GM-CSF-producing lymphocytes in tumor-draining lymph nodes of patients with bladder cancer.

Bladder cancer (BC) is the tenth common cancer worldwide. Despite progress in treatment and the use of chemotherapoeutic drugs, the survival rate of BC patients is still low. Manipulation of the immune system was recently introduced as an interesting alternative treatment for this immunogenic cancer with fewer side effects. Accordingly, in the present study, we assessed the frequency of GM-CSF-producing lymphocytes in tumor-draining lymph nodes (TDLNs) of BC patients and evaluated their relationship with clinicopathological factors and survival rate. Fifty-four patients with BC who had received no treatment were recruited. Mononuclear cells were isolated from fresh homogenized lymph nodes by centrifugation over Ficoll-Hypaque, activated and subsequently analyzed by flow cytometry for the cell surface expression of CD4 and CD8 and the intracellular production of GM-CSF. Flow cytometric analysis revealed that 4.97 ± 2.7% of lymphocytes in TDLNs of patients with BC produced GM-CSF. The mean frequency of GM-CSF-producing cells was 5.5% among CD4+ lymphocytes and 11.7% in the CD8+ population. Elevated frequencies of GM-CSF-producing lymphocytes, as well as a higher production of GM-CSF by CD4+ lymphocytes was observed in the patients with tumor-free lymph nodes, as compared to those with at least one tumor-infiltrated lymph node (p < 0.05). On the other hand, the lower frequency of GM-CSF-producing CD4+ lymphocytes (ThGM) was associated with improved overall, but not one-year, survival. No other significant relationship was observed between clinicopathological parameters and the frequency of GM-CSF-producing subsets. Collectively, our findings suggest a protective role for GM-CSF in the early stages of BC; however, the unfavorable association of ThGM frequency with survival rate may imply a more complex role for this cytokine in BC.

Deep Pinsker and James-Stein Neural Networks for Decoding Motor Intentions From Limited Data.

Non-parametric regression has been shown to be useful in extracting relevant features from Local Field Potential (LFP) signals for decoding motor intentions. Yet, in many instances, brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) rely on simple classification methods, circumventing deep neural networks (DNNs) due to limited training data. This paper leverages the robustness of several important results in non-parametric regression to harness the potentials of deep learning in limited data setups. We consider a solution that combines Pinsker's theorem as well as its adaptively optimal counterpart due to James-Stein for feature extraction from LFPs, followed by a DNN for classifying motor intentions. We apply our approach to the problem of decoding eye movement intentions from LFPs collected in macaque cortex while the animals perform memory-guided visual saccades to one of eight target locations. The results demonstrate that a DNN classifier trained over the Pinsker features outperforms the benchmark method based on linear discriminant analysis (LDA) trained over the same features.

Genital exam, a missed piece of the puzzle in medical diagnosis, can be lifesaving in men: A lesson from a case of a state of shock due to duodenal metastasis of testicular choriocarcinoma.

Here we reported a case of a 17-year-old man with a history of weakness, vertigo, nausea, vomiting and dark stool within the last three months prior to admission. He was taken to the Emergency Room in a state of shock. After resuscitation, vital signs became stable, but due to low hemoglobin (HB = 5 g/dl), to find the source of bleeding, endoscopy was performed and a mass in the duodenum was detected. The pathology report was metastatic germ cell tumor. On genital physical exam (PE) there was a mass in the right testis; thus, the patient underwent radical orchiectomy and choriocarcinoma was diagnosed. The patient then received chemotherapy for six months, and he responded well to the treatment. This case report confirmed that genital PE should be part of a patients visit, even when we cannot find logical relation between clinical presentation and genital PE.

Testicular papillary serous carcinoma of ovarian type, a rare case report, however an important timely diagnostic issue.

A 28 years old man presented with left testicular swelling for recent few months. Ultrasonography and Computed tumor scan was in favor of solid cystic mass. The patient underwent left radical orchiectomy. The pathology diagnosis with aid of Immunohistochemistry staining approved the mullerian duct origin. Papillary serous carcinoma of ovarian type(PSCOT) is diagnosed for him. The patient treated successfully he was symptom free in two years follow up after orchiectomy. Timely diagnosis of PSCOT and orchiectomy are the keys of the patient survival; because prior to tumor spreading, the patient can be discharged after orchiectomy without adjuvant treatment.

Stereological comparison of the effects of pentoxifylline, captopril, simvastatin, and tamoxifen on kidney and bladder structure after partial urethral obstruction in rats.

PURPOSE: Limited studies have shown antifibrotic effects of pentoxifylline, captopril, simvastatin, and tamoxifen. No comparisons are available of the effects of these drugs on prevention of renal and bladder changes in partial urethral obstruction (PUO). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The rats were divided into six groups (n=7). The sham-operated rats (group I) only underwent laparotomy and did not receive any treatments. The PUO groups (group II-VI) received normal saline (PUO+NS), pentoxifylline (100 mg/kg/d; PUO+PEN), captopril (35 mg/kg/d; PUO+CAP), simvastatin (15 mg/kg/d; PUO+SIM), or tamoxifen (10 mg/kg/d; PUO+TAM) by gavage for 28 days. Then, the volume and/or length of the kidney components (tubules, vessels, and fibrous tissue) and the bladder components (epithelial and muscular layers, fibrous tissue, fibroblast and fibrocyte number) were quantitatively evaluated on the microscopic sections by use of stereological techniques. RESULTS: The volume of renal and bladder fibrosis was significantly ameliorated in the PUO+PEN group, followed by the PUO+CAP, PUO+SIM, and PUO+TAM groups. Also, the volume and length of the renal tubules and vessels and bladder layers were more significantly protected in the PUO+PEN group, followed by the PUO+CAP, PUO+SIM, and PUO+TAM groups. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of PUO with PEN was more effective in the prevention of renal and bladder fibrosis and in the preservation of renal and bladder structures.