Erythematous scaly plaques and nodules on scalp.

Cutaneous manifestations of syphilis are varied and may present with non-specific features. We describe a 45-year-old man who presented with erythematous scaly plaques and nodules on his scalp. In previously reported cases, there were only descriptions of nodules as well as tumors. However, in our case, the patient presented with plaques and nodules on his scalp that quickly resolved with treatment for syphilis. It is important to recognize and treat syphilis at an early stage.

A Review and Case Discussion on a Rare Cause of Non-cirrhotic Portal Hypertension.

Nodular regenerative hyperplasia (NRH) is a rare cause of non-cirrhotic portal hypertension that should be considered in patients with no risk factors for chronic liver disease or in any unusual presentation of variceal hemorrhage. We present a case of an 82-year-old Chinese female, with a history of previous metastatic sigmoid carcinoma with oxaliplatin use, who presented with melena. A gastroscopy done revealed one column of grade 3 esophageal varix, two columns of grade 2 esophageal varices, and a type 1 gastroesophageal varix with stigmata of recent hemorrhage. Cyanoacrylate glue therapy was performed without any complications. A follow-up computed tomography (CT) imaging of the abdomen did not reveal any significant features of cirrhosis or venous thrombosis, and the decision was made for a transjugular liver biopsy with hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) measurement. The measured HVPG was 6 mmHg, and the liver biopsy showed features consistent with NRH.

Biotransformations of anticancer ruthenium(III) complexes: an X-ray absorption spectroscopic study.

An anti-metastatic drug, NAMI-A ((ImH)[Ru(III) Cl4 (Im)(dmso)]; Im=imidazole, dmso=S-bound dimethylsulfoxide), and a cytotoxic drug, KP1019 ((IndH)[Ru(III) Cl4 (Ind)2 ]; Ind=indazole), are two Ru-based anticancer drugs in human clinical trials. Their reactivities under biologically relevant conditions, including aqueous buffers, protein solutions or gels (e.g, albumin, transferrin and collagen), undiluted blood serum, cell-culture medium and human liver (HepG2) cancer cells, were studied by Ru K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). These XAS data were fitted from linear combinations of spectra of well-characterised Ru compounds. The absence of XAS data from the parent drugs in these fits points to profound changes in the coordination environments of Ru(III) . The fits point to the presence of Ru(IV/III) clusters and binding of Ru(III) to S-donor groups, amine/imine and carboxylato groups of proteins. Cellular uptake of KP1019 is approximately 20-fold higher than that of NAMI-A under the same conditions, but it diminishes drastically after the decomposition of KP1019 in cell-culture media, which indicate that the parent complex is taken in by cells through passive diffusion.