Long-term results of arthroscopic repair of type II SLAP lesions in sports: assessment of return to pre-injury playing level and critical risk factors for complication.

PURPOSE: The management of isolated SLAP lesions is still debated especially in athletes. Aims of the study were: 1. to analyse our algorithm to treat SLAP lesions starting from the selection of patients for surgery and 2. to correlate the familiarity for diabetes and hypothyroid disorders with post-operative results. METHODS: Seventy-eight patients with isolated SLAP lesion were arthroscopically treated using knotless anchors and microfractures. All patients had a pre-operative and post-operative clinical examination according to Walch-Duplay, Constant, Rowe and Dash scores and interviewed for familiarity to diabetes and hypothyroid disorders. RESULTS: About 68.8% of patients solved pain with rehabilitation. About 29% of patients returned to the sports activities. About 32% of patients were no responder to physiotherapy and were arthroscopically treated. About 53.9% of patients responded excellent, 34.7% good, 3.8% medium and 7.6% poor results according to Walch-Duplay score. The Constant score increased from 64 to 95, the Rowe score from 48 to 96. The outcomes were significantly worse in patients with familiarity for diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Microfractures and knotless anchor give long-term good results for the treatment of SLAP lesions in athletes. The familiarity for diabetes is an important risk factor that can lead to decreased outcomes.

The pan-genome of the emerging multidrug-resistant pathogen Corynebacterium striatum.

Corynebacterium striatum, a common constituent of the human skin microbiome, is now considered an emerging multidrug-resistant pathogen of immunocompromised and chronically ill patients. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms in the transition from colonization to the multidrug-resistant (MDR) invasive phenotype in clinical isolates. This study performed a comprehensive pan-genomic analysis of C. striatum, including isolates from "normal skin microbiome" and from MDR infections, to gain insights into genetic factors contributing to pathogenicity and multidrug resistance in this species. For this, three novel genome sequences were obtained from clinical isolates of C. striatum of patients from Brazil, and other 24 complete or draft C. striatum genomes were retrieved from GenBank, including the ATCC6940 isolate from the Human Microbiome Project. Analysis of C. striatum strains demonstrated the presence of an open pan-genome (α = 0.852803) containing 3816 gene families, including 15 antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes and 32 putative virulence factors. The core and accessory genomes included 1297 and 1307 genes, respectively. The identified AMR genes are primarily associated with resistance to aminoglycosides and tetracyclines. Of these, 66.6% are present in genomic islands, and four AMR genes, including aac(6')-ib7, are located in a class 1-integron. In conclusion, our data indicated that C. striatum possesses genomic characteristics favorable to the invasive phenotype, with high genomic plasticity, a robust genetic arsenal for iron acquisition, and important virulence determinants and AMR genes present in mobile genetic elements.

Indication to dynamic and invasive testing in Cushing's disease according to different neuroradiological findings.

PURPOSE: Dynamic testing represents the mainstay in the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome. However, in case of undetectable or detectable lesion < 6 mm on MRI, bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling (BIPSS) is suggested by current guidelines. Aim of this study was to analyze the performance of CRH, desmopressin and high-dose dexamethasone suppression test (HDDST) in the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome as well as the impact of invasive and noninvasive tests on surgical outcome in patients affected by Cushing's disease (CD). METHODS: Retrospective analysis on 148 patients with CD and 26 patients with ectopic ACTH syndrome. RESULTS: Among CD patients, negative MRI/lesion < 6 mm was detected in 97 patients (Group A); 29 had a 6-10 mm lesion (Group B) and 22 a macroadenoma (Group C). A positive response to CRH test, HDSST and desmopressin test was recorded in 89.4%, 91·4% and 70.1% of cases, respectively. Concordant positive response to both CRH/HDDST and CRH/desmopressin tests showed a positive predictive value of 100% for the diagnosis of CD. Among Group A patients with concordant CRH test and HDDST, no difference in surgical outcome was found between patients who performed BIPSS and those who did not (66.6% vs 70.4%, p = 0.78). CONCLUSIONS: CRH, desmopressin test and HDDST have high accuracy in the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent CS. In patients with microadenoma < 6 mm or non-visible lesion, a concordant positive response to noninvasive tests seems sufficient to diagnose CD, irrespective of MRI finding. In these patients, BIPSS should be reserved to discordant tests.

BSREM for Brain Metastasis Detection with 18F-FDG-PET/CT in Lung Cancer Patients.

The aim of the study was to analyze the use of block sequential regularized expectation maximization (BSREM) with different ß-values for the detection of brain metastases in digital fluorine-18 labeled 2-deoxy-2-fluoro-D-glucose (18F-FDG) PET/CT in lung cancer patients. We retrospectively analyzed staging/restaging 18F-FDG PET/CT scans of 40 consecutive lung cancer patients with new brain metastases, confirmed by MRI. PET images were reconstructed using BSREM (ß-values of 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700) and OSEM. Two independent blinded readers (R1 and R2) evaluated each reconstruction using a 4-point scale for general image quality, noise, and lesion detectability. SUVmax of metastases, brain background, target-to-background ratio (TBR), and contrast recovery (CR) ratio were recorded for each reconstruction. Among all reconstruction techniques, differences in qualitative parameters were analyzed using non-parametric Friedman test, while differences in quantitative parameters were compared using analysis of variances for repeated measures. Cohen's kappa (k) was used to measure inter-reader agreement. The overall detectability of brain metastases was highest for BSREM200 (R1: 2.83 ± 1.17; R2: 2.68 ± 1.32) and BSREM300 (R1: 2.78 ± 1.23; R2: 2.68 ± 1.36), followed by BSREM100, which had lower accuracy owing to noise. The highest median TBR was found for BSREM100 (R1: 2.19 ± 1.05; R2: 2.42 ± 1.08), followed by BSREM200 and BSREM300. Image quality ratings were significantly different among reconstructions (p < 0.001). The median quality score was higher for BSREM100-300, and both noise and metastases' SUVmax decreased with increasing ß-value. Inter-reader agreement was particularly high for the detectability of photopenic metastases and blurring (all k > 0.65). BSREM200 and BSREM300 yielded the best results for the detection of brain metastases, surpassing both BSREM400 and OSEM, typically used in clinical practice.

Improved detection of in-transit metastases of malignant melanoma with BSREM reconstruction in digital [18F]FDG PET/CT.

OBJECTIVES: To compare block sequential regularized expectation maximization (BSREM) and ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM) for the detection of in-transit metastasis (ITM) of malignant melanoma in digital [18F]FDG PET/CT. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed a cohort of 100 [18F]FDG PET/CT scans of melanoma patients with ITM, performed between May 2017 and January 2020. PET images were reconstructed with both OSEM and BSREM algorithms. SUVmax, target-to-background ratio (TBR), and metabolic tumor volume (MTV) were recorded for each ITM. Differences in PET parameters were analyzed with the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Differences in image quality for different reconstructions were tested using the Man-Whitney U test. RESULTS: BSREM reconstruction led to the detection of 287 ITM (39% more than OSEM). PET parameters of ITM were significantly different between BSREM and OSEM reconstructions (p < 0.001). SUVmax and TBR were higher (76.5% and 77.7%, respectively) and MTV lower (49.5%) on BSREM. ITM missed with OSEM had significantly lower SUVmax (mean 2.03 vs. 3.84) and TBR (mean 1.18 vs. 2.22) and higher MTV (mean 2.92 vs. 1.01) on OSEM compared to BSREM (all p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: BSREM detects significantly more ITM than OSEM, owing to higher SUVmax, higher TBR, and less blurring. BSREM is particularly helpful in small and less avid lesions, which are more often missed with OSEM. KEY POINTS: • In melanoma patients, [18F]FDG PET/CT helps to detect in-transit metastases (ITM), and their detection is improved by using BSREM instead of OSEM reconstruction. • BSREM is particularly useful in small lesions.

Can harmful lifestyle, obesity and weight changes increase the risk of breast cancer in BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 mutation carriers? A Mini review.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 genes are associated with an inherited susceptibility to breast cancer with a cumulative risk of 60% in BRCA 1 mutation carriers and of 30% in BRCA 2 mutation carriers. Several lifestyle factors could play a role in determining an individual's risk of breast cancer. Obesity, changes in body size or unhealthy lifestyle habits such as smoking, alcohol consumption and physical inactivity have been evaluated as possible determinants of breast cancer risk. The aim of this study was to explore the current understanding of the role of harmful lifestyle and obesity or weight change in the development of breast cancer in female carriers of BRCA 1/2 mutations. METHODS: Articles were identified from MEDLINE in October 2020 utilizing related keywords; they were then read and notes, study participants, measures, data analysis and results were used to write this review. RESULTS: Studies with very large case series have been carried out but only few of them have shown consistent results. Additional research would be beneficial to better determine the actual role and impact of such factors.

The LLAMA Brazilian-Argentinian radiotelescope project: progress in Brazil and BRICS collaboration.

We present briefly the LLAMA sub-mm radiotelescope, a joint project of Argentina and Brazil, being mounted in the Andes, Argentina, at 4800 m altitude. Here we focus on the activities that are going on mostly under the responsibility of Brazil, like the high frequency receivers, parts of the back-end and electronics, the optical system of the telescope to bring the radiation to the receivers, the equipment needed for the integration and verification phase (optical telescope and holography) and the computation system.The main scientific applications that are planned are dscribed. We also report on a joint program with BRICS countries approved in 2019, which will involve the use of LLAMA for testing high-frequency receivers.

Generalized Gibbs Phase Rule and Multicriticality Applied to Magnetic Systems.

A generalization of the original Gibbs phase rule is proposed in order to study the presence of single phases, multiphase coexistence, and multicritical phenomena in lattice spin magnetic models. The rule is based on counting the thermodynamic number of degrees of freedom, which strongly depends on the external fields needed to break the ground state degeneracy of the model. The phase diagrams of some spin Hamiltonians are analyzed according to this general phase rule, including general spin Ising and Blume-Capel models, as well as q-state Potts models. It is shown that by properly taking into account the intensive fields of the model in study, the generalized Gibbs phase rule furnishes a good description of the possible topology of the corresponding phase diagram. Although this scheme is unfortunately not able to locate the phase boundaries, it is quite useful to at least provide a good description regarding the possible presence of critical and multicritical surfaces, as well as isolated multicritical points.

Loneliness and Well-Being During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Associations with Personality and Emotion Regulation.

The present study examined how neuroticism, extraversion, and emotion regulation were related to loneliness and well-being during 6 weeks of major public life restrictions in the Covid-19 pandemic in Switzerland. Cross-sectional results from 466 participants showed that neuroticism and emotion regulation strategies were associated with higher loneliness and lower well-being. However, in contrast to prior research, associations of extraversion with loneliness and well-being were weak and were qualified by interactions with emotion regulation. For introverts, maladaptive cognitive strategies such as rumination or catastrophizing were related to higher levels of loneliness. For extraverts, emotion suppression was related to lower levels of affective well-being. Individuals with low maladaptive regulation reported higher well-being the longer the public life restrictions were in place at the time of study participation. These findings suggest that first, extraversion may lose some of its protective value for loneliness and well-being when opportunities to engage in social activities are limited; second, that loneliness and well-being do not decrease over 6 weeks of public life restrictions; and third, that future studies should further investigate the moderating role of emotion regulation on the link between personality, loneliness, and well-being.

Chromosomal Evolution in Aspredinidae (Teleostei, Siluriformes): Insights on Intra- and Interspecific Relationships with Related Groups.

The family Aspredinidae comprises a clade of complex systematic relationships, both from molecular and morphological approaches. In this study, conventional and molecular cytogenetic studies coupled with nucleotide sequencing were performed in 6 Aspredininae species (Amaralia hypsiura, Bunocephalus cf. aloikae, Bunocephalus amaurus, Bunocephalus aff. coracoideus, Bunocephalus verrucosus, and Platystacus cotylephorus) from different locations of the Amazon hydrographic basin. Our results showed highly divergent diploid numbers (2n) among the species, ranging from 49 to 74, including the occurrence of an XX/X0 sex chromosome system. A neighbor-joining phylogram based on the cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) showed that Bunocephalus coracoideus is not a monophyletic clade, but closely related to B. verrucosus. The karyotypic data associated with COI suggest an ancestral karyotype for Aspredinidae with a reduced 2n, composed of bi-armed chromosomes and a trend toward chromosomal fissions resulting in higher diploid number karyotypes, mainly composed of acrocentric chromosomes. Evolutionary relationships were discussed under a phylogenetic context with related species from different Siluriformes families. The karyotype features and chromosomal diversity of Aspredinidae show an amazing differentiation, making this family a remarkable model for investigating the evolutionary dynamics in siluriforms as well as in fish as a whole.

Perioperative multidisciplinary management of endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery for sellar lesions: practical suggestions from the Padova model.

Perioperative management of patients with sellar lesion submitted to endoscopic transsphenoidal neurosurgery (TSS) lacks standardization and therefore it is committed to each center clinical practice. Although neurosurgical procedure remains the same for all sellar lesions, perioperative approach can require different measures depending on the underlying disease. With the aim of standardizing our perioperative procedures and sharing our experience with other centers involved in the management of pituitary disease, we developed a clinical care path for patients with sellar lesions candidate to endoscopic TSS. For the drafting of the following protocol, the national and international guidelines published in the last 5 years have been evaluated and integrated with our center experience accumulated in decades of clinical practice. A steering committee including medical doctors involved in management of patients with pituitary masses at the Padua Hospital reviewed current knowledge on this topic. The committee developed a first draft which was shared with a broader group of medical doctors to reach a preliminary consensus; when it was reached, the clinical care assistance pathway was confirmed, validated, and published in the local web-based health service. We want to present and share our experience with colleagues involved in the perioperative management of pituitary diseases in other centers.

Chromosomal Mapping of Rex Retrotransposons in Tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum Cuvier, 1818) Exposed to Three Climate Change Scenarios.

Greenhouse gas emissions are known to influence the planet's temperature, mainly due to human activities. To allow hypothesis testing, as well as to seek viable alternatives for mitigation, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggested 3 main scenarios for changes projected for the year 2100. In this paper, we subjected Colossoma macropomum Cuvier, 1818 (tambaqui) individuals in a microcosm to IPCC scenarios B1 (mild), A1B (intermediate), and A2 (extreme) to test possible impacts on their genome. We found chromosome heterochromatinization in specimens exposed to the A2 scenario, where terminal blocks and interstitial bands were detected on several chromosome pairs. The behavior of Rex1 and Rex3 sequences differed between the test scenarios. Hybridization of Rex1 resulted in diffuse signals which showed a gradual increase in the tested scenarios. For Rex3, an increase was observed in the A2 scenario with blocks on several chromosomes, some of which coincided with heterochromatin. Heterochromatinization is an epigenetic process, which may have occurred as a mechanism for regulating Rex3 activity. The signal pattern of Rex6 did not change, suggesting that other mechanisms are acting to regulate its activity.

Exercise training during chemotherapy preserves skeletal muscle fiber area, capillarization, and mitochondrial content in patients with breast cancer.

Exercise has been suggested to ameliorate the detrimental effects of chemotherapy on skeletal muscle. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of different exercise regimens with usual care on skeletal muscle morphology and mitochondrial markers in patients being treated with chemotherapy for breast cancer. Specifically, we compared moderate-intensity aerobic training combined with high-intensity interval training (AT-HIIT) and resistance training combined with high-intensity interval training (RT-HIIT) with usual care (UC). Resting skeletal muscle biopsies were obtained pre- and postintervention from 23 randomly selected women from the OptiTrain breast cancer trial who underwent RT-HIIT, AT-HIIT, or UC for 16 wk. Over the intervention, citrate synthase activity, muscle fiber cross-sectional area, capillaries per fiber, and myosin heavy chain isoform type I were reduced in UC, whereas RT-HIIT and AT-HIIT were able to counteract these declines. AT-HIIT promoted up-regulation of the electron transport chain protein levels vs. UC. RT-HIIT favored satellite cell count vs. UC and AT-HIIT. There was a significant association between change in citrate synthase activity and self-reported fatigue. AT-HIIT and RT-HIIT maintained or improved markers of skeletal muscle function compared with the declines found in the UC group, indicating a sustained trainability in addition to the preservation of skeletal muscle structural and metabolic characteristics during chemotherapy. These findings highlight the importance of supervised exercise programs for patients with breast cancer during chemotherapy.-Mijwel, S., Cardinale, D. A., Norrbom, J., Chapman, M., Ivarsson, N., Wengström, Y., Sundberg, C. J., Rundqvist, H. Exercise training during chemotherapy preserves skeletal muscle fiber area, capillarization, and mitochondrial content in patients with breast cancer.

The anti-proliferative effects of adiponectin on human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells and oxidative stress involvement.

Adiponectin (Acrp30) plays an important role in energy metabolism and inflammation. Recently, in vivo serum Acrp30 levels have been reported to be correlated to risk of developing several types of cancers such as lung cancer, and in vitro studies have demonstrated a role for Acrp30 in the control of cell proliferation and survival. However, the molecular effects of Acrp30 on lung cancer have not yet been clearly defined. In the present study, we investigated the effects of different concentrations of Acrp30 on the A549 human alveolar epithelial cell line, an in vitro model of lung adenocarcinoma. A549 cells were exposed to various concentrations of Acrp30 and successively, proliferation, apoptosis and oxidative stress were evaluated by MTT test, caspase activity assay, flow-cytometry and western blotting analysis. Our results demonstrated that Acrp30 causes, in a time- and dose-dependent manner, a reduction of cell viability and duplication together with an increase in cell apoptosis rate. In addition, we found that Acrp30 induces an increase of lipid peroxidation evaluated by TBARS assay and a concomitant reduction of nitric oxide release, both markers of cellular oxidative stress. Taken together, our data on A549 cells provides new insight into potential involvement of Acrp30 on physio-pathologic mechanisms of lung diseases through interference with proliferation, apoptosis and oxidative status.

Adiponectin profile at baseline is correlated to progression and severity of multiple sclerosis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Adiponectin is a cytokine linking energy metabolism and immune system. After being assembled, adiponectin circulates as oligomers of different molecular weight, i.e. low, medium and high (HMW) molecular weight. These have the most potent biological effects. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease of the human central nervous system. The aim of this study was to characterize the expression levels of both total adiponectin and its oligomerization state in the serum from 99 patients with MS at baseline (i.e. not influenced by therapies). We also investigated the potential relationships between adiponectin and disease progression and severity. METHODS: Adiponectin was quantified and visualized by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting and fast protein liquid chromatography. During the follow-up (3.6 ± 2.20 years), the patients were evaluated using total annualized relapse rate and Expanded Disability Status Scale score. RESULTS: Total adiponectin is statistically higher in patients with MS compared with matched controls (12.18 vs. 10.02 µg/mL, P = 0.001). Interestingly, the adiponectin oligomerization state is altered in MS, with an increase of HMW oligomers. In addition, patients with MS with higher levels of adiponectin at baseline have significantly higher risk of progression and severity (Multiple Sclerosis Severity Score, 3.84 vs. 2.44, P = 0.001). No statistical difference in adiponectin expression was found between active and inactive patients with MS and among the different forms of disease. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that adiponectin and its HMW oligomers are greatly involved in MS autoimmune disorder representing a potential biomarker to predict worse MS prognosis and severity. Further studies are required to clarify the molecular mechanisms underlying the properties of adiponectin and HMW oligomers in MS.

Lung uptake of fluorine-18 fluoroethyl-choline PET-CT in patients with prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: Metastatic spreading to the lungs is a negative prognostic factor in patients with prostate cancer (PC). Aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of lung PC metastases in patients with fluorine-18 fluoroethyl-choline (F-18-FECh) PET-CT positive lung lesions and the role of Gleason Score (GS) and common biochemical markers in predicting metastatic spreading to the lungs. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated the scans of 1283 patients ongoing (F-18-FECh) PET-CT for PC between May 2010 and July 2014. Patients with lung lesion with F-18-FECh uptake were included. Data concerning GS at diagnosis, "trigger" prostate-specific antigen (PSAtr), PSA doubling time (PSAdt), PSA velocity (PSAvel) and ongoing androgen deprivation therapy were collected. PET-CT findings were confirmed by histology or follow-up (FU) and classified as follows: inflammation, primary lung cancer or metastases from tumor other than PC, and lung metastases from PC. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients with F-18-FECh positive lung lesion and available histology or FU were identified. PSAdt was significantly (P=0.029) shorter in patients with lung metastases from PC (median PSAdt 1.7 months, interquartile range [IQR] 1.5-4.1 months) than in patients without lung PC relapse (median PSAdt 6.7 months, IQR 3.9-7.8); PSAvel was significantly (P=0.019) higher in patients with lung metastases from PC (median PSAvel 3.2 ng/mL/month, IQR 0.65-6.65 ng/mL/month) than in patients without lung PC relapse (median PSAvel 0.3 ng/mL/month, IQR 0.2-0.5 ng/mL/month). Patients with lung metastases from PC had significantly (P=0.006) higher GS at diagnosis (median GS 8) than the other ones (median GS 7). CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis shows that the prevalence of F-18-FECh positive lung metastases in patients with PC, especially with higher GS at diagnosis, is higher in presence of a steady increase in PSA values, confirmed by higher PSAvel and shorter PSAdt.

Comparative characterization of CD271+ and CD271- subpopulations of CD34+ human adipose-derived stromal cells.

Adipose-derived stromal/stem cells (ASCs) are promising candidates for cell-based therapies. However, the lack of markers able to unequivocally identify these cells, the differential expression of cell surface molecules among stromal progenitors from different tissues and cellular alterations caused by culture are phenomena that need to be comprehensively addressed in order to improve ASC purification and consequently refine our knowledge about their function and therapeutic efficiency. In this study, we investigated the potential of CD271, a marker used for purification of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, on enriching ASCs from CD34+ stromal cells of human adipose tissue. Putative ASC populations were sorted based on CD271 expression (CD45- CD31- CD34+ CD271+ and CD45- CD31- CD34+ CD271- cells) and compared regarding their clonogenic efficiency, proliferation, immunophenotypic profile, and multilineage potential. To shed light on their native identity, we also interrogated the expression of key perivascular cell markers in freshly isolated cells. CD271- cells displayed twofold higher clonogenic efficiency than CD271+ cells. Upon culture, the progeny of both populations displayed similar immunophenotypic profile and in vitro adipogenic and chondrogenic potentials, while CD271+ cells produced more calcified extracellular matrix. Interestingly, uncultured freshly isolated CD271+ cells displayed higher expression of pericyte-associated markers than CD271- cells and localized in the inner region of the perivascular wall. Our results demonstrate that cells with in vitro ASC traits can be obtained from both CD271+ and CD271- stromal populations of human adipose tissue. In addition, gene expression profiling and in situ localization analyses indicate that the CD271+ population displays a pericytic phenotype.

The central zone has increased 68Ga-PSMA-11 uptake: "Mickey Mouse ears" can be hot on 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET.

PURPOSE: Given the good correlation between PSMA expression and intraglandular tumour aggressiveness based on immunohistochemistry, there is increasing interest in 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/MRI for staging prostate cancer (PCA). Therefore, accurate knowledge of prostate anatomy as well as normal distribution of PSMA within the prostate gland is becoming essential. The aim of this study was to investigate the physiological intraprostatic distribution of 68Ga-PSMA-11. METHODS: We retrospectively analysed all patients who underwent a staging 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/MRI scan between June 2016 and January 2018 for high-risk PCA, underwent radical prostatectomy in our institution, and gave written consent for further data analysis. In each patient, standardized volumes of interest (VOIs) were placed bilaterally in the central, transition and peripheral zones within the zonal anatomy according to T2 weighted sequences in the axial and coronal planes. VOIs were only placed if they were safely within healthy tissue without spillover from the PCA. SUVmax and SUVmean were determined and their differences among the regions were assessed using the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test. RESULTS: Of 283 consecutive patients scanned with 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/MR, 31 were analysed. A total of 133 VOIs were placed, 46 in the central zone, 41 in the transition zone and 46 in the peripheral zone. Differences in SUVmax between the central zone (mean 3.9 ± 0.58) and transition zone (mean 3.2 ± 0.59) and between the central zone and peripheral zone (mean 2.7 ± 0.54) were statistically significant (both p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that higher 68Ga-PSMA-11 accumulation in the central zone than in the transition and peripheral zones is normal, and leads to a pattern resembling "Mickey Mouse ears" on 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET. This pattern could be helpful in avoiding false-positive interpretations of PET scans.

Adiponectin and colon cancer: evidence for inhibitory effects on viability and migration of human colorectal cell lines.

Adiponectin (Acrp30) is an adipokine widely studied for its beneficial metabolic and anti-inflammatory properties. Colorectal cancer is among the most common cancers worldwide. The aim of present study was to explore the effects of Acrp30 on both CaCo-2 and HCT116 colorectal cancer cells in terms of viability, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. In addition, since colorectal cancer represents a typical inflammation-related cancer, we investigated whether Acrp30 treatment modifies the migration and the expression of crucial proteins in the EMT transition. Finally, we analyzed the expression of cytokines in CaCo-2 cells. We found that Acrp30 reduces the survival rate of both CaCo-2 and HCT116 cells through induction of apoptosis and oxidative stress already after 24 h of treatment. In addition, wound-healing assay indicated that Acrp30 exposure statistically inhibits CaCo-2 and HCT116 cell migration. Western blot analysis performed on E-cadherin and vimentin, two EMT crucial markers in carcinogenesis, indicated that Acrp30 does not influence EMT transition. Finally, we found a reduction of mRNA levels corresponding to the anti-inflammatory IL-10 cytokine together with an increase of the pro-inflammatory IL-6 and IL-8 cytokines. This study provides new insight into Acrp30 molecular effects on colorectal cancer cells. Indeed, even if further studies are necessary to clarify the precise role of Acrp30 in colorectal cancer, our data strongly suggest that Acrp30 negatively regulates cell survival and migration in association with induction of oxidative stress and regulation of cytokines expression in both CaCo-2 and HCT116 colorectal cells.

7-epi-griffonilide, a new lactone from Bauhinia pentandra: complete 1H and 13C chemical shift assignments.

A new lactone, 7-epi-griffonilide (1), and six known compounds, 2, 3a - 3c, 4a and 4b, were isolated from the leaves of Bauhinia pentandra (Fabaceae). The structures elucidation of 1 and 2 were based on detailed 2D NMR techniques and spectral comparison with related compounds, leading to complete assignment of the 1H and 13C NMR spectra.