Treatment of patients with genotype 3 chronic hepatitis C--current and future therapies

Genotype 3 is a common type of HCV infection, and standard therapy using pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) is quite effective in these patients. While a short course of 16 weeks may result in comparable end of therapy responses, relapse rates are often high. A 24-week course is therefore preferable, and is expected to result in sustained virological response (SVR) rates of more than 70%. The 24-week course is especially recommended in the presence of steatosis (often associated with Genotype 3 infection), fibrosis stage two or more, high BMI and high viral load. In patients who do not achieve a rapid viral response (RVR) with combination therapy, an extended course up to 48 weeks should be considered. While not as definite as for genotype 1 patients, the presence of the CC variant of IL28b could help in the initial prognosis and the need for additional treatment, if an RVR is not achieved. The role of directly acting antiviral agents (DAA) has not been fully evaluated in treatment na?ve, non-responders and relapsers in genotype 3 patients. Initial results with the cyclophilin inhibitor Debio-025 are quite encouraging. There is an urgent need for large clinical trials using DAA and host modulators in patients with G3 infection.     

Ten-year trends in the incidence,clinical profile and outcomes of acute-onset endophthalmitis following combined pars plana vitrectomy and sutureless,glueless and flapless scleral fixation of intraocular lenses

International Ophthalmology - To evaluate the frequency and outcomes of acute-onset endophthalmitis following combined pars plana vitrectomy and scleral fixation of intraocular lens. We evaluated...     

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles for the control of mosquito vectors of malaria, filariasis, and dengue

A biological method was used to synthesize stable silver nanoparticles that were tested as mosquito larvicides against Aedes aegypti, Anopheles stephensi, and Culex quinquefasciatus. Annona squamosa leaf broth (5%) reduced aqueous 1?mM AgNO? to stable silver nanoparticles with an average size of 450?nm. The structure and percentage of synthesized nanoparticles was characterized by using ultraviolet spectrophotometry, X-Ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy methods. The median lethal concentrations (LC??) of silver nanoparticles that killed fourth instars of Ae. aegypti, Cx. quinquefasciatus, and An. stephensi were 0.30, 0.41, and 2.12 ppm, respectively. Adult longevity (days) in male and female mosquitoes exposed as larvae to 0.1 ppm silver nanoparticles was reduced by ~30% (p<0.05), whereas the number of eggs laid by females exposed as larvae to 0.1 ppm silver nanoparticles decreased by 36% (p<0.05).     

Pediatric Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease-Mineral Bone Disorder

Chronic kidney disease-mineral bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is a systemic disorder of mineral and bone metabolism that has deleterious consequences on skeletal and cardiovascular health. Nowhere is the morbidity of this disorder more telling than in children. During childhood and adolescence, CKD-MBD may result in poor growth and skeletal deformities, while the mineral dysregulation can manifest in cardiovascular disease in early adulthood, a development that places the patients at high risk for severe morbidity and early mortality. Unfortunately, management of CKD-MBD has been less than satisfactory in children despite recent advances and is limited by the lack of evidence-based treatment guidelines. More positive are ongoing research efforts, such as the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children and the Cardiovascular Comorbidity in Children with CKD (4C) studies that are currently providing important insights which should help better elucidate the pathogenesis and progression of mineral dysregulation and its clinical impact in children. Data from these studies and others will undoubtedly also help formulate clinical trials and the generation of evidence-based therapeutic options designed to provide more effective management of CKD-MBD in the pediatric population.