Sulfur Promotion in Au/C Catalyzed Acetylene Hydrochlorination.

The formation of highly active and stable acetylene hydrochlorination catalysts is of great industrial importance. The successful replacement of the highly toxic mercuric chloride catalyst with gold has led to a flurry of research in this area. One key aspect, which led to the commercialization of the gold catalyst is the use of thiosulphate as a stabilizing ligand. This study investigates the use of a range of sulfur containing compounds as promoters for production of highly active Au/C catalysts. Promotion is observed across a range of metal sulfates, non-metal sulfates, and sulfuric acid treatments. This observed enhancement can be optimized by careful consideration of either pre- or post-treatments, concentration of dopants used, and modification of washing steps. Pre-treatment of the carbon support with sulfuric acid (0.76 m) resulted in the most active Au/C in this series with an acetylene conversion of ≈70% at 200 °C.

Synthesis of 3-Aryl-3-Sulfanyl Azetidines by Iron-Catalyzed Thiol Alkylation with N-Cbz Azetidinols.

New small-ring derivatives can provide valuable motifs in new chemical space for drug design. 3-Aryl-3-sulfanyl azetidines are synthesized directly from azetidine-3-ols in excellent yield by a mild Fe-catalyzed thiol alkylation. A broad range of thiols and azetidinols bearing electron-donating aromatics are successful, proceeding via an azetidine carbocation. The N-carboxybenzyl group is a requirement for good reactivity and enables the NH-azetidine to be revealed. Further reactions of the azetidine sulfides demonstrate their potential for incorporation in drug discovery programs.

Recognizing the best catalyst for a reaction.

Heterogeneous catalysis is immensely important, providing access to materials essential for the well-being of society, and improved catalysts are continuously required. New catalysts are frequently tested under different conditions making it difficult to determine the best catalyst. Here we describe a general approach to identify the best catalyst using a data set based on all reactions under kinetic control to calculate a set of key performance indicators (KPIs). These KPIs are normalized to take into account the variation in reaction conditions. Plots of the normalized KPIs are then used to demonstrate the best catalyst using two case studies: (i) acetylene hydrochlorination, a reaction of current interest for vinyl chloride manufacture, and (ii) the selective oxidation of methane to methanol using O2 in water, a reaction that has attracted very recent attention in the academic literature.

Differential Listeria monocytogenes strain survival and growth in Katiki, a traditional Greek soft cheese, at different storage temperatures.

Katiki Domokou is a traditional Greek cheese, which has received the Protected Designation of Origin recognition since 1994. Its microfloras have not been studied although its structure and composition may enable (or even favor) the survival and growth of several pathogens, including Listeria monocytogenes. The persistence of L. monocytogenes during storage at different temperatures has been the subject of many studies since temperature abuse of food products is often encountered. In the present study, five strains of L. monocytogenes were aseptically inoculated individually and as a cocktail in Katiki Domokou cheese, which was then stored at 5, 10, 15, and 20 degrees C. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was used to monitor strain evolution or persistence during storage at different temperatures in the case of the cocktail inoculum. The results suggested that strain survival of L. monocytogenes was temperature dependent since different strains predominated at different temperatures. Such information is of great importance in risk assessment studies, which typically consider only the presence or absence of the pathogen.

Successful treatment of extramedullary gastric plasmacytoma with the combination of bortezomib and dexamethasone: first reported case.

We report a case of a 68-year-old man presented with upper-gastrointestinal bleeding. Endoscopy showed a large ulcerated gastric mass. Histological examination of the gastric biopsies revealed a k monoclonal extramedullary plasmacytoma (EMP). Further staging was negative for multiple myeloma. The patient was managed with bortezomib at a dose of 1.3mg/m2 on days 1, 4, 8 and 11 of a 21-day cycle in combination with dexamethasone 20mg p.o. on days 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9 and 11, 12 of each cycle. After 4 cycles of treatment, no endoscopic or histological findings of EMP were found. Thirteen months after diagnosis the patient is in complete remission with no evidence of local relapse or evolution to multiple myeloma. This is the first reported case of EMP successfully managed with the combination of bortezomib and dexamethasone.

Bortezomib is an effective agent for MDS/MPD syndrome with 5q- anomaly and thrombocytosis.

Thrombocytosis is not a frequent event in myelodysplasia (MDS) and is observed mainly in 5q- syndrome and MDS/myeloproliferative (MPD) overlap syndromes. The pathogenetic mechanism of thrombocytosis in 5q- has not been fully elucidated to-date. Bortezomib is a proteasome inhibitor which seems to be effective in MDS. We present here the first case in the literature with MDS/MPD syndrome, sole 5q- anomaly and thrombocytosis in which bortezomib administration normalized platelet count, produced a major erythroid response, and reduced levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and TNF-alpha while increased levels of IL-4 in the bone marrow plasma. The study of such cases will reveal the exact role of bortezomib in the management of MDS/MPD.

Mosaic ring X chromosome in a case of secondary amenorrhea.

OBJECTIVE: To report an unusual case of secondary amenorrhea in a 17-year-old adolescent with normal sexual development who proved to have a karyotype 46,XX/46,X,+ringX/47,XX,+ringX. DESIGN: Case report. SETTING: Hospital, tertiary level of clinical endocrine care. PATIENT(S): A 17-year-old patient with secondary amenorrhea and normal sexual characteristics with no stigmata of Turner syndrome. INTERVENTION(S): Clinical history, hormonal markers, cytogenetic analysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Cytogenetic analysis by G-banding technique, multicolor fluorescence in situ hybridization, and multicolor banding analysis on peripheral blood lymphocytes. RESULT(S): The presence of mosaicism in 12% of metaphases indicating a ring X chromosome with one or two normal X chromosomes, forming a karyotype 46,XX/46,X, +ringX/47,XX,+ringX. CONCLUSION(S): Our findings indicate the necessity for cytogenetic studies in certain cases of amenorrhea. This is a very rare karyotype in patients with secondary amenorrhea.

Pearson syndrome in an infant heterozygous for C282Y allele of HFE gene.

BACKGROUND: Pearson syndrome is a rare mitochondrial disorder characterized by sideroblastic anemia, liver disease, renal tubulopathy and exocrine pancreas deficiency. OBSERVATIONS: We describe a female infant suffering from anemia since birth who gradually developed the complete picture of Pearson syndrome by 13 months. Iron overload was disproportionate to blood transfusions. The patient was heterozygous for HFE gene C282Y mutation (type I hemochromatosis). After an initial response to deferoxamine she presented with cutaneous zygomycosis and died after metabolic derangement and Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia. CONCLUSION: This is the second case of a Pearson syndrome individual who was also heterozygous for HFE gene mutation C282Y published. It is also the second case report of a Pearson patient suffering from severe iron overload and liver disease that responded to therapy with deferoxamine.

Effective hemostasis with rFVIIa treatment in two patients with severe thrombocytopenia and life-threatening hemorrhage.

We report two patients with severe thrombocytopenia and life-threatening bleeding that were successfully managed with recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa). The first was a 75-year-old male with Waldenström's macroglobulinemia. During a therapeutic course with fludarabine, he developed severe autoimmune thrombocytopenia resistant to conventional treatment, followed by persistent uncontrollable nasal bleeding. Platelet transfusions failed to increase the platelet count and control the hemorrhage. When hemoglobin levels fell below 8.5 g/dL and the patient's clinical condition got much worse, a single dose of 4.8 mg rFVIIa (90 microg/kg) was given as an i.v. bolus. Ten minutes after the rFVIIa injection, nasal bleeding stopped, the patient's clinical condition progressively improved, and splenectomy could be carried out uneventfully 2 days later. The second patient, a 52-year-old female, was under treatment for pre-B lymphoblastic leukemia. She developed severe thrombocytopenia, secondary to chemotherapy, complicated by massive gastrointestinal bleeding. Despite intensive treatment with platelet transfusions, hemorrhage continued and her condition deteriorated rapidly. She was then given an i.v. bolus injection of 4.8 mg rFVIIa, which resulted in cessation of hemorrhage and dramatic improvement of her clinical status. No adverse effects from the treatment with rFVIIa were observed. In conclusion, rFVIIa appears to be an attractive alternative for controlling hemorrhage in patients with severe thrombocytopenia, especially when platelet transfusions are unavailable or ineffective.

Prolonged administration of erythropoietin increases erythroid response rate in myelodysplastic syndromes: a phase II trial in 281 patients.

Treatment with recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo) improves anaemia in approximately 20% of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). We investigated the potential advantage of a prolonged administration of rHuEpo to achieve higher erythroid response rates (RR) in 281 MDS patients: 118 with refractory anaemia (RA), 77 with refractory anaemia and ringed sideroblasts (RARS), 59 with refractory anaemia with excess of blasts and blast count < 10% (RAEB-I), and 27 with RAEB and blast count between 11-20% (RAEB-II). rHuEpo was given subcutaneously at a dose of 150 U/kg thrice weekly, for a minimum of 26 weeks. Response to treatment was evaluated after 12 and 26 weeks of therapy. The overall RR was 45.1%; the RR for RA, RARS, RAEB-I and RAEB-II were 48.3%, 58.4%, 33.8% and 13% respectively. A significant increase in RR was observed at week 26 in RA, RARS and RAEB-I patients, as the response probability increased with treatment duration. The RR was higher in the good cytogenetic prognostic group and serum Epo level of > 150 U/l at baseline predicted for non-response. The median duration of response was 68 weeks and the overall risk of leukaemic transformation was 21.7%. These results suggest that prolonged administration of rHuEpo produces high and long-lasting erythroid RR in MDS patients with low blast counts, particularly in those with pretreatment serum Epo levels of < 150 U/l and good cytogenetic prognosis.