The Role of Colchicine in Treating Postoperative and Post-catheter Ablation Atrial Fibrillation

Purpose

The goal of this review was to summarize, analyze, and compare trials studying the efficacy of colchicine in the prevention of atrial fibrillation (AF) post-operatively (POAF) and post–catheter ablation. Ongoing studies and current guidelines are also presented and reviewed.

Increased expression of glutamine transporter SNAT2/SLC38A2 promotes glutamine dependence and oxidative stress resistance,and is associated with worse prognosis in triple-negative breast cancer

Background Glutamine (Gln) is an abundant nutrient used by cancer cells. Breast cancers cells and particularly triple-receptor negative breast cancer (TNBC) are reported to be dependent on Gln to produce the energy required for survival and proliferation. Despite intense research on the role of the intracellular Gln pathway, few reports have focussed on Gln transporters in breast cancer and TNBC.Methods The role and localisation of the Gln transporter SLC38A2/SNAT2 in response to Gln deprivation or pharmacological stresses was examined in a panel of breast cancer cell lines. Subsequently, the effect of SLC38A2 knockdown in Gln-sensitive cell lines was analysed. The prognostic value of SLC38A2 in a cohort of breast cancer was determined by immunohistochemistry.Results SLC38A2 was identified as a strongly expressed amino acid transporter in six breast cancer cell lines. We confirmed an autophagic route of degradation for SLC38A2. SLC38A2 knockdown decreased Gln consumption, inhibited cell growth, induced autophagy and led to ROS production in a subgroup of Gln-sensitive cell lines. High expression of SLC38A2 protein was associated with poor breast cancer specific survival in a large cohort of patients (p = 0.004), particularly in TNBC (p = 0.02).Conclusions These results position SLC38A2 as a selective target for inhibiting growth of Gln-dependent breast cancer cell lines.Subject terms: Breast cancer, Cancer metabolism     

Intravascular Ultrasound for Evaluation of Left Gonadal Vein Anatomic Variations During Coil Embolization

We illustrate the intravascular ultrasound (US) findings in the evaluation of left gonadal vein anatomic variations. During a 2‐year period, 4 consecutive patients (mean age, 37 years; range, 28–45 years) with left‐sided varicocele underwent embolization. Intravascular US examinations and retrograde venography were performed to assess varicocele anatomy. Anatomic variants were recorded and categorized. A comparison between intravascular US and fluoroscopic findings was performed. The Fisher exact test was used for statistical analysis (P < .05). Technical success was achieved in all cases. There was a statistically significant difference in the maximum gonadal vein diameter between venography and intravascular US (P = .0087). Intravascular US showed left gonadal vein anatomic variations and better ability in the evaluation of the vein diameter.     

Wearable cardioverter defibrillator: bridging for implantable defibrillators in left ventricular assist device patients

Heart Failure Reviews - There is currently conflicting data available regarding the use of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators&nbsp;(ICD) in left ventricular assist device (LVAD) patients....     

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and weight status in children: the role of parental feeding practices

Abstract

The study examines Parental Feeding Practices (PFP) in relation to adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (MD) and children’s weight status. It’s a cross-sectional study of 402 parents (68.4% mothers), with children aged 2–12 years. Parents completed the Comprehensive Parental Feeding Questionnaire and the Mediterranean Diet Quality Index for children and adolescents (KIDMED), evaluating children’s adherence to the MD. Logistic regression showed that in children aged 2–<6 years, “emotion regulation/food as reward” and “pressure” decrease MD adherence (OR?=?0.186, p?<?0.0001 and OR?=?0.496, p?=?0.004), and “monitoring” decrease excess body weight (OR?=?0.284, p?=?0.009). In older children (6–12 years), “healthy eating guidance” and “monitoring” increase MD adherence (OR?=?3.262, p?=?0.001 and OR?=?3.147, p?<?0.0001), “child control” decreases MD adherence (OR?=?0.587, p?=?0.049), “pressure” decrease excess body weight (OR?=?0.495, p?<?0.0001) and “restriction” increase excess body weight (OR?=?1.784, p?=?0.015). “Healthy eating guidance” and “monitoring” seem to be the best PFP employed, in terms of children’s MD adherence and weight status.