Anti-HBc IgG Responses Occurring at the Early Phase of Infection Correlate Negatively with HBV Replication in a Mouse Model

Anti-HBc IgG is usually recognized as a diagnostic marker of hepatitis B, while the functional role anti-HBc IgG in HBV infection has not been fully elucidated. In this study, we firstly investigated the relationship between the anti-HBc IgG responses and the replication of HBV using AAV8-1.3HBV infected C57BL/6N mice. Our data showed that the anti-HBc IgG responses at the early phase of infection correlated negatively with the concentrations of circulating HBsAg and HBV DNA at both the early and chronic phases of infection. This observation was confirmed by an independent experiment using AAV8-1.3HBV infected C57BL/6J mice. Furthermore, to comprehend the potential causal relationship between the anti-HBc IgG responses and HBV infection, mice were treated with an anti-HBc monoclonal antibody at three days post AAV8-1.3HBV infection. Our data showed that the anti-HBc mAb significantly suppressed the fold increase of circulating HBsAg level, and the protective effect was not affected by NK cell depletion. Collectively, our study demonstrated that anti-HBc antibodies occurring at the early phase of HBV infection may contribute to the constraint of the virus replication, which might be developed as an immunotherapy for hepatitis B.     

Isolation and Characterization of Lytic Pseudomonas aeruginosa Bacteriophages Isolated from Sewage Samples from Tunisia

Bacteriophages could be a useful adjunct to antibiotics for the treatment of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. In this study, lytic P. aeruginosa myoviruses PsCh, PsIn, Ps25, and Ps12on-D were isolated from Tunisian sewage samples. Phage Ps12on-D displayed an adsorption time of ~10 min, a short latency period (~10 min), and a large burst size (~115 PFU per infected cell) under standard growth conditions. All phages were active at broad temperature (4 °C to 50 °C) and pH (3.0 to 11.0) ranges and were able to lyse a wide variety of P. aeruginosa strains isolated from clinical and environmental samples worldwide. Illumina sequencing revealed double-stranded DNA genomes ranging from 87,887 and 92,710 bp with high sequence identity to Pseudomonas phage PAK_P1. All four phages based on sequence analysis were assigned to the Pakpunavirus genus. The presented characterization and preclinical assessment are part of an effort to establish phage therapy treatment as an alternative strategy for the management of multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa infections in Tunisia.     

Fermeture percutanée des communications interventriculaires congénitales par la prothèse Amplatzer Duct OccluderII: données préliminaire d’une étude Tunisienne monocentrique

Introduction . Percutaneous closure of congenital ventricular septal defects (VSDs) represents a promising alternative to surgery with lower rate of complications and shorter hospital stay. Its main limitation is the choice of the appropriate device for each type of defect. Aim. To report the experience of the service of cardiology (Sahloul hospital, Sousse, Tunisia) in percutaneous closure of congenital VSDs with Amplatzer Duct Occluder II (ADOII). Methods. This was a retrospective, monocentric study, conducted from January 2013 to December 2017. The study included patients treated by percutaneous closure of congenital VSDs with the ADOII device. Results. Twelve patients (6 boys; 6 girls) were included. The mean±SD of patients’ age and weight were 65±41 months and 23±10 kg, respectively. VSDs were peri-membranous (n=9) and muscular (n=3), and defects were restrictive (n=11) and non-restrictive (n=1). The mean (minimum-maximum) size of VSDs was 4.72 (3-6) mm. Eleven ADOII prostheses were successfully implanted. One failure procedure was noted with migration of the device into the pulmonary artery. A second child with perimembranous defect developed transient atrioventricular block. No deaths occurred. Conclusion. The present early experience shows that percutaneous closure with ADOII device of perimembranous and trabecular VSDs is safe and effective.     

Prognostic Analysis of Spinal Metastasis Secondary to Lung Cancer after Surgeries: A Unicentric,Large‐Cohort,Retrospective Study

Purpose Spinal metastases of lung cancer (SMLC) usually have high degree of malignancy and require surgical treatment. However, there are several controversies about the efficacy of surgery. This study aimed to investigate factors predicting prognosis of SMLC after surgery‐based comprehensive treatment.MethodsA cohort of 112 cases of SMLC who underwent surgical treatment between 2009 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed. The surgical strategies included total en‐bloc spondylectomy, debulking surgery, palliative decompression, and vertebral augmentation procedures. The patients were regularly followed‐up. Survival analysis was performed, as well as analysis of the patients'' neurological recovery, pain relief, and improvement of Karnosky performance score (KPS). Cox regression was used to analyze influencing factors of survival time, and Kaplan–Meier method was performed in survival analysis.ResultsThe cohort included 63 males and 49 females, with an average age of 60.6 ± 10.6 years. Median survival time was 16 months. A total of 86.7% of paralysis patients'' neurological function recovered and 83.9% of patients with low KPS score (10–40) improved. Surgical method was significantly correlated with improvement of neurological function (p < 0.001) and KPS (p < 0.001). The mean bleeding volume was 502 ml and operative time was 170 min. The survival rates at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months were 92.0%, 80.4%, 63.4%, 63.4%, and 22.6%, respectively. Postoperative Frankel grade (p < 0.001), postoperative KPS score (p = 0.001), and application of molecular targeted drugs (p < 0.001) were significantly correlated with survival time in univariate analysis, while application of molecular targeted drugs was an independent predictor for a longer survival by a multivariate analysis.ConclusionSurgery‐based comprehensive treatment brought a fair outcome, with elongated survival time. Surgery can significantly improve patients'' neurological function and physical performance status. Adjuvant targeted therapy is an independent positive factor for patients'' survival.     

CT血管造影在评价冠状动脉支架术后支架内再狭窄中的价值

目的研究CT血管造影(CTA)在评价冠状动脉支架术后支架内再狭窄中的应用价值。方法40例冠状动脉支架术后患者(共82枚支架),分别接受16排CTA和常规冠状动脉造影(CAG)检查,并由两位有经验的医师独立对冠状动脉支架开通或再狭窄进行评估。结果CTA方法能评价所有82枚支架中的68枚(83%),其中支架直径≥3.0 mm者53枚(78%),支架壁厚度<140μm者51枚(75%);CAG显示有7枚支架发生再狭窄,CTA发现其中5枚;CAG和CTA对其余61枚支架均显示无再狭窄。在CTA不可评价的14枚支架中,支架直径<3.0 mm者13枚(93%),支架壁厚度≥140μm者13枚(93%)。CTA对冠状动脉支架术后再狭窄诊断的敏感性、特异性、阳性预测值和阴性预测值分别为71%、100%、97%和100%。结论16排CTA能较准确地评价冠状动脉支架术后支架内再狭窄的发生,尤其对大直径、薄金属壁支架的评估价值较高。     

A case study about the use of the prospective strategy in the scenarization of a pedagogical workshop

IntroductionPedagogical workshop planning is challenging especially when we aim to promote a reflective practice of the tutees. This practice has been widely discussed in the literature without a real consensus. Some authors reported oral exercises or anecdotes, other described writings or even storytelling. The aim of the authors was to describe the different steps performed by the tutors and to assess the tutees’ satisfaction.Material and methodsThis was a pilot study dealing with the use of the prospective strategy principles in order to plan a pedagogical workshop. Included participants were early academic teacher trainees.ResultsThe authors illustrated how they planned a pedagogical workshop using the prospective strategy and highlighted the satisfaction of the tutees.ConclusionProspective strategy is mainly used in economic field in order to change the future of the companies by acting on different intervening factors. Associating prospective strategy to pedagogical principles hasn’t been reported in the medical literature and seems to be available in order to induce reflective practice.     

肿瘤学实践技能改善活动:提高肿瘤学医师的诊疗水平

美国临床肿瘤学会(American Society of Clinical Oncology,ASCO)是全球领先的肿瘤专业学术组织,学会宗旨是预防癌症及改善癌症诊疗服务.肿瘤学实践技能改善活动(Quality Oncology Practice Initiative,QOPI)始于2002年,是在ASCO健康服务委员会的指导下,以临床实践为基础的医疗质量改善活动,其目标是帮助肿瘤科医师通过自我检查和改善,促进其诊疗水平的提高.