Synthesis of paclitaxel-BGL conjugates.

Four kinds of symmetrically branched oligoglyceryl trimeric (BGL003)-paclitaxel conjugates and a corresponding heptameric (BGL007) conjugate were synthesized. Molecular weights of all the compounds were less than two times that of paclitaxel. The anti-tumor activity of the most water-soluble BGL003 conjugate was examined and found to be preserved in spite of the chemical modification that is displacement of the N3'-debenzoyl residue with the BGL003 succinyl residue.

Optical coherence tomographic parameters as objective signs for visual acuity in patients with retinitis pigmentosa, future candidates for retinal prostheses.

To find optical coherence tomographic parameters related with visual acuity, and, thus, which might be used as objective signs to predict visual acuity after future treatment, for example retinal prosthesis implantation, 86 eyes of 45 consecutive patients with retinitis pigmentosa, who showed no macular diseases, underwent optical coherence tomography to measure macular retinal thickness and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness, and to obtain horizontal cross-sectional images at the fovea for observation of the inner segment/outer segment (IS/OS) junction line. Best-corrected visual acuity was significantly better either in the right eyes or in the left eyes with greater retinal thickness of all four quadrants of the macular area in the inner ring, encompassing 1-3 mm from the foveal center (P < 0.05, Spearman rank correlation test), and also with the presence of the IS/OS line at the fovea (P < 0.0001, Wilcoxon-Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test). Retinal average thickness in the posterior pole covering the 6 × 6 mm square area was positively correlated with peripapillary RNFL average thickness either in the right eyes or in the left eyes (P < 0.05). The average thickness of the peripapillary RNFL became significantly less with age (P < 0.05), but was not related with visual acuity. Macular retinal thickness and the presence of the IS/OS line, but not peripapillary RNFL thickness, could serve as objective signs for better visual acuity in retinitis pigmentosa. The macular retinal thickness might be used as an objective predictor to choose patients with retinitis pigmentosa who would be expected to gain vision after retinal prosthesis implantation.

Retinal vasoproliferative granulomatous lesion associated with hand pyoderma caused by Streptococcus pyogenes.

PURPOSE: To report a retinal vasoproliferative granulomatous lesion in association with pyoderma. DESIGN: Single case report. METHODS: A 32-year-old woman had blurred central vision in the right eye, concurrent with pyoderma of the fingers of both hands, 2 days later followed by fever. RESULTS: The patient had a granulomatous lesion in the upper retina, which caused leakage, leading to subretinal and intraretinal accumulation of hard exudates in the posterior pole, together with periphlebitis extending over the wider area of the retina. The culture of the pyodermic lesion detected Streptococcus pyogenes. With the 2-month course of amoxicillin-clavulanate, combined with prednisolone tapered from 30 mg daily, the visual acuity (decimal fraction) in the right eye returned from 0.01 (logMAR = 2) to 0.9 (logMAR = 0.1). However, after the discontinuation of the antibiotics and prednisolone, the retinal lesion became more vasoproliferative and caused leakage to reduce the vision again. The leakage was remedied by laser photocoagulation to the retinal lesion. CONCLUSIONS: The retinal granulomatous lesion was caused by streptococcal infection in pyoderma and later became more vasoproliferative with macroaneurysms and microaneurysms even after the initial subsidence of the lesion with antibiotics treatment.