Skeletal involvement in Gaucher disease: An observational multicenter study of prognostic factors in the Argentine Gaucher disease patients.

Patients with Gaucher type 1 (GD1) throughout Argentina were enrolled in the Argentine bone project to evaluate bone disease and its determinants. We focused on presence and predictors of bone lesions (BL) and their relationship to therapeutic goals (TG) with timing and dose of enzyme replacement therapy (ERT). A total of 124 patients on ERT were enrolled in a multi-center study. All six TG were achieved by 82% of patients: 70.1% for bone pain and 91.1% for bone crisis. However, despite the fact that bone TGs were achieved, residual bone disease was present in 108 patients on ERT (87%) at time 0. 16% of patients showed new irreversible BL (bone infarcts and avascular osteonecrosis) despite ERT, suggesting that they appeared during ERT or were not detected at the moment of diagnosis. We observed 5 prognostic factors that predicted a higher probability of being free of bone disease: optimal ERT compliance; early diagnosis; timely initiation of therapy; ERT initiation dose ≥45 UI/kg/EOW; and the absence of history of splenectomy. Skeletal involvement was classified into 4 major phenotypic groups according to BL: group 1 (12.9%) without BL; group 2 (28.2%) with reversible BL; group 3 (41.9%) with reversible BL and irreversible chronic BL; and group 4 (16.9%) with acute irreversible BL. Our study identifies prognostic factors for achieving best therapeutic outcomes, introduces new risk stratification for patients and suggests the need for a redefinition of bone TG. Am. J. Hematol. 91:E448-E453, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Evaluation of Bone Mineral Density in Patients with Type 1 Gaucher Disease in Argentina.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the frequency of osteoporosis (OP) in patients with Gaucher disease (GD) in Argentina. GD patients from 28 centers were consecutively included from April 2012 to 2014. Bone mineral density (BMD) was determined by dual X-ray absorptiometry in the lumbar spine and the femoral neck or the total proximal femur for patients ≥20 yr of age, and by whole-body scan in the lumbar spine in patients <20 yr of age. In children, mineral density was calculated using the chronological age and Z height. OP diagnosis was determined following adult and pediatric official position of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry. A total of 116 patients were included, of which 62 (53.5%) were women. The median age was 25.8 yr. All patients received enzyme replacement therapy, with a median time of 9.4 yr. Normal BMD was found in 89 patients (76.7%), whereas low bone mass (LBM) or osteopenia was found in 15 patients (13%) and OP in 12 patients (10.3%). The analysis of the pediatric population revealed that 4 patients (9.3%) had LBM and 3 (7%) had OP (Z-score ≤ -2 + fractures height-adjusted by Z), whereas in the adult population (n = 73), 11 patients (15%) had LBM or osteopenia and 9 (12.3%) had OP. Bone marrow infiltration and the presence of fractures were significantly correlated with the presence of OP (p = 0.04 and <0.001, respectively). This is the first study in Argentina and in the region describing the frequency of OP or LBM in GD patients treated with imiglucerase using the official position of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry.

CW and pulsed electrically detected magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 263GHz/12T on operating amorphous silicon solar cells.

Here we describe a new high frequency/high field continuous wave and pulsed electrically detected magnetic resonance (CW EDMR and pEDMR) setup, operating at 263GHz and resonance fields between 0 and 12T. Spin dependent transport in illuminated hydrogenated amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells at 5K and 90K was studied by in operando 263GHz CW and pEDMR alongside complementary X-band CW EDMR. Benefiting from the superior resolution at 263GHz, we were able to better resolve EDMR signals originating from spin dependent hopping and recombination processes. 5K EDMR spectra were found to be dominated by conduction and valence band tail states involved in spin dependent hopping, with additional contributions from triplet exciton states. 90K EDMR spectra could be assigned to spin pair recombination involving conduction band tail states and dangling bonds as the dominating spin dependent transport process, with additional contributions from valence band tail and triplet exciton states.

Structural specifics of light-induced metastable states in copper(II)-nitroxide molecular magnets.

Although light-induced magnetostructural switching in copper(II)-nitroxide molecular magnets Cu(hfac)2L(R) has been known for several years, structural characterization of metastable photoinduced states has not yet been accomplished due to significant technical demands. In this work we apply, for the first time, variable-temperature FTIR spectroscopy with photoexcitation to investigate the structural specifics of light-induced states in the Cu(hfac)2L(R) family represented by (i) Cu(hfac)2L(Me) comprising two-spin copper(II)-nitroxide clusters, and (ii) Cu(hfac)2L(Pr) comprising three-spin nitroxide-copper(II)-nitroxide clusters. The light-induced state of Cu(hfac)2L(Me) manifests the same set of vibrational bands as the corresponding thermally-induced state, implying their similar structures. For the second compound Cu(hfac)2L(Pr), the coordination environment of copper(II) is similar in light- and thermally-induced states, but distinct differences are found for packing of the peripheral n-propyl substituent of nitroxide. Thus, generally the structures of the corresponding thermally- and light-induced states in molecular magnets Cu(hfac)2L(R) might differ, and FTIR spectroscopy provides a useful approach for revealing and elucidating such differences.

Probing Microenvironment in Ionic Liquids by Time-Resolved EPR of Photoexcited Triplets.

Unusual physicochemical properties of ionic liquids (ILs) open vistas for a variety of new applications. Herewith, we investigate the influence of microviscosity and nanostructuring of ILs on spin dynamics of the dissolved photoexcited molecules. We use two most common ILs [Bmim]PF6 and [Bmim]BF4 (with its close analogue [C10mim]BF4) as solvents and photoexcited Zn tetraphenylporphyrin (ZnTPP) as a probe. Time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (TR EPR) is employed to investigate spectra and kinetics of spin-polarized triplet ZnTPP in the temperature range 100-270 K. TR EPR data clearly indicate the presence of two microenvironments of ZnTPP in frozen ILs at 100-200 K, being manifested in different spectral shapes and different spin relaxation rates. For one of these microenvironments TR EPR data is quite similar to those obtained in common frozen organic solvents (toluene, glycerol, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone). However, the second one favors the remarkably slow relaxation of spin polarization, being much longer than in the case of common solvents. Additional experiments using continuous wave EPR and stable nitroxide as a probe confirmed the formation of heterogeneities upon freezing of ILs and complemented TR EPR results. Thus, TR EPR of photoexcited triplets can be effectively used for probing heterogeneities and nanostructuring in frozen ILs. In addition, the increase of polarization lifetime in frozen ILs is an interesting finding that might allow investigation of short-lived intermediates inaccessible otherwise.