Optimisation of the biological pretreatment of wheat straw with white-rot fungi for ethanol production.

The biological pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass for the production of bioethanol is an environmentally friendly alternative to the most frequently used process, steam explosion (SE). However, this pretreatment can still not be industrially implemented due to long incubation times. The main objective of this work was to test the viability of and optimise the biological pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass, which uses ligninolytic fungi (Pleurotus eryngii and Irpex lacteus) in a solid-state fermentation of sterilised wheat straw complemented with a mild alkali treatment. In this study, the most important parameters of the mechanical and thermal substrate conditioning processes and the most important parameters of the fungal fermentation process were optimised to improve sugar recovery. The largest digestibilities were achieved with fermentation with I. lacteus under optimised conditions, under which cellulose and hemicellulose digestibility increased after 21 days of pretreatment from 16 to 100 % and 12 to 87 %, respectively. The maximum glucose yield (84 %) of cellulose available in raw material was obtained after only 14 days of pretreatment with an overall ethanol yield of 74 % of the theoretical value, which is similar to that reached with SE.

Overwhelming support among urban Irish COPD patients for lung cancer screening by low-dose CT scan.

PURPOSE: The National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) has renewed interest in low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening for lung cancer. Smokers may be less receptive toward LDCT screening, however, compared with never smokers. The views of patients with COPD, a particularly high-risk group, toward LDCT screening for lung cancer are currently unknown. We therefore evaluated attitudes of patients with COPD toward LDCT screening for lung cancer. METHODS: Interviews with Irish patients with COPD who satisfied NLST eligibility criteria were conducted in clinical settings using a questionnaire based on that of a comparable study of U.S. current/former smokers of unspecified disease status. RESULTS: A total of 142 subjects had a mean age of 65.09 ± 6.07 years (46.4 % were male, mean pack years 54.5 ± 33.3, mean FEV1 59.16 ± 23 %); 97.8 % had an identifiable usual source of healthcare. Compared with data from a U.S. cohort of current/former smokers, a higher proportion of Irish COPD smokers: believed that they were at risk for lung cancer (63.6 vs. 15.7 %); believed that early detection improved chances of survival (90 vs. 51.2 ); were willing to consider LDCT screening (97.9 vs. 78.6 %); were willing to pay for a LDCT scan (68.6 vs. 36.2 %); and were willing to accept treatment recommendations arising (95.7 vs. 56.2 %; p < 0.0001 for all comparisons). CONCLUSIONS: Urban Irish smokers with COPD who would be eligible for LDCT screening are almost universally in favor of being screened and treated for screening-detected lung cancers. This readily accessible high-risk population should be actively targeted in future screening programs.

Spontaneous pneumothorax management.

Guidelines for the management of spontaneous pneumothorax were published by the British Thoracic Society (BTS) in 2003. The aim of our study was to assess compliance with the BTS guidelines. A retrospective review was performed on all spontaneous pneumothoraces admitted to our hospital between June 2006 and December 2007. There were 29 pneumothoraces during the study period, 20 of which were primary spontaneous pneumothoraces (PSPs). All 15 (100%) large PSPs had an intercostal drain (ICD) inserted with a mean calibre of 20Fr, however only 1 of the 15 (6.7%) had a prior attempt at aspiration. High flow oxygen was used in 3/20 (15%) PSPs and 1/9 (11%) secondary spontaneous pneumothoraces (SSPs). 5/6 (83%) of large SSPs had ICDs placed with a mean calibre of 23.3Fr. Compliance with BTS guidelines was suboptimal. In particular, simple aspiration was underutilised with an over-reliance on unnecessary tube thoracostomy. Moreover, the calibre of intercostal drains used was in excess of BTS recommendations. This study highlights the need to formally adopt BTS guidelines, thereby establishing a more standardised practice which should improve management of spontaneous pneumothoraces.

[Unusual location of a bronchogenic cyst simulating a pancreatic tumor]. / Quiste broncogénico de localización excepcional que simula una tumoración pancreática.

We report a 37-year woman with a history of acute cholangitis in whom a bronchogenic cyst was misdiagnosed as a pancreatic neoplasm on the basis of the clinical and radiological findings. Infradiaphragmatic bronchogenic cysts are rare and can sometimes mimic a pancreatic carcinoma.

Quiste broncogénico de localización excepcional que simula una tumoración pancreática / Unusual location of a bronchogenic cyst simulating a pancreatic tumor

Se presenta el caso de una paciente de 37 años, con antecedentes de colangitis aguda y a la que se diagnosticó erróneamente un quiste broncogénico como neoplasia pancreática, en virtud de los datos clínicos y radiológicos. La localización infradiafragmática del quiste broncogénico es rara y, en ocasiones, puede simular un carcinoma pancreático (AU)

We report a 37-year woman with a history of acute cholangitis in whom a bronchogenic cyst was misdiagnosed as a pancreatic neoplasm on the basis of the clinical and radiological findings. Infradiaphragmatic bronchogenic cysts are rare and can sometimes mimic a pancreatic carcinoma (AU)