Reproductive fluids, used for the in vitro production of pig embryos, result in healthy offspring and avoid aberrant placental expression of PEG3 and LUM.

BACKGROUND: In vitro embryo production (IVP) and embryo transfer (ET) are two very common assisted reproductive technologies (ART) in human and cattle. However, in pig, the combination of either procedures, or even their use separately, is still considered suboptimal due to the low efficiency of IVP plus the difficulty of performing ET in the long and contorted uterus of the sow. In addition, the potential impact of these two ART on the health of the offspring is unknown. We investigated here if the use of a modified IVP system, with natural reproductive fluids (RF) as supplements to the culture media, combined with a minimally invasive surgery to perform ET, affects the output of the own IVP system as well as the reproductive performance of the mother and placental molecular traits. RESULTS: The blastocyst rates obtained by both in vitro systems, conventional (C-IVP) and modified (RF-IVP), were similar. Pregnancy and farrowing rates were also similar. However, when compared to in vivo control (artificial insemination, AI), litter sizes of both IVP groups were lower, while placental efficiency was higher in AI than in RF-IVP. Gene expression studies revealed aberrant expression levels for PEG3 and LUM in placental tissue for C-IVP group when compared to AI, but not for RF-IVP group. CONCLUSIONS: The use of reproductive fluids as additives for the culture media in pig IVP does not improve reproductive performance of recipient mothers but could mitigate the impact of artificial procedures in the offspring.

Incidencia y mecanismo etiológico de ictus en cirugía cardiaca / Incidence and etiological mechanism of stroke in cardiac surgery

OBJETIVO: Estudiar a los pacientes que tuvieron un ictus en el postoperatorio de cirugía cardiaca, para ver la evolución y determinar los factores que influyen en su pronóstico y tratamiento. MÉTODOS: Establecimos un protocolo para la detección precoz de ictus en los pacientes tras cirugía cardiaca. Recogimos la aparición de ictus y datos clínicos, quirúrgicos y pronósticos; posteriormente realizamos un análisis descriptivo. RESULTADOS: Durante los 15 meses del estudio hubo 16 ictus, un 2,5% de los pacientes operados. Edad media 69 ± 8 años, 63% varones. La incidencia de ictus en pacientes octogenarios fue del 5,1%. Cinco (31%) fueron cirugías urgentes. Por enfermedad cardiaca intervenida: un 7% recibió cirugía mitral, 6,5% cirugía combinada, un 3% cirugía valvular aórtica y un 2,24% cirugía coronaria. La mayoría de los ictus (44%) fueron por embolia, seguida por hipoperfusión (25%). El 69% de los ictus ocurrieron en los 2 primeros días de postoperatorio. La media de la puntuación en la escala NIHSS en el ictus fue 9, se activó código ictus en 10 (62%), y se realizó trombectomía en uno de ellos (14%). La evolución fue favorable en la mayoría, con una escala de Rankin a los 3 meses ≤ 2 en 13 (80%). No hubo muertes hospitalarias entre estos pacientes. CONCLUSIÓN: En nuestro medio, los ictus tras cirugía cardiaca son de pequeño tamaño y tienen una buena evolución a largo plazo. La mayoría ocurren en los primeros 2 días de postoperatorio y su mecanismo es principalmente embólico. La incidencia de ictus en los pacientes octogenarios intervenidos fue del doble que en la población general

OBJECTIVE: We studied patients who had experienced a stroke in the postoperative period of cardiac surgery, aiming to analyse their progression and determine the factors that may influence prognosis and treatment. METHODS: We established a protocol for early detection of stroke after cardiac surgery and collected data on stroke onset and a number of clinical, surgical, and prognostic variables in order to perform a descriptive analysis. RESULTS: Over the 15-month study period we recorded 16 strokes, which represent 2.5% of the patients who underwent cardiac surgery. Mean age in our sample was 69 ± 8 years; 63% of patients were men. The incidence of stroke in patients aged 80 and older was 5.1%. Five patients (31%) underwent emergency surgery. By type of cardiac surgery, 7% of patients underwent mitral valve surgery, 6.5% combined surgery, 3% aortic valve surgery, and 2.24% coronary surgery. Most cases of stroke (44%) were due to embolism, followed by hypoperfusion (25%). Stroke occurred within 2 days of surgery in 69% of cases. The mean NIHSS score in our sample of stroke patients was 9; code stroke was activated in 10 cases (62%); one patient (14%) underwent thrombectomy. Most patients progressed favourably: 13 (80%) scored ≤ 2 on the modified Rankin Scale at 3 months. None of the patients died during the postoperative hospital stay. CONCLUSION: In our setting, strokes occurring after cardiac surgery are usually small and have a good long-term prognosis. Most of them occur within 2 days, and they are mostly embolic in origin. The incidence of stroke in patients aged 80 and older and undergoing cardiac surgery is twice as high as that of the general population

Incidence and etiological mechanism of stroke in cardiac surgery. / Incidencia y mecanismo etiológico de ictus en cirugía cardiaca.

OBJECTIVE: We studied patients who had experienced a stroke in the postoperative period of cardiac surgery, aiming to analyse their progression and determine the factors that may influence prognosis and treatment. METHODS: We established a protocol for early detection of stroke after cardiac surgery and collected data on stroke onset and a number of clinical, surgical, and prognostic variables in order to perform a descriptive analysis. RESULTS: Over the 15-month study period we recorded 16 strokes, which represent 2.5% of the patients who underwent cardiac surgery. Mean age in our sample was 69 ± 8 years; 63% of patients were men. The incidence of stroke in patients aged 80 and older was 5.1%. Five patients (31%) underwent emergency surgery. By type of cardiac surgery, 7% of patients underwent mitral valve surgery, 6.5% combined surgery, 3% aortic valve surgery, and 2.24% coronary surgery. Most cases of stroke (44%) were due to embolism, followed by hypoperfusion (25%). Stroke occurred within 2 days of surgery in 69% of cases. The mean NIHSS score in our sample of stroke patients was 9; code stroke was activated in 10 cases (62%); one patient (14%) underwent thrombectomy. Most patients progressed favourably: 13 (80%) scored≤2 on the modified Rankin Scale at 3 months. None of the patients died during the postoperative hospital stay. CONCLUSION: In our setting, strokes occurring after cardiac surgery are usually small and have a good long-term prognosis. Most of them occur within 2 days, and they are mostly embolic in origin. The incidence of stroke in patients aged 80 and older and undergoing cardiac surgery is twice as high as that of the general population.

Progress towards human primordial germ cell specification in vitro.

Primordial germ cells (PGCs) have long been considered the link between one generation and the next. PGC specification begins in the early embryo as a result of a highly orchestrated combination of transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms. Understanding the molecular events that lead to proper PGC development will facilitate the development of new treatments for human infertility as well as species conservation. This article describes the latest, most relevant findings about the mechanisms of PGC formation, emphasizing human PGC. It also discusses our own laboratory's progress in using transdifferentiation protocols to derive human PGCs (hPGCs). Our preliminary results arose from our pursuit of a sequential hPGC induction strategy that starts with the repression of lineage-specific factors in the somatic cell, followed by the reactivation of germ cell-related genes using specific master regulators, which can indeed reactivate germ cell-specific genes in somatic cells. While it is still premature to assume that fully functional human gametes can be obtained in a dish, our results, together with those recently published by others, provide strong evidence that generating their precursors, PGCs, is within reach.

Involvement of the -420C>G RETN polymorphism in myocardial fibrosis in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

AIMS: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is characterized by left ventricular hypertrophy and fibrosis. HCM is an autosomal-dominant disease caused by more than 400 mutations in sarcomeric genes. Changes in nonsarcomeric genes contribute to its phenotypic heterogeneity. Cardiac fibrosis can be studied using late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. We evaluated the potential role of two polymorphisms in nonsarcomeric genes on interstitial fibrosis in HCM. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two polymorphisms in nonsarcomeric genes [ACE (deletion of 287 bp in the 16th intron) and RETN (-420C>G)] were analysed in 146 HCM patients. Cardiac fibrosis was assessed using LGE to determine the number of affected segments. RESULTS: Allelic frequencies in ACE and RETN polymorphisms were consistent with the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (both P > 0.05). We found that the presence of the polymorphic allele in the -420C>G RETN polymorphism was independently associated with the number of affected segments of LGE (P = 0.038). Increased circulating resistin concentration, measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, was associated with a higher degree of cardiac fibrosis. Myocardial fibrosis, assessed by Masson's trichrome staining, was associated with the -420C>G RETN polymorphism in 46 tissue samples obtained by septal myectomy (P = 0.044). CONCLUSIONS: The -420C>G RETN polymorphism was independently associated with the degree of cardiac fibrosis, assessed by LGE, in patients with HCM. In addition, there was an association between the polymorphism and the circulating resistin levels as well as with myocardial fibrosis in tissues obtained by myectomy. Investigating the physiological implication of the RETN polymorphism in HCM in combination with the use of imaging technologies might help to establish the severity of disease in patients with HCM.

Analgesia paravertebral continua frente a analgesia intravenosa en cirugía cardiaca mínimamente invasiva por minitoracotomía / Continuous paravertebral analgesia versus intravenous analgesia in minimally invasive cardiac surgery by mini-thoracotomy

Objetivos. La cirugía cardiaca de acceso mínimo mediante minitoracotomía tiene como objetivo principal una reincorporación precoz a la actividad diaria. Para ello, el control del dolor postoperatorio es fundamental. Realizamos un estudio para valorar la calidad de la analgesia postoperatoria tras cirugía cardiaca por minitoracotomía, según la técnica analgésica. Material y métodos. Estudio descriptivo observacional retrospectivo. Se incluyeron los pacientes intervenidos de cirugía cardiaca de acceso mínimo en nuestro centro, desde el año 2009 hasta 2011. Los pacientes se dividieron en 2 grupos dependiendo del tipo de analgesia recibida: analgesia por catéter paravertebral, mediante la infusión de anestésicos locales (grupo BPV), y analgesia intravenosa con opiáceos (grupo AIO). Los objetivos del estudio fueron la comparación de la calidad analgésica y las complicaciones asociadas a la técnica analgésica, tiempo de extubación, complicaciones posquirúrgicas y tiempos de estancia hospitalaria, entre ambas técnicas. Resultados. Treinta y siete pacientes fueron intervenidos mediante cirugía cardiaca de acceso mínimo tipo «Heart-Port» modificado. Quince pacientes recibieron analgesia mediante bloqueo paravertebral y 22 mediante analgesia con opiáceos. Los datos se muestran como media y desviación estándar (DE). Se apreció un tiempo de extubación traqueal inferior a 4h en el 60% de los pacientes en el grupo BPV, frente al 22% del grupo AIO (p<0,05). La estancia en la UCI para el grupo BPV fue de 1,2 (0,7) días frente a 2,2 (0,7) días del grupo AIO (p<0,05). La estancia hospitalaria fue de 4,8 (1,2) días para el grupo PVB y de 5,6 (2,8) días para el grupo AIO (p>0,05). No se observaron complicaciones asociadas al bloqueo paravertebral continuo. Discusión. La analgesia mediante bloqueo paravertebral es una técnica aceptablemente segura en cirugía cardiaca por toracotomía, que permite una extubación precoz con un control óptimo del dolor cuando se compara con analgesia iv con opiáceos(AU)

Objectives. Minimal access cardiac surgery via minithoracotomy aims faster recovery and shorter hospital length of stay. Pain control is essential in order to achieve this goal. A study was conducted to assess the quality of post-operative analgesia and complications related to the analgesia techniques after cardiac surgery by minithoracotomy. Material and methods. A descriptive, observational and retrospective study was conducted on the patients subjected to minimal access cardiac surgery in our centre between the years 2009 to 2011. The patients were divided into two groups according to the type of analgesia received: analgesia through a paravertebral catheter, with an infusion of local anaesthetics (PVB group), and intravenous analgesia with opioids (IOA group). The aim of the study was to compare the analgesic quality and the complications associated to the analgesic technique, extubation time, post-surgical complications, and length of hospital stay between both techniques. Results. A total of 37 patients underwent to a modified minimally invasive Heart-Port access cardiac surgery. Fifteen patients received analgesia through a paravertebral block and the other 22 IV analgesia with opioids. Data are shown as means and standard deviation (SD). Mean tracheal extubation time less than 4hours was observed in 60% of the patients in the PVB group, compared to 22% in the IOA group (P<.05). Length of stay in ICU for the PVB group was 1.2 (0.7) days compared to 2.2 (0.7) days in the IOA group (P<.05). Mean hospital stay was 4.8 (1.2) days for the PVB group, and 5.6 (2.8) for the IOA group (P>.05. No complications associated to the continuous paravertebral block were observed. Discussion. PVB analgesia is an acceptable safe technique in cardiac surgery via thoracotomy which enables early extubation with optimal pain control when compared with IV analgesia with opioids(AU)

[Continuous paravertebral analgesia versus intravenous analgesia in minimally invasive cardiac surgery by mini-thoracotomy]. / Analgesia paravertebral continua frente a analgesia intravenosa en cirugía cardiaca mínimamente invasiva por minitoracotomía.

OBJECTIVES: Minimal access cardiac surgery via minithoracotomy aims faster recovery and shorter hospital length of stay. Pain control is essential in order to achieve this goal. A study was conducted to assess the quality of post-operative analgesia and complications related to the analgesia techniques after cardiac surgery by minithoracotomy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A descriptive, observational and retrospective study was conducted on the patients subjected to minimal access cardiac surgery in our centre between the years 2009 to 2011. The patients were divided into two groups according to the type of analgesia received: analgesia through a paravertebral catheter, with an infusion of local anaesthetics (PVB group), and intravenous analgesia with opioids (IOA group). The aim of the study was to compare the analgesic quality and the complications associated to the analgesic technique, extubation time, post-surgical complications, and length of hospital stay between both techniques. RESULTS: A total of 37 patients underwent to a modified minimally invasive Heart-Port access cardiac surgery. Fifteen patients received analgesia through a paravertebral block and the other 22 IV analgesia with opioids. Data are shown as means and standard deviation (SD). Mean tracheal extubation time less than 4 hours was observed in 60% of the patients in the PVB group, compared to 22% in the IOA group (P<.05). Length of stay in ICU for the PVB group was 1.2 (0.7) days compared to 2.2 (0.7) days in the IOA group (P<.05). Mean hospital stay was 4.8 (1.2) days for the PVB group, and 5.6 (2.8) for the IOA group (P>.05. No complications associated to the continuous paravertebral block were observed. DISCUSSION: PVB analgesia is an acceptable safe technique in cardiac surgery via thoracotomy which enables early extubation with optimal pain control when compared with IV analgesia with opioids.

[Employment of St. Jude "silzone" valve in the surgical treatment of early prosthetic valve endocarditis: a preliminary case report and review of the literature]. / Empleo de la válvula St. Jude "Silzone" en el tratamiento quirúrgico de la endocarditis valvular protésica temprana: caso clínico preliminar y revisión de la bibliografía.

Prosthetic valve endocarditis remains as one of the most life-threatening complication of valve replacement surgery. Homografts are the valve of choice with a lower early risk of endocarditis than other valve substitutes, however they are not always available. Recently a new prosthesis has been introduced with a silver-coated sewing cuff (St. Jude Medical with Silzone coating). Silver is an antimicrobial agent that has been proven to reduce bacterial colonization. We present the case of a 48-year-old man with an early prosthetic valve endocarditis which affected an aortic stentless prosthesis. He was successfully treated with a silver-coated prosthesis. Indications for surgery and the use of this prosthesis as a valuable option in this disease entity are discussed. Although the present patient is an isolated case, the interest of this article is the encouraging result obtained with this new prosthesis for this serious complication. Moreover, the clinical experience is reduced with only a few reports in the literature.