Resilience predicts and modulates anxiety severity in people with epilepsy.

BACKGROUND: Anxiety is one of the most relevant psychiatric comorbidities in people with epilepsy (PwE). The role of resilience (RES) in the development of anxiety is not well understood. We purposed to better characterize RES impact on anxiety severity in PwE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and seventy-six PwE underwent online surveys including a collection of socio-demographic, seizure-related, and psychological variables. PwE were grouped according to the data collected; anxiety levels were compared through non-parametric statistics. Hierarchical regression analysis (HRA) and logistic regression were performed to characterize RES contribute in predicting the presence and the severity of anxiety. Mediation/moderation analysis was performed to evaluate causal effects among RES, depression, and anxiety. RESULTS: Anxiety did not differ according to socio-demographic and seizure-related variables, exemption for the presence of drug-related adverse effects. Depression, RES, and sleep quality provided the major contribute on anxiety variance. The addiction of RES level in HRA and logistic regression provided a significant increase of R-squared value (p-value = 0.02) and of area under the curve (p-value = 0.03), respectively. RES modulated depression/anxiety relationship (p-value < 0.001), whereas depression did not mediate RES/anxiety correlation (p-value = 0.68). CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that RES is a significant independent predictor of anxiety in PwE and is able to modulate depression impact on anxiety. Moreover, we confirmed the relevance of depression and sleep quality on anxiety severity.

Determinants of medication adherence in people with epilepsy: A multicenter, cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVES: Poor medication adherence in people with epilepsy (PwE) increases mortality, hospitalization, and poor quality of life, representing a critical challenge for clinicians. Several demographic, clinical, and neuropsychological factors were singularly found associated with medication adherence in several studies, but the literature lacks a comprehensive study simultaneously assessing all these variables. METHODS: We performed a multicenter and cross-sectional study using online questionnaires with the following clinical scales: Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-8), Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory 31 (QoLIE-31), Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and 14-item Resilience scale (RES14) in a population of 200 PwE. We used the ANOVA test and Spearman's correlation to evaluate the relationship between medication adherence and demographic, clinical (seizure frequency, number of anti-seizure medications), and neuropsychological characteristics. We trained separate machine learning models (logistic regression, random forest, support vector machine) to classify patients with medium-high adherence (MMAS-8 ≥ 6) and poor adherence (MMAS-8 < 6) and to identify the main features that influence adherence. RESULTS: Women were more adherent to medication (p-value = 0.035). Morisky Medication Adherence Scale -8 showed a direct correlation with RES14 (p-value = 0.001) and age (p-value = 0.001), while was inversely correlated with BDI-II (p-value = 0.001) and GAD-7 (p-value = 0.001). In our model, the variables mostly predicting treatment adherence were QoLIE-31 subitems, followed by age, resilience, anxiety, years of school, and disease duration. CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that gender, age, and neuropsychological traits are relevant factors in predicting medication adherence to PwE. Furthermore, our data provided the first evidence that machine learning on multidimensional self-report questionnaires could help to develop a decisional support system in outpatient epilepsy clinics.

Conjuring up a ghost: structural and functional characterization of FhuF, a ferric siderophore reductase from E. coli.

Iron is a fundamental element for virtually all forms of life. Despite its abundance, its bioavailability is limited, and thus, microbes developed siderophores, small molecules, which are synthesized inside the cell and then released outside for iron scavenging. Once inside the cell, iron removal does not occur spontaneously, instead this process is mediated by siderophore-interacting proteins (SIP) and/or by ferric-siderophore reductases (FSR). In the past two decades, representatives of the SIP subfamily have been structurally and biochemically characterized; however, the same was not achieved for the FSR subfamily. Here, we initiate the structural and functional characterization of FhuF, the first and only FSR ever isolated. FhuF is a globular monomeric protein mainly composed by α-helices sheltering internal cavities in a fold resembling the "palm" domain found in siderophore biosynthetic enzymes. Paramagnetic NMR spectroscopy revealed that the core of the cluster has electronic properties in line with those of previously characterized 2Fe-2S ferredoxins and differences appear to be confined to the coordination of Fe(III) in the reduced protein. In particular, the two cysteines coordinating this iron appear to have substantially different bond strengths. In similarity with the proteins from the SIP subfamily, FhuF binds both the iron-loaded and the apo forms of ferrichrome in the micromolar range and cyclic voltammetry reveals the presence of redox-Bohr effect, which broadens the range of ferric-siderophore substrates that can be thermodynamically accessible for reduction. This study suggests that despite the structural differences between FSR and SIP proteins, mechanistic similarities exist between the two classes of proteins.

Congenital cytomegalovirus infection: patterns of fetal brain damage.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most prevalent infectious agent causing neurological dysfunction in the developing brain. This study analysed the different patterns of tissue damage, particularly in the brain, of fetuses with documented CMV infection. We studied 45 fetuses at 20-21 weeks of gestation with congenital CMV infection documented by invasive positive prenatal diagnosis. At the time of amniocentesis, abnormal ultrasound findings had been recorded for 13 of the 45 fetuses (29%). Histological and immunohistochemical characterization was performed on the placenta, brain, heart, lung, liver, kidney, and pancreas. The different degrees of brain damage were correlated with tissue viral load, inflammatory response, placental functionality, and extramedullary haematopoiesis. Even though a high CMV load was detected in all amniotic fluids, brain infection occurred in only 62% of the fetuses and with different degrees of severity. Tissues with a low viral load showed a globally weak inflammatory response, and fetuses had only mild brain damage, whereas tissues with a high CMV load showed prominent infiltration of the activated cytotoxic CD8(+) T-lymphocytes responsible for immune-mediated damage. Furthermore, severe placental infection was associated with diffuse villitis and necrosis, consistent with functional impairment and possible consequent hypoxic cerebral damage. Brain injury induced by CMV congenital infection may be the result of uncontrolled viral replication, immune-mediated damage by cytotoxic CD8(+) T-lymphocytes, and, in the presence of placental insufficiency, fetal hypoxia.

Partial nodal involvement by marginal zone lymphoma. Use of IGK gene rearrangement analysis in diagnostic work-up.

Nodal marginal zone lymphoma (NMZL) is an indolent B-cell lymphoma that originates from the marginal zone of B-cell follicles. The tumour is rather uncommon, and shares some morphologic and immunophenotypic similarities with the extranodal form of marginal zone lymphomas. However, diagnosis of NMZL implies the exclusion of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma, follicular lymphoma, and lymph node involvement by extra nodal or splenic marginal zone B-cell lymphoma In addition, its distinction from reactive conditions, including T-zone hyperplasia, are sometimes problematic based on morphologic grounds. We describe a patient who presented with cervical and inguinal lymphadenopathies and high inflammation indexes. Bone marrow and lymph node biopsies were performed for definitive diagnosis. Bone marrow histological and immunophenotypic examinations were normal and excluded haematological disease. In contrast, lymph node evaluation showed some features compatible with a possible lymphoproliferative disorder, even though no definite diagnosis could be made based on morphologic and immunohistochemical investigation. In particular, the problem of a differential diagnosis between NMZL and a florid hyperplasia of monocytoid B-elements was posed. Thus, in order to assess the nature (neoplastic vs. reactive) of the lesion, molecular analysis of the immunoglobulin genes was performed by PCR. Notably, although no clonal rearrangements were revealed by IGHV@ analysis, further evaluation of the immunoglobulin light chain (IGKV@) confirmed the presence of a clonal B-cell population. Accordingly, a final diagnosis of NMZL was made. In conclusion, this case is a good example of the crucial role of complete molecular analysis in the diagnostic work up of lymphoproliferative disorders.

Ictal headache and visual sensitivity.

Migrainous headache is reported by patients with photosensitive epilepsy, whereas their relatives complain more often about headache than the relatives of patients with other types of epilepsy. We therefore investigated whether headache itself could be an epileptic symptom related to photosensitivity. Four probands with headache and photosensitive epilepsy were selected. Their first-degree family members were studied using video-EEG with extensive intermittent photic stimulation and pattern stimulation. Nine of the 12 subjects (10 female and two male, mean age 30 years, range 14-46 years) proved to be photosensitive with either focal (n = 5) or generalized (n = 4) epileptiform discharges. In two subjects an ictal recording of headache occurred after visual stimulation. We found evidence that, in specific patients, headache could be an ictal sign of epilepsy. Photic stimulation during EEG recording can contribute to correct diagnosis and lead to the best care and management of the patient.

Myeloid sarcoma: clinico-pathologic, phenotypic and cytogenetic analysis of 92 adult patients.

Myeloid sarcoma (MS) is a rare neoplasm whose knowledge is largely based on case reports and/or technically dated contributions. Ninety-two MSs in adulthood with clinical data available were evaluated both morphologically and immunohistochemically. Seventy-four cases were also studied by fluorescent in situ hybridization on tissue sections and/or conventional karyotyping on bone marrow or peripheral blood. Histologically, 50% of the tumors were of the blastic type, 43.5% either monoblastic or myelomonocytic and 6.5% corresponded to different histotypes. CD68/KP1 was the most commonly expressed marker (100%), followed by myeloperoxidase (83.6%), CD117 (80.4%), CD99 (54.3%), CD68/PG-M1 (51%), CD34 (43.4%), terminal-deoxy-nucleotidyl-transferase (31.5%), CD56 (13%), CD61/linker for activation of T cells (2.2%), CD30 (2.2%) and CD4 (1.1%). Foci of plasmacytoid monocyte differentiation were observed in intestinal cases carrying inv16. Chromosomal aberrations were detected in about 54% of cases: monosomy 7(10.8%), trisomy 8(10.4%) and mixed lineage leukemia-splitting (8.5%) were the commonest abnormalities, whereas t(8;21) was rare (2.2%). The behavior was dramatic irrespective of presentation, age, sex, phenotype and cytogenetics. Most if not all, long survivors received bone-marrow transplantation. The present report expands the spectrum of our knowledge showing that MS has frequent monoblastic/myelomonocytic differentiation, displays distinctive phenotypic profile, carries chromosomal aberrations other than t(8;21), and requires supra-maximal therapy.

NMR in the SPINE Structural Proteomics project.

This paper describes the developments, role and contributions of the NMR spectroscopy groups in the Structural Proteomics In Europe (SPINE) consortium. Focusing on the development of high-throughput (HTP) pipelines for NMR structure determinations of proteins, all aspects from sample preparation, data acquisition, data processing, data analysis to structure determination have been improved with respect to sensitivity, automation, speed, robustness and validation. Specific highlights are protonless (13)C-direct detection methods and inferential structure determinations (ISD). In addition to technological improvements, these methods have been applied to deliver over 60 NMR structures of proteins, among which are five that failed to crystallize. The inclusion of NMR spectroscopy in structural proteomics pipelines improves the success rate for protein structure determinations.

Primary follicular lymphoma of the testis in childhood: an entity with peculiar clinical and molecular characteristics.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Paediatric primary follicular lymphoma of the testis (PPFLT) is exceptional: the few reported cases seem to lack BCL-2 gene rearrangement and/or protein expression. The aim of this study was to characterise a PPFLT arising in a 4 year old boy. METHODS: This case was characterised using conventional histological analysis, immunohistochemistry, and a polymerase chain reaction based method for the detection of immunoglobulin V(H) chain rearrangements. RESULTS: The neoplasm was staged I(E)/A; left orchiectomy and chemotherapy were performed, producing complete remission. Histology showed a predominantly follicular lymphoid infiltrate mainly composed of centroblast-like cells. The phenotype was CD20(+), CD79a(+), CD10(+), bcl-6(+), B cell specific activating protein(+), kappa light chain(+), CD30(-/+), interferon regulating factor 4(-/+), c-myc(-/+), lambda light chain(-), CD3(-), bcl-2(-), p53(-), cytokeratin(-), and placental alkaline phosphatase(-). Lymphomatous elements were found within a CD21(+) follicular dendritic cell network and 70% were positive for Ki-67/MIB-1. Molecular analysis revealed monoclonal immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement and BCL-6 mutations, in the absence of BCL-2 major breakpoint and BCL-2 minor cluster region rearrangements, p53 mutations, and death associated protein kinase gene hypermethylation. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest a different pathogenesis of PPTFL compared with adult follicular lymphoma and might explain its favourable course in spite of aggressive histology.

Paramagnetism-based versus classical constraints: an analysis of the solution structure of Ca Ln calbindin D9k.

The relative importance of paramagnetism-based constraints (i.e. pseudocontact shifts, residual dipolar couplings and nuclear relaxation enhancements) with respect to classical constraints in solution structure determinations of paramagnetic metalloproteins has been addressed. The protein selected for the study is a calcium binding protein, calbindin D9k, in which one of the two calcium ions is substituted with cerium(III). From 1823 NOEs, 191 dihedral angles, 15 hydrogen bonds, 769 pseudocontact shifts, 64 orientational constraints, 26 longitudinal relaxation rates, plus 969 pseudocontact shifts from other lanthanides, a final family with backbone r.m.s.d. from the average of 0.25 A was obtained. Then, several families of structures were generated either by removing subsets of paramagnetism-based constraints or by removing increasing numbers of NOEs. The results show the relative importance of the various paramagnetism-based constraints and their good complementarity with the diamagnetic ones. Although a resolved structure cannot be obtained with paramagnetism-based constraints only, it is shown that a reasonably well resolved backbone fold can be safely obtained by retaining as few as 29 randomly chosen long-range NOEs using the standard version of the program PSEUDYANA.

Myeloperoxidase expression by histiocytes in Kikuchi's and Kikuchi-like lymphadenopathy.

Forty-five examples of Kikuchi's lymphadenitis (KL), 5 Kikuchi-like lupus erythematosus lymphadenopathies, 25 nonnecrotizing lymphadenitidies (5 toxoplasmic, 5 sarcoid-like, 6 dermatopathic, 4 suppurative, 3 tubercular, 2 with sinus histiocytosis), 4 examples of hyaline-vascular Castleman disease (CD), 2 plasmacytoid monocyte tumors (PM-Ts), and 61 accessory cell neoplasms were studied by a panel of antibodies, including the PG-M1 (against a macrophage-restricted CD68 epitope) and a polyclonal anti-myeloperoxidase (MPO). In KL and Kikuchi-like lupus erythematosus lymphadenopathies, 25 to 75% of CD68(+) histiocytes co-expressed MPO. This did not occur in nonnecrotizing lymphadenitidies and accessory cell neoplasms. MPO(+)/CD68(+) elements corresponded to nonphagocytosing mononuclear cells and some crescentic macrophages and phagocytosing histiocytes. Typical PMs were MPO(-)/CD68(+) in all cases, including CD and PM-T. Our observations suggest that in KL and KL-like lymphadenopathies: 1) MPO(+)/CD68(+) blood monocytes might be attracted into tissues because of the lack or paucity of granulocytes and the need of MPO for oxidative processes; 2) PMs are more likely to be involved in the cytotoxic immune reaction than in phagocytic phenomena; 3) the peculiar phenotype of the histiocytic component can be usefully used for the differentiation from malignant lymphoma and PM-T.

Development of NMR instrumentation to achieve excitation of large bandwidths in high-resolution spectra at high field.

A prototype 2.5-mm (1)H high-resolution probe for an 18.8-T (800 MHz) nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer has been designed, together with a dedicated amplifier capable of delivering up to 1 kW of power. This probe permits a 90 degrees pulse length of 2 mus to be achieved at 300 W, corresponding to an excitation bandwidth of +/-125 kHz. Probe performances were tested on samples commonly used for this purpose as well as on protein and paramagnetic model compound samples. It is shown that this probe is useful for a wide range of applications at high magnetic field, especially in the study of systems characterized by very broad and far-shifted resonances and in experiments that require high-power radiofrequency irradiation.

Iliac crest biopsy versus rib segment resection for the detection of bone marrow isolated tumor cells from lung and esophageal cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The presence of isolated tumor cells in the bone marrow affects the prognosis of both esophageal cancer and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Therefore, preoperative assessment of isolated tumor cells may be useful to plan multimodality treatment. Rib segment resection at surgery provides adequate amounts of bone marrow for the detection of isolated tumor cells while bone marrow aspirate from the iliac crest does not. The iliac crest biopsy according to the Jamshidi technique procures a core of tissue apt for histology and not simply for cytology. The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy of iliac crest biopsy versus rib segment resection in the diagnosis of isolated tumor cells in order to obtain a useful preoperative approach. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-one consecutive patients (18 NSCLC, three esophageal cancer) were evaluated. None had chemotherapy prior to evaluation. Bone marrow was obtained preoperatively by iliac crest biopsy using the Jamshidi needle and at surgery by rib segment resection. Positive cytokeratin neoplastic cells were searched by immunohistochemistry on tissue sections from the iliac crest biopsies and by flow cytometry on cell suspensions from the rib segments. RESULTS: Isolated tumor cells were detected in the rib segments of ten patients. In all cases the Jamshidi needle biopsy was not diagnostic. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that, if the diagnosis of bone marrow isolated tumor cells has clinical relevance, the preoperative assessment should be performed by rib segment resection or methods other than iliac crest aspirate or biopsy. Further investigation is needed to determine whether isolated tumor cells have a preferential spread to chest bones other than distant bone sites.

Competitive polymerase chain reaction as a method to detect the amplification of bcr-abl gene of chronic myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The chimeric product of the bcr-abl rearranged gene is critical in the pathogenesis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), yet its role in the progression of the disease remains unclear. There is some evidence that increased bcr-abl expression levels, possibly due to gene amplification, precede the clonal evolution of CML hematopoietic progenitors toward a fully transformed phenotype and might be involved in their resistance to interferon-alpha or tyrosine kinase inhibitors. DESIGN AND METHODS: To quantify the bcr-abl gene both at the genomic and at the transcriptional levels we developed a competitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) strategy. The competitive PCR technique is based upon the co-amplification of the sample template (target) together with increasing amounts of a DNA fragment (competitor) sharing with the target the primer recognition sites, but differing in size. We constructed a competitor for the quantification of both b2a2 and b3a2 alternative splicing forms of the bcr-abl chimera and established the accuracy and reproducibility of our competitive strategy in a clone of the murine 32DG hematopoietic cell line (32D LG7), which bears a stable integration of a single copy of p210 bcr-abl fusion gene. We utilized this technique to follow, over a period of 200 days, the fusion gene copy numbers and transcription rates in several p210 bcr-abl-transduced 32D cell clones, an experimental condition mimicking the evolution of CML myeloid progenitors in vivo. RESULTS: Our results are consistent with p210 bcr-abl overexpression but not gene amplification associated with their clonal evolution. Increased p210 bcr-abl transcription rate is associated with the abrogation of radiation-induced apoptotic cell death, suggesting a role for the chimeric gene expression level in cell life expectancy after a genotoxic insult. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the assessment of gene amplification and expression might serve to improve prognostic classification and follow-up of CML patients.

Locating the metal ion in calcium-binding proteins by using cerium(III) as a probe.

The detection and assignment of NMR spectroscopic signals of carbon atoms from carbonyl and carboxylate groups in the loop hosting the Ce(III) ion was performed for the cerium-substituted calcium-binding protein calbindin D9k. This provided a tool to characterize in solution the first coordination sphere of the metal ion. Due to the well-documented possibility of replacing calcium with metal ions of the Ln(III) series, this approach turns out to be extremely efficient for characterizing in solution the coordination of calcium ions in proteins, independently of the availability of X-ray crystal structures. The present approach completes the structural characterization of lanthanide-substituted calcium-binding proteins, for which the role of long-range constraints arising from hyperfine interaction and self-orientation has already been assessed.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with primary retroperitoneal presentation: clinico-pathologic study of nine cases.

UNLABELLED: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma primarily presenting in the retroperitoneum (PRLBCL) has been the object of occasional reports, all based on dated techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nine PRLBCLs--with clinical information and paraffin blocks available--were reviewed on morphologic, immunohistochemical and molecular grounds. RESULTS: At microscopic examination, the cases were characterized by a diffuse proliferation of large cells (CD20+, CD79a+, CD3-), displaying a wide rim of cytoplasm (clear in seven instances and acidophilic in two), associated with sclerosis and frequent compartmentalization. Phenotypic and molecular analyses showed that: a) three cases were bcl-2+, bcl-6+, HLA-DR+, and CD10+ (1/3), with associated follicular dendritic cell (FDC) component and bcl-2 gene rearrangements; b) four cases were bcl-2, bcl-6, HLA-DR, CD10, FDC, and bcl-2 gene rearrangement negative; c) two cases had border-line characteristics (bcl-2+, bcl-6+, FDC+, HLA-DR-, CD10-, and bcl-2 gene rearrangement-). The first subgroup was thought to be of follicular derivation, as was the third due to bcl-6 and FDC stains. Of the corresponding five patients, three are in complete remission and two died of disease within 12 months. No obvious, normal counterpart was detected in the remaining four tumors: the corresponding patients died of disease in 3-23 months. The problem of similarities between PRLBCL and primary mediastinal LBCL is discussed. CONCLUSIONS: Although the present series is small, our findings suggest that PRLBCL may represent a more heterogeneous group of tumors than previously thought, which merits further phenotypic and molecular studies to broaden the understanding of its histogenesis and behavior.

The pathologist's view point. Part I--indolent lymphomas.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The REAL/WHO classification constitutes a new tool for the better understanding and treatment of malignant lymphomas. The authors focus on the key features of B-cell lymphomas with an indolent behavior, aiming to contribute to the cross-talk between pathologists and clinicians. DATA SOURCES AND METHODS: Each lymphoma entity is analyzed on the basis of the most representative contributions in the literature and the authors' experience gained in studying more than 20,000 lymphoid tumors over a 20-year period. RESULTS: Guidelines for diagnosis and areas of interest for future clinico-pathologic studies are identified and discussed. Within this context, selected data obtained by the application of novel markers are presented. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS: The present know- ledge and organization of malignant lymphomas now make the development of tailored therapies a feasible goal.