Combining PARP inhibitors with radiation therapy for the treatment of glioblastoma: Is PTEN predictive of response?

Glioblastoma (GBM) is fatal. The standard radiotherapy and chemotherapy (temozolomide) followed by an adjuvant phase of temozolomide provide patients with, on average, a 2.5 months benefit. New treatments that can improve sensitivity to the standard treatment are urgently needed. Herein, we review the mechanisms and utility of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors in combination with radiation therapy as a treatment option for GBM patients and the role of phosphatase and tensin homologue mutations as a biomarker of response.

Chytridiomycosis causes amphibian mortality associated with population declines in the rain forests of Australia and Central America.

Epidermal changes caused by a chytridiomycete fungus (Chytridiomycota; Chytridiales) were found in sick and dead adult anurans collected from montane rain forests in Queensland (Australia) and Panama during mass mortality events associated with significant population declines. We also have found this new disease associated with morbidity and mortality in wild and captive anurans from additional locations in Australia and Central America. This is the first report of parasitism of a vertebrate by a member of the phylum Chytridiomycota. Experimental data support the conclusion that cutaneous chytridiomycosis is a fatal disease of anurans, and we hypothesize that it is the proximate cause of these recent amphibian declines.

Nutritional supplementation, psychosocial stimulation and development of stunted children: the Jamaican study - abstract

In developing countries, low height for age (stunting) is extremely common in children, and is associated with poor development. It is uncertain whether their poor development is due to poor nutrition or deprived social backgrounds, and whether nutritional supplementation improves their development. We assessed the effects of giving supplementation for two years, with or without psychosocial stimulation, to 129 stunted children aged 9 to 24 months. The children were identified from a survey of poor neighbourhoods in Kingston. They were randomly assigned to 4 groups: control, supplemented, stimulated, and both treatments. A group of matched non-stunted children (n=32) was also studied. All children were visited every week. The supplement comprised 1 kg of full cream milk. The stimulation comprised teaching mothers to play with their children for an hour each week. All children had their developmental levels (DQs) assessed regularly on the Griffith's Test. Initially, the stunted groups' DQs were significantly lower than those of the non-stunted groups, and the control group declined further during the study. Stimulation benefited the children's scores in the locomotor and performance subscales, and the developmental quotients. The effect on hearing and speech approached significant levels (p= <0.08). The treatment effects were additive, not interactive, and both groups made substantial gains. The results indicate that supplementation improves stunted children's development, and suggest that their poor development is at least partly attributed to undernutrition (AU)

Free-tissue transfers for limb salvage utilizing in situ saphenous vein bypass conduit as the inflow.

Using vein grafts to bypass sclerotic and occluded arterial segments is a well-established technique in vascular surgery. For infrapopliteal bypass, autogenous veins have better patency rates than synthetic grafts. Although not resolved, in situ bypasses seem to be better than reversed bypasses, especially for "far away" segments. Although the etiology is not understood, it is a well-known clinical finding that sclerosis affects arteries more than the veins and, as a whole, is more advanced in lower extremities compared with the trunk and upper extremities. Our experience with eight patients in whom critical soft-tissue defects were covered with free-tissue transfers in severely compromised lower extremities utilizing the in situ saphenous vein bypass as the inflow is presented. Simultaneous bypass and free-tissue transfers were performed in seven and delayed free-tissue transfer was done in one. Follow-up ranged from 6 months to 3 years. To date, two patients underwent amputations. Five patients are able to maintain bipedal ambulation. One patient is wheelchair-bound with intact lower extremities. In well-selected patients, this procedure may offer an alternative treatment to amputation. However, because of the complexity of these combined procedures, we strongly urge careful patient selection.