[Post-colonoscopy colorectal cancer: Evaluation of a cohort in its clinical and colonoscopic characteristics, survival and its causes according to the World Endoscopy Organization]. / Cáncer colorrectal post-colonoscopia: Evaluación de una cohorte en sus características clínicas, colonoscópicas, sobrevida y sus causas según la Organización Mundial de Endoscopia.

Post-colonoscopy colorectal cancer (PCCRC) is a tumor that appears after a normal colonoscopy before the established time for the endoscopic follow up. Its origin reflects the quality of the colonoscopy and the different tumoral biologics between the CRC and the CRCPC. Our aim is to describe the characteristics of the PCCRC in our region, to identify risk factors, to discriminate the potential causes according to the World Endoscopý Organization (WEO) and to determine its impact in the patient's survival. We studied patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) attended at the gastro-oncology clinic of two institutions of Medellin-Colombia, between January 2012 and December 2021 that had been submitted to a colonoscopy between 6-36 months before the colonoscopy in which the CRC was diagnosed. 919 patients during 10 years for CRC, 68 cases of PCCRC (6.9%); It was more frequent in older patients (74 vs. 66 years; p=0.03), with background of adenomatous polyps (36.8% vs. 20.1%; p=0.01) and in right colon (57.4% vs. 40.6%; p=0.006), with a tendency in patients with diverticulosis (41.2% vs. 31.3%; p=0.05) and diabetes (25% vs. 14%; p=0.06); less survival at 5 and 10 years (58% and 55.2% vs. 67% and 63%; p < 0.001). According to the WEO, the PCCRC presents in 61.3% because of abnormal findings omitted in inadequate colonoscopies, 29% in a suitable colonoscopy and 9.7% incomplete resections of adenomas. In conclusion, the rate of PCCRC was 6.9% with more propension in older patients, a background of polyp resection, and proximal colon. According to the WEO, the abnormal findings omitted more frequently were related with inadequate colonoscopies. The patients with PCCRC had less survival.

Cáncer colorrectal post-colonoscopia: Evaluación de una cohorte en sus características clínicas, colonoscópicas, sobrevida y sus causas según la Organización Mundial de Endoscopia

Cáncer colorrectal post-colonoscopia (CCRP) es el tumor que aparece posterior a una colonoscopia normal antes de cumplirse el tiempo establecido para seguimiento endoscópico. Origen multifactorial, refleja la calidad de la colonoscopia y las diferentes biologías tumorales entre los cánceres colorrectales detectados (CCRD) y el CCRP. Nuestro objetivo es describir las características del CCRP en nuestro medio, identificar factores de riesgo, discriminar sus causas según la Organización Mundial de Endoscopia (OME) y determinar el efecto en la sobrevida del paciente. El estudio se realizó en pacientes con cáncer-colorrectal (CCR) atendidos en consulta de gastro-oncología de dos instituciones en Medellín-Colombia, entre enero de 2012 y diciembre de 2021 que se habían sometido a una colonoscopia en los 6 a 36 meses anteriores a la colonoscopia en la que se diagnosticó el CCR. 919 pacientes durante 10 años por CCR, 68 casos de CCRP (6,9%), se encontró que se presenta con más frecuencia en pacientes mayores (74 vs. 66 años; p=0,03), con antecedentes de pólipos adenomatosos (36,8% vs. 20,1%; p=0,01) y en colon derecho (57,4% vs. 40,6%; p=0,006), con una tendencia en pacientes con diverticulosis (41,2% vs. 31,3%; p=0,05) y diabetes (25% vs. 14%; p=0,06); menor sobrevida a 5 y 10 años (58%-55,2% vs. 67%-63%; p<0,001). Según la OME, los CCRP se presentaron en 61,3% por lesiones omitidas en colonoscopias inadecuadas, 29% colonoscopias adecuadas y 9,7% resecciones incompletas de adenomas. En conclusión, la tasa de CCRP fue de 6,9%, con mayor propensión en pacientes de mayores, antecedente de resección de pólipos, y en colon derecho. Acorde a la OME, las lesiones omitidas más frecuentemente se relacionaron con colonoscopias inadecuadas. Los pacientes con CCRP tienen menor sobrevida.

Post-colonoscopy colorectal cancer (PCCRC) is a tumor that appears after a normal colonoscopy before the established time for the endoscopic follow up. Its origin reflects the quality of the colonoscopy and the different tumoral biologics between the CRC and the CRCPC. Our aim is to describe the characteristics of the PCCRC in our region, to identify risk factors, to discriminate the potential causes according to the World Endoscopý Organization (WEO) and to determine its impact in the patient's survival. We studied patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) attended at the gastro-oncology clinic of two institutions of Medellin-Colombia, between January 2012 and December 2021 that had been submitted to a colonoscopy between 6-36 months before the colonoscopy in which the CRC was diagnosed. 919 patients during 10 years for CRC, 68 cases of PCCRC (6.9%); It was more frequent in older patients (74 vs. 66 years; p=0.03), with background of adenomatous polyps (36.8% vs. 20.1%; p=0.01) and in right colon (57.4% vs. 40.6%; p=0.006), with a tendency in patients with diverticulosis (41.2% vs. 31.3%; p=0.05) and diabetes (25% vs. 14%; p=0.06); less survival at 5 and 10 years (58% and 55.2% vs. 67% and 63%; p<0.001). According to the WEO, the PCCRC presents in 61.3% because of abnormal findings omitted in inadequate colonoscopies, 29% in a suitable colonoscopy and 9.7% incomplete resections of adenomas. In conclusion, the rate of PCCRC was 6.9% with more propension in older patients, a background of polyp resection, and proximal colon. According to the WEO, the abnormal findings omitted more frequently were related with inadequate colonoscopies. The patients with PCCRC had less survival.

Experiencia del tratamiento de la hernia incisional en un hospital de tercer nivel en Colombia / Experience of the treatment of incisional hernia in a third level hospital in Colombia

Introducción. El manejo de las hernias se ha instaurado como un problema quirúrgico común, estimándose su aumento en los próximos años. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue describir el curso clínico, los aspectos del tratamiento quirúrgico y factores asociados a la presencia de complicaciones en pacientes intervenidos por hernia incisional. Métodos. Estudio descriptivo en el que se analizaron las características de una cohorte de pacientes llevados a corrección quirúrgica de hernia incisional en el Hospital Universitario Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo, un centro de alta complejidad en Neiva, Colombia, entre 2012 y 2019. Los datos fueron recolectados en programa Microsoft Excel® y analizados en SPSSTM, versión 21. Resultados. Se realizaron 133 correcciones de hernias incisionales, 69,9 % en mujeres y la mayoría ubicadas en la línea media (84,2 %). La edad media de los pacientes al momento de la intervención fue de 52 años ±14,6. Las comorbilidades más frecuentes fueron obesidad, hipertensión y diabetes. La causa más frecuente de la hernia fue traumática (61,7 %). La frecuencia de complicaciones fue superior al 50 %, en su mayoría menores; se encontró asociación con obesidad para la presencia de seroma. La mortalidad fue del 2,3 %. Conclusión.La hernia incisional es un problema de salud pública. Consideramos que la obesidad y el uso de malla pueden ser factores de riesgo asociados con la presentación de complicaciones postoperatorias, así como el aumento de los gastos relacionados con días de hospitalización

Introduction. Hernias management has become a common surgical problem, with an estimated increase in the coming years. The objective of this study was to describe the clinical course, aspects of surgical treatment and factors associated with the presence of complications in patients operated on for incisional hernia. Methods. Descriptive study, in which the characteristics of a cohort of patients taken to surgical correction of incisional hernia at the Hospital Universitario Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo, a high complexity medical center located in Neiva, Colombia, between 2012 and 2019 were analyzed, whose data were collected in Microsoft Excel® software and analyzed in SPSSTM, version 21. Results. One-hundred-thirty-three incisional hernia corrections were performed. The mean age at the intervention was 52 years ±14.6. The most frequent comorbidities were weight disorders, hypertension and diabetes. Only one laparoscopy was performed, the first etiology of the hernia was traumatic (61.7%) and midline (84.2%). The frequency of complications was greater than 50%, mostly minors. An association with obesity was found for the presence of seroma. Mortality was 2.3%. Conclusion. Incisional hernia is a public health problem. We consider that obesity and the use of mesh are a risk factor associated with the presentation of postoperative complications as well as the increase in costs related to days of hospitalization

ABP-Finder: A Tool to Identify Antibacterial Peptides and the Gram-Staining Type of Targeted Bacteria.

Multi-drug resistance in bacteria is a major health problem worldwide. To overcome this issue, new approaches allowing for the identification and development of antibacterial agents are urgently needed. Peptides, due to their binding specificity and low expected side effects, are promising candidates for a new generation of antibiotics. For over two decades, a large diversity of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) has been discovered and annotated in public databases. The AMP family encompasses nearly 20 biological functions, thus representing a potentially valuable resource for data mining analyses. Nonetheless, despite the availability of machine learning-based approaches focused on AMPs, these tools lack evidence of successful application for AMPs' discovery, and many are not designed to predict a specific function for putative AMPs, such as antibacterial activity. Consequently, among the apparent variety of data mining methods to screen peptide sequences for antibacterial activity, only few tools can deal with such task consistently, although with limited precision and generally no information about the possible targets. Here, we addressed this gap by introducing a tool specifically designed to identify antibacterial peptides (ABPs) with an estimation of which type of bacteria is susceptible to the action of these peptides, according to their response to the Gram-staining assay. Our tool is freely available via a web server named ABP-Finder. This new method ranks within the top state-of-the-art ABP predictors, particularly in terms of precision. Importantly, we showed the successful application of ABP-Finder for the screening of a large peptide library from the human urine peptidome and the identification of an antibacterial peptide.

PPI-Affinity: A Web Tool for the Prediction and Optimization of Protein-Peptide and Protein-Protein Binding Affinity.

Virtual screening of protein-protein and protein-peptide interactions is a challenging task that directly impacts the processes of hit identification and hit-to-lead optimization in drug design projects involving peptide-based pharmaceuticals. Although several screening tools designed to predict the binding affinity of protein-protein complexes have been proposed, methods specifically developed to predict protein-peptide binding affinity are comparatively scarce. Frequently, predictors trained to score the affinity of small molecules are used for peptides indistinctively, despite the larger complexity and heterogeneity of interactions rendered by peptide binders. To address this issue, we introduce PPI-Affinity, a tool that leverages support vector machine (SVM) predictors of binding affinity to screen datasets of protein-protein and protein-peptide complexes, as well as to generate and rank mutants of a given structure. The performance of the SVM models was assessed on four benchmark datasets, which include protein-protein and protein-peptide binding affinity data. In addition, we evaluated our model on a set of mutants of EPI-X4, an endogenous peptide inhibitor of the chemokine receptor CXCR4, and on complexes of the serine proteases HTRA1 and HTRA3 with peptides. PPI-Affinity is freely accessible at https://protdcal.zmb.uni-due.de/PPIAffinity.

[Comparison of manual versus mechanical cervical anastomosis in a prospective series of patients with esophagectomy due to cancer]. / Comparación de la anastomosis cervical manual versus mecánica en una serie prospectiva de pacientes con esofagectomía por cáncer.

OBJECTIVES: The scarce existing literature suggests having a lower rate of anastomotic leakage and less late stricture formation after stapled esophagogastric anastomosis compared to the manual anastomosis technique. The aim of the present study is to compare the surgical outcomes of termino-lateral manual cervical anastomosis versus mechanical anastomosis by later lateral stapling, after transhiatal esophagectomy for cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of patients undergoing transhiatal esophagectomy with manual or mechanical anastomosis for neoplasia was performed at three institutions in Medellin, between 2011 and 2018. Endpoints included leak rate, morbidity, mortality, hospital stay, and endoscopically identified anastomotic strictures requiring dilatation. RESULTS: 68 patients (40 men, 59%) were evaluated, 37 with manual anastomosisand 31 with mechanical anastomosis with similar demographic characteristics. Anastomotic leaks occurred in 13 patients (19.1%), with no difference found between manual and mechanical anastomosis (18.9 vs. 19.3%; p=0.93). Overall morbidity (61%), in-hospital mortality (3%) and length of hospital stay (median 12 days) were not affected by anastomotic technique. Follow-up endoscopic evaluation was available in all patients and anastomotic stricture associated or not with leak was detected in 18 patients (22%), in cases of stricture without leak is more frequent with manual than mechanical anastomosis technique (21.6 vs 6.4%; p=0.07) with longer duration of surgical procedure in case of manual anastomosis (p=0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our non-randomized study suggests that the manual anastomosis technique results in a shorter surgical time and a lower stricture rate than mechanical anastomosis in cervical esophagogastric reconstruction after transhiatal esophagectomy, with a similar rateof leakage, hospital stay and morbidity and mortality.

Comparación de la anastomosis cervical manual versus mecánica en una serie prospectiva de pacientes con esofagectomía por cáncer

Objetivos : La escasa literatura existente sugiere haber una menor tasa de fugas anastomóticas y una menor formación tardía de estenosis después de la anastomosis esofagogástrica con grapas comparada con la técnica de anastomosis manual. El objetivo del presente estudio es comparar los resultados quirúrgicos de la anastomosis cervical manual termino-lateral versus la anastomosis mecánica por grapado laterolateral luego de una esofagectomía transhiatal por cáncer. Materiales y métodos : Se realizó una revisión retrospectiva de los pacientes sometidos a esofagectomía transhiatal con anastomosis manual o mecánica por neoplasia en tres instituciones de Medellín, entre 2011 y 2018. Los criterios de valoración incluyeron la tasa de fuga anastomótica, la morbilidad, la mortalidad, la estancia hospitalaria y anastomóticas identificadas las estenosis por endoscopia que requirieran dilatación. Resultados : se evaluaron 68 pacientes (40 hombres, 59%), 37 con anastomosis manual y 31 con anastomosis mecánica con características demográficas similares. Se produjeron fugas anastomóticas en 13 pacientes (19,1%), sin encontrarse una diferencia entre la anastomosis manual y mecánica (18,9 frente a 19,3%; p = 0,93). La morbilidad global (61%), la mortalidad intrahospitalaria (3%) y la duración de la estancia hospitalaria (mediana de 12 días) no se vieron afectadas por la técnica anastomótica. Se dispuso de una evaluación endoscópica de seguimiento en todos los pacientes y se detectó una estenosis anastomótica asociada o no a fugas de la anastomosis en 18 pacientes (22%), los casos de estenosis sin fuga fueron más frecuente con la técnica de anastomosis manual que la mecánica (21,6 vs 6,4%; p=0,07) con una duración mayor del procedimiento quirúrgico en caso de la anastomosis manual (p=0,05). Conclusiones : Nuestro estudio no aleatorizado sugiere que la técnica de anastomosis mecánica cursa con un tiempo quirúrgico menor y una menor tasa de estenosis que la anastomosis manual en la reconstrucción esofagogástrica cervical tras la esofagectomía transhiatal, con una tasa de fuga anastomótica, estancia hospitalaria y morbimortalidad similares.

Objectives : The scarce existing literature suggests having a lower rate of anastomotic leakage and less late stricture formation after stapled esophagogastric anastomosis compared to the manual anastomosis technique. The aim of the present study is to compare the surgical outcomes of termino-lateral manual cervical anastomosis versus mechanical anastomosis by later lateral stapling, after transhiatal esophagectomy for cancer. Materials and methods : A retrospective review of patients undergoing transhiatal esophagectomy with manual or mechanical anastomosis for neoplasia was performed at three institutions in Medellin, between 2011 and 2018. Endpoints included leak rate, morbidity, mortality, hospital stay, and endoscopically identified anastomotic strictures requiring dilatation. Results : 68 patients (40 men, 59%) were evaluated, 37 with manual anastomosis and 31 with mechanical anastomosis with similar demographic characteristics. Anastomotic leaks occurred in 13 patients (19.1%), with no difference found between manual and mechanical anastomosis (18.9 vs. 19.3%; p=0.93). Overall morbidity (61%), in-hospital mortality (3%) and length of hospital stay (median 12 days) were not affected by anastomotic technique. Follow-up endoscopic evaluation was available in all patients and anastomotic stricture associated or not with leak was detected in 18 patients (22%), in cases of stricture without leak is more frequent with manual than mechanical anastomosis technique (21.6 vs 6.4%; p=0.07) with longer duration of surgical procedure in case of manual anastomosis (p=0.05). Conclusions : Our non-randomized study suggests that the manual anastomosis technique results in a shorter surgical time and a lower stricture rate than mechanical anastomosis in cervical esophagogastric reconstruction after transhiatal esophagectomy, with a similar rate of leakage, hospital stay and morbidity and mortality.

Prevalence of open neural tube defects and risk factors related to isolated anencephaly and spina bifida in live births from the "Dr. Juan I. Menchaca" Civil Hospital of Guadalajara (Jalisco, Mexico).

We determine the prevalence and trends of open neural tube defects (ONTDs) during 1991 to 2019 at the "Dr. Juan I. Menchaca" Civil Hospital of Guadalajara (Mexico). Also, details of potential risks were obtained in 662 newborns, including those 143 patients with anencephaly and open spina bifida (OSB) classified as isolated (cases) and 519 controls. Data were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression. Among 267 201 live births during the study period, 336 were born with ONTDs, yielding an overall prevalence of 12.6 per 10 000. After folic acid (FA)-related programs began in Mexico (2003-2019), only OSB showed a decline of 20.6%. For anencephaly, associated risks included relatives with neural tube defects (NTDs) (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 67.9, 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 11.3-409.8), pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m2 (aOR: 2.6, 95% CI: 1.1-6.0), insufficient gestational weight gain (aOR: 3.0, 95% CI: 1.3-7.1), parity ≥4 (aOR: 3.2, 95% CI: 1.3-7.7), and exposure to analgesic/antipyretic drugs (aOR: 9.0; 95% CI: 2.5-33.0). For OSB, associated risks included consanguinity (aOR: 14.0, 95% CI: 3.5-55.9), relatives with NTDs (aOR: 22.4, 95% CI: 4.5-112.9), BMI ≥25 kg/m2 (aOR: 2.5, 95% CI: 1.6-4.2), insufficient gestational weight gain (aOR: 1.9, 95% CI: 1.1-3.1), and exposures to hyperthermia (aOR: 2.3, 95% CI: 1.2-4.3), common cold (aOR: 6.8, 95% CI: 3.6-12.7), and analgesic/antipyretic drugs (aOR: 3.6, 95% CI: 1.3-10.0). Our high rate probably results from exposures to preventable risks, most related to FA, indicating a need for strengthening existing FA-related programs in Mexico.

Performance of molecular methods for the detection of Salmonella in human stool specimens.

Background: The relationship between asymptomatic Salmonella exposure within the gastrointestinal tract and Salmonella bacteraemia is poorly understood, in part due to the low sensitivity of stool culture, and the lack of validated molecular diagnostic tests for the detection of Salmonella in stool. The study aimed to determine a reliable molecular diagnostic test for Salmonella in stool specimens. Methods: We optimized an in-house monoplex real time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of Salmonella TTR and InvA genes in stool by including a selenite broth pre-culture step for Salmonella before DNA extraction, and validated their specificity against other local common pathogens. Then we assessed their performance  against a well-validated multiplex PCR targeting the same TTR and InvA genes, and against stool culture using clinical stool specimens collected from a cohort of 50 asymptomatic healthy Malawian children that were sampled at 1-month intervals over a period of 12 months. We employed a latent Markov model to estimate the specificities and sensitivities of PCR methods. Results: TTR and InvA primers were both able to detect all the different Salmonella serovars tested, and had superior limits of detection if DNA was extracted after selenite pre-culture. TTR sensitivity and specificity for monoplex-PCR were (99.53%, 95.46%) and for multiplex-PCR (90.30%, 99.30%) respectively. InvA specificity and specificity for using monoplex-PCR was (95.06%, 90.31%) and multiplex-PCRs (89.41%, 98.00%) respectively. Sensitivity and specificity for standard stool culture were 62.88% and 99.99% respectively. Culture showed the highest PPV (99.73%) and mono-TTR had the highest NPV (99.67%). Conclusion: Test methods demonstrated high concordance although stool culture and monoplexed TTR primers had superior specificity and sensitivity respectively. The use of selenite pre-enrichment step increased Salmonella detection rate. Taken together, molecular detection methods used here could be used to reveal the true extent of both asymptomatic and symptomatic Salmonella exposure events.

Metabolic Profiling of the Soft Coral Erythropodium caribaeorum (Alcyonacea: Anthothelidae) from the Colombian Caribbean Reveals Different Chemotypes.

The Caribbean soft coral Erythropodium caribaeorum is a rich source of erythrolides-chlorinated briarane diterpenoids. These compounds have an ecological role as feeding deterrents, with a wide variation in their composition depending on the location where the sample is collected. In Colombia, this soft coral can be found at different locations in the Caribbean Sea including Santa Marta, Islas del Rosario, and Providencia-three environmentally different coral reef areas in the south and southwest Caribbean Sea. In order to evaluate differences in erythrolide composition, the metabolic profiles of samples from each of these locations were analyzed by HPLC-MS. Principal component analysis showed changes in the diterpene composition according to the sample origin. Diterpenes from samples collected at each location were isolated to describe the three chemotypes. The chemotype from Santa Marta was highly diverse, with the new erythrolides W and X together with eight known erythrolides. The sample from Islas del Rosario showed a low diversity chemotype constituted by high amounts of erythrolide A and B. The chemotype from Providencia showed low chemical diversity with only two main compounds-erythrolide V and R. Evaluation of cytotoxic activity against the human cancer cell lines PC-3, MCF7, and A549 showed erythrolides A and B as the more active compounds with IC50 values in the range from 2.45 to 30 µM.

Endocarditis bacteriana por Kocuria kristinae en un paciente inmunocompetente. Reporte de caso / Bacterial endocarditis by Kocuria kristinae in an immunocompetent patient. Case report

Los miembros del género Kocuria corresponden a cocos Gram positivos ubicuos, generalmente inocuos y que hacen parte de la flora saprófita de un porcentaje importante de la población; ocasionalmente han sido descritos como los agentes responsables de patologías infecciosas, principalmente dentro del contexto de pacientes que concomitantemente cursan con enfermedades crónicas y estados de inmunosupresión. Son escasos los casos reportados como causa de endocarditis en pacientes inmunocompetentes a nivel global por especies de este género. Se expone el caso de una mujer inmunocompetente de 44 años, sin antecedentes de importancia, en quien solo el diagnóstico microbiológico permitió confirmar la presencia de Kocuria kristinae como agente causal de su endocarditis infecciosa; la literatura señala la dificultad existente al momento de diferenciar la endocarditis producida por Staphylococcus spp. versus Kocuria kristinae por su evolución clínica similar, indicando la importancia de la microbiología al momento de identificar y diagnosticar apropiadamente.

Members of the genus Kocuria correspond to ubiquitous, generally harmless, Gram-positive cocci that are part of the saprophytic flora of a significant percentage of the population; occasionally they have been described as the agents responsible for infectious pathologies, mainly in the context of patients who concomitantly have chronic diseases and are under an immunosuppression state. There are few cases reported as a cause of endocarditis in immunocompetent patients globally by species of this genus. We present the case of a 44-year-old immunocompetent woman, with no relevant history, in whom only the microbiological diagnosis confirmed the presence of Kocuria kristinae as the causative agent of her infectious endocarditis; Literature points out the difficulty existing when differentiating endocarditis produced by Staphylococcus spp. versus Kocuria kristinae because of their similar clinical evolution, indicating the importance of microbiology when identifying and diagnosing accurately.

ProtDCal-Suite: A web server for the numerical codification and functional analysis of proteins.

Computational tools for the analysis of protein data and the prediction of biological properties are essential in life sciences and biomedical research. Here, we introduce ProtDCal-Suite, a web server comprising a set of machine learning-based methods for studying proteins. The main module of ProtDCal-Suite is the ProtDCal software. ProtDCal translates the structural information of proteins into numerical descriptors that serve as input to machine-learning techniques. The ProtDCal-Suite server also incorporates a post-processing optional stage that allows ranking and filtering the obtained descriptors by computing their Shannon entropy values across the input set of proteins. ProtDCal's codification was used in the development of models for the prediction of specific protein properties. Thus, the other modules of ProtDCal-Suite are protein analysis tools implemented using ProtDCal's descriptors. Among them are PPI-Detect, for predicting the interaction likelihood of protein-protein and protein-peptide pairs, Enzyme Identifier, for identifying enzymes from amino acid sequences or 3D structures, and Pred-NGlyco, for predicting N-glycosylation sites. ProtDCal-Suite is freely accessible at https://protdcal.zmb.uni-due.de.

PPI-Detect: A support vector machine model for sequence-based prediction of protein-protein interactions.

The prediction of peptide-protein or protein-protein interactions (PPI) is a challenging task, especially if amino acid sequences are the only information available. Machine learning methods allow us to exploit the information content in PPI datasets. However, the numerical codification of these datasets often influences the performance of data mining approaches. Here, we introduce a procedure for the general-purpose numerical codification of polypeptides. This procedure transforms pairs of amino acid sequences into a machine learning-friendly vector, whose elements represent numerical descriptors of residues in proteins. We used this numerical encoding procedure for the development of a support vector machine model (PPI-Detect), which allows predicting whether two proteins will interact or not. PPI-Detect (https://ppi-detect.zmb.uni-due.de/) outperforms state of the art sequence-based predictors of PPI. We employed PPI-Detect for the analysis of derivatives of EPI-X4, an endogenous peptide inhibitor of CXCR4, a G-protein-coupled receptor. There, we identified with high accuracy those peptides which bind better than EPI-X4 to the receptor. Also using PPI-Detect, we designed a novel peptide and then experimentally established its anti-CXCR4 activity. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Submassive Pulmonary Thromboembolism in a Patient with Thrombocytopenia: Therapeutic Challenge.

Venous thromboembolic disease is an important cause of mortality worldwide. A widely recognized risk factor is active neoplasia, mainly hematological tumors, in which associated thrombocytopenia can be a frequent complication. We present the case of a patient with submassive pulmonary thromboembolism associated with severe thrombocytopenia with signs of right heart failure and a requirement for systemic thrombolysis and anticoagulation, however with absolute contraindication for them. The case establishes a therapeutic challenge for the treating group, leading us to carry out an extensive search of the literature and propose a management algorithm in this complex situation.

Prevalence of orofacial clefts and risks for nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate in newborns at a university hospital from West Mexico.

We determined the overall prevalence of typical orofacial clefts and the potential risks for nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate in a university hospital from West México. For the prevalence, 227 liveborn infants with typical orofacial clefts were included from a total of 81,193 births occurred during the period 2009-2016 at the "Dr. Juan I. Menchaca" Civil Hospital of Guadalajara (Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico). To evaluate potential risks, a case-control study was conducted among 420 newborns, including only those 105 patients with nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate (cases), and 315 infants without birth defects (controls). Data were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression analysis expressed as adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence intervals . The overall prevalence for typical orofacial clefts was 28 per 10,000 (95% confidence interval: 24.3-31.6), or 1 per 358 live births. The mean values for the prepregnancy weight, antepartum weight, and pre-pregnancy body mass index were statistically higher among the mothers of cases. Infants with nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate had a significantly higher risk for previous history of any type of congenital anomaly (adjusted odds ratio: 2.7; 95% confidence interval: 1.4-5.1), history of a relative with cleft lip with or without cleft palate (adjusted odds ratio: 19.6; 95% confidence interval: 8.2-47.1), and first-trimester exposures to progestogens (adjusted odds ratio: 6.8; 95% CI 1.8-25.3), hyperthermia (adjusted odds ratio: 3.4; 95% confidence interval: 1.1-10.6), and common cold (adjusted odds ratio: 3.6; 95% confidence interval: 1.1-11.9). These risks could have contributed to explain the high prevalence of orofacial clefts in our region of Mexico, emphasizing that except for history of relatives with cleft lip with or without cleft palate, most are susceptible of modification.

Comparative Effectiveness of Implementation Strategies for Blood Pressure Control in Hypertensive Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: The prevalence of hypertension is high and is increasing worldwide, whereas the proportion of controlled hypertension is low. Purpose: To assess the comparative effectiveness of 8 implementation strategies for blood pressure (BP) control in adults with hypertension. Data Sources: Systematic searches of MEDLINE and Embase from inception to September 2017 with no language restrictions, supplemented with manual reference searches. Study Selection: Randomized controlled trials lasting at least 6 months comparing the effect of implementation strategies versus usual care on BP reduction in adults with hypertension. Data Extraction: Two investigators independently extracted data and assessed study quality. Data Synthesis: A total of 121 comparisons from 100 articles with 55 920 hypertensive patients were included. Multilevel, multicomponent strategies were most effective for systolic BP reduction, including team-based care with medication titration by a nonphysician (-7.1 mm Hg [95% CI, -8.9 to -5.2 mm Hg]), team-based care with medication titration by a physician (-6.2 mm Hg [CI, -8.1 to -4.2 mm Hg]), and multilevel strategies without team-based care (-5.0 mm Hg [CI, -8.0 to -2.0 mm Hg]). Patient-level strategies resulted in systolic BP changes of -3.9 mm Hg (CI, -5.4 to -2.3 mm Hg) for health coaching and -2.7 mm Hg (CI, -3.6 to -1.7 mm Hg) for home BP monitoring. Similar trends were seen for diastolic BP reduction. Limitation: Sparse data from low- and middle-income countries; few trials of some implementation strategies, such as provider training; and possible publication bias. Conclusion: Multilevel, multicomponent strategies, followed by patient-level strategies, are most effective for BP control in patients with hypertension and should be used to improve hypertension control. Primary Funding Source: National Institutes of Health.

Serology for trachoma surveillance after cessation of mass drug administration.

BACKGROUND: Trachoma, caused by Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct), is the leading infectious cause of blindness worldwide. Yearly azithromycin mass drug administration (MDA) plays a central role in efforts to eliminate blinding trachoma as a public health problem. Programmatic decision-making is currently based on the prevalence of the clinical sign "trachomatous inflammation-follicular" (TF) in children. We sought to test alternative tools for trachoma surveillance based on serology in the 12-year cohort of Kahe Mpya, Rombo District, Tanzania, where ocular chlamydial infection was eliminated with azithromycin MDA by 2005. METHODOLOGY AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The present study was a community-based cross-sectional survey in Kahe Mpya. Of 989 residents, 571 people aged 6 months to 87 years were enrolled: 58% of the total population and 73% of 1-9 year olds, the key WHO indicator age group. Participants were examined for TF, had conjunctival swabs collected for nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT)-based detection of Ct, and blood collected for analysis of antibodies to the Ct antigens pgp3 and CT694 by multiplex bead-based immunoassay. Seroconversion rate was used to estimate changes in the force of infection in a reversible catalytic model. No conjunctival swabs tested positive for Ct infection by NAAT. Among 1-9 year olds, TF prevalence was 6.5%, whereas only 3.5% were seropositive. Force of infection modelling indicated a 10-fold decrease in seroconversion rate at a time corresponding to MDA commencement. Without baseline serological data, the inferences we can make about antibody status before MDA and the longevity of the antibody response are limited, though our use of catalytic modelling overcomes some of these limitations. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Serologic tests support NAAT findings of very low to zero prevalence of ocular Ct in this community and have potential to provide objective measures of transmission and useful surveillance tools for trachoma elimination programs.

Microbial trophic interactions and mcrA gene expression in monitoring of anaerobic digesters.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a biological process where different trophic groups of microorganisms break down biodegradable organic materials in the absence of oxygen. A wide range of AD technologies is being used to convert livestock manure, municipal and industrial wastewaters, and solid organic wastes into biogas. AD gains importance not only because of its relevance in waste treatment but also because of the recovery of carbon in the form of methane, which is a renewable energy and is used to generate electricity and heat. Despite the advances on the engineering and design of new bioreactors for AD, the microbiology component always poses challenges. Microbiology of AD processes is complicated as the efficiency of the process depends on the interactions of various trophic groups involved. Due to the complex interdependence of microbial activities for the functionality of the anaerobic bioreactors, the genetic expression of mcrA, which encodes a key enzyme in methane formation, is proposed as a parameter to monitor the process performance in real time. This review evaluates the current knowledge on microbial groups, their interactions, and their relationship to the performance of anaerobic biodigesters with a focus on using mcrA gene expression as a tool to monitor the process.