The roots of evil: the amazing history of trichinellosis and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichinella</Emphasis> parasites

This review aims to investigate, from a historical point of view, the roots of the Trichinella pathogens and the disease they produce, beginning from the times first recorded in the Bible and continuing until the scientific mysteries of the pathogen were finally unveiled. Our journey sheds light on “strange” epidemics developing before the discovery of the parasite and bearing a clinical similitude to trichinellosis; it follows the controversies that erupted after the nineteenth century discovery of the parasite and the subsequent official outbreaks, and then examines the pioneering methods used for its visualization. Finally, it tries to reveal the possible relationship of trichinellosis with the arts. Furthermore, it seems that the saga of the helminth, “destined to remain with us, both in nature and in the laboratory,” will continue to haunt and fascinate scientists from both developing and developed countries, as they try to answer new questions about the parasite's “evil” nature.     

The PhenX Toolkit: get the most from your measures

The potential for genome-wide association studies to relate phenotypes to specific genetic variation is greatly increased when data can be combined or compared across multiple studies. To facilitate replication and validation across studies, RTI International (Research Triangle Park, North Carolina) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (Bethesda, Maryland) are collaborating on the consensus measures for Phenotypes and eXposures (PhenX) project. The goal of PhenX is to identify 15 high-priority, well-established, and broadly applicable measures for each of 21 research domains. PhenX measures are selected by working groups of domain experts using a consensus process that includes input from the scientific community. The selected measures are then made freely available to the scientific community via the PhenX Toolkit. Thus, the PhenX Toolkit provides the research community with a core set of high-quality, well-established, low-burden measures intended for use in large-scale genomic studies. PhenX measures will have the most impact when included at the experimental design stage. The PhenX Toolkit also includes links to standards and resources in an effort to facilitate data harmonization to legacy data. Broad acceptance and use of PhenX measures will promote cross-study comparisons to increase statistical power for identifying and replicating variants associated with complex diseases and with gene-gene and gene-environment interactions.     

Effect of obesity treatments on eating behavior: psychosocial interventions versus surgical interventions. A systematic review

Objective

(1) To use available research data to estimate the amount of change in eating behavior following obesity treatment; (2) To examine how this change relates to the amount of change in weight loss after treatment and at follow up. A meta-analysis was conducted in September 2009.

Methods

Studies were identified through a computer search of articles in the PubMed and PsychInfo databases. Key terms entered were obesity, treatment, and eating behavior. Effect sizes (Glass d) were calculated according to published procedures.

Results

Eighteen studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria, grouped into two categories: psychosocial interventions and surgical interventions. For psychosocial interventions, we found a medium effect size on eating behavior (d = .73, CI = (.66, .90)), and a low effect size on weight (d = .32, CI = (.28, .36)) at posttreatment and a low effect size for both outcomes at follow-up (for eating behavior d = .47, CI = (.45, .49), for weight d = .37, (CI = .18, .56)). For surgical interventions we found large effect sizes on both outcomes (for eating behavior d = 1.84, CI = (1.26, 2.42); for weight d = 1.40, CI = (1.25, 1.65)).

Conclusions

Surgical interventions have superior results to psychosocial interventions, on both weight loss and eating behavior. Implications for treatment of obesity are discussed.     

Pentosidine in chronic hemodialysis patients: relation with arteriovenous fistula morphology and function

International Urology and Nephrology - It has been suggested that advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are involved in atherogenesis, vascular calcification and remodeling, including neointimal...     

Autologous mesenchymal stem cells applied on the pressure ulcers had produced a surprising outcome in a severe case of neuromyelitis optica

Recent studies provided evidence that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have regenerative potential in cutaneous repair and profound immunomodulatory properties making them a candidate for therapy of neuroimmunologic diseases. Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is an autoimmune, demyelinating central nervous system disorder characterized by a longitudinally extensive spinal cord lesion. A 46-year-old male diagnosed with NMO had relapses with paraplegia despite treatment and developed two stage IV pressure ulcers (PUs) on his legs. The patient consented for local application of autologous MSCs on PUs. MSCs isolated from the patient''s bone marrow aspirate were multiplied in vitro during three passages and embedded in a tridimensional collagen-rich matrix which was applied on the PUs. Eight days after MSCs application the patient showed a progressive healing of PUs and improvement of disability. Two months later the patient was able to walk 20 m with bilateral assistance and one year later he started to walk without assistance. For 76 months the patient had no relapse and no adverse event was reported. The original method of local application of autologous BM-MSCs contributed to healing of PUs. For 6 years the patient was free of relapses and showed an improvement of disability. The association of cutaneous repair, sustained remission of NMO and improvement of disability might be explained by a promotion/optimization of recovery mechanisms in the central nervous system even if alternative hypothesis should be considered. Further studies are needed to assess the safety and efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells in NMO treatment.     

Prospects for microtechnology and nanotechnology in bioengineering of replacement microvessels

CONTEXT: Due to its anticipated curative potential, therapeutic angiogenesis recently became a major preoccupation for the biomedical research community. Most of the related work reported to date employs either biochemical or genetic tools. OBJECTIVE: To identify opportunities for application of the current developments in microtechnology and nanotechnology to the field of therapeutic angiogenesis. DATA SOURCES: Survey of recent English-language literature on microvascular tissue engineering in the context of therapeutic angiogenesis. We include our results regarding the role played by microtopographical cues in the progression of angiogenesis, such as those produced during processing of the extracellular matrix by chronic inflammatory cells. CONCLUSION: While notable accomplishments have been identified in the field of tissue engineering of larger vessels, reports on purposeful assembly of microvascular structures with the ability to be transferred in vivo by implantation are still scarce. Under these circumstances, we suggest the development of a new class of implantable biomedical microdevices, that is, "angiogenesis assist devices" (or "angiochips"), and we indicate some of their conceivable applications.