Real-Time Reflectance Confocal Microscopy of Cutaneous Graft-versus-Host Disease Correlates with Histopathology.

Reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) allows noninvasive, real-time evaluation of the skin at a resolution akin to histopathology (HP), but its application in cutaneous graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) has not been extensively assessed. We describe RCM features of cutaneous GVHD including acute (aGVHD), late acute, chronic (cGVHD; sclerotic and nonsclerotic subtypes), and inactive GVHD and correlate RCM with same-site HP for a subset of patients. Thirty-two adult and pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) recipients with cutaneous GVHD received RCM imaging of ≥1 lesions (n = 44), 13 of which necessitated skin biopsy. RCM images were deidentified and assessed by 2 RCM experts blinded to clinical and HP findings to reach a consensus on the features and patterns of the inflammatory dermatoses. Major RCM features (present in ≥65% of lesional sites) and patterns were reported. To determine the correlation between RCM and HP, detection of cellular features and patterns of inflammatory dermatoses were compared using percent agreement and prevalence-adjusted, bias-adjusted kappa estimates. Seven patients with early or late aGVHD (7 lesions) had irregular honeycombing, spongiosis, dermoepidermal junction (DEJ) and dermal inflammation, and melanophages; those with early aGVHD also had hyperkeratosis, dilated vessels, and coarse connective tissue. Both groups had an interface dermatitis pattern. Eighteen patients with nonsclerotic cGVHD (24 lesions) had irregular honeycombing, spongiosis, DEJ and dermal inflammation, dilated vessels, coarse connective tissue, and interface and spongiotic dermatitis patterns. Three sclerotic patients with cGVHD (7 lesions) had irregular honeycombing, DEJ and dermal inflammation with an interface dermatitis pattern. Four patients with inactive GVHD (6 lesions) showed minimal inflammation. RCM and HP had similar detection rates for 6 of 13 features and overall patterns important for diagnosis in 2 patients with late aGVHD (2 lesions; 15%) and 10 with nonsclerotic cGVHD (11 lesions; 85%) necessitating skin biopsy. RCM can detect features commonly reported in cutaneous GVHD and is comparable to HP. Additional characterization of cutaneous GVHD by RCM may enable future use in diagnosing, monitoring, or predicting disease in real time.

Bioavailability, tissue distribution and hypoglycaemic effect of vanadium in magnesium-deficient rats.

Vanadium is an element whose role as a micronutrient and hypoglycaemic drug has yet to be fully clarified. The present study was undertaken to investigate the bioavailability and tissue distribution of vanadium and its interactions with magnesium in healthy and in magnesium-deficient rats, in order to determine its role as a micronutrient and antidiabetic agent. Four groups were used: control (456.4 mg magnesium and 0.06 mg vanadium/kg food); control treated with 1mg vanadium/day; magnesium-deficient (164.4 mg magnesium/kg food and 0.06 mg vanadium/kg food); and magnesium-deficient treated with 1 mg vanadium/day. The vanadium was supplied in the drinking water as bis(maltolato)oxovanadium (IV). The experiment had a duration of five weeks. We measured vanadium and magnesium in excreta, serum, skeletal muscle, kidney, liver, adipose tissue and femur. Fasting glucose, insulin and total antioxidant status (TAS) in serum were studied. The vanadium treatment applied to the control rats reduced the absorption, retention, serum level and femur content of magnesium. Magnesium deficiency increased the retention and serum level of vanadium, the content of vanadium in the kidney, liver and femur (organs where magnesium had been depleted), serum glycaemia and insulin, and reduced TAS. V treatment given to magnesium-deficient rats corrected magnesium content in muscle, kidney and liver and levels of serum glucose, insulin and TAS. In conclusion, our results show interactions between magnesium and vanadium in the digestive and renal systems. Treatment with vanadium to magnesium-deficient rats corrected many of the alterations that had been generated by the magnesium deficiency.

[Breast feeding: an effective method to prevent breast cancer]. / Lactancia materna: un método eficaz en la prevención del cáncer de mama.

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer is the most common gynecological tumor in young women in Western countries. Its profound implications for health and an increasingly early age of diagnosis have been carefully analyzed its causes and possible preventive measures, making their study in a primary goal of epidemiological research. SAMPLE AND METHODS: We reviewed medical records pertaining to 504 female patients aged 19 to 91 years. All of them were diagnosed and treated for breast cancer between 2003-2008 at the Hospital Universitario "San Cecilio" of Granada (Spain). RESULTS: We found a significant correlation (p = 0.001) between the age of cancer diagnosis, length of breastfeeding, and the existence of personal and family history for cancer. By contrast, there were no statistically significant differences test (t-test) between the average age of diagnosis of cancer and having had offspring or not (t = 0.559, p = 0.576). CONCLUSIONS: Breastfeeding for periods of longer than six months, not only provides children with many health benefits, but may also protect the mother from serious diseases, such as breast cancer.

Antioxidant defence of the neonatal rat brain against acute hyperammonemia.

Oxidative stress associated with the presence of elevated concentrations of ammonia in the brain has been proposed as one possible mechanism involved in ammonia toxicity. In a previous study [Brain Res.973 (2003) 31], we reported that neonatal rats are more resistant to acute ammonia toxicity than adult rats. In the present work, we studied the antioxidant status of the brain in hyperammonemic neonatal rats. Increased activities of the antioxidant enzymes and enhanced glutathione content were found in the brains of the hyperammonemic neonatal rats as compared to the controls. In addition, no changes in brain reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and lipid peroxidation due to hyperammonemia were found. Therefore, acute ammonia intoxication does not induce oxidative stress in neonatal rats, a fact that may explain the resistance against hyperammonemia shown by neonatal rats.

Tolerance of neonatal rat brain to acute hyperammonemia.

The aim of the present work was to study the effects of hyperammonemia on brain energy metabolism in neonatal rats. Rats were rendered hyperammonemic by ammonium acetate administration. This decreased brain ATP concentrations but enhanced brain ammonia and lactate levels in both adult and neonatal rats. In adult rats, the decrease in brain ATP concentrations was accompanied by a plunge in the respiratory control rate (RCR) of brain mitochondria. However, the ammonia-induced effect on RCR was not observed in neonatal rats, suggesting that the fall in ATP levels observed in neonatal rats would not be due to an impairment of mitochondrial respiratory efficiency. However, in neonatal rats the increase in blood and brain ammonia concentrations did not change brain glutamate concentrations but decreased glutamine contents. These results may be of relevance for the understanding of the resistance of neonatal rats observed in this work to acute ammonia toxicity