOR, 3.7; p = 0.03), and lack of hepatobiliary contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (CE-MRI) (aOR, 1.8; p = 0.04). Resection for small (suspected) HCAs was mainly indicated by suspicion of (pre)malignancy, whereas for large (suspected) HCAs, tumor size was the most prevalent indication. Male sex, tumor size <50 mm, and lack of hepatobiliary CE-MRI were independent risk factors for postoperative change in tumor diagnosis.
The cellular endosymbiont, Wolbachia, kills or feminizes males or causes cytoplasmic incompatibility in a wide array of arthropod hosts. Here, we describe a new female-biasing Wolbachia strain (NFB) ...from the harlequin beetle-riding pseudoscorpion, Cordylochernes scorpioides . Pseudoscorpions are viviparous, with embryos developing in a translucent brood sac. This “external womb” facilitates visual assessment of embryonic development and the consequences of endosymbiont infection for host fitness. In an investigation that combined inheritance studies, antibiotic treatment and molecular assays, sex-ratio distortion was found to be maternally inherited and associated with lower female reproductive success. Antibiotic treatment cured females of the Wolbachia infection, restored offspring sex ratio to 1:1 and significantly improved reproductive success. Photomicroscopy documented that, although infected C. scorpioides females produced similar numbers of early-stage embryos as tetracycline-cured females, they gave birth to significantly fewer offspring, indicating that female bias results from the killing of male embryos. However, infected females gave birth to significantly more female offspring than the tetracycline-cured females. Furthermore, these female offspring were larger than those of the treated group, and female size is known to be positively correlated with protonymphs production. The increased number and size of female offspring born to infected females appears to result from reproductive compensation in which maternal resources are reallocated from dead male embryos to female siblings. Phylogenetic analysis, using Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST), indicates that the NFB Wolbachia strain is closely related to a strain previously described from C. scorpioides, but the two differ extensively in their Wolbachia surface protein gene sequences, because of possible recombination with a nematode-infecting Wolbachia strain. Even one of the highly conserved MLST genes, coxA revealed incongruencies that can be explained with horizontal gene transfer (HGT). These apparent HGT events are associated with increased potential for the spread of the NFB Wolbachia strain within C. scorpioides populations.
Thesis (M.S.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2008.
"December, 2008." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 53-59). Online version available on the World Wide Web.
There is an increasing awareness of the evidence-based selection of outcomes to be measured in clinical trials and clinical practice. Currently, there is no core outcome set (COS) for ...cardio-oncology, which may hinder the (inter)national comparison of the effectiveness of research and the quality of cardio-oncology care. The aim of this study is to develop a standard and pragmatic patient-centred outcome set to assess and monitor cancer patients and survivors at risk of or with cardiovascular diseases.
A list of outcome domains was generated through a review of registries and guidelines, and six patient interviews. The project team reviewed and refined the outcome domains prior to starting a two-round Delphi procedure conducted between January-June 2022. The panellists, including healthcare providers and researchers, were invited to rate the importance of the outcomes. 26 experts from 11 countries rated a list of 93 outcomes (round 1) and 63 outcomes (round 2) to gain consensus on a list of outcome measures, and of demographic factors, health status and treatment variables. The final COS includes 15 outcome measures, reflecting four core areas: life impact (n = 2), pathophysiological manifestations (n = 9), resource use/economic impact (n = 1), and mortality/survival (n = 3). Next, six demographic factors, 21 health status, three cardiovascular and nine cancer variables were included.
This is the first international development of a COS for cardio-oncology. This set aims to facilitate (inter)national comparison in cardio-oncology care, using standardised parameters and meaningful patient-centred outcomes for research and quality of care assessments.
The G-protein activator mastoparan (MP) was found to elicit the hypersensitive response (HR) in isolated Asparagus sprengeri mesophyll cells at micromolar concentrations. The HR was characterized by ...cell death, extracellular alkalinization, and an oxidative burst, indicated by the reduction of molecular O2 to $\text{O}_{2}{}^{.-}$. To our knowledge, this study was the first to monitor photosynthesis during the HR. MP had rapid and dramatic effects on photosynthetic electron transport and excitation energy transfer as determined by variable chlorophyll a fluorescence measurements. A large increase in nonphotochemical quenching of chlorophyll a fluorescence accompanied the initial stages of the oxidative burst. The minimal level of fluorescence was also quenched, which suggests the origin of this nonphotochemical quenching to be a decrease in the antenna size of photosystem II. In contrast, photochemical quenching of fluorescence decreased dramatically during the latter stages of the oxidative burst, indicating a somewhat slower inhibition of photosystem II electron transport. The net consumption of O2 and the initial rate of O2 uptake, elicited by MP, were higher in the light than in the dark. These data indicate that light enhances the oxidative burst and suggest a complex relationship between photosynthesis and the HR.
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