RhoA G17V is sufficient to induce autoimmunity and promotes T-cell lymphomagenesis in mice.

Patients with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL) and other peripheral T-cell lymphomas that harbor features of follicular helper T (TFH) cells have a very poor prognosis. These lymphomas commonly present with paraneoplastic autoimmunity and lymphopenia. RhoA G17V mutation is present in 60% of TFH-like lymphomas, but its role in tumorigenesis is poorly understood. We generated transgenic mice that express RhoA G17V under the control of murine CD4 regulatory elements at levels comparable to a heterozygous mutation (tgRhoA mice). These mice had markedly reduced naive T cells but relatively increased TFH-cell populations. Surprisingly, naive CD4 T cells expressing RhoA G17V were hyperreactive to T-cell receptor stimulation. All tgRhoA mice developed autoimmunity that included a cellular infiltrate within ears and tails that was recapitulated in wild-type (WT) recipients after bone marrow transplantation. Older tgRhoA mice developed elevated serum titers of anti-double-stranded DNA antibodies and renal immune complex deposition. RhoA G17V mice crossed with Tet2fl/fl; Vav-Cre+ mice, which delete Tet2 throughout the hematopoietic compartment, developed T-cell lymphomas that retained histologic and immunophenotypic features of AITL and had transcriptional signatures enriched for mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR)-associated genes. Transplanted tumors were responsive to the mTOR inhibitor everolimus, providing a possible strategy for targeting RhoA G17V. Taken together, these data indicate that RhoA G17V contributes to both neoplastic and paraneoplastic phenotypes similar to those observed in patients with TFH lymphomas.

A novel molten-salt electrochemical cell for investigating the reduction of uranium dioxide to uranium metal by lithium using in situ synchrotron radiation.

A novel electrochemical cell has been designed and built to allow for in situ energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction measurements to be made during reduction of UO2 to U metal in LiCl-KCl at 500°C. The electrochemical cell contains a recessed well at the bottom of the cell into which the working electrode sits, reducing the beam path for the X-rays through the molten-salt and maximizing the signal-to-noise ratio from the sample. Lithium metal was electrodeposited onto the UO2 working electrode by exposing the working electrode to more negative potentials than the Li deposition potential of the LiCl-KCl eutectic electrolyte. The Li metal acts as a reducing agent for the chemical reduction of UO2 to U, which appears to proceed to completion. All phases were fitted using Le Bail refinement. The cell is expected to be widely applicable to many studies involving molten-salt systems.

Comparison of three-dimensional analysis and stereological techniques for quantifying lithium-ion battery electrode microstructures.

Lithium-ion battery performance is intrinsically linked to electrode microstructure. Quantitative measurement of key structural parameters of lithium-ion battery electrode microstructures will enable optimization as well as motivate systematic numerical studies for the improvement of battery performance. With the rapid development of 3-D imaging techniques, quantitative assessment of 3-D microstructures from 2-D image sections by stereological methods appears outmoded; however, in spite of the proliferation of tomographic imaging techniques, it remains significantly easier to obtain two-dimensional (2-D) data sets. In this study, stereological prediction and three-dimensional (3-D) analysis techniques for quantitative assessment of key geometric parameters for characterizing battery electrode microstructures are examined and compared. Lithium-ion battery electrodes were imaged using synchrotron-based X-ray tomographic microscopy. For each electrode sample investigated, stereological analysis was performed on reconstructed 2-D image sections generated from tomographic imaging, whereas direct 3-D analysis was performed on reconstructed image volumes. The analysis showed that geometric parameter estimation using 2-D image sections is bound to be associated with ambiguity and that volume-based 3-D characterization of nonconvex, irregular and interconnected particles can be used to more accurately quantify spatially-dependent parameters, such as tortuosity and pore-phase connectivity.

A novel high-temperature furnace for combined in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and infrared thermal imaging to investigate the effects of thermal gradients upon the structure of ceramic materials.

A new technique combining in situ X-ray diffraction using synchrotron radiation and infrared thermal imaging is reported. The technique enables the application, generation and measurement of significant thermal gradients, and furthermore allows the direct spatial correlation of thermal and crystallographic measurements. The design and implementation of a novel furnace enabling the simultaneous thermal and X-ray measurements is described. The technique is expected to have wide applicability in material science and engineering; here it has been applied to the study of solid oxide fuel cells at high temperature.

Utilidad atribuida por los estudiantes a los recursos para el aprendizaje de la Medicina Interna / Usefulness of learning resources for internal medicine recognized by students

Introducción: En la educación médica superior, las opiniones de los estudiantes constituyen valiosas herramientas para justipreciar la calidad del proceso docente educativo. En la asignatura Medicina Interna es importante determinar los recursos de aprendizaje más provechosos y atractivos para los estudiantes, con el propósito de mejorar la calidad del proceso docente educativo. Objetivos: Identificar la utilidad que los estudiantes le atribuyen a los recursos didácticos para el aprendizaje de los contenidos teóricos de la asignatura Medicina Interna. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio observacional descriptivo y transversal en el Hospital Docente Clínico Quirúrgico Joaquín Albarrán Domínguez. La muestra incluyó 483 estudiantes de la asignatura Medicina Interna de los cursos 2016-2017 y 2017-2018, a los que se les aplicó una encuesta para identificar sus opiniones sobre la utilidad que le atribuyen a los recursos para el aprendizaje de los contenidos teóricos de la asignatura Medicina Interna. Resultados: El 67,5 por ciento de los estudiantes prefiere disponer de materiales digitales confeccionados por los profesores con preguntas para su autoevaluación, el 67,3 por ciento considera que puede aprender los contenidos teóricos de la asignatura solo mediante el estudio independiente, el 32,1 por ciento encuentra útil asistir a las conferencias y el 84,1 por ciento prefiere consultar al profesor para aclarar sus dudas. Conclusiones: Para alcanzar mayor eficiencia en el aprendizaje de los contenidos teóricos de la asignatura Medicina Interna, debe potenciarse el desarrollo de modalidades de clases taller que tengan en cuenta las expectativas de los estudiantes y promuevan el empleo de recursos didácticos para el aprendizaje activo(AU)

Introduction: In higher medical education, students´ s opinions are valuable tools to assess the quality of the educational teaching process. In the Internal Medicine subject, it is important to determine the most profitable and attractive learning resources for students, with the purpose of improving the quality of the educational teaching process. Objectives: To identify the usefulness that students attribute to the didactic resources for learning the theoretical contents of Internal Medicine. Methods: A descriptive and cross-sectional observational study was carried out at Joaquín Albarrán Domínguez Clinical-Surgical Teaching Hospital. The sample included 483 students of the Internal Medicine of 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school years, to whom a survey was applied to identify their opinions on the usefulness they attribute to the resources for learning theoretical contents of Internal Medicine. Results: 67.5 percent of students prefer to have digital materials made by teachers with questions for self-assessment, 67.3 percent consider that they can learn theoretical content of the subject only through independent study, 32.1 percent find it useful to attend the lectures and 84.1 percent prefer to consult the professor to clarify their questions. Conclusions: In order to achieve better efficiency in learning theoretical contents of Internal Medicine, workshop- class modalities should be promoted to take into account the expectations of the students and promote the use of didactic resources for active learning(AU)

Permethrin-resistant human head lice, Pediculus capitis, and their treatment.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the pediculicidal activity of Ovide lotion and its active ingredient, 0.5% malathion, with Nix and its active ingredient, 1% permethrin, in permethrin-resistant head lice. DESIGN: In vitro pediculicidal product and active ingredient comparison. The presence of knockdown resistance-type mutations (T929I and L932F) was validated by DNA sequencing. SETTING: University of Massachusetts-Amherst; University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Fla; Plantation and Homestead, Fla; and Mathis, Tex. OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Lice were collected in 3 geographical regions within the United States and in Yamburara, Ecuador, from healthy but infested individuals. Intervention Within 3 to 6 hours of collection, lice were given a blood meal, exposed to products or active ingredients, and observed at regular intervals. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Percent mortality of lice at regular intervals after exposure to products or active ingredients and presence of T929I and L932F mutations. RESULTS: South Florida lice exhibited a significantly slower mortality response to permethrin compared with susceptible Ecuadorian lice. Ovide and malathion killed permethrin-resistant lice faster than Nix or permethrin. The presence of T929I and L932F in permethrin-resistant south Florida lice was confirmed by DNA sequencing. The population of Texas lice from Mathis was slightly resistant to permethrin and included 13% with resistant genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of the T929I and L932F mutations was confirmed by DNA sequencing in lice collected from children in south Florida that were resistant to the pediculicidal effects of permethrin and the leading permethrin-based head lice product, Nix. Malathion resistance was not observed in this study. The data also show that Ovide killed these same permethrin-resistant head lice approximately 10 times faster than permethrin or Nix.

Application of MARSSIM at the Big Rock Point Restoration Project.

Big Rock Point was Michigan's first commercial power reactor and operated for 35 years. It was permanently shut down in August of 1997, and the site is currently being returned to its natural state. Guidance contained in the Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual (MARSSIM) is being applied in preparation for the final status survey. Unlike other commercial power reactors currently undergoing decommissioning, all Big Rock Point structures will be removed prior to the final status survey. A historical site assessment along with characterization surveys formed the basis to designate 1.6 square kilometers (395.9 acres) of the site as non-impacted and the remaining 0.7 square kilometers (184.5 acres) as impacted as defined by MARSSIM. Also, a source term abstraction has been performed using historical waste stream data to identify radionuclides potentially present in site soils, hard-to-detect (HTD) radionuclides and surrogate radionuclides for the HTD radionuclides.

Complicaciones pulmonares posoperatorias en pacientes ingresados en Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos / Posoperative pulmonary complications in patients admitted to the intensive care service

Introducción: la cirugía y la anestesia provocan el aumento del riesgo de sufrir complicaciones pulmonares. Objetivo: evaluar el comportamiento delas complicaciones respiratorias en pacientes quirúrgicos. Métodos: estudio de cohorte, prospectivo, longitudinal, con 526 pacientes quirúrgicos que ingresaron en la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos del Hospital Universitario Joaquín Albarrán Domínguez desde el 1ro. de enero de 2012 hasta el 31 de diciembre de 2014. La muestra quedó conformada por 127 pacientes operados que presentaron complicaciones de índole respiratoria. Resultados: 24,1 por ciento de los pacientes quirúrgicos presentaron complicaciones respiratorias. El mayor porcentaje de fallecidos estuvo dentro del grupo de 71 a 80 años (9,4 por ciento), seguidos por los de 61 a 70 (6,2 por ciento). Esto resultados fueron significativos (p≤ 0,05). El 18,8 por ciento de los fallecidos fue en operaciones de urgencia, y de ellos, con tiempo quirúrgico mayor de 2 horas 12,5 por ciento, con asociación significativa entre el tiempo quirúrgico y la mortalidad (p≤ 0,05). No hubo asociación entre el número de reintervenciones y la mortalidad (p= 3,721). El 35,4 por ciento, presentó bronconeumonía bacteriana nosocomial, seguido por la insuficiencia respiratoria aguda con 22,8 por ciento. El 50 por ciento falleció por fallo múltiple de órganos, seguido de 13,8 por ciento porinfarto pulmonar. Conclusiones: las principales complicaciones respiratorias en pacientes quirúrgicos fueron las infecciones de origen nosocomial, favorecidas por la edad avanzada, operaciones de urgencia y tiempo quirúrgico mayor de 2 horas con elevada frecuencia y letalidad. La bronconeumonía bacteriana nosocomial es la principal causa de muerte asociada al fallo multiorgánico(AU)

Introduction: surgery and anesthesia cause the increase of risk of suffering pulmonary complications. Objective: to evaluate the behavior of respiratory complications in surgical patients. Methods: prospective, longitudinal and cohort study of 526 surgical patients who were admitted to the intensive care service of Joaquin Albarrán Dominguez university hospital from January 1st 2012 to December 31st 2014. The sample was made up of 127 surgical patients who presented with respiratory complications. Results: in this group, 24.1 percent of patients suffered respiratory complications. The highest percentage of deaths occurred in the 71-80 year age group (9.4 percent) followed by the 61-70 y group (6.2 percent). These results were significant (p≤0.05). Of the number of deaths, 18.8 percent occurred in emergency surgeries, with over 2-hour surgical time in 12.5 percent of cases. There was significant association between the surgical time and mortality (p≤0.05). The number of reoperations and mortality were not related (p=3.721). In the sample, 35.4 percent had nosocomial bacterial bronchopneumonia followed by acute respiratory failure (22.8 percent). The main cause of death in 50 percent of patients was multiple organ failure followed by pulmonary infarction in 13.8 percent. Conclusions: the main respiratory complications in surgical patients were nosocomial infections prompted by the older age, emergency operations and surgical times over 2 hours with high frequency and lethality. Nosocomial bacterial bronchopneumonia is the main cause of death associated to multiple organ failure(AU)

Hypercalcemia induced by parathyroid hormone-related peptide after treatment of carcinoma.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck is a rare cause of humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy. This paraneoplastic syndrome is usually one of the presenting symptoms of the disease. We report a case of squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity that presumably elaborated parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTH-rP) and caused hypercalcemia only after radiotherapy and chemotherapy.