Expression of CD47 antigen in Reed-Sternberg cells as a new potential biomarker for classical Hodgkin lymphoma.

INTRODUCTION: CD47 over expression has been reported in several tumor subtypes. CD47 interacts with SIRPalpha on macrophages inhibiting phagocytic signal, providing a survival advantage to tumor. CD47, therefore, represents a valuable target for immunotherapy and is currently under clinical investigation. We aimed to study CD47 expression in Hodgkin Reed Sternberg cells (HRS). METHODS: We tested a polyclonal CD47 antibody (LifeSpan Biosciences, Seattle, WA) expression along with classical HRS cell markers on a tissue array of 16 classical Hodgkin Lymphoma (CHL) tumor biopsies obtained from newly diagnosed, non-selected patients (8 Female, 8 Male patients) in our institution from October 2016 to January 2018. Histologic subtypes were nodular sclerosis in 11 cases, mixed Cellularity in 3 cases and lymphocyte rich in 2 additional cases. Median age was 53 years (Range: 8, 74). Early stage disease was found in three patients without unfavorable prognostic factors according to EORTC and GHSG criteria, one patient with unfavorable prognostic factors and nine patients had advanced disease. Bulk disease was present in one patient. Normal lymphoid tissue and normal prostate epithelium were used as normal controls as recommended by manufacturer. Approval from the Local Ethical committee was obtained before any analysis. RESULTS: CD47 was overexpressed on all HRS cells with a characteristic dot-like pattern in 13/13 cases of CHL. HRS clearly expressed CD47 more intensely than infiltrating T and stromal cells. DISCUSSION: We propose that HRS cells, by up-regulating CD47, might avoid innate immunity check on tumor growth, which could be circumvented using blocking monoclonal antibodies.

"No quiero que usted sea así" Macro y microdiscursos que posicionan a los sujetos laborales que trabajan en las calles de Bogotá / "I don't want you to be so". Macro and micro'discourses that position to the laboral subjects who work on Bogotá streets

Enmarcado en la teoría de posicionamiento, este estudio examina la construcción de subjetividades laborales de trabajadores informales. Se entrevista a 14 hombres y 14 mujeres, trabajadores por cuenta propia que laboran en las calles de la ciudad de Bogotá ofreciendo productos o servicios, y que no están cubiertos por la seguridad social. Se indaga por las experiencias y prácticas en el trabajo, a partir de lo cual se interpretan los discursos como espacios de poder en la construcción de la subjetividad, teniendo en cuenta los macrodiscursos como marcos globales y los microdiscursos como referentes de la cotidianidad. Los resultados se interpretan a partir del análisis del discurso y por comparación y contraste de patrones de posicionamiento de los sujetos. Se encuentran diferentes discursos entre hombres y mujeres que los posicionan como independientes, conformes, excluidos, apreciados y a la vez discriminados y ejemplo de lo que no debe ser un trabajador.

Enclosed in the positioning theory, we examine the construction of labor subjectivities among women and men in their informal jobs in the streets of Bogota. 14 men and 14 women were interviewed. Their experiences and worries at work are investigated. Initially, the macro discourses as construction power spaces are proposed in the construction of subjectivity and its connection with the micro discourses found in the everyday jobs of the workers. Results are analyzed by comparing and contrasting the different positioning patterns in the mentioned discourses. Different discourses among men and women are found different, positioning them as independent, conformists, excluded, appreciated, and discriminated at the same time, and an example of how a worker should not be.

Concrete enclosure for shielding a neutron source.

In the aim to design a shielding for a 0.185 TBq (239)PuBe isotopic neutron source several Monte Carlo calculations were carried out using MCNP5 code. First, a point-like source was modeled in vacuum and the neutron spectrum and ambient dose equivalent were calculated at several distances ranging from 5 cm up to 150 cm, these calculations were repeated modeling a real source, including air, and a 1×1×1 m(3) enclosure with 5, 15, 20, 25, 30, 50 and 80 cm-thick Portland type concrete walls. At all the points located inside the enclosure neutron spectra from 10(-8) up to 0.5 MeV were the same regardless the distance from the source showing the room-return effect in the enclosure, for energies larger than 0.5 MeV neutron spectra are diminished as the distance increases. Outside the enclosure it was noticed that neutron spectra becomes "softer" as the concrete thickness increases due to reduction of mean neutron energy. With the ambient dose values the attenuation curve in terms of concrete thickness was calculated.

Seroincidence of porcine T. solium infection in the Peruvian highlands.

We performed repeated serological sampling of pigs in an endemic area of the Peruvian highlands (eight villages) to assess the feasibility of detecting incident cases of Taenia solium infection as indicators of ongoing transmission of the parasite. A total of 2245 samples corresponding to 1548 pigs were collected in three sampling rounds (n=716, 926, and 603, respectively). Village-period specific seroprevalences of antibodies by enzyme-linked immunoelectrotransfer blot (EITB) assay varied from 39% (95% CI: 34, 44) to 76% (95% CI: 72, 79). The prevalence of cysticercosis increased with the age of the pigs (similarly for both sexes). Around 40% of pigs were re-sampled at the end of each 4-month period. Crude incidence risks were 48% (57/120, 95% CI: 43-52) and 58% (111/192, 95% CI: 54-61) for each period. A proportion of seropositive animals became seronegative at the end of each period (23 and 15%). Incidence varied by the village, and the exposure period, and was higher in males than females (but did not differ by age).

Protection of pigs with cysticercosis from further infections after treatment with oxfendazole.

Cysticercosis, the infection by the larvae of Taenia solium, is a major cause of acquired epilepsy in the world; it also causes significant economic loss because of contaminated pork. This disease is endemic in most developing countries and no control strategy has yet been proven efficient and sustainable. To further evaluate the full potential of single-dose oxfendazole treatment for pigs as a control measure, 20 pigs with cysticercosis were treated with oxfendazole and later matched with 41 naive pigs and exposed to a natural challenge in a hyperendemic area. New infections were found by serologic testing in 15 of the 32 controls (47%), and by the presence of cysts at necropsy in 12 of them (37%). Only minute residual scars were detected in the carcasses of oxfendazole-treated pigs. Pigs with cysticercosis, once treated with oxfendazole, are protected from new infections for at least three months.

Experimental infection model for Taenia solium cysticercosis in swine. Cysticercosis Working Group in Peru.

A novel method for infecting pigs with Taenia solium using an intramuscular innoculum of oncospheres was investigated in a series of five experiments in 18 animals. The model is simple to perform, requires a minimal number of oncospheres, permits multiple infections per animal, and decreases the variation inherent in oral infection models. This intramuscular oncosphere assay (IMOA) may provide a valuable tool to evaluate therapeutic agents or potential vaccines for cysticercosis.

Serum antigen detection in the diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of neurocysticercosis patients.

The efficacy of albendazole (ABZ) treatment for human neurocysticercosis (NCC) was assessed by using a monoclonal antibody-based parasite antigen detection ELISA which specifically detects the products of living cysticerci in human serum. The assay displayed 85% diagnostic sensitivity, detecting 39 of 46 NCC cases. Only patients with a single viable cyst or only enhancing lesions (degenerating parasites) were seronegative. Specificity of the assay was 92% (23/25) when tested in healthy Peruvian volunteers. In 'cured' patients, in whom all parasites died after ABZ therapy, parasite antigen levels fell sharply by 3 months post treatment. This pattern was not observed in patients refractory to treatment. The sensitivity of the assay with serum samples, and its ability to identify successfully treated patients, make this monoclonal antibody-based ELISA the test of choice for the follow-up of NCC cases.

Persistence of passively transferred antibodies in porcine Taenia solium cysticercosis. Cysticercosis Working Group in Peru.

We evaluated the presence and persistence of anticysticercal antibodies in piglets born to Taenia solium infected sows. Infected sows from a disease-endemic area of Peru were transported to a nondisease-endemic area and impregnated. Serum samples were collected from sows and piglets on Day 2 through Week 35 after birth. Using an immunoblot specific for cysticercosis, Ig isotypes to 7 cyst antigens were measured and quantified. Serum samples from the piglets contained detectable antibodies from Week 1 through Week 35 (27 weeks after weaning). The primary Ig isotype present in both sows and piglets was IgG. Antibodies did not appear in piglet serum samples until after suckling, demonstrating that anti-cysticercal antibodies are transferred solely via colostrum. Our data have shown that maternally transferred antibodies to cyst antigens may persist through much of a pig's life. Therefore, the presence of passively transferred antibodies must be considered in studies that examine the prevalence of cysticercosis in pigs. Furthermore, when designing control strategies for cysticercosis, careful evaluation and selection of sentinel pigs becomes a crucial component of sentinel selection.

Time-response curve of oxfendazole in the treatment of swine cysticercosis.

Human Taenia solium cysticercosis is a major cause of epilepsy in developing countries, and porcine infection causes widespread economic losses because of infested pork. Recently, the use of oxfendazole (OFZ) for porcine cysticercosis provided, for the first time, an effective, single-dose treatment. We performed a controlled study to determine the time required between treatment with a single dose of OFZ and the death of cysticerci to define its applicability as preslaughter treatment or as a field control measure. Twenty naturally infected pigs were included in this study. Sixteen received a single dose (30 mg/kg) of OFZ, and were killed in groups of four at one, two, four, and 12 weeks after treatment. Four untreated controls were killed at week 12. No adverse reactions to OFZ were noted. A clear decrease in viability and number of cysts was evident after the first week after therapy, but even at week 4 some viable cysticerci were found in all samples. Twelve weeks after treatment, all meat appeared clear and only minuscule scars remained, except in one animal that had viable brain cysts. This study confirms the efficacy of a single dose of 30 mg/kg of OFZ for porcine cysticercosis but demonstrates that preslaughter treatment of pigs with OFZ will not be useful in controlling cysticercosis. The inclusion of porcine treatment with OFZ in mass cysticercosis control programs is, however, highly promising because it is a simple, effective, inexpensive, and potentially sustainable method for decreasing the porcine reservoir of cysticercosis in disease-endemic countries.

Treatment of porcine cysticercosis with oxfendazole: a dose-response trial.

Taenia solium cysticercosis is an important public health problem in developing countries. Oxfendazole has been shown to be highly effective against porcine cysticercosis, when given as a single dose at 30 mg/kg bodyweight. This dose, however, was estimated from experience with albendazole. A controlled dose-response trial was therefore undertaken to determine the efficacy and safety of three concentrations of oxfendazole. Twenty-four naturally parasitised pigs were divided into four groups and treated with oxfendazole at 10 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg or 30 mg/kg, or left untreated. Eight to 10 weeks later the pigs were killed and the viability of the parasites assessed by evagination. No side-effects of oxfendazole treatment were observed. In the control group more than 90 per cent of the cysts were viable. Viable cysts were found in the muscle and brain of the pigs treated with 10 or 20 mg/kg oxfendazole. At 30 mg/kg there were no viable cysts in any of the tissues examined, indicating that this concentration of oxfendazole provided an effective treatment against porcine cysticercosis.

[Health status in the population using contraceptives]. / Condiciones de salud en poblaciones usuarias de anticonceptivos.

In order to partially understand the health status of women under contraceptive therapy and their possible social hazard of it, a descriptive, prospective and transversal study was undertaken in a 500 individuals, ages 20-35 years old, who currently were regulation their fertility. Data were obtained by means of predetermined questions from subjects attending several clinics of the IMSS. Anyone refusing to participate was discharged questions. The analysis excluded 8/500 due to incomplete responses. In 334/492, hormonal practice was in use; the IUD met 36.6% and the minor groups of 4.4 and 2.8% the method chosen was surgical or natural respectively. The IUD had been used over three years in 60/187, while in 39/145 were on the pill the same period of time; only 23/100 preferred the injectables. No previous medical advice was carried out in order to prescribe the contraceptive and furthermore in 461/492 no laboratory clinical tests were required before. In only 22% of the population the Pap-smear had been taken two years before and in 89/492 was never considered. The contraceptive strategies was induce risks in the future with no solid etiology if a prescription is decided, before the health status is evaluated. It looks like that present report is the first description associating health and risks in a non-selected population under contraceptive methodology.

Effective, single-dose treatment or porcine cysticercosis with oxfendazole.

The pig is a vital link in the transmission cycle of Taenia solium, the cestode responsible for human-porcine cysticercosis. Infected pigs also represent an important source of economic loss to farmers in developing countries. Past efforts to find an adequate therapeutic regimen to treat this parasite disease in swine have failed because of low efficacy, high cost, side effects, or the need for multiple doses. In this randomized, no treatment-controlled study, the efficacy and safety of oxfendazole and praziquantel for the treatment of porcine cysticercosis were evaluated in 16 naturally infected pigs. Four groups of four pigs were treated with oxfendazole, praziquantel, oxfendazole plus praziquantel, or untreated. The pigs were humanely killed 12 weeks post-treatment, the number of cyst was counted, and parasite viability was assessed by cyst evagination. No detectable side effects were seen in any of the pigs. Praziquantel treatment alone appeared to reduce the number of cysts, but did not decrease the viability of the remaining parasites. Treatment with oxfendazole alone or oxfendazole plus praziquantel killed all of the parasites, and left only microcalcifications in the meat. Oxfendazole provides, for the first time, a practical, effective, inexpensive, and single-dose therapy for porcine cysticercosis.