Correlation between E-cadherin and CD44 adhesion molecules expression and cervical lymph node metastasis in oral tongue SCC: Predictive significance or not

The aim of this article was to evaluate the expression of E-cadherin and CD44 adhesion molecule in oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) since inappropriate expression of adhesion molecules raises the metastatic ability of the tumor cells.Biopsy specimens from 92 patients with tongue SCC were examined for the expression of E-cadherin and CD44 by immunohistochemistry. The relationship of immunoreactivity with tumor stage and cervical lymph node metastasis was then analyzed.Sixty-one patients (66.3%) had reduced or negative staining for CD44. Weak or absent staining for E-cadherin was seen in 14 patients (15.21%). Cervical lymph node metastasis is associated with decreased or negative staining for CD44, but no association was found between E-cadherin immunoreactivity and nodal metastasis.Our study reveals that reduced expression of CD44 could be an indicator of high invasiveness of tumor by increasing cervical lymph node metastasis.     

The changing epidemiology of extended spectrum β-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae

In the last two decades, Klebsiella pneumoniae demonstrated some characteristics of acquisition of plasmids coding extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESBL). The review data showed an increase in worldwide prevalence of ESBL and a temporal shift in the prevalence of ESBL types in K.?pneumoniae during this last decade. CTX-M-15 seems to be the predominant ESBL type in K.?pneumoniae in some parts of the world. The dissemination of several nosocomial CTX-M-15-producing K.?pneumoniae clones was reported unlike the worldwide dissemination of a single virulent ST131 CTX-M-15 producing Escherichia coli clone. The diversity of plasmids carrying the bla(CTX-M-15) gene in K.?pneumoniae suggested the frequent transfer of this gene between different replicons. The acquisition of the bla(CTX-M-15) gene by K.?pneumoniae was probably occurred via horizontal transfer from E.?coli.     

TP53 gene expression in HPV-positive oral tongue SCC and its correlation with nodal metastasis

In this study, we investigated the prevalence of human papilloma virus (HPV) infection and TP53 expression in patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the tongue and, subsequently, its significance in cervical lymph node metastases and tumor differentiation. Sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue blocks from 94 histologically confirmed tongue SCC cases were investigated in this study. Immunohistochemistry was used to study TP53 expression, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed for the detection of high risk HPV types (16 and 18). The frequency of HPV-16 and HPV-18 infection was 10.6% and 16%, respectively. Overexpression of TP53 was observed in 70.2% of patients. Young patients (aged below 45 years) comprised 20% of all patients. There was no significant association between TP53, HPV-16, or HPV 18 presence and higher stages of the tumor, tumor differentiation, or presence of nodal metastasis. Although an association between head and neck SCC and HPV infection is being recognized and reported, our data implicate that HPV infection or TP53 expression does not play a significant role in oral tongue SCC pathogenesis, differentiation, or metastasis, as seen in our patients.     

Obesity Diagnosis and Care Practices in the Veterans Health Administration

BACKGROUND  

In response to dramatic increases in obesity prevalence, clinical guidelines urge health care providers to prevent and treat obesity more aggressively.     

Evidence for intestinal heterogenic expression of di-tripeptides transporter PepT1 during experimental cryptosporidiosis in neonatal rats

Cryptosporidium parvum is a protozoan parasite that causes intestinal malabsorptive syndrome and malnutrition. Considering the importance of di-tripeptide absorption for nutritional status, we previously investigated the regulation of PepT1 transporter in the suckling rat model of acute cryptosporidiosis and showed that PepT1 protein expression and activity were not modified in the parasitized intestine. Here we used confocal microscopy performed on intestinal villi to determine the subcellular localization of PepT1 together with f-actin and parasites. For this purpose, confocal microscopy using vibratome thick sections was developed on the distal small intestine, the preferential site of parasite implantation. Results showed major heterogeneity of apical PepT1 expression among enterocytes, which did not correlate with actin staining or parasite implantation. These results underscore the importance of considering the effect of C. parvum at the cellular scale and not only in the entire epithelium.     

High and Low Stimulus-Driven Conflict Engage Segregated Brain Networks,Not Quantitatively Different Resources

Task-irrelevant information is constantly present in our environment and may interfere with the processing of the information necessary to achieve goal-directed behavior. While task goals determine which information must be suppressed, the demand for inhibitory control depends on the strength of the interference induced by incoming, task-irrelevant information. Whether the same or distinct inhibitory processes are engaged to suppress various degrees of interference from task-irrelevant information remains largely unresolved. We investigated this question by manipulating the strength of the conflict induced by automatic word reading in a classical color Stroop task. High conflict was induced by presenting words in participant’s native language and low conflict by presenting words in a less familiar language. Behavioral performance and electrical neuroimaging analyses of event-related potentials to the words were analyzed following a two-by-two within-subject design with factors conflict strength (high; low) and color word/word ink congruency (congruent; incongruent). Behaviorally, we observed a significant conflict strength × congruency driven by a smaller Stroop effect in the low- than high conflict condition. Electrophysiologically, we observed a significant conflict strength × congruency interaction at the topographic level during the period of the N450 components, indicative of the engagement of distinct configurations of brain networks. No such interaction was found at the level of response strength. Electrical sources analyses localized the topographic effect within the anterior cingulate cortex and basal ganglia, left middle frontal and occipital areas. We interpret our results in terms of qualitatively distinct executive mechanisms for reactive inhibitory control in conditions of high versus low stimulus-driven conflict.     

Evaluation of early atherosclerotic findings in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Background

Endometriosis Health Profile (EHP-5) is a valid instrument to measure health-related quality of life in endometriosis. This study was conducted to culturally adapt and validate the EHP-5 in Iran.

Methods

Using a standard "forward-backward' translation procedure, the English language version of the questionnaire was translated into Persian (Iranian language). Then a sample of 199 women aged 18-50 years completed the questionnaire. To test reliability the internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Validity was evaluated using known groups comparison.

Results

The mean age of respondents was 31.4 (SD = 5.4) years. Reliability analysis showed satisfactory result (Cronbach's alpha coefficient = 0.71). The questionnaire discriminated well between sub-groups of women differing in infertility and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) in the expected direction.

Conclusion

This preliminary validation study of the Iranian version of the EHP-5 proved that it is an acceptable, reliable and valid measure of quality of life in endometriosis patients.