Coil embolization with open frozen hybrid graft for complex left subclavian artery/proximal descending aortic aneurysm in a young patient.

An LSCA aneurysm is a rare disease. When and how to operate are debated. While open surgery was initially considered the sole option, emerging endovascular techniques have been described. The present report describes a novel hybrid technique to treat an LSCA aneurysm combined to a proximal descending aneurysm in a young 25-year-old patient.

Low-threshold lasing at 1975 nm in thulium-doped tellurite glass microspheres.

Thulium-doped (Tm-doped) tellurite glass microspheres are used as laser media. Emission lines at wavelengths near 1975 nm are observed. The onset of laser emission is achieved with 8.6 and 30 µW of coupled pump power and injected pump power, respectively, at a wavelength of 1554 nm. To the authors' knowledge, these are the lowest laser threshold values recorded for a Tm-doped tellurite glass microcavity. Intrinsic Q-factors above 10(6) for the undoped tellurite glass microspheres assert the quality of the fabrication processes. An optical intrinsic Q-factor comparison between Tm-doped tellurite and undoped tellurite microspheres shows that ion absorption is the dominant loss source at pump wavelengths. Lower lasing threshold powers and higher power conversion are observed at longer pump wavelengths in agreement with theoretical models.

Effect of Yttrium-90 transarterial radioembolization in patients with non-surgical hepatocellular carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Recently, the use of Yttrium-90 transarterial radioembolization in non-surgical hepatocellular carcinoma was suggested but the evidence supporting its use is unclear. METHODS: We searched Medline, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane CENTRAL from inception up to April 14, 2020 for randomized controlled trials comparing Y90-TARE to standard of care in non-surgical HCC patients. Our primary outcome was overall survival (OS). Our secondary outcomes were progression-free survival, time to progression, disease control rate, grade ≥3 adverse events and rates of gastro-intestinal ulcers. Hazard ratios (HR) and risk ratios (RR) with random-effects model were used for our analyses. The risk of bias of the included studies was assessed using Cochrane's RoB 2 tool. RESULTS: Of 1,604 citations identified, eight studies (1,439 patients) were included in our analysis. No improvement in overall survival were noted when Yttrium-90 transarterial radioembolization was compared to standard treatments (HR 0.99 [95% CI 0.81-1.21], 6 studies, I2 = 77.6%). However, Yttrium-90 transarterial radioembolization was associated with fewer grade ≥3 adverse events (RR 0.64 [95% CI 0.45-0.92], 7 studies, I2 = 66%). No difference was observed on other secondary outcomes. DISCUSSION: In non-surgical HCC patients, Yttrium-90 transarterial radioembolization was not associated with significant effect on survival, progression-free survival, time to progression, disease control rate and the incidence of gastro-intestinal ulcers but was however associated with significantly lower rates of grade ≥3 adverse events. Further randomized controlled trials are warranted to better delineate optimal treatment.

Iliac crest bone biopsy by interventional radiologists to improve access to bone biopsy in chronic kidney disease populations: technical note and a case series.

INTRODUCTION: Chronic kidney disease-mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) leads to increased fracture risk. Iliac crest biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosing bone disease in CKD. Unfortunately, bone biopsy is rarely performed which is mainly due to the inability of clinicians to perform the procedure. In this paper, we propose a fluoroscopy-guided procedure performed by interventional radiologists as a novel approach to iliac crest biopsy in adult population. We describe the implementation of the procedure and present the first 11 cases of CKD patients who underwent iliac crest biopsy with this new approach. METHODS: A nephrologist already trained in performing iliac crest biopsy initiated the creation of a fluoroscopy-based iliac crest biopsy program. Two interventional radiologists underwent a short training. Patients' demographical, clinical and biochemical data were collected on the day of the biopsy. Complications within the first three months after the procedure were collected from electronical records. RESULTS: IR rapidly mastered the procedure. The use of fluoroscopy allowed a precise localisation of the biopsy site and standardization of the intervention, which ensured specimen quality. The new approach allowed CKD patients to access iliac crest biopsy, which resulted in precise bone disease diagnosis (levels of bone turnover and mineralization) and targeted therapy for each case. There were no complications during, nor within 3 months after the intervention. CONCLUSIONS: We believe this approach will increase the access to iliac crest biopsy for diagnosing bone disease in CKD population. Studies are now needed to evaluate whether CKD patients will benefit from anti-osteoporotic therapy based on the results of iliac crest biopsy.

Lymphatic Dysregulation in Patients With Heart Failure: JACC Review Topic of the Week.

The lymphatic system is an integral part of the circulatory system and plays an important role in the volume homeostasis of the human body. The complex anatomy and physiology paired with a lack of simple diagnostic tools to study the lymphatic system have led to an underappreciation of the contribution of the lymphatic system to acute and chronic heart failure (HF). Herein, we discuss the physiological role of the lymphatic system in volume management and the evidence demonstrating the dysregulation of the lymphatic system in HF. Further, we discuss the opportunity to target the lymphatic system in the management of HF and different potential approaches to accessing the lymphatic system.

A saturated SSR/DArT linkage map of Musa acuminata addressing genome rearrangements among bananas.

BACKGROUND: The genus Musa is a large species complex which includes cultivars at diploid and triploid levels. These sterile and vegetatively propagated cultivars are based on the A genome from Musa acuminata, exclusively for sweet bananas such as Cavendish, or associated with the B genome (Musa balbisiana) in cooking bananas such as Plantain varieties. In M. acuminata cultivars, structural heterozygosity is thought to be one of the main causes of sterility, which is essential for obtaining seedless fruits but hampers breeding. Only partial genetic maps are presently available due to chromosomal rearrangements within the parents of the mapping populations. This causes large segregation distortions inducing pseudo-linkages and difficulties in ordering markers in the linkage groups. The present study aims at producing a saturated linkage map of M. acuminata, taking into account hypotheses on the structural heterozygosity of the parents. RESULTS: An F1 progeny of 180 individuals was obtained from a cross between two genetically distant accessions of M. acuminata, 'Borneo' and 'Pisang Lilin' (P. Lilin). Based on the gametic recombination of each parent, two parental maps composed of SSR and DArT markers were established. A significant proportion of the markers (21.7%) deviated (p < 0.05) from the expected Mendelian ratios. These skewed markers were distributed in different linkage groups for each parent. To solve some complex ordering of the markers on linkage groups, we associated tools such as tree-like graphic representations, recombination frequency statistics and cytogenetical studies to identify structural rearrangements and build parsimonious linkage group order. An illustration of such an approach is given for the P. Lilin parent. CONCLUSIONS: We propose a synthetic map with 11 linkage groups containing 489 markers (167 SSRs and 322 DArTs) covering 1197 cM. This first saturated map is proposed as a "reference Musa map" for further analyses. We also propose two complete parental maps with interpretations of structural rearrangements localized on the linkage groups. The structural heterozygosity in P. Lilin is hypothesized to result from a duplication likely accompanied by an inversion on another chromosome. This paper also illustrates a methodological approach, transferable to other species, to investigate the mapping of structural rearrangements and determine their consequences on marker segregation.

Ascorbylperoxide contaminating parenteral nutrition perturbs the lipid metabolism in newborn guinea pig.

The light exposure of parenteral nutritive solutions generates peroxides such as H(2)O(2) and ascorbylperoxide [2,3-diketo-4-hydoxyperoxyl-5,6-dihydroxyhexanoic acid]. This absence of photoprotection is associated with higher plasma triacylglycerol (TG) concentration in premature infants and oxidative stress and H(2)O(2)-independent hepatic steatosis in animals. We hypothesized that ascorbylperoxide is the active agent leading to high TG. The aim was to investigate the role of ascorbylperoxide in glucose and lipid metabolism in an animal model of neonatal parenteral nutrition. Three-day-old guinea pigs received through a catheter in the jugular solutions containing dextrose plus 0, 90, 225, or 450 microM ascorbylperoxide. After 4 days, blood and liver were sampled and treated for determinations of TG, cholesterol, markers of oxidative stress (redox potential of glutathione and F(2alpha)-isoprostane), and activities and protein levels of acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), glucokinase, and phosphofructokinase (PFK). Ascorbylperoxide concentration was measured in urine on the last day. Data were compared by analysis of variance (p < 0.05). Plasma TG and cholesterol and hepatic PFK activity increased (200% of control), whereas ACC activity decreased (66% of control) in the function of the amount of ascorbylperoxide infused. Both markers of oxidative stress were higher in animals receiving the highest amounts of ascorbylperoxide. The logarithmic relations between urinary ascorbylperoxide and plasma TG (r(2) = 0.69) and hepatic PFK activity (r(2) = 0.26) were positive, whereas they were negative with ACC activity (r(2) = 0.50). In conclusion, ascorbylperoxide contaminating parenteral nutrition stimulates glycolysis, allowing higher availability of substrates for lipid synthesis. The logarithmic relation between urinary ascorbylperoxide and plasma TG suggests a very low efficient concentration.

Morpho-histological study of banana (Musa spp. cv. Grande Naine [AAA]) cell suspensions during cryopreservation and regeneration.

In this work, a morpho-histological study of banana (Musa spp. cv. Grande Naine [AAA]) embryogenic cell suspensions during cryopreservation and regeneration was performed. It was demonstrated that the regeneration process of somatic embryos originating from cryopreserved cell suspensions was different from that of control cell suspensions. Somatic embryos originating from cryopreserved cell suspensions had a unicellular origin. The regeneration process was modified not only by freezing in liquid nitrogen but also by the plasmolyzing effect of the 0.5 M sucrose solution employed during pretreatment. This result explained the high number of embryonic structures formed on M3 medium, compared with the control. Proembryos blocked at the globular stage could pursue their development when they were plated on new culture medium at a lower density after 30 days of culture on M3 medium. The unicellular origin of somatic embryos produced from cryopreserved cell suspensions offers the prospect of using cryopreservation to select non-chimeral transformed plants.

Macroscopic Dynamic Modeling of Sequential Batch Cultures of Hybridoma Cells: An Experimental Validation.

Hybridoma cells are commonly grown for the production of monoclonal antibodies (MAb). For monitoring and control purposes of the bioreactors, dynamic models of the cultures are required. However these models are difficult to infer from the usually limited amount of available experimental data and do not focus on target protein production optimization. This paper explores an experimental case study where hybridoma cells are grown in a sequential batch reactor. The simplest macroscopic reaction scheme translating the data is first derived using a maximum likelihood principal component analysis. Subsequently, nonlinear least-squares estimation is used to determine the kinetic laws. The resulting dynamic model reproduces quite satisfactorily the experimental data, as evidenced in direct and cross-validation tests. Furthermore, model predictions can also be used to predict optimal medium renewal time and composition.

Heat-modified citrus pectin induces apoptosis-like cell death and autophagy in HepG2 and A549 cancer cells.

Cancer is still one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and finding new treatments remains a major challenge. Previous studies showed that modified forms of pectin, a complex polysaccharide present in the primary plant cell wall, possess anticancer properties. Nevertheless, the mechanism of action of modified pectin and the pathways involved are unclear. Here, we show that citrus pectin modified by heat treatment induced cell death in HepG2 and A549 cells. The induced cell death differs from classical apoptosis because no DNA cleavage was observed. In addition, Z-VAD-fmk, a pan-caspase inhibitor, did not influence the observed cell death in HepG2 cells but appeared to be partly protective in A549 cells, indicating that heat-modified citrus pectin might induce caspase-independent cell death. An increase in the abundance of the phosphatidylethanolamine-conjugated Light Chain 3 (LC3) protein and a decrease in p62 protein abundance were observed in both cell types when incubated in the presence of heat-modified citrus pectin. These results indicate the activation of autophagy. To our knowledge, this is the first time that autophagy has been revealed in cells incubated in the presence of a modified form of pectin. This autophagy activation appears to be protective, at least for A549 cells, because its inhibition with 3-methyladenine increased the observed modified pectin-induced cytotoxicity. This study confirms the potential of modified pectin to improve chemotherapeutic cancer treatments.

Aquaporins Mediate Silicon Transport in Humans.

In animals, silicon is an abundant and differentially distributed trace element that is believed to play important biological functions. One would thus expect silicon concentrations in body fluids to be regulated by silicon transporters at the surface of many cell types. Curiously, however, and even though they exist in plants and algae, no such transporters have been identified to date in vertebrates. Here, we show for the first time that the human aquaglyceroporins, i.e., AQP3, AQP7, AQP9 and AQP10 can act as silicon transporters in both Xenopus laevis oocytes and HEK-293 cells. In particular, heterologously expressed AQP7, AQP9 and AQP10 are all able to induce robust, saturable, phloretin-sensitive silicon transport activity in the range that was observed for low silicon rice 1 (lsi1), a silicon transporter in plant. Furthermore, we show that the aquaglyceroporins appear as relevant silicon permeation pathways in both mice and humans based on 1) the kinetics of substrate transport, 2) their presence in tissues where silicon is presumed to play key roles and 3) their transcriptional responses to changes in dietary silicon. Taken together, our data provide new evidence that silicon is a potentially important biological element in animals and that its body distribution is regulated. They should open up original areas of investigations aimed at deciphering the true physiological role of silicon in vertebrates.

Micropropagation by tissue culture triggers differential expression of infectious endogenous Banana streak virus sequences (eBSV) present in the B genome of natural and synthetic interspecific banana plantains.

The genome of Musa balbisiana spp. contains several infectious endogenous sequences of Banana streak virus (eBSV). We have shown previously that in vitro micropropagation triggers the activation of infectious eBSOLV (endogenous sequences of Banana streak Obino l'Ewai virus) in the synthetic tetraploid interspecific hybrid FHIA21 (AAAB). In this work, we show that another synthetic tetraploid (AAAB) hybrid and two natural triploid (AAB) plantains are equally prone to the activation of infectious eBSOLV during tissue culture. These results are a strong indication that such activation is a general phenomenon in interspecific Musa cultivars, whether synthetic or natural. We also report the first in-depth study of the correlation between the duration of tissue culture and the level of activation of infectious eBSOLV, and show that specific and common activation patterns exist in these banana plants. We hypothesize that these patterns result from the concomitant activation of infectious eBSOLV and a decrease in the virus titre in neoformed plantlets, resulting from cell multiplication outcompeting virus replication. We provide experimental data supporting this hypothesis. No activation of infectious eBSGFV (endogenous sequences of Banana streak Goldfinger virus) by tissue culture was observed in the two natural AAB plantain cultivars studied here, whereas such activation occurred in the AAAB synthetic hybrid studied. We demonstrate that this differential activation does not result from differences in the structure of eBSGFV, as all banana genomes harbour eaBSGFV-7.